The Times Dispatch Blogs

In addition to being the Advertising Consultant for The Times Dispatch, I am also an Independent Beauty Consultant for AVON. I LOVE make-up! I think I actually love make-up more than SHOES, if you can imagine that!

I am also a huge fan of “What Not to Wear” on television. Carmandy is the make-up guru on the show. I’ve discovered that I use a lot of her same tricks & tips on putting on make-up. Now, I’m not saying I’m an expert. But, I have worn makeup, daily for 25 years. ☺

So, I thought I’d pass along a few tricks of the trade:

1. Please make sure your foundation &/or powder is the right shade for you! Don’t apply to the inside of your wrist, to match the color. Instead, apply a dab to your neck (just below your jaw line). If you don’t see streaks, then you’ve got a winner!

2. When applying eyeshadow, use a vanilla or very light shade of pink or gold to apply right under your brow & also on the inside corner of your eyes. This brightens & opens up the eyes.

3. Apply mascara to your bottom lashes first. Then you won’t get mascara mess on your eyelid.

4. If you have very dry skin or wrinkly skin, do not use a lot of face powder. Just a light dusting of translucent powder to set your foundation. Also, for this face type, try to use a cream blush. It doesn’t settle in the “cracks” as badly.

5. Only put emphasis on one feature at a time. If you are doing a dark or smokey eye, then use a pale lip color. If you want to do a deep or bold color on the lips, then go light on the eyes. If you try to do both at once, it can look clownish.

6. When doing a smokey eye, you don’t have to use only browns & blacks. Depending on your eye color, try a dark navy or steel gray. Also, dark plum & copper shades work great!

7. Waterproof mascara is harsher on the lashes. It’s harder to remove, and can cause your lashes to break & dry out.

8. Red lips are still IN! Just make sure you find the right shade of red for your skin tone.

9. Please remove your makeup before bed! It really does make a difference in the way your skin looks.

10. Use moisturizer, with a sunscreen, year around.

11. Keep your eyebrows groomed. You don’t have to go to the salon. It’s really easy to take care of this at home. There are tweezers, waxes, eyebrow tape, etc. The shape should be as follows: The inside corner of the brow should line up, diagonally from the inside corner of the eye. The arch should line up by going diagonally, from the pupil of the eye (up and out.) Finally, the outside corner should line up, diagonally from the out side corner of the eye (up & out.)

Just remember...
Beauty comes from within! But, a little lip gloss never hurts!

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