Tip # 3!: Conceal those bags!

Personally, my under-eyes aren't blue (or red). They're actually not even noticeable. Sometimes they may look a little dark though, but nothing too bad, so going over it with just foundation is sufficient for me.

However, I have some tips on concealing your under-eye bags. First you must determine the color of your bags.

Using a color wheel is the easiest way to make any sense of this. When you figure out the color of your under-eye circles, you must then neutralize them using the color opposite on the color wheel from the color of your discolouration.

For example:

• You have redness (usually caused by irritation, if you have sensitive eyes) you would use the color opposite red on the color wheel, - GREEN. However, as it may look strange to put the color green under the eye, and if not done carefully, can make you look truly ill, you can use a color that is more similar to skin, that still has qualities of green in it, like - YELLOW.
• If you have blue under-eye circles, you would use, - ORANGE or a color that has qualities of orange in it to cancel out the blue, like - PEACH or SALMON.
• Now, if you have just simply dark circles (usually just a bit darker than your own skin, seem mostly in indian women) then you would need to use a color that will brighten the area. This is not shown on the color wheel. But the color that has the most brightening qualities is - PINK, so you'd use something with pink in it to brighten your dark circles.

I would NOT advise that you use the common tip of applying a concealer 1 to 2 shades lighter than your skintone to your under-eyes. This just makes your under-eyes appear to have a ghostly white cast in pictures.

To apply the concealer:

• Pat the it ONLY where the opposite color is visible. NB. If you put pink concealer where there isn't anything dark to neutralize, it will show up truly PINK.
• After it's patted on where you need it, blend and smooth it out so it looks seamless.
• Don't forget to set your concealer by lightly patting powder over it! This will keep it in place.

If you actually want to purchase concealers that will cover under-eye circles, you can consider:

• Your color match in MAC-NW. If you don't know what to ask for, just tell the lady at the counter that you want a concealer for under-eye circles, SPECIFICALLY.
• Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage
• L'Oreal True Match Concealer - go for the "C" shades or cool shades. These are more pinky

These are just a few that you can choose from :) There are TONS out there, but I'm only human. Definitely haven't tried all.

Hope this post was helpful!

Tip # 2!: Don't put a crease where there isn't a crease!

So monolids. The "asian" eye.If you try to put a crease on these, it ends up looking like a harsh/messy line just floating awkwardly above the eye.

So don't get me wrong. Not ALL asians lack a crease. I'll show a picture of one that works.

This works because her crease, though not obvious, does not conceal her entire lid. There's just a subtle dip where her eye socket is.

However when the fold of the eye droops over the lid, covering it completely, faking a crease above this can simply look like you have 2 creases. Just plain ridiculous!

My favourite actor in Grey's Anatomy, Sandra Oh, has a monolid. Here's a picture...

Can you see how a crease on her would look silly?

So what should be done with these eyes? Well, there are still a lot of options, so don't be discouraged. Smoky eyes look amazing on monolids, as well as thicker, elongated "cat" eyeliner. Also, I don't know if it's just me, but asian women can pull off the fake eyelash look for everyday wear. I can't, and really wish I could!

However, with prosthetics, anything is possible! :D Just for fun, my lovely friend, Jenna!

She was given a monolid on her left eye :) Enjoy

Some tips on working with mature skin

Mature skin can be tricky to work with. This post can be helpful for those who would like to do makeup as a profession, or just be able to do their mother's or grandmother's makeup for any occasion.

Of course, depending on the type of skin the person has, and the effects of sun damage, etc, application techniques will vary. Lets say 50+. The type of skin we are working with has reddish age spots from sun damage, wrinkles and dark under eye circles.

1.) The best way to conceal the reddish age spots would be to neutralize them with a green concealer. This may sound crazy, but when you go over it with your foundation, it will not look green. MissChievous (youtube) has a wonderful video on color correction.


2.) When working with wrinkles, you must be careful not to tug on the skin, because you may contribute to even more wrinkles. So for eyeliner, don't pull down on the waterline. For eyeshadow, don't pull the eye across to get a smoother application. (THIS ALSO APPLIES TO YOUNGER FOLK WHO WANT TO PREVENT EARLY AGING.)

Also, avoid shimmery products on the skin. That means bronzers with glitter/shimmer, sparkly highlighters, (MAC's Mineralize Skinfinishes). Pretty much anything with glitter/shimmer/sheen/sparkles. It will just settle into the wrinkles and make them 10 times more pronounced.

3.) For dark under eye circles, a salmon/peach colored concealer should be used to neutralize it, followed by foundation.

*** A tip on reducing puffiness is to use tea bags on your eyes. Green tea has caffeine which is anti-inflammatory. You make your tea as you normally would, but before you add anything to it (if you do), remove the tea bag, and freeze it overnight. When you wake up, wrap the tea bags in napkins and place them over your eyes for a few minutes. (15-20 minutes usually does it) And your eyes should no longer be swollen! ***

4.) It is very easy to make more mature skin look ashy, so I prefer to use liquid foundations. Be careful when setting with translucent powders, because applying too heavily can also make the person look ashy. I've used MAC's mineralize skinfinish natural to set liquid foundation with no problems on mature skin.

5.) On an everyday basis, try to keep things natural. Fill in brows lightly, avoid dark colors and shimmer. While deeper lips are probably what they prefer, try going a little lighter. Corals usually wake up most skin tones. Light tints on the lips or sheer colors rather than opaque colors make a huge difference! The idea is to create a more youthful and awake look.

** If you so desire to do a smokey eye, and the person's lids are a little "droopy" (for lack of a better word), it probably isn't the best idea to use black to create the smokey eye. Try bronze and browns, even blues. Gold will also work, but use it carefully. A little shimmer is ok, once it is controlled.

6.) So avoid black eyeliner. On the waterline especially, because it really closes up the eye, making the person look tired. Brown eyeliners are great though (eg. Teddy by MAC). In some cases white eyeliner will look great on the waterline, but it's my preference to use white with light to medium skin tones. A light yellow toned eyeliner should work with all tones, though.

7.) Avoid using really bright colors like an electric blue (eg. Freshwater or Electric Eel by MAC) because it will draw the eyes downwards, and probably put emphasis on the wrinkles there.

***My little disclaimer***
I am not a professional, but these are things that I have discovered from my experiences with working with mature skin.

I hope this was helpful.
Tracey.