Sweat, Your Pores, and Finding the Right Primer…

As many of you might have read in last year’s Professional Belly Dancer Makeup blog, I have a serious pore malfunction on my eyelids causing them to block up and produce painful Chalazions when not cared for properly. That being said, being a full-time belly dancer and instructor= tons of sweating every day, so keeping my pores as clean as possible is a big priority so that I can avoid having another chalazion surgery (ouch). Hence why finding a Primer for Bellydance has been a challenge.

Chalazions or not, keeping your pores from clogging is an everyday challenge, especially as a belly dancer! Due to the above, mineral makeup is all I can use and is an amazing product anyways for your skin.

Before one can apply mineral makeup though, it is really important (especially if you have large pores) that you apply a face primer first. There are also eyelid primers specifically for your eyelids.

These primers combat the issue of makeup and dirt entering and clogging your pores after perspiring. Only problem is, that there are SO MANY, and not all mineral primers are actually true MINERAL makeup products.

So here is what I have found so far in Primers since last year’s blog….

1. Both the Bare Essentials and Bare Minerals foundations were too oily for my skin and caused breakouts (boo). While these are quite popular brands, the foundations do carry extra chemicals that are prone to clogging your skin so I was not too happy. Due to this experience I discovered the need to find a face primer I could apply under my makeup. The primer for the eyelids is so-so. It is not as easy as others to spread around.

2. After the above I tried Studio Gear. The primer for Studio Gear was not oily at all, but the only problem was that it dried my skin out quite a bit creating that cakey look once foundation was applied. The eyelid primer though has been the best I have used so far. A tiny drop of product will cover both lids (I have huge eyes too so it’s awesome).

3. After Studio Gear I tried the new line by Urban Decay “Naked”. This liquid primer/foundation instantly evened out my skin tone, and worked great for about a week and then the break outs started (ugh!). The formula says oil free but it is quite oily actually and clogged up my pores big time! The eyelid primer was shimmery and pretty, but it was drier than Studio Gears and did not spread out as nicely.

4. This brings me now to my newest purchase which is a face primer by Lorac. This has the least amount of chemicals and additives so I am excited to see how it works. I will report soon!

All in all, not all mineral makeup and primers are created equal. Make sure to read the ingredients, and while I have not found the perfect face primer yet I highly recommend Studio Gears eyelid primer. Well, that’s all, I hope this helps some of you professional belly dancers out there also experiencing the same frustrations when finding a Primer for Bellydance.