How to Apply Foundation
Contrary to popular opinion, foundation does not need to be applied all over the face, especially when it comes to everyday makeup. Instead, think of it as a way to even out your skin tone, and only apply it where you need to. For most people, this is the center of the face. Now you can choose to use either a foundation brush, a sponge, or your fingers, whichever you prefer. Start applying it slowly around the nose and chin and work your way out and down. This helps to avoid a harsh foundation line at the hairline, jaw, and neck. Generally there will be more foundation in the center of the face and less as you work out. And then blend, blend, blend! Also be careful to avoid a build-up of foundation in your eyebrows as well as in your hairline – or you will look like you are molting.
How to Get Rid of Undereye Circles
After you have applied your foundation, you can apply a concealer one shade lighter than your skin tone to the area under your eyes. Don’t forget the area between your eye and your nose, as well, if it is looking particularly purple or blue. (You can choose a slightly yellow or orange concealer if that is the case.) Blend the concealer well into the foundation that’s already there and then set with a translucent powder. Do it right, and you could hide even a black eye.
How to Apply Blush
First, make sure you’ve carefully concealed any redness in your skin, particularly around your nose, otherwise the blush will just end up highlighting that redness. Then, lightly dust your cheeks with a translucent powder, especially if your skin is oily. The brush you choose is important when it comes to applying blush – don’t use anything too big or too small and make sure it’s soft. Apply it in a light circular motion on the apples of the cheeks, not underneath the cheekbones, and apply only a little at a time, building it up gradually. Slowly work the color back toward the hairline. If you want, you can work it up to the areas of the temples but keep it on the upper half of your face. And the real secret is to blend carefully – you don’t want to be able to see where the blush starts. The end result should look like you’re glowing from within, not performing with Cirque du Soleil.
How to Choose the Right Shade of Red Lipstick
Warm, orange-y reds work best on yellow-toned skin tones but you can still wear them if you have red undertones if you neutralize those undertones first with foundation. Classic warm reds include Mac’s Lady Danger, Rouge d’Armani 401 and Rouge Allure Incandescente 97 by Chanel. Cool bluish reds and pinky reds work best with cool skin tones. One of the bluest red lipsticks is Tom Ford’s Cherry Lush. Lancome’s L’Absolu Rouge Ruby Exquis 182 is another good one. And Maybelline Super Stay 14hr Lipstick in Non-Stop Red 510 is a real favorite right now among makeup artists. More neutral reds that almost anyone can wear are the classic Ruby Woo by Mac, Maybelline’s Colour Sensational Lipcolor is Fatal Red 530, and Revlon’s Super Lustrous Lipstick in Fire and Ice, which has been around as long as your grandma has been wearing makeup. (And it’s probably holding up a lot better than she is.)
How to Make Your Lipstick Last Longer
Begin by moisturizing your lips with your favorite lip balm, at least ten minutes before you want to apply your lipstick. (You can use Vaseline instead of lip balm or even Elizabeth Arden’s 8 Hour Cream, which is a favorite among makeup artists.) After a couple of minutes, use a q-tip to gently buff your lips, which will remove any loose flakes of skin. Next, line your lips with a lip liner and then – and this is the key – completely fill in your lips with the lip liner, as if you are coloring them in. (This is the sole reason they teach people to color in Elementary school.) Only then should you apply your lipstick, preferably with a lip brush so you can really work it in. Blot with a tissue and then you can apply a second coat of lipstick directly from the tube. If you use Maybelline Super Stay 14 Hr lipstick and follow these tips, it’ll be practically bullet-proof.
How to Make Your Lips Look Fuller
Follow these four simple steps to create the appearance of fuller lips. First, take a light nude pencil – concealer pencils are great for this — and color in the area just below your cupid’s bow on both lips. Very carefully line the very top and bottom of your lips in this color, too. You are doing this to make this area of your lips look more prominent. Second, take a nude lip pencil that is slightly darker than the natural color of your lips and carefully line the rest of your lips with it. (If you smile with your mouth closed, this stretches out your lips a bit and you will be able to really work that color in.) Fill in the rest of your lips with this color as well. Then, with your middle finger, gently pat the edges of the highlighted middle section into the darker edges, so you don’t have a hard edge. Finish with a nude lip gloss, one that allows the highlighted area to show through. Another trick is to line your lips just outside your natural lip line, wherever you want them to look bigger, but this requires a careful and steady hand.
Keep Your Eye Makeup From Running
There are a couple of other things to do to prevent your eye makeup from running. First of all, don’t over-moisturize the area. Secondly, use eye shadow primer on not only the top lid but also right under the bottom lid, especially if you use eyeliner on your lower lid. You can also choose to use waterproof eye shadows and mascaras but bear in mind that this doesn’t work very well if you have oily skin. In fact, the oils on your skin can cause it to break down and migrate to other areas of your face. In this case, consider using a mascara like Blinc, which forms little tubes over each of your lashes. Oil doesn’t seem to interfere with these formulations and the little tubes come off easily in the shower, with the application of a little warm water. (They look like worms, but they aren’t, so don’t freak out.) As a final step after you’ve applied your eye makeup, just go over the top and bottom lips with a little sheer pressed powder.
Use a Business Card to Apply Mascara
This is a neat trick to prevent your mascara from ending up all over your eyelids. Simply use a business card (or an index card, as pictured here) as a kind of shield behind your lashes and you can apply as many coats as you like. You can do the same thing with your lower lashes. In that case, simply rest the card against your face right underneath your eye as you apply the mascara. And next time you get new business cards printed, consider going with black card stock.
Use White Eyeliner to Make Your Eyes Look Bigger
White eyeliner may seem a little counterintuitive but there are two ways to use it that both make your eyes looks bigger. First, apply it to the waterline of your lower lid. This is the area above your lashes, not below them. If you apply it correctly, the white eyeliner makes the whites of your eyes look bigger. You can also apply white eyeliner in the inner corners of your eyes, in a sideways v-shape, and then blend it well to brighten and enlarge that area. This is particularly helpful if you have close-set eyes. If your one of your eyes in right on top of the other one, well, we can’t help you with that.
Tightline Your Eyes
A great, lesser-known trick to make your eyelashes look fuller is to tightline them. This technique is practically invisible and it also really helps to define your eyes. Take an eyeliner, as long as it’s not a liquid formulation, and use an eyeliner brush, either flat or angled, whichever you prefer, to apply the eyeliner underneath your top eyelashes, not above them. That area is called the waterline and because it tends to be naturally wet, you will need to really work the pigment into the skin. See how it makes the model’s eyelashes look really dense and full in the after shot? It’s like fake eyelashes… without the fake eyelashes.
0 comments:
Post a Comment