Archive for the ‘lips’ Category

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The More Natural Approach to Make Up

April 19, 2008

I get asked, “How can I achieve a natural face?” a lot. It’s very easy to achieve and all you need are the right tools aka the right make up. Natural make up is more appropriate for the work place and interviews than outrageous/colorful make up looks. Even I have to do a natural face when it comes to major business functions/meetings. I save the more colorful looks for when I have make overs to do or free days. Here are some of my tips when trying to achieve the natural face.

Choose a concealer that is yellow in tint, so it can hide your imperfections without adding much color.

If you can’t decided which foundation color is best for you, go to a department store make up counter and they can help assist you when finding the right color. If you decided to go to the drugstore for your foundation, make sure your drugstore has a return policy for cosmetics. Test the color on cheek or chin, the foundation should disappear on your skin. Don’t forget to always set your liquid foundations with a loose powder.

Always make sure your eyebrows are well groomed. Your eyebrow pencil/eyeshadow color should be either 1-2 shades darker if you have light hair or 1-2 shades lighter if your hair is dark.

When it comes to eyeshadow colors, choose more earthy tones. Try shadows in gold, brown, bronze, plum, and beige. You can apply a light eyeshadow on your lid and a darker shade on the crease to give eyes more depth. Don’t forget to apply mascara!

If eyeshadows isn’t your thing, you can skip the eyeshadow and just use mascara.

Wear an eyeliner that doesn’t look harsh on your skintone. For lighter skin, try brown/dark blue/grey. If you have darker skin, try dark brown/black. Use a powder eyeshadow + liner brush instead of a regular eyeliner to create an even more softer look.

For a flush of color on your cheeks, wear a natural looking blush. If you have darker skin try warmer tones such as bronze, plum, a dark rose, and terracotta. For lighter skin, try tones in rose, peach, pink. Apply blush on an angle on your cheekbones and a touch on the apple of your cheeks.

When choosing lip colors, look for colors that best complements your skin and lips. If your have darker skin, try shades in plum, berry, deep reds, mocha colors. If you have medium/olive skin, try shades in deep pink, light brown, raisin, and caramel. If you have lighter skin, try shades in pink and peach.

Posted in NAO cosmetics, NYC color, african american women, artistry cosmetics, artistry essentials, asian eyes, beautique eyeliners, beauty, blush, cosmetics, eyebrows, eyeliner, eyes, eyeshadow, foundations, lip color, lips, natural make up, personal tips, tips & tricks, women of color | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off

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No rules to make up but..

October 16, 2007

..there are just some things that should be avoided!

- Clashy make up.
Bright eyeshadow + bright blush + bright lip colors = disastrous.
Don’t try to pull off all of those looks at once. Try to choose one area that you want to draw the most attention to. Keep the rest of your make up mute.

- Extremely heavy black eyeliner.
Save this look for the rockers and metal-heads (much love to them♥, I use to be one). When it comes to black eyeliner, a little bit goes a long way. If you aren’t a fan of black, try a softer shade like a brown, navy, or even a grey.

- Obvious lipliner.
Chances are when everyone can see you’re wearing lipliner from a mile away…your lipliner is way too dark. Try to find a lipliner that is the same shade as your lip color you’re using. You can also try a slightly darker lipliner in the same color family as the lip color you’re wearing. This will help define your lips even more.

- Too dark/harsh looking eyebrows.
Nothing is flattering when your brows are too dark. Harsh eyebrows will make you look hard and sometimes make you unapproachable. Eyebrows can make or break your overall make up look. For light haired women, shade your brows with a color that is 1-2 shades darker than your hair color. For dark haired women, shade your brows a color that is 1-2 shades lighter than your hair color. I find that using a matte eyeshadow on my brows makes for a more natural looking eyebrows.

Posted in Blogroll, beauty, blush, cosmetics, eyebrows, eyeliner, eyes, lipliner, lips, tips & tricks | Comments Off

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Spotlight Product ; Artistry® CityWear Trend Colour Collection in Urban Chic

October 1, 2007

Artistry® CityWear Trend Colour Collection in Urban Chic

This make up palette is perfect for women on the go or for women who want to update their look for the fall/winter and don’t know where to start. I got this as a present from my parents and I love it! It comes with 3 eyeshadows (lid, crease and, highlight shade), 3 lip colors and a highlight shade that works as a lip color and/or cheeks. There are many ways to wear the eyeshadows. Try using the darker shade as an eyeliner on either your top and/or lower lashline (use an eyeliner brush that’s a little dampen). The darker shade is just dark enough to be used as an eyeliner but yet, it’s soft and won’t look too harsh on your skintone. I’ve been using this palette for two days straight and I just can’t get over how smooth/velvety the eyeshadows glide on. Artistry Cosmetics are known for their high quality cosmetics. The eyeshadows are very well pigmented (a little goes a long way), crease/fade resistant and the lip colors would look good on any complexation. The eyeshadow & lip colors are in a black sleek compact with a mirror. It also includes a two ended lip and eyshadow brush,a perfect multi-tasker brush. I’m going to order some more palettes and use them on my clients (and more for myself ;]). It’ll set you back $40 but, it’s one of those make up palettes that is actucally worth the money. Here’s a picture of me wearing the Urban Chic palette (the eyeshadows);

Posted in artistry cosmetics, beauty, cosmetics, eyes, eyeshadow, fall & winter make up, lip color, lips, reviews, spotlight product, tips & tricks | Comments Off

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My Fall & Winter Make up Choices

September 23, 2007

I’m constantly updating/experimenting with my looks (you know how us make up artist/cosmetic savvy girls are ;]). During the cooler months, I find that I do a lot more smokey eyes (always my favorite), mattes & light lips(pictured on the left side). Here’s just a rundown of my make up choices for the fall/winter seasons.

Face
Before anything, I always moisturize! My skin gets extremely dry during the colder months and needs that extra hydration. I find that my complextion becomes lighter during this season so, I have to change up my foundation colors. I just mix up foundations to get the right color for my skintone. I take a darker shade and mix it with a lighter shade until I get the color that best matches my coloring. If you’re of a paler complexation, it’s obviously not to buy a deep brown foundation as your dark shade. Buy two foundations that are in a light & medium color. I like to have my foundations to have a matte finish as well. I’ve never been a fan of the dewy look on myself especially not in the fall/winter.
Lastly (face wise), I use a matte blush and/or bronzer. Skin lacks that oomph and tends to look dull during this time of year. By using a matte blush or bronzer, it gives the right amount of color on your cheeks but yet, keeping you looking natural because of the matte finish.

Eyes
I’m the type of girl that smokes all my eye looks out. I said goodbye to the boring plain black look a long time ago, I’m all about smokey COLORS. I’m all about the purples, greens, greys, blues etc. The simplest way to smoke out any look is to apply a matte black eyeshadow to the outer crease and blend up. This gives the right amount of smokiness without overdoing it & a matte eyeshadow cuts down on the shimmery-ness of the shimmery eyeshadow that you may be using for this look as well as other looks (overdoing it with shimmery eyeshadows is not always a good thing especially in pictures). Another way to get the smokey effect is by applying a darker shade of the eyeshadow that you used on your lid & apply it on the crease of your eye. I’m also a fan of matte netural colors (beige, tan, peach, brown) & an extended black bold eyeliner (also known as “cat eyes”). Don’t forget to use an eyeshadow base before doing you eye make up. Don’t have any eyeshadow base? Use a bit of concealer or foundation & just pat on your lids.

Lips
It’s important to downplay & keep those pouts simple when doing a dramatic eye. Try softer/lighter shades or trying a nude color. A nude color can be achieved by just using a little bit of concealer and clear gloss on your lips. If your all about neturals & black eyeliner,try a more bold color. Remember to always prime your lips before applying any type of lip product (especially cooler weather = drying lips). You can use lipbalm, lip salve or just regular vaseline.

Posted in beauty, blush, cosmetics, eyes, eyeshadow, fall & winter make up, foundations, lips, matte make up, tips & tricks | Comments Off

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