Make-up Tips before the Night
Make-up – a skill that takes years to perfect. While we won’t attempt to put beauty schools out of business in 10 minutes, here’s a head start on the essential make up tips, from non-Ugly Betties.
1. Mascara
Darken, thicken and define those eyelashes, to entice people to look into your alluring eyes. Lash up – create volume and length that open up your eyes. Choose quality waterproof mascaras and change every few months to avoid dry lumps (eww). One of the best is Lancome’s Flextencils or L”Oréal Telescopic Clean Definition mascaras. While J. Lo may use animal fur eyelash extensions, the idea of having some dead animal on our eyes sounds wrong and expensive. The experts at L”Oréal recommend using good make up removers to clean your lashes before going to bed. This will keep the lashes healthy and prevent breakage. After all what use is mascara if your lashes have all gone bad?
Interesting fact: Other than the usual wax thickeners and preservatives, some mascara wands contain rayon or nylon fibres to lengthen eyelashes.
2. Lipstick
Black, purple, blue and green aren’t very fashionable on this part of the Earth. And if being beautiful is your ‘thang’, a lip colour is the most basic of make-up 101. It’s instant sexy. Red for high glam, brown for Naomi Campbell’s verve and shades of pink for a dash of youth. Never outline your lips with a darker lip liner like as if you’re doing kiddie colouring – it’s been outlawed in the 90s and it’s an even bigger fashion faux pas today.
Interesting fact: Lipsticks generally last three years if used and kept properly.
3. Lip gloss
Luscious and wet kiss-a-licious lips are always in, every season. Try MAYBELLINE New York Wet Shine Diamonds Liquid or Lip Polish, with its high shine, full colour, glossy finish that is applied with a wand applicator. Lipstick typically gives a lower shine than lip gloss. So if you want lips so wet, it makes ‘people thirsty just by looking at you look’, try Chanel Aqualumiere Gloss or MAC’s Lip Glass – a tube of magical slippery shine.
Interesting fact: To have sexy and always in-style lips, apply lip gloss on top of lipstick for moist, wet and lips that speaks volumes of your SEX appeal!
4. Foundation
It could be potentially insulting if someone walks up to you and asks what foundation you’re using. Foundations should always disappear into your face. The common mistake girls (and women) make is to test foundation on the hand. The back of your hand is usually darker than the skin on your face, so test your foundation on your jaw line. This will let you know immediately if you have a match. The perfect shade is one that disappears on the skin.
Interesting fact: The number one cause of premature aging and skin pigmentation is the sun’s UVA rays. Protect yourself from photo-aging and sun damage with a foundation that comes with SPF protection. So later in life, you have less to hide and more to show.
5. Eyeliner
Have eyes that flirt. What’s the use of make-up if you’re not going to get some? Yes, you think men will like you for your inner beauty, but how are they going to get to that without first getting past your outer beauty? Put your best eye forward with expressive, smouldering sexy eyes. Eyeliner can make the most of the body language by enhancing depth and definition to your seductive stare. It does that by enhancing your eyes, making them look brighter and clearer.
Interesting fact: In the 1800s, Queen Victoria publicly declared make-up impolite. It was deemed to be vulgar and decadent, only fit for actors and prostitutes. Thank god that’s history.
6. Blusher
How to apply blusher? The experts at MAYBELLINE recommends this – smile to locate the apples of your cheeks. Begin at the centre of the apple and apply blush up and outward to the corner of the eye and temple. Blush should never go below the bottom of your nose, or any closer to the eye. By applying blush, it highlights your cheekbones and gives your face definition. Plus, a healthy glow, of course!
Interesting fact: If you can’t afford blusher, just slap your face hard a few times for a warm glow. Painfully cheap? You bet.
7. Perfume
There’s nothing more arousing than a trail of scent that lingers with your beauty. It can help create a lasting impression and set your mood for the night (or day). Interesting fact: Medical experiments have shown that vanilla fragrance reduces stress and anxiety. It’s also considered to be the sensual scent by both sexes.
