Tag Archives: eye make-up application

Your Best Foundation Colour

Choose your foundation as close as possible to your skin colour. The best place to test this is at the jaw line. The reason we test the colour here instead of the wrist, cheek or forehead is because the skin colour will be different on every area. The colour of your neck will be different than the colour of the skin on various parts of your face.

Your best colour will blend into your skin tone at the jaw line and look natural next to the skin tone of your neck. Happy testing…

Choosing Your Foundation

The right foundation will last on the skin, be comfortable to wear and give you the right amount of coverage that suits your personality and needs. Choose foundation based on four things:

  1. Your skin type – knowing your skin type before you buy will save you a lot of head aches. It will make your foundation last longer and be more comfortable. For example a dry skin would likely want a foundation that adds nourishment and moisture to the skin. An oily skin would likely want something oil free.
  2. These days there are so many choices for foundation formulas. Although liquid is still the most popular, consider cream, wet-dry or mineral powder. Each foundation has different qualities.
  3. Coverage is something you should consider before buying your foundation. Do you want a natural look, a flawless complexion or something in between?
  4. After you have determined your preferences based on skin type, formula and coverage it is time to decide on finish. Finish is like the finishing touch. This is also where fashion and personal preference come into play. Do you want a matte finish, satin finish, velvety finish? There are lots of options. Choose the one you like the best or go for fashion.

Once you have narrowed this down then it is time to choose the colour. I will tell you all about it in my next blog post.

Make Your Make-up Last

Clients always ask me how I get my foundation to last all day. The secret – finish your foundation with a light dusting of translucent powder. With a powder brush, press the powder into the skin. Then dust off the excess in a downward outward motion.

Conceal Blemishes and Dark Circles

Using a q-tip or a fine concealer brush, apply concealer to any area that needs extra covering. The best concealer colour is one that matches your foundation or the colour of the skin next to the concealed area (if you are going Au naturale). With your ring finger pat and press it into place. Concealer can be applied alone, on top or below foundation.

Prepare Your Face for Make-up

A flawless make-up application requires a bit of prep. Start with a clean face using products designed for your skin type.  If your skin is flakey, exfoliate as part of the skincare process. Finish with a moisturizer designed for your skin type. Let the moisturizer absorb for about 15 minutes prior to your foundation application. Moisturizer will create the perfect canvas for your make-up masterpiece.

How to Apply Make-up to Look Younger – Part 2

Although good skincare and foundation and concealer applied properly will make you look younger, it does more than that. It will create the perfect canvas for your masterpiece. Try the following for a younger looking you…

Keep eyebrows groomed. Nicely shaped eyebrows will open the eyes and automatically give a more youthful look. For a more defined look use an eyebrow pencil. Match the colour as closely as possible to your hair colour or use a slightly lighter colour. If the hair is grey use a soft grey pencil.

As we age, our skin tone, hair colour and eye colour tend to soften. This can cause dark and bright colours and combinations with a strong dark/ light contrast to appear harsh on our skin, making us look older. If this is the case, try colours that are slightly softer and more muted instead for a more youthful look. Avoid using dark colours on areas that appear overly sunken.

Neutral eye shadow colours tend to be easier to wear. Be careful with extremely dark colours. Avoid frosted eye shadows on crêpe areas.

Give your eyes a more open look by curling your eyelashes.

Applying mascara can be a nightmare when you can’t see. Use a magnifying mirror at eye level or higher. When applying mascara on your upper lashes lift your head slightly. This will cause your lashes to lower slightly making it easier to apply your mascara on your upper lashes. Focus on the mirror rather than trying to look at the brush. With practice you will find it much easier to apply mascara.

If you have a double chin or want a stronger looking jaw line, sweep a matte brown shading powder under the jaw line.

Use blush without sheen on the cheekbones. Products with shine and or a frosted finish will enhance lines and wrinkles. For more prominent looking cheekbones, use a matte brown shading powder under the cheekbones.

If lips are aging try using a lipstick base. This will help to stop the colour from seeping into the lines it will also help stop feathering.

If lips are lined or wrinkled, avoid using a dark matte lipstick or a very frosted lipstick or shiny lip gloss all over the lips. Line lips with a lip pencil a more defined look.

For more make-up tips and application instruction see ‘Masterful Make-up in Minutes’

How to Apply Make-up to Look Younger – Part 1

I love make-up. Whether you apply a little or a lot it can totally change a women’s appearance. It can make you appear younger, older, more glamorous or sexy. It can also hide imperfections or enhance any feature. The sad thing is that as we age, a make-up application that once looked natural and brought out our features can now appear harsh and bring out the lines and wrinkles instead. Because of this it is important to adjust our make-up application as we age.

Focus on making your skin look healthy and evenly toned instead of adding more colour. A good skin-care regiment can work wonders. Always use a moisturizer on the skin before applying foundation. This will help the foundation blend easier onto the skin. I also recommend using an eye cream as well, especially if the eye area is dry.

For a more youthful look, choose a foundation formula that is light-reflecting but does not have a sheen. I would also advise staying away from a matte finish foundation. Both can draw attention to lines. There are also great formulas that help to diminish lines on the skin.

Choose a foundation that is as close as possible to the colour of your skin at the jaw line. Test a few colours at a time and choose the one that blends the best with your skin tone. When using a concealer choose one in the same undertone as your foundation and blends with the colour of the skin or foundation next to where it is applied.

By choosing the right products you can create the perfect canvas for a younger looking masterpiece.

View our next Post to learn tips for looking younger with make-up…

For more make-up tips and application instruction see ‘Masterful Make-up in Minutes’