Monday, July 5, 2010

Mirror Mirror on the Wall...

...who in the land is fairest of all?

We all will be after today's post. Linda is a makeup artist (amongst many things) & I asked her to share a few of her hints, tips & secrets with us all. I also thought I'd list our top 5 beauty products we can't live without and would love to hear yours!

Clare's Top 5

I cannot live without this stuff. I use it as a lip balm & haven't suffered from chapped lips once since I started using it. It can also be used topically for burns, cuts, cracked skin, splinters, insect bites, nappy rash & more. Looks like it made Linda's top 5 too!


Described by MAC Cosmetics as "A luxurious velvet-soft powder with high-frost metallic finish. Smoothes on: adds buffed-up highlights to cheeks and brows, or an overall ultra-deluxe polish to the face.
I use this on my cheeks pretty much every day. I'm completely addicted to it & always have more than one in stock. It gives the loveliest hint of colour & shimmer to my cheeks, giving an overall luminous look. I used to buy the shade "glissade" but it's no longer in production, so now I use "soft & lovely." 


This is the perfect foundation for me. I don't like a thick coverage & I prefer a glow finish to a matte one. It's lovely & sheer (as the name suggests) and it leaves my skin still feeling hydrated. Especially during these winter months! There is a "sheer matte" version for those with oily skin types. I'll be grabbing some on my trip to Vegas as it's unfortunately ridiculously expensive in Australia.



Want long lashes every single day? With this stuff you don't need fakies. I looove Model Co's Fiber Lash Brush-on Lashes. All you do is pop on one coat of mascara & then follow it up with a coat of the fiber lashes & then seal it with one more coat of mascara. Actually, you can keep repeating this over & over again to get your desired length, but I usually just go for the one. 


I have very sensitive skin & my lips are no exception. If I wear regular lipstick, I usually end up with swollen chapped lips the next day. My sister is a beauty therapist & she sells the Jane Iredale Mineral Makeup range in her salon. She got me onto these lip glosses (which I have in several colours, but I just adore this cherry one) which contain natural ingredients & I've never had a problem since. I also use the Jane Iredale concealer & foundation powder as well as the hydration spray because they're based on minerals & work well with my sensitive skin. (I use the NARS foundation when I need a little more coverage than just a powder. Usually at night.)


Linda's Top 5 & Tips

Great for dry lips and for applying before lipstick to last longer. Other chap sticks contain alcohol, which dries out your lips.


For everyday wear I love this foundation. It's very light and moisturising, yet gives great coverage. 


I love Benefit Cosmetics kohl eyeliner. It has a smudger on the end, which is super useful for softening the lines and applying smokey eyes.


I'm using Nutrimetics at the moment which doubles as a lash & brow primer (it brushes and sets your brows). It's essential to have your regular mascara, but clear is great for everyday wear. It's natural-looking and you don't get those raccoon eyes at the end of the day.


I've been using Revlon's retractable brow pencil in 'Blonde' for years now. I think the key is the colour. Most of the time, unless you have no eyebrows, you will be filling them in. For a natural look, you shouldn't use a colour that's darker than your eyebrows. I've found blonde to be a good match for pretty much everyone.


 Linda's Hints & Tips

Translucency in skin 
When applying foundation, make sure there is translucency so we can still see your skin, your freckles and the glow in your cheeks. The key to this is a foundation with good coverage so that you don't have to apply it too thick!

Eyes 
Consider the size of your eyes and the distance between them. If you have big eyes, you don't want to make them look too far apart by heavily darkening the outsides. You can afford to go dark on the inner corner. Whereas for smaller eyes, doing this will make your eyes look smaller and closer together. So for smaller eyes, focus on darkening the outer part of the lid. It's all about proportion!

Contouring & Highlighting 
Faces come in many shapes - heart, triangle, oblong, round, square & oval. If you have a square jaw, high hairline, prominent chin or nose, use bronzer or slightly darker powder than your usual foundation to contour areas you want to recede. For example, you can make your nose look narrower if you dust the sides with bronzer and highlight the ridge with a shimmer or lighter powder. You can also create the illusion of bigger cheek bones by highlighting them. It's all about illusions. Try it!

Eyes vs Lips
If you're going for dramatic eyes, tone down the lip intensity. This means gloss too! Whatever the colour, high gloss draws plenty of attention to the lips. We want to create a balance of intensity, so choose whether you want it to be the lips or the eyes. For dramatic eyes, choose a natural, pale or nude lip colour with minimal shine. For dark, or high gloss lips, tone down the dark eyeshadow.

There are no rules! 
Having said all of the above, don't let the "rules" get in the way of experimenting and being creative with your make-up. But I think being more informed about how the 'illusions' work will help you be more creative. Taking photos of your make-up can also help you see how it might look to everyone else. So go experiment! Do something out of the usual routine and you might just like it.

Finally, I don't believe there is one brand of make-up that will provide every product that's right for you. You don't have to be loyal! Use a bit from here and a bit from there. Don't think just because it's expensive it's good. AND for those make-up brands that claim to be used by "professionals" aren't necessarily, they're just marketed that way. 

Thanks Linda, for your handy hints! I must admit, I never experiment, I'm so lazy with my makeup... Must give it a try.
We'd love to hear what your beauty must-haves are.

~ Clare x

All images are from their respective websites

2 comments:

  1. Thanks for the tips!!
    my top five that I am using now:
    1. Benefit you rebel with sunscreen for the weekends and Benefit foundation, spin the bottle for weekdays.
    2. Lip gloss, changes daily
    3. Mascara: Benefit Badgal lashes
    4. Benefit Badgal liner, love the smudger on the end!!
    5. Moisturizer with vitamin c, Lumene
    xx
    callie

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm a huge fan of benefit cosmetics as well. Not just because they have great products, but also because their packaging is so damn cute! It lures me in every time!
    I love their "Flamingo Fancy" golden coral body lotion. Although I think they've discontinued it now...
    ~ Clare x

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Thanks for sharing on Soulful Mama ~ Clare x