What's the Deal with Color Correcting?

So everywhere I look and every email I get is new color correcting products. EVERYWHERE. So I thought "lets talk about it". Firstly, color correcting is great but not every one needs it and just because it's everywhere you look, doesn't mean you need to start being as in to color correcting like we were with contouring and highlighting. Cause lets face it, it got pretty crazy with the contouring tricks and they're still going. So color correcting can be a little overwhelming and confusing so we're gonna go over the basics. I've included all the color correcting products that caught my eye, might be good, or are just trendy. 

 The basics of color correcting go back to the color wheel. I did a whole post on it. Opposite colors neutralize each other. So here are some easier ways to look at it.

Green cancels out redness (helps with rosacea, and blemishes)
Yellow cancels out redness and purples and helps with dull skin
Peach cancels out blue/purple and helps with dark spots (typical for helping dark circles under the eyes)
Lavender balances out yellow skin and brightens the skin
Blue cancels out sallow skin
Pink brightens dark areas
Orange for deep blue/purples, deep grey and dark spots

So that's the way I look at it. The main ones you see in correctors are Yellow, Green, Pink and Peach. I rarely see blue. Lavender is becoming more popular as well as Orange and Papaya shades. There's something for everyone now and that's great but it's confusing too.

From top left of the picture above is:

Marc Jacobs Beauty Cover(t) Stick Color Corrector $42 for .56 oz. This comes in 3 shades each of them being infused with two colors. It looks really cool and you get a lot of product but I just don't see this as something anyone would "need". There are cheaper options that do the job just fine. Although I'm sure this is a great product it is not something I am interested in I find it more trendy. It looks cool though and I won't disagree with that. This is VIB only right now.

Next is Besame Brightening Powders $22  for .21 oz. These are not new necessarily but they're included some new shades. The one above is a pink powder. I have the Lavender powder and love it. I will get the pink powder as well because they are great for setting the under eye area. That's really the only place I would use these powders, is under the eye. I think these are a fair price and usually you do need to set your under eye area if you've used concealer and what not. 

Smashbox Color Correcting Stick $23 for .12 oz. This has 4 shades. It's very similar to the contour sticks which you'll find several products that are the same packaging as their contour counter parts. This comes in 4 shades which are peach, orange, lavender, and green. So no pink and no yellow. This is a buildable product, but "creamy". I find stick/crayon products tend to be a little dry and look cakey but Smashbox usually does a great job. I'm not sure how I'd feel about dragging this around the eye areas. That's not a good thing to do for the delicate eye area, but if these were more pigmented instead of "buildable" I wouldn't be near as worried. These are also VIB only right now.

Stila Correct and Perfect Palette $45 for .46 oz. This includes two powders and 5 cream correctors. I think this palette is really cool and I would be tempted to get it. Yellow and Lavender are the powders. A larger peach cream corrector for dark circles and four smaller Green, Pink, Orange, and Yellow creams. The packaging is beautiful. It has both powder and cream which is handy. This has every corrector though and there will be at least 1/3 of the palette that you won't use maybe even half. If you're a freelance artist, I think it would be great. If you want it just for yourself I might would pass. This is also VIB exclusive.

Beauty Blender correct.four micro mini set for $30. If you like the mini beauty blenders it might would be nice to have as extras but I wouldn't get sponges in color correcting colors because that seems like a lot of time and space. If it simplifies things for you though as a freelance artist then I think it would be smart or like I said a great way to have back ups. This is limited edition.

The top left is:

Algenist REVEAL Concentrated Color Correcting Drops $38 for .5 oz. These come in four colors I think. This seems really awesome. Algenist is mainly skincare and so this product is also marketed toward skincare and makeup. It can be used alone or added to makeup. It can soothe, balance skin's texture, and brighten. It's featuring Microalgae, microalgea oil, and alguronic acid to not just neutralize and balance but also treat and cover the skin. I think this is really cool. If I had a lot of redness I would get the green one for sure. Pigment drops are really popular right now so it's not surprising it would lead into color correcting and that's fine with me because added to foundation or it would be far less products to layer. This is also VIB exclusive right now.

Sephora+Pantone Universe Correct and Conceal palette. $49 it has 15 shades in the palette there are two palettes available. I think this is a great palette for artists to have in their kits. It has correctors and concealers. I don't know how great they are as far as pigmentation and what not, it has no stars on Sephora but of the reviews it has it's apparently really nice. This is also VIB exclusive right now.

Becca Backlight Targeted Correctors $30 for .16 oz 4 shades of Peach, Green, Lavender, and Papaya. I love the pink brightener for dark circles and I have no doubts this would be wonderful. These have been out for a few months and have really good reviews. I would definitely consider this if you wanted something color correcting.

Tarte Rainforest of the Sea Wipeout Color Correcting Palette: this is $45 it has 6 shades in it. It's in the same set up as the contour palette. This releases on February 29th online and March 14th in stores.

Cover FX Correct Click $18 for .19oz it has 6 shades. Peach, Lavender, Yellow, Green, Orange, and Brick. I think these are neat they are a good price and you have the option to customize them with the Click Stick, or get two in a set for $44. I would be interested in giving these a go. Plus they have a nice shade range that include dark orange and reddish orange. Which you won't see hardly anywhere else.

Now we're getting to last of the new/new-ish products.

Kat Von D Lock It Color Correcting Eyeshadow Primer $25. This is neat it's skin tone shades that mask any veins on the lid as a concealer would all while being a good base for your eyeshadow. It's stick form or crayon, .049 oz. I would look into this especially if you like using a base that masks your natural lid for veins or darkness like MAC paint pots or colors concealers.

Urban Decay Naked Skin Color Correcting Fluid $28. It comes in 5 shades and if it's anything like the Naked concealer (which I think it will be) it's gonna be amazing. I would seriously consider this because it's liquid and light weight and if I was just guessing has great pigmentation. This is for VIB's right now and it's also Sephora exclusive right now, it's not on the Urban Decay website yet.

Sephora Collection Bright Future Color Correctors $14 for .14oz it comes in 7 shades. I have it in peach and I really love it. I think these are great for dark circles I don't know how good they would be for redness on the face or blemishes but for dark circles I do recommend it the peach tones.

YSL Neautralizers $38 for .08oz. It has three shades. This is the same packaging as the Touche Eclat Radient Touch that people use as brighteners, highlighters, and concealers. I do really like the Radient Touch but I don't even use that very much because there are equally good or better products out there and for the price I just feel like it's a bit of a unnecessary splurge. Which is how I feel about this and it doesn't have a lot of product or shades.

So there you have it. That of course is not the only ones available. Color correcting is not a new thing by any means. LA Girl has good ones and has had them for about a year. So does NYX. If it were me, the ones I would consider getting would be the Urban Decay, Becca, or Sephora Bright Future. My color corrector shades that I use are usually only yellow and peachy tones though. So everyone is different. Keep in mind if you're someone with texture the more products you layer the more noticeable it's going to be so maybe consider the Algenist drops if you need something. Take into consideration if your dry or oily as well, as really creamy products may not be ideal for oily gals just as powders may not be ideal for very dry gals. 

A lot of these are VIB exclusive right now meaning you need to be a VIB member to get them. A VIB member is the 2nd level in their rewards program meaning you spend $350 in a calendar year. They will be available to everyone shortly I'm sure and there are plenty to choose from that are oldies but goodies as well that have stood the test of time.

These you will find at Sephora. Don't forget to use Ebates and get 4-8 percent cash back on purchases.