VALENTINES DAY ~ The Look of Love

The key to keeping your desired look to most 

natural and real is to use sheer, subdued colors 

and not overdoing any one area of your face.

To begin ALWAYS wash your face with lukewarm water, rinsing with cool to cold water, closing pores. Gently pat dry your face.  While eyelashes are slightly damp is the optimum time to curl your eyelashes…Always Curl Your Lashes! Apply your moisturizer and an eye crème …VERY important! This gives you a clean, even canvas to work your magic on.  Apply a face primer evenly, and this is important for even coverage and stay power.  It also helps eliminate fine lines and wrinkles making your base foundation or powder not seep into those areas.  Apply foundation by dotting a small amount on your forehead, bridge of your nose, inner area of cheeks right below cheekbone and finally on your chin.  Using a slightly damp MAKEUP SPONE OR WEDGE, lightly distribute the foundation on your nose swiping downward and across to the under eye area. Forehead, face area and chine, blend liquid outward, these motions assure no lines at the edges of your face!  This provides an immediate eye opener to any look! Apply black mascara, at least two good coats, and using a clean mascara wand (disposable, found at any makeup counter) to separate lashes and remove any clumps, making sure you’re not using too much.  I do this before the next steps so I can finalize the look with a finishing coat of mascara to complete and slightly add a little more focus to the eyes.  I also  always dust a little light (in color and weight) loose powder under the eye in case of eye shadow fallout or mistakes, then brush it off  when through:

For a romantic, soft makeup look...

·         After above steps, follow these simple (but detailesd steps to create a romantic yet natural alluring look. Begin by choosing your colors, I suggest pinks and browns, and a combination thereof. These colors work well and look wonderful on all skin tones, whether you have or deep brown or pale white skin There are lots of wonderful shades of pink at the cosmetics counter (and even drug stores). Now, if If you could buy only one new product to update, and add to a fresh romantic look, choose a gloss that is pink with brown undertones which is a shade that looks beautiful on everyone and adds a glow to your entire face by picking up on the other subtle shades you’ll be adding to your face.  Soft to high gloss works well with this look After skin nourishing, apply the corrector under the eyes and onto the inner eye corners. Thin layer of corrector on the upper eyelids will be a good foundation for eye shadows to keep them on longer and soother.

·         Use the foundation color that matches your skin color best. Choose pink with brown tones & hues for blush. Those who have round face shape, apply blush onto the center of the cheeks, and those with long (or oblong) face – onto the cheekbones. If you want your make up to look natural and sparkling, use blush with light-reflecting sparkles.

·         ALWAYS tap off excess shadow from your brush then apply light eye shadows (the first hue) under the brow along the eye, leaving a small space to highlight ender the brow.

With the lighter shimmery shadow of your first color of choice, either golden-pink or beige tints and apply with a makeup brush that you the sweep along the lid to the lashes line. To add some glam chic, brush slightly the inner eye corner with light shadows.

·         Using your 2^nd choice of color of browns, deep pinks to red/brown and create a bit of a triangle Apply darker tinted matte shadows starting on the outer eye corner of your eye, right below the brown bone or crease but not past the length of your eyebrow, the open ends ending about mid-center, leaving the inner corner and center of the lid lighter. Blend with a rounded fluffy blening brush and blend in a circular motion.  To finish shadow, use a white/beige shadow and swipe right under arch off your brow and blend outward. For a smoky eye, bring shadow slightly under the lash line and intensify the color.

·         Choose eyeliner of dark-chocolate or black-brown colors. Contour the thin line on the upper eye lid as close to the lash line as possible. “Stippling” or ‘dotting’ several small dots as close together and to the lash line as possible, Take a q-tip and lightly dampen only the very end (I usually just touch it to my tongue when I am doing my own makeup) and sweep over the dotted areas blending and smoothing the line. This is an easy way to start with liner if just learning and can be intensified by building more color as you go If you are more adept in skill or want to try your hand at a subtly yet  intense addition to the look you’re working for, line the “water line” right below your upper eyelashes, and to try this just gently lift your eyelid with the hand you don’t write with and using a waterproof eyeliner pencil or a flat liner brush and inkgel liner Now make it a bit a bit thicker from the center to the outer eye corner to make the eye look bigger. 

     To finish face, softly contour you cheeks with a very pale, sheer pink blush, placing it just on your cheekbones. Dip your blush brush lightly into the color then tap it off before applying it gently to your face. You can slightly sweep the brush with remaining blush from your brush across the very top of your forehead.  Again, keep it light.  Set look with a translucent powder and add gloss! You just want an accent of a neutral pink/pink brown gloss  to your lips and you're done!