No need to go back to school to learn the latest beauty tricks and tips; this week I’ve rounded up all you need to know to get pretty peepers, luscious lips and well-groomed brows.
Eye Catching Tricks
Why is it that eye makeup stumps even the most stylish women? It all comes to down to blending, lovies, and it’s a step that too may of us overlook. A smooth base is the first course in smoldering eyes for night and naturally pretty peepers by day. Prep eyes by cleaning completely with a gentle eye makeup remover. (I like Jafra’s Eye MakeUp remover; $12 for 4.2 oz. at jafrausa.com.) After that, apply an eye makeup base to create the smooth palette that will help keep eye shadow looking smooth, not sloppy. One to try is Sorme.com’s Under Shadow Eye Shadow Base, a cream formula that covers darkness and redness on eye lids while improving the staying power and blendability of shadows.
Now, pick a shadow that complements, rather than matches, your eye color. While professionals can work magic with loose eye shadows, I encourage women like us to avoid them. There’s nothing like a pot of highly pigmented shadow to create a messy shadow look thanks to the propensity to use too much product.
All you really need to create a classically pretty eye makeup look are two shades, one darker and one lighter. Apply the darker shade to the outer corner of your eye including the lash line and outer crease. Next, using the lighter shadow you have selected, fill in the inner eye corner and upper eye lid. Use the same light shade to highlight the brow bone. Finally, using a high quality shadow brush, blend the lighter shade over the darker shadow to create a smooth, eye-catching look.
Pretty Puckers
Smooth lips, neutral liner and a flattering lipstick or gloss is all a girl needs to successfully navigate from office to home and beyond with sparkle. Using a tablespoon of brown sugar and ½ tablespoon of olive oil, mix up a quick at home lip scrub that will assure that lipstick or gloss glides on smoothly.
After prepping lips, apply either a lip base of a quick coat of your favorite foundation or concealer to create a neutral palette for lip color. Next, pick a nude-hued lip liner and fill in lips (not around them) before slicking on gloss or applying lipstick within the lip line (not outside of it). Finally, apply a dab of light, neutral eye shadow to the center of the bottom lip to create a pretty pout.
Brow Wow
Great brows provide the ideal framework to an oh-so-pretty face and yet so many women overlook their brows. Not sure if your brows need help? Take a picture of yourself; you just may get an entirely different impression than you do glancing in the mirror. Brows that are too thin or crooked can be quickly fixed with a good brow pencil and some self control (as in, stop plucking).
The key to filling in brows like an expert is to use short, feathery strokes calling upon a brow pencil that is one shade lighter than your brow hair. Also, for most women, shading brows just above the brow line can lend a youthful, bright-eye look while shading brows below the brow line can close eyes, lending a sleepy look that’s less than flattering.
Class dismissed!
