How to Apply Holiday Makeup
- 1). Blend foundation onto a clean, moisturized face. If the weather is cold in your geographical location, use a base with medium to heavy coverage as opposed to a sheer one, which is better suited to summer. Look into using mineral powder foundation if you haven't tried it yet. One that gives you at least a semi-matte finish is ideal--you don't want your skin to look too dewy if you will be using a considerable amount of shimmer elsewhere on your face.
- 2). Fill brows in with soft strokes using a pencil or brow powder. Make sure to add some definition to the arches if you don't particularly have strong brows. One way to add polish to holiday makeup is to have well-defined eyebrows. Keep them from appearing harsh by using a brow comb to lift away any excess product.
- 3). Apply an eye makeup primer from lash line to brow bone. As soon as the primer absorbs, smooth on an eyeshadow base also from lash line to brow bone. This will make your holiday eyeshadow pop and stand out against your skin, as well as resist fading and creasing throughout the day.
- 4). Choose a rich eyeshadow color that is especially in vogue during the holidays, such as emerald green, deep blue or dark purple. Lay the color down from lash line to just slightly above the crease. Blend upwards to just under the brow bone. Dab a sheer shimmery highlighter on brow bones under the arches of your brows, as well as on the inner corners of your eyes by the bridge of your nose. If your skin has cool undertones, use a highlighter with silvery shimmer; gold shimmer on the other hand is better suited to warm undertones.
- 5). Bring out the shape of your eyes by working a creamy pencil into both top and bottom lash lines. You aren't actually lining your eyes--although you can also do this separately with the same pencil or a different eyeliner--but intensifying your lash lines by making them appear thicker. If your lashes are naturally dark, use a black pencil. Use brown for lighter lashes. Curl eyelashes and apply mascara that matches the color of your creamy pencil.
- 6). Give your possibly paler than usual complexion a boost by applying shimmery blush to the apples of your cheeks. Select a pink-hued blush to flatter cool undertones, and peach-toned blush for warm undertones. If you prefer to keep your cheeks shimmer-free, you can slightly intensify blush application instead so you look as though you just walked in from the cold. Blend away any evident lines to make your blush appear as natural as possible.
- 7). Make lips shine by applying a lip gloss that isn't sheer, but has full-bodied color. Find one with the same tones as your blush to keep your colors from clashing. You can use a deep lip stain topped with clear lip gloss instead, if you prefer. For more glamorous holiday lips if you don't mind more maintenance, wear classic red lipstick (see Resources).
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