How to Color Correct
By Lamyaa Aissi · Professional Makeup Artist, Casablanca
Colour correcting uses the colour wheel on your face: opposite colours cancel each other. Peach cancels blue-grey circles, green calms redness, lavender lifts sallowness.
The technique fails only when correctors are used like paint. They are underwear for your makeup — thin, targeted, and invisible under the base.
What you'll need
- A corrector for your specific concern (peach/orange, green, or lavender)
- A small synthetic brush or fingertip
- Your usual foundation and concealer
Step 1: Diagnose in daylight
Look at the bare face in natural light. Blue-purple under-eyes want peach (fair skin) or orange (deeper skin). Redness around the nose and on cheeks wants green. Overall dullness wants lavender.
Step 2: Apply thinly, only on the discolouration
Paint the corrector precisely on the discoloured area with a small brush — not the whole under-eye, not the whole cheek. Thin means invisible later.
Step 3: Press to blend, keep the edges tight
Tap with a fingertip until the corrector melts into skin. It should look like a soft tint, not a colour block.
Step 4: Layer foundation over, gently
Press — don't wipe — foundation over the corrected areas so the layer beneath stays put. A pressing motion with a sponge preserves the correction.
Step 5: Conceal only what remains
After foundation, most discolouration is gone. Spot-conceal whatever ghost remains with a skin-toned concealer, and set lightly.
Pro tips from the chair
- Orange corrector doubles as a lifesaver on deep skin for dark patches around the mouth — the same press-and-layer rules apply.
- If your concealer always turns grey over dark circles, that greyness is exactly what a peach corrector prevents.
- Green corrector is potent: use it only on true redness, mixed into moisturiser if you need a sheer all-over calm-down.
Frequently asked questions
Corrector before or after foundation?
Before. Foundation then needs to do far less, which keeps the whole base thinner and more natural.
Do I need a full corrector palette?
Almost nobody does. Identify your one recurring concern and buy that single corrector — for most skin tones that is a peach or orange for under-eyes.
Learn it hands-on in Casablanca
Reading only gets you so far — technique clicks when someone corrects your hand in real time. I teach one-on-one makeup lessons in Casablanca tailored to your face, your kit, and your skill level, from 600 MAD. Or if you'd rather have it done for you, book a session for your next event.
More guides: all tutorials · the full smokey eye masterclass · bridal makeup tutorial.