Ten tips to upgrade your makeup

Sometimes you might find your makeup looks more plain jane than pageant worthy. Maybe you’ve bought that expensive eyeshadow, blended it perfectly… but are still wondering, why doesn’t it look as exceptional as you expected? is something missing?

In fact there is a multitude of tricks that makeup artist and beauty guru’s use to get immaculate results. Heres just 10 steps that you might not be doing, that could bump your look to the next level.

1. Use an eye primer this is a frequently missing element to creating a smooth base for your eyeshadow. It will blend better, boost the colour of your eyeshadow and last longer.

2. Curl those lashes Straight lashes are unfortunately unforgiving when your trying to create a magnificent eye. But simply curling them with a lash curler or heated eyelash curler will open up your eyes beautifully.

3. Use fake lashes If you already have big full lashes then curling your lashes is sufficient, however if your lashes are short and straight, then this is imperative to creating a dazzling eyes. You can tone it down by using false lashes cut in half or a few individual lash clusters on the outer corners of your upper eyelash. If you have difficulty applying them, try changing your lash glue to DUO. Keep in mind if you’re doing false eyelashes, you should always get as much mascara on your real lashes as you possibly can, then put the falsies on. Otherwise they’ll look patchy.

4. Use liquid or gel eyeliner depending on the makeup look you are trying to acheive, as a general rule a little eyeliner on your upper lashline, goes a long way to bring your eyeshadow application together. It can also make your eyes pop and appear bigger, take time to research and determine what style of eyeliner is best suited to your eye shape.

5. Tame and frame your brows this step is crucial and will make the biggest difference to framing your face and framing your eyes. To look groomed and refined… fill in patchy missing areas and neaten the shape and length. If you can’t get to a pro to fix them for you, use a very sharp pencil and “feather” on individual brows if yours are sparse. Finish with some brow powder. Never use black on your brows because it looks unnatural–brown is better. Then brush it all through with a spooly for a natural look.

6. Exfoliate and moisturise your lips cracked, dry, flaking lips are unsightly and even worse with lipstick. The solution is to exfoliate them gently with a toothbrush and a sugar scrub made of sugar crystals, honey and coconut oil (or olive, rosehip, almond etc). GENTLY buff with your homemade scrub in circular motions until they seem smooth. Then apply vaseline or pawpaw balm generously and sleep ovenight with it. When you wake up in the morning you’ll be delighted with baby soft lips. Then for a super shiny lacquered lip that will actually stay put: Use a stain first, then a lipstick, then slick on some gloss.

7. Use eyedrops or white eyeliner  red, cloudy, tired eyes will distract from your beauty, even with the most gorgeous of eyeshadow application. The easy solution to this is eyedrops, specially formulated to remove redness (available from your chemist). Or you can use white eyeliner on the inner bottom rim of your eye to brighten your eyes. This will also make your eyes appear larger.

8. Use a primer  So fine lines and imperfections are filled to provide a nice surface with or without adding makeup.

9. Conceal concealers tend to have a heavy consistency, so it’s important to apply it after you’ve applied your foundation. They will brighten your eye area and lift your face.

10. Get even foundation Use a ‘stippling’ or ‘kabuki’ brush to buff and buff out your makeup or ideally use a beauty blender, a reusable sponge ideal for light-to-buildable application. Pour a small amount of foundation on the back of your hand and press the smaller side of the beauty blender against your foundation. In small dabs, start applying your foundation on your forehead and work your way down to your nose, then towards the outside of your face. For fuller coverage, repeat this step until desired coverage is reached.

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