I know way too many people here right now that I didn't know last year, who the fuck are y'all? I swear it feels like the last few nights we've been everywhere and back but I just can't remember it all. What am I doing, what am I doing? Oh yeah that's right, I'm doing me.

HOME | ABOUT | ARCHIVES | NETWORKING | PRIVATE | ASK ME | FLAVORS.ME | Cbox'); cboxwin.document.write(''); cboxwin.document.write(''); cboxwin.document.write('Cbox needs frames!'); try { x = screen.width; y = screen.height; cboxwin.moveTo(Math.max((x/2)-260, 0), Math.max((y/3)-100)); } catch (e) {}; } COMMENTS?



20 January 2011 // saving women, one blending brush at a time
Currently listening - The Killers
Currently watching - Jersey Shore

The world of fashion is something that everyone and their grandmother wants to imitate these days. I want to be the first to vouch for the fact that it is not at all pretty. Being a model is brutal at times, and sometimes you have to do the most unglamorous things just to appear glamorous.

And no, for the bimbos out there, I don't mean sleeping around with photographers/agents.

But for the sake of those that like the glamorous look, please note that just because you see a celebrity do it doesn't mean that you should do it. Sometimes celebrities (and their designated make up artists) screw up in an attempt to find inspiration, they're human sweetheart they're not going to look great ALL the time.

But I'm here to teach you the basics of things NOT to do.

Bright Colors

You can wear bright colors, but wear only one bright color. You need to think about your face in regions: eyes, lips, and cheeks. Pick only one region to use that bright color on. If you have bright lips, keep the rest neutral. A rich blush, keep the rest neutral. Eyes lighting up the room? Keep the focus on them by keeping the rest very neutral. It actually enhances what you do by doing less to every other region.

Some colors are hard to deal with too, because of our biology. Concealers naturally have a yellow undertone to counteract the blueish undertone you get when you're unhealthy, ie dark circles. It's why when wearing blue eye shadows you should be careful. Those with white shimmer in them may make your eyes look puffy and gross. Go for blues with a deeper, richer tone in them instead of the bright shimmering blues.

Blue NEEDS to be toned down. Keep it in the corners, or if you're going to go all over the lid, put another deeper color in the crease to make it look more natural.

And please please PLEASE use eye shadows that work with your skin tones. You know when it's not right when you kind of shudder looking at yourself after putting it on. If you don't plan on blending it with another color to make it better just please take it off.

Remember to try not to be overpowering, overpowering isn't cute or fierce, it's just annoying.

Bronzer

For you girls of the lighter persuasion, I understand you want to look tanner and therefore a little healthier and most of time you use bronzer for that. Just a tip, bronzer is not for every part of your face. It is meant to highlight, not cover. It is NOT foundation.

Darker bronzers go under the cheek bone and on the forehead. Lighter ones? Over the cheek bone and down the nose. Your bronzer should not at all be more than 1.5-2 shades darker than your natural skin tone, and I mean your current skin tone. Sometimes your skin tones change, if you get lighter in the winter you need to adjust for that.

Lips

Your lips are supposed to look sensual. A man will go on and on about a woman's eyes but what he really wants is a pair of nice lips. However if you're like me and don't give two shits what a guy wants, you should still do this for yourself.

Avoid things that are sticky, seriously! It's really unattractive and uncomfortable. And lip color belongs on your lips! Not around your lips, not on your teeth, ON YOUR LIPS.

Tip: stick your finger in your mouth, wrap your lips around it and take it out slowly to remove the excess lip stick that will get on your teeth.

Some of you overdraw your lips because your lips are thin. Don't do this you'll look like a clown. If you want to look like you have fuller lips wear a lighter colored lip gloss. Always avoid darker lip colors - they thin your lips out and age you like crazy!

Faces

First let's talk about foundation. The last thing you want is to look like a piece of cake, that's gross. Foundation is meant to enhance, not clog and clutter. And please for the love of god wear foundations IN YOUR SKIN TONE. If you've got one of those mid tones, mix the foundations. Bare Minerals is good for that.

If you wear glasses or have oily skin, don't use liquid foundation. For powders use flat pads instead of brushes when applying. Brushes are for blending.

Remember, the purpose is to conceal, not to give yourself a new layer of skin. Don't put on too much! The point of powder is to look matte, not cakey.

This part especially needs to be said about blush. I see way too many people just slopping on tons of blush thinking it looks good. Honey you look like a clown, calm it down!

Think about what you look like when you naturally blush when applying. You don't look bright pink, you don't look like you have a rash, why apply it like that? You have to apply blush slowly, it's hard as hell to remove.

The point is to look rosy, adjust blush colors based on your skin tone. Lighter skin? Use a lighter blush and vice versa. When choosing colors use the same basics about bronzer. Keep it closer to the brightness/color of your skin.

Lashes and Brows

Sometimes just getting your eyebrows done can make the difference, it certainly does with me. If you're going to have glasses especially, you need your eyebrows arched. If you feel like you've got some patches you can fill them in with a brow pencil, and only use it in short strokes in the places that need to be filled.

You can use a matte brown eye shadow for your eyebrows as well, with a small angled brush. The point is to make it look natural, not like a Nicki Minaj.

Light haired girls, you need your eye brows 2 shades darker. Dark haired girls? Two shades lighter.

When it comes to lashes I'm not a fan of falsies. Probably because I was blessed with full lashes. But if you're going to wear falsies get them in the more natural shapes. This is also assuming you know how to put them on: as close to the lash line as possible after bending them and trimming if necessary. And always curl them so they blend with your natural lashes, and apply GOOD mascaras. Don't apply the clumpy ones. I personally love Dior Show Blackout Mascara.

Throw away mascaras that are over 3 months old. This is a hygiene thing, don't want bacteria irritating your eyes do you? Always remove excess before applying!


Hopefully this has been helpful to some of you, it certainly took a while to write and think about and it does get better. I'll probably write more of these later. While I do some of my friends' make up I can't do all of yours, so it's best to learn the tips now so you can practice!

xoxo muah!

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