The first step of all: Moisturizer
For the perfect canvas, make sure your skin is clean & moisturized. Wait for sometime before you apply foundation, to let moisturizer sink in. It is really important to give moisturizer time to soak in. Otherwise, it can result in blotchiness and limit the amount of coverage your foundation can offer.
Pro tip: Wait for 1 minute, until the moisturizer is absorbed. Or, if you’re short on time, blot your face with a tissue after moisturizing, then apply foundation.
No matter what skin type you’re- oily, dry, combination, sensitive or normal, moisturizer helps in pampering your skin, making it healthy. I have seen many women wearing makeup without using moisturizer. It makes their foundation look patchy and skin uneven.
Primer
Makeup primers are a recent trend. Back in 90s, average woman was not even aware of them. But in my opinion, ‘not to prime is a crime’. They make pores unnoticeable, helps finesse your foundation, resulting in flawless skin for longer.
Celebrity makeup artists everywhere stress the importance of priming. Makeup primers are crucial at keeping oil at bay while filling in fine lines & wrinkles.
Skin Type: First, figure out whether your skin is oily, dry, combination or normal. Then, choose a primer that is suited for your needs.
Skin Tone: Primers come in different hues to address the specific skin concerns. Green colored primers will combat redness from rosacea or acne. Mauve/ light purple ones counteracts sallow undertones, while pink helps brighten complexions.
Once, you’ve got the right formula, apply the primer after all your moisturizing.
Foundation
To get perfectly even and smooth skin, use stick foundation. It’s easy and gives you precise application.
Foundation is an important step in makeup. Therefore, it is vital to choose the right color for your skin. Test foundation on your jawline and check it in the daylight. Finding the right shade can be difficult. It is better to get a beauty advisor at a store to help you pick the right shade, and ask for a sample to take home.
Proper Technique: If you want just a little coverage, use your fingers. If you want more coverage, use a sponge. For everyday, dab foundation on only where you need to hide pimples, camouflage redness or even out your T-zone. To get an airbrushed finish, blend makeup all over, including the eye area , starting in the middle and working your way out.
These days, we have a large variety of foundations available- cream, mousse, liquid, powder. Choose according to your skin need.
Concealer
Concealers help in combating dark circles, fine lines, wrinkles, puffiness, age spots and other small blemishes visible on the skin. Both foundation and concealer are typically used to make skin appear more uniform in color. I always recommend to use concealer after foundation. This way you won’t end up applying more than you need. And base of foundation keeps concealer crease- free. Look for a lightweight liquid in color one shade lighter than your skin. Going too light looks fake.
Colors: Concealers with yellow undertones are used to cover dark circles. Green and blue can counteract red patches on the skin, such as those caused by pimples, broken veins, or rosacea. Purple- tinted concealers can make sallow complexions look brighter.
Powder
Powders help in setting the foundation. They are applied to mattify the makeup, making skin look less greasier or shiny. They tone the face and gives it even appearance.
Powders also help your skin from sun or other harsh weather, all while concealing any discolorations or open pores.
Picking the color– First things first when applying face powder, whether it’s loose or pressed, match the color to your natural skin tone. Test it on the top of your hand. When picking your color, keep these tips in mind. White powder is best for the evening, since it adds luminosity, green and blue will tone down colors, pink gives a nice rosy glow for pale skin and apricot works well for olive skin that needs to add some brightness.
Make sure you blend, blend, blend! Apply powder to your neck and make sure that you don’t have the defined line that screams “I’m wearing foundation”.
Don’t be afraid to experiment with different face powders. It may be better to use one type in the summer, another over the winter. Find the match that works best for you.
Eye Makeup
I get compliments all the time on my eye makeup. That’s my favorite thing to do, when it comes to makeup- enhancing my eyes. For better results, it is very important to do makeup according to the shape of your eyes, but there are certain general rules that applies to everyone.
1. Prep your eyes: Concealer can be used to cover up the under eye circles or just bluish the discoloration just under your inner eye. To cover under eye circles, apply three dots of concealer under each eye. Start at the inner corner where skin tends to be the darkest, then under the pupil and the third on the outer edge. Pat, never rub with your ring finger, until the concealer disappears.
2. Applying primer to your lid: Eyeshadow primer is the secret to keeping your shadow in place for hours. It will help in making eyeshadow crease- free and in place.
3. Follow with eyeliner: Eyeliner makes a huge difference- it can take a basic eye makeup application to a fully realizable look that accentuates your lashes and the shape of your eye.Eyeliner can be sexy, elegant, or subtle, it can also be harsh, overly dramatic, or sloppy- it all depends on how you apply it.
4. Applying eyeshadow: The basic concept of any eyeshadow design is to shape and shade in well blended progression of light to dark colors. Three key points to keep in mind:
- Light colors will highlight or emphasize shallow areas.
- Dark colors will minimize fuller, or more prominent areas.
Essential Eyeshadow Tips:
- Matte powder eyeshadows in an array of neutral tones from light to dark are your best bets for a classic, sophisticated eye design that accents the shape and color of your eyes.
- Adding shine is best for the brow bone only, especially if you have wrinkles around the eye or your eyelid skin is less than taut. There are many good powder eyeshadows that impart a soft, subtle shine to highlight this area.
- Tap off any excess eyeshadow from your brush before applying. This prevents over-application and minimize flaking eyeshadow.
- If you really want to make the color of your eyes pop, choose a contrasting color in a soft tone and apply this to the lids. Blue eyes come alive with pale peach or cantaloupe hues, green eyes seem richer with light bronze or caramel tones, hazel eyes become more alluring with chestnut and golden brown shades, and brown eyes are nicely accented by almost all neutral tones.
5. Using highlighter: The best tool for instantly perking up your tired eyes- is not your eye cream, it’s the highlighter. A great highlighter can perk up your complexion, accentuate the features you love, and even camouflage aging skin. Celebrity makeup artist Joanna Schlip calls highlighters “the secret weapon for a youthful, healthy glow — especially for women ages 40 and over.” Highlighter can help minimize dark circles, decrease the look of wrinkles, and mimic a facelift with appropriate placement. The key is knowing how to use it.
“Apply the highlighter under the eyes, above the brows and on the browbone to add life and brightness, which ultimately helps you to look healthier and younger,” says celebrity makeup artist Geoffrey Rodriguez.
6. Curl lashes: There are some things in this world that are inexplicable: What really happened at Roswell? Or what came first, the chicken or the egg? Sure these may not keep you up at night, but one mystery beauty experts intent on solving involved stubbornly-straight eyelashes. When it comes to Asian Makeup, the most common complaint is lashes that seem to be forever answering the question, “Where’s the ground?” “Down there,” they say. Straight down. While this is most prevalent for Asian women, those of Eastern European and Spanish descent also deal with stubbornly straight lashes. Curled lashes make eyes look prettier, finished, feminine and sexy.
Here’s a step-by-step:
Step 1: Make sure your lashes are clean, which means no eye cream or residue from yesterday’s mascara.
Step 2: With your chin up, look down in to the mirror so that you can see your lashes.
Step 3: Start at the base of the lash — you want the curler to be against your cheek. Babaian warns to not “lift the tongs of the curler, because that’ll pull out your lashes.”
Step 4: Hold it for 10 seconds. Remember to be gentle — don’t squeeze.
Step 5: Walk up the curler to the midpoint of your lashes, holding it for a shorter period of time (about five seconds).
Step 6: Do another short squeeze at the tips.
7. Applying mascara: One of the easiest ways to draw attention to your eyes and create fun, flirty looks is by adding mascara. Mascara is a key component to making your eyes stand out. Mascara has the ability to not only make your lashes darker; it also adds length and thickness. It doesn’t matter how wonderful your eyeshadow looks, or what great techniques you have used, without great looking lashes no one will notice. Even if you don’t wear a lot of eyeshadow, adding mascara will bring depth to your eyes and open them up. On the other hand, if you don’t know the correct way to apply mascara it will draw attention to all the clumps in your lashes from too much product. Let’s face it, none of us want so much mascara on, it can produce spider lashes or can flake off resulting in raccoon eyes.
Here are some things to keep in mind when your purchase your mascara.
- Formula – Should you get lengthening, curling, thickening or Volumizing? With so many to choose from deciding which one is best for you can be intimidating. If you want longer lashes go for a good lengthening mascara, fuller lashes need volume, and some mascaras promise to do both. We like L’Oreal Volumizing mascara; it has a great want to it and is great for thickening the lashes while adding length.
- Waterproof – Waterproof mascaras are great for people who plan or need to wear it all day. It works wonders if you are going to be in the sun or sweating. Also, it helps to maintain any curl you put into your lashes by an eyelash curler. However, it is harder to remove than conventional mascara so make sure you have a good remover specially formulated for removing waterproof mascara. If you wear contacts or have sensitive eyes it may be best to find mascara that is hypoallergenic to avoid irritants near the eye.
- Color – This one is pretty easy. Black mascara opens the eyes and gives the lashes a fuller effect. Although you can pick from many different shades, black will give the best outcome for a set of full, thick lashes that everyone will envy. However, if you have very light hair and skin you may find that very black mascara may be to overpowering. Try using a brown/black mascara to not overwhelm your look.
8. Defining brows: Beautiful, full arches are a classic feature among Hollywood beauties and models of the moment—the look instantly frames your gaze and sharpens your face—but not all of us are blessed with such chiseled brows.
- Brush brows up with a spoolie brush. This helps you to see the shape you like and to see where they are uneven.
- Using short dash-like strokes to mimic your natural hairs, softly fill in any sparse areas with a pencil. Choose the color that best matches your brows and fill in really lightly so it’s barely there.
- Use an angled brush and a similarly colored pressed powder to define the shape of your brows even more.
- Brush through brows again with a spoolie to blend out the color and soften any harsh lines.
- To set the look and hold the hairs in place, comb through brows with a colored gel.
- Dip a fluffy brush in translucent powder and trace around the perimeter of the brows. This makes the edges look sharp and neat.Blush: If there’s one product in your makeup bag that can immediately brighten your complexion, it’s blush. In fact, most makeup artists will tell you that your face makeup isn’t complete until you’ve dusted a rosy glow across your cheeks.
For a quick brush up on your technique, makeup artist Glenn Marziali says to always remember this two-finger rule when trying to achieve a natural-looking flush: Place your index and middle fingers vertically on your face away from the nose to find the spot directly under your pupils. Apply blush on the apple of the cheek from that spot outwards, and stroke the blush along the cheekbones.
Lips:
- Prep your lips: Before you start accentuating your lips, apply lip balm prior to your lip color. You want to make sure your lips are soft and smooth, not dry or chapped. Once you’ve allowed your lip balm to penetrate into the lips (usually 5 to 10 minutes), blot your lips a few times with a tissue. This will take off any excess lip balm before applying your lip color.
- Define lips: Chanel makeup artist Kate Lee recommends lining your lips with liner that matches your natural lip color, not the lipstick. “Use whatever matches your natural lip shade, this stage is really about creating a template for the color,” she explains. She also recommends using a little concealer on your lips.
- Applying color: Lip gloss and lipstick can make your lips look fuller, glossier and better! They can add volume to your lips and make them appear bigger if you have thin lips. For applying the color, stretch the lips and starting at the center of the lip and glide the color to the corners. Lip brushes help you to give better finish to coloring your lips and avoid the application of excess color. A quick way of applying lip color is to use the lipstick to stain the bottom lip, press them together to transfer some of the color to the upper lip and then use the angle tip of the sponge applicator to refine lip edges. Finish up with gloss for giving it full and shiny look.
Makeup Setting Spray: For that fresh, radiant and dewy finish, set your makeup with setting spray. It keeps your makeup in place for longer, and it has time-release temperature control technology, which helps to keep you cool on those especially humid days.
My personal favorite is Mac Prep+ Prime Fix+ . It’s a lightweight, mineral infused setting mist that refreshes the skin and finishes the makeup.With these easy makeup tips, you can get perfect and flawless makeup.Tanya.
Image courtesy: Pinterest
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