In our latest video, our co-founder Claire tells you everything you need to know about our custom cosmetics.
Watch Claire's full video below:
Video Transcript
Who/What is DCYPHER?
DCYPHER stands for completely natural makeup that is matched perfectly to your skin tone. We are completely inclusive, we're super convenient and we're also really sustainable and we're powered by tech and that's what enables us to do those three things.
What does DCYPHER do?
At DCYPHER, we make completely custom foundations. We customise the shade, we measure it online and then we make that exact shade to measure. And then you can also customise the finish and the coverage as well. What we make is completely bespoke to you. It's all made freshly to order and it's kind of a really unique product that's perfectly suited to you.
How does it work?
DCYPHER works in a really unique way. What you have to do is to go on our website and you will get the opportunity to do a skin tone measurement. It will open your camera and it will use your camera to be able to measure things like the undertone, the lightness and the vibrancy of your skin. It's super clever. It accounts for lighting conditions and also will remove any pigmentation or redness from your skin. We get a really, really good measure. You then go on to picking your finish and your coverage based on your own preferences. And then what happens is we take all of that information and our algorithms will create the perfect recipe for you, which we will blend and then send out to you in the post.
What products does DCYPHER make?
We make three different products. We make foundations, which are completely customisable for shade and formulation. We also make our drops products the coverage drops that are designed to go with your moisturiser to give it a tint. And we also create concealers in either a skin tone match or a brightening version.
Where are DCYPHER products made?
All of our DCYPHER products are made in the UK and they're all blended from individual ingredients in our lab up north.
What if my foundation doesn't match when it arrives?
When you buy from DCYPHER it is completely risk-free. If it's not perfect we will always create a free adjustment and send it out to you completely free.
How do I use the Custom Coverage Drops?
Our drops can be used in different ways and they're designed to work with a moisturiser. If you put a few drops in your moisturiser and then blend it together, you can get a real nice tinted moisturiser using your own base. You can also use them in other ways as well. If you want to up the coverage of your foundation, you can actually add some extra drops to your foundation to increase the coverage. Or you could use a little bit on top of an already applied foundation to kind and build up coverage in very specific areas too.
So the colour will match, but what about the formula?
We don't think anybody should have to compromise with their foundation and we appreciate that it's not just the colour that needs to be right, but it's also the formulation as well. We allow customers to choose from a range of coverages and a range of finishes to get that product that's completely unique and perfect for what they want.
What is the coverage like?
We empower our customers to be able to select the coverage that they would like. You can choose from ultra-sheer, sheer, medium or full depending on what your preference is.
What about the finish?
DCYPHER formulations can be created to be any finish that you want. We actually have a choice of three. You can have a matte finish, a natural finish or a radiant finish and they're all very different and it's all to do with your preference.
What is the difference between the Matte, Natural and Radiant finishes?
Our matte finish gives you quite a kind of a duller finish, it's less reflective of any light that hits it so it gives you that sort of more matte kind of dried down look and the radiant finish on the other end of the scale has a beautiful optic in it that really reflects the light and gives you that real glowy healthy skin look and then we've got natural which kind of sits in the middle of the two.
What is the difference between the two concealer options?
We offer two different concealers, a skin tone match which is the same shade as your skin tone and also a brightening version which is a lighter, brighter colour compared to your skin tone which is ideal for under the eyes to really brighten and freshen up your look.
Are your products Vegan and Cruelty-Free?
All of our products are absolutely cruelty-free and vegan.
Does the foundation have SPF?
We don't include SPF in our foundation, the reason being that often we don't apply enough foundation to be able to get that sun protection. What we'd always recommend is to get your sun protection from your skincare that sits underneath your foundation.
How many shades of foundation are in the DCYPHER range?
We don't actually have a shade range at all. It's completely limitless in terms of the colours that we can create and other brands will have a limited range, so you'll have to choose from one of 40 or 50 if you're lucky, but we can measure and make any skin tone. It's really very unique to you and completely limitless.
Isn't this just like every other brand that matches your foundation shade?
We're different to other brands that might use some kind of AI or questionnaire to be able to identify your skin tone. And the biggest reason for that is that we create your shade for you that is exactly the measurement that we take. Other brands will have a limited shade range that they will measure you to the nearest one. We do things differently because we make the shade so you'll never be sort of in between a shade and have to compromise with us and we'll always make the exact colour that we measure.
Other brands have skin tone measurement tools, what makes DCYPHER different?
There are other brands that will allow you to do a skin tone measure to find your product, but we are quite different in the fact that we measure the skin tone and then we make that exact colour and we don't pick from a limited shade range. What we do is we measure and make that colour for you. We can literally make any colour and I think we've estimated we've made about 15,000 unique skin shades to date.
How do you recommend taking the scan to get the best result?
To get the best chance of getting your perfect shade, we recommend to stand facing a window with good natural light across your skin and just make sure there's no shadows or areas of shine on your face and also remove any glasses, make sure you've got no makeup on and pull your hair back from your face as well. And that will give you the best chance of getting that spot-on measurement that we'll then go ahead and make.
I did the scan twice and got two different skin tone ID's. Which one is right?
Each time you do your measurement, you might get a slightly different reading and this is because the skin tone scanner is super sensitive to lighting conditions. Just because your skin tone ID is slightly different each time doesn't mean it will look different. Most of the time the different readings will actually look the same to the naked eye. The best thing to do if you're unsure is to just drop us a message with your skin tone IDs and we'll be able to check them to see how similar they are.
I have darker skin and have never been able to find a shade that fully matches me, why is DCYPHER any different?
We're really aware that it's actually really difficult for those with deeper skin tones to find a shade that really suits their skin. And actually at that end of the spectrum of colour, you actually need an even bigger range than you do at any other area of the spectrum of colour to be able to meet everybody's needs. We're a bit different because we can create any colour, we have algorithms that have been developed to work across the board. If you find that you struggle with other brands that have very limited shades in your area of skin tone then we're a really good option for you.
I have areas of redness and hyperpigmentation on my face, will the scan work for me?
Yeah the scan is really clever so it can not only account for light conditions but it can also read areas that are pigmented or are red and then remove those from the analysis. Unless you have a large proportion of your face that's affected the skin tone scanner should work really well but if you're unsure at all just contact us and we can advise further.
How much does it cost?
Our completely custom foundation is £42 our concealer is £32 and we also have our coverage drops which are £35 all of those prices includes delivery as well.
How long will I have to wait for my products to arrive?
We aim to blend all the products within three working days of your order. We then ship them out with Royal Mail tracked 24 if you're in the UK and so they get to you really really fast.
Where does DCYPHER ship to?
We ship our products in the UK, in the EU and in the US all apart from California.
Where can I buy DCYPHER products?
You can buy your products exclusively at DCYPHER.me
