Whether it’s selecting a foundation that suits your skin or knowing how to apply liquid eyeliner, CosBeauty has put together a basic makeup guide to help you get your beauty technique on point.
Foundation
When it comes to your makeup base, the most important thing to remember is you want your skin to look like skin. It should look clean and fresh, not like you’re wearing lots of product. Don’t forget to use a primer to keep the skin hydrated and prep the complexion.
Selecting the right base shade is key. Make sure the colour matches your skin tone exactly. When you’re buying a foundation, test it on the side of your face, not the back of your hand. The skin on your face is a very different shade to the skin on your hand. Yellow-based foundations such as the Bobbi Brown ones are great because they take any pink or red tones out of the skin.
People often try to alter their skin tone with makeup but if you go a shade or two lighter it can end up looking ashy and if you go darker it won’t match your skin and you’ll fool nobody. Instead, match your skin tone exactly and then warm it up with bronzer or blusher if you need it.
Foundation comes in a variety of forms, with the four main types being liquid, cream, stick and powder.
The right foundation can even out your skin tone, give you a healthy complexion and conceal flaws and pigmentation. With each type comes a different finish and level of coverage.
Eyeliner
Liquid is typically the most popular everyday foundation due to its sheer natural finish, while cream foundations are the number-one choice for makeup artists. To set makeup apply a finishing spray,
Liquid eyeliner is a great way to make your eyes “pop” but applying it can be intimidating. An easy way to test out liquid liner is to first use a taupe eyeliner pencil to lightly trace a line just above your upper lash line. This trick lets you make sure the lines are even and accurate before next applying the darker, liquid liner colour directly on top of the taupe “practice” line.
Our favourite makeup trick is to use eyeliner to fill in the tiny spaces between upper eyelashes. This really helps eyes look fuller and more alive and lends an amazing frame to the eyes.
Kohl eyeliner – Want to feel sexy and sultry but don’t know how to avoid ‘panda eyes’? Creating that sexy ‘rock chick’ look is easier than you think. Kohl or pencil eyeliners are the genesis of the smoky eye. The trick is to build the look in layers and to keep the application smooth and soft. A true smoky eye starts with the intensity at the centre of the eye, billowing out into softer application.
Start by framing the eye with a black kohl pencil at the upper and lower rim. Dot the same pencil into both the top and bottom lashes and blend using a cotton bud or a small round-tip blender brush to create a smudged but defined line.
Like almost every cosmetic these days, there are several options when it comes to lining your eyes – and it’s all about picking the one you’re most comfortable with.
Mascara
Every girl knows the beauty benefits of mascara, but learning the right technique can make all the difference for lashes with flair.
Hold the brush at a horizontal angle if you want thick lashes, or turn it vertically for a more natural finish. The way you hold the brush when applying your mascara can make a huge difference. Holding the brush horizontally and wiggling it back and forth will give you voluminous lashes, while holding it vertically and running the tip of the brush along the length of your lashes will leave you with longer, more natural look.
The best way to hold a curl is to apply a thicker coat of mascara at the root of your lashes and a lighter ones towards the end. Wiggle the brush back and forth at the base of your lashes and then swipe to the tips.
If you have thin or light coloured lashes, coat both sides by alternating between looking up and looking down while applying mascara. That way, the hairs are fully covered and appear much thicker.
Brows
There ain’t nothing cool about sparse, unkempt brows. The best eyebrow products can mean the difference between a polished look and a messy one. In order to recover from the great over-plucking epidemic of the 90s, we must rely on eyebrow products to ensure natural, perfect eyebrows.
Whether pencil or powder, filling in your eyebrows can be tricky and we’ve all Googled it more than once. Whatever happens, don’t choose a shade that exactly matches your brow hair; for example, blondes should choose shades that match the base of the hair colour, not their highlights, to prevent looking washed out.
When filling in your eyebrows the best place to start is under the arch, then continue filling in outward toward the tail (the important part of the brows that frame the eyes!). Make sure if you are lowering your arch, the shape should be angled and rectangular, not rounded. Be careful because if the arch is too high, it can make you look angry!
Once the arch and tail are filled in, move to the top of the brow and to the inner edge. The line on the inner edge should be perpendicular to the brow and line up with the middle of the nostril. Viola! Thicker, more symmetrical and completely natural-looking brows!
Illuminators
Luminescence is a stealth beauty effect, lighting up your face like a light bulb under your skin to enhance all your features. There are a huge number of products that deliver glow, in formulations you can simply skim over bare skin or your makeup.
Luminisers look great above the cheekbone and around the inner corner of your eyes. Sweep a veil of luminescence over the tops of your cheekbones, your forehead, the outline of your upper lip or a dab on your chin or nose. Keep it away from areas with wrinkles; it will just bring attention to them. You can also use them on the brow bone. Don’t forget to blend, blend, blend!
A highlighter is perfect to dab small amounts on top of your cheekbone – from the apple of the cheek and up through to the hairline. This adds light-reflectors, and makes your skin look fresh and youthful. Use small amounts on the inner corner of the eye to add a “pop”, under the brow bone to lift the eye, on the cheekbones for added definition and down the T-zone to add light to dull skin. Blend with fingertips to create an even and flawless complexion.
Lips
Everyday colour
With lip liner, try to draw the line just slightly over the edge to create a fuller mouth. If you go inside the lip line you are cutting yourself short. Use gloss just into the centre of the mouth. As this is the bigger and more forward part of the mouth, light will hit there first and give a great reflection to make your lips appear more plump.
Opt for a natural-coloured lip pencil and outline, then lightly feather the colour into your lips, leaving the centre of your lips lighter – this creates a 3D effect so your lips appear fuller.
Get your lips looking full and juicy by slicking on a gloss with some plumping properties. A sheer lip gloss with a high shine finish or some multi-dimensional colour will have lips looking lush and well conditioned.
For the best nude lip, foundation out your lip slightly first so your own lip colour is not coming through or competing with the nude shade of lip colour that you choose. This way you are getting the truest colour on your lip and not your own pink tone coming through.
But be warned, less is definitely more with this look! Nothing looks worse than a lipstick that is super matte and nude and applied thickly to the lips to look like liquid paper! You want it to look as natural as possible – whenever we are envious of Angelina we are noticing her fabulous lips, not her makeup!
Opt for a nude lipstick with a slight shine and build up light layers with a lip brush. Pop a nude gloss over the top that has a slight hint of pink or peach running through it.
Red lips
Scar-Jo always has us blushing with her rosy red mouth, a look that many of us wish to emulate but don’t know if we can pull it off. The good news is that anyone can actually wear red.
Cool skin tones and pale milky tones are generally suited to blue-based reds, whereas olive tones are better suited to brick reds.
Firstly, apply a light-textured light reflective concealer along the outline of the lips to eliminate any uneven tones – use a very small amount as it’s essential that it appears very natural. Then fill in your lips with a lip primer to allow longevity and prevent the lipstick from moving or bleeding.
One way to apply a red lipstick is with your fingers. On a clean, moisturised lip, use your ring finger to dab on the red lipstick, turning your finger to fit into your lip shape. This actually melts the lipstick onto your lip, saves you time and will last longer. Now that you have a base, edge and polish off the shape of the lip perfectly with a matching red lip liner. Blot the lip colour with a tissue and re-apply – layering is the key to long-lasting colour.
Blush
No matter how old you are, wearing blush is a must. It enhances facial features and replaces luminosity of the skin that fades with age.
Generally speaking, peach-based tones work well with just about any complexion. They add warmth and a ‘lift’ to the appearance and work nicely with illuminators and bronzers.
Apply to the apples of your cheeks and across the temples when a warmer colour is used. Blush is very feminine, pretty and natural, and we love a pretty, soft pop of colour on the apples of the cheeks for that gorgeous glow.
