Trianon Magazine

by Alejandra

Have you ever been in that stressful situation where you’ve done your makeup a hundred times and it still looks messy, or you’re just not feeling it? Nine times out of ten, it’s because you’re trying to cover up or trying to look like someone else instead of enhancing and expressing who you truly are. And hey, I don’t blame you; we’ve all been there. So I’m gonna give you some tips and facts about makeup, so when the time comes that you need to do your makeup, you don’t have to redo it a hundred times.

1- Makeup History

Starting with some makeup history so you can understand where I’m coming from.

My grandma was a teenager in the 1960s, and one thing she mentioned that has stuck with me is that the girls at that time pinched their cheeks, so they picked up that rosy color we all know and love. Were they covering something up? No. Were they trying to recreate someone else’s face? No. They used the power of their own face and a pop of color to look even more beautiful than they already did.

2- Makeup Tips

So, now that you know what you’re actually supposed to use makeup for, I’m going to teach you how. The first step is to identify your favorite feature. Not what everybody thinks your best feature is; you choose your own. When you have chosen, look for that feature in the following list to learn how to enhance it.

1) Eyes

The secret to enhancing the eyes is the color wheel. Look for your eye color in the color wheel, and the color that’s across it is the one that will make your eyes pop. For example, if you have brown eyes, try a blue or teal liner underneath your eyes or use a baby blue eyeshadow.

Another way to enhance your eyes is to make them appear bigger or deeper. Hear me out: if you have small eyes, try a nude liner (or even a white one if you’re feeling extra bold) on your water line; it will make your eyes look more open, therefore bigger.

If you would like to deepen your eyes, try dark brown or black liner (or a fine line of eyeshadow) in the outer corner of your lash line and water line.

Extra tip: A lighter concealer shade on your eyelids makes dark mascara pop!

2) Lips

There are two ways to enhance your lips.

• First method: Choose a lip liner that is close to your lip color and follow your lip shape so they look more defined and fuller.
• Second method: Choose a lip liner that is a completely different color than your lips and follow the same steps in method one.

Final step: Add your favorite lip gloss!

The choice is completely up to you and what you feel most comfortable with!

3) Nose or Face Structure

The key to both of these is to have a contour routine that is your own and will define your natural bone structure. Place contour where the shadows in your face are (which is why other people’s contour routines don’t work for you, because every face is different, and shadows show up differently). After mapping the shadows, you are going to place small spots of concealer in the high points of your face (where the sun usually hits your face), like the nose bridge and nose tip. You can leave it there or add some highlighter to the same spots the concealer was added.

Extra tip: Contour and bronzer aren’t used for the same thing. Contour goes on the shadows of your face, and bronzer goes where the sun hits (so where you naturally bronze).

4) Brows

When I want to enhance my brows but still keep them natural, I do these two things:

a) Use brow gel to make them look styled, put together, and clean, always following my natural shape.

b) Put small spots of concealer around them to carve them without making them look too heavy. This serves the same function as putting a lighter concealer shade on your eyelids to make your eyelashes pop.

Remember, use makeup to make you shine, not to cover yourself up. I know trying new makeup techniques can feel overwhelming, but remember: life is about trying new things without the pressure to commit or be perfect! You can try these one random night when you’re bored in your room with nowhere to go.