No matter how rigorous you are with daily sunscreen application (yes, daily folks) or if your preference for a hit of beachy colour comes from a bottle, chances are that about now, the shade of your regular base is looking a touch off.
But rather than requiring the purchase of a completely new one, mixing in a few drops of colour-adapting pigments can deepen the tone, meaning the perfect match every time.
Some of these smart, multi-tasking formulas are intensive colour adaptors while others are liquid bronzers. But all are ideal for blending into foundation, tinted moisturiser, BB or CC creams and even colourless moisturiser to give a customised result. “I always suggest warming up rather than trying to lighten a foundation, adding red and/or yellow pigments to create a tanned appearance,” advises leading make-up artist Kenneth Soh who creates red carpet looks for beauties including Kerry Washington, Naomi Harris and Daisy Ridley.
“Work by eye and always start with less. Try half a drop of the darker colour mixed with one or two pumps of your base, bearing in mind that foundation has the most pigment to begin with. So for example, as tinted moisturisers are sheer, you might have to add a little extra of the deeper shade to create more of a result.”
As well as choosing the right pigment for your skin tone, texture plays a part too. Opt for those that are on the matte side as shimmery finishes can make the whole face look overwhelmingly sparkly and are so are best left for only adding bronzed highlights. Mixing technique is important too. “I start with the base product on the back of my hand,” explains Soh.
“Use a cotton bud to slowly add one drop of pigment adapter, then do a streak test along the jawline and keep going until you achieve the desired shade. If you’ve gone too dark, scrape half of what’s on your hand away and add a squirt more base to take it down again. The final quantity of mixture should be around the same amount of base you use regularly.”
Once you’ve whipped up the perfect complement to your skin tone, application is easy but don’t be haphazard. “Using your hands is the best way of achieving a sheer, subtle finish,” adds Soh. “Dot the mixed product all over the face and with clean fingers, blend like you’re working in a moisturiser. Then using the palms, gently press and roll into the face to create a seamless finish. Don’t forget to work down into the neck to keep it looking natural and have a clean beauty blender, sponge or buffing brush at hand to blend in or lift off colour if you’ve gone too dark or used too much.”
Try these versatile adaptors to create a customised colour match with your favoured base or moisturiser…
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Lumene Invisible Illumination Liquid Bronzer
With a warm undertone – choose from Summer Glow or darker Deep Glow – and rich pigment, a little of this satiny liquid goes a long way. Not only will it subtly deepen the shade of your base or moisturiser, but it will also give an extra touch of oomph to the amount of coverage the final mix gives too, thanks to a texture that’s less watery than many other fluid bronzers.
The finish is matte without looking chalky and it’s perfect for dotting over temples and along cheekbones to add matching bronzed contours too. Being from Nordic skincare champions Lumene, the lightweight liquid is also packed with hydrating Finnish algae, radiance-boosting willowherb and soothing vitamin E to help the complexion feel and behave as good as it looks.
Buy now £24.90, lookfantastic
By Terry Cellarose Brightening CC Serum
This glow-inducing serum actually comes in eight colours but it’s the Sunny Flash shade that really infuses skin with a lustrous, sun-kissed glow. Tapping into the nascent trend for hybrid formulas that hit the perfect sweet spot between skincare and cosmetics, the serum blends easily into foundations and moisturisers to create a richer tone as well as blurring out imperfections thanks to light-reflecting pearl particles.
These not only make the complexion appear more luminous, but will help soften the look of lines, dullness and uneven skin tone too. The sheer texture allows your blend to glide on while white rose stem cells protect and regenerate skin, giving a subtle lit-from-within finish that says ‘just back from holiday.’
Buy now £61.00, Space NK
e.l.f Mix to Match Foundation Shade Adjuster
Specifically formulated to tweak your base tone, the intense colour saturation of this liquid cream means that only the smallest amount will pack a punch when it comes to darkening your base colour. A single drop is enough to start with, which also makes the tiny tube incredible value for money.
Simply top up the amount, drop-by-drop, as needed, until you get your perfect colour match. If you want a less intense result, the Adjuster will infuse full-on pigment into your white moisturiser but, when applied, will blend out easily into a much sheerer finish.
It comes in three shades including red-rich Bronze, which will darken fair-to-mid tone bases as well as lighten very deep foundations, while the cooler, earthier Deepen version will make already dark bases look even more so.
Buy now £5.00, e.l.f
Katherine Daniels Pure Pigment Foundation Drops
A real multi-tasking standout, this concentrated cream can be used alone if you want a full-coverage concealer or mixed with Daniel’s eponymous SPF30 sunscreen to tailor-make a foundation with the density of your choosing. But it also shines as an adaptor to intensify the colour and coverage of a wealth of bases, adding instant depth to both.
Available in four warm tones, from fair to deep, the finish is dewy and boosts the silkiness of your foundation or skincare base. It also boasts a wealth of skincare benefits including nourishing and antioxidant avocado and macadamia oils, while the spherical powders used to hold colour have a prettifying, blurring effect on imperfections.
Buy now £40.00, Katherine Daniels
Perricone MD No Makeup Bronzer SPF15
In one flattering, matte, suits-all shade, this colour adaptor is perfectly balanced between warm and cool, bumping up moisturiser and foundation to give the complexion a delicate French Riviera glow. Quite thick in consistency, the dropper perfectly dispenses the amount you want – think three or four drops initially as the texture is beautifully subtle and sheer.
Mixing it into your base also brings skincare benefits to the whole face (rather than just where you dot it on as a bronzer) thanks to the formula utilising a potent form of vitamin C plus an extract of Chinese ginger plant, both renowned for their brightening and anti-pigmentation properties.
Buy now £33.00, Perricone MD
DCYPHER Custom Coverage Pigment Drops
Having already become hugely successful at offering bespoke foundation, uniquely created for each customer using scans of your face taken via phone or computer and formulated with your coverage and texture preferences, DCYPER has added pigmented drops for even more customisation at home.
Still liquid enough to be easy to blend, the formula is denser than the foundation, allowing it to infuse colour into moisturiser and mix up a lovely lightweight skin tint, or to add a more intense level of coverage to foundation. If you order a bottle while sporting a tan, you’ll be able to add a rich element of fresh warmth with only a few drops.
Buy now £30.00, Dcypher.me
3INA The Custom Drops
Such is the intensity of pigment in these colour adaptor drops that a small bottle is going to last a very long time, regardless of whether the final look you want to achieve is a British beach glow or a full-on tropical tan.
For a warmer, more bronzed effect try adding a touch of no.523, while the no.560 colour has a cool undertone and is a deeper cocoa shade so better suited to darker complexions. The cream mixes well into moisturiser for a sheer finish or can quickly intensify the tone of your foundation, but it will also boost the long-lasting and mattifying benefits of both base formulas.
Buy now £15.31, Amazon
Lottie London Hot Glaze Bronzing Serum Drops
This super-sheer, serum-in-water formula in one universal shade offers the lightest touch so you’ll need multiple drops (4-6 was my sweet spot) to get a noticeable result. But this also means you can build up the colour easily and without fear of overdoing it, plus it gives the complexion a beautifully natural result.
The drops are jam-packed with well-loved skincare goodies including hyaluronic acid to draw moisture into the skin and niacinamide, which softens and brightens. Very versatile, you can add it to body cream for a top-to-toe glow as well as wear it solo as a face tint, while the soft scent of coconut will transport you back to the sunshine too.
Buy now £8.95, Lottie London
Fenty Beauty Mini Eaze Drop Lit All-Over Glow Enhancer
If luminous dewiness that verges on being shimmery is your texture preference, these adaptor drops are for you. They come in four shades, from pink pearl to chocolatey-bronze and while looking somewhat sparkly when concentrated, mixed with foundation or combined with moisturiser, the finish softens into a radiant glow and richer colour depth.
The liquid cream harnesses prismatic pearl technology, allowing skin to reflect and refract light to create a more perfected and harmonious result under any kind of indoor or natural lighting. It also uses milk thistle to minimise the look of pores, prickly pear to hydrate and pomegranate peel extract for brightening. If it’s good enough to give Rihanna her covetable glow, who’s to argue?
Buy now £14.00, Boots
Sainsbury’s Boutique Foundation Colour Adjusting Drops
The Deep version of these drops (there’s a Light tone too) couldn’t be a better bargain for a quick colour-matching fix. Another formula specially created to bring depth to your usual base or a white moisturiser rather than for wearing alone, the drops have an intense richness to the pigment so a small amount is all that’s needed to alter your already-bought products.
Vegan and cruelty-free, the smooth liquid also benefits from plumping hyaluronic acid as well as protective and soothing vitamin E. The bottle is small and light enough to be holiday-portable too.
Buy now £4.50, Sainsbury’s
Verdict
Be it from sunnier climes or a spontaneous overnight dose of self-tan, as someone who acts as their own foundation mixologist all year round, I’ve found Lumene Invisible Illumination Liquid Bronzer hard to beat.
It’s incredibly versatile, with a flexibility that spans quickly and gently enriching foundation and adding sun-kissed contours, to being fantastic when mixed with moisturiser for a flattering, light tan tone when you don’t really want to wear make-up. The nourishing and luminosity-boosting skincare actives add to the silky texture and lightweight feel, while the dropper delivers the perfect amount. A multi-tasking must-have.
