Have you ever felt that your look was on point but when you took a selfie you didn’t look how you felt? Well I have the solution!
Here are 8 makeup tips that will make your photos, and obviously you, look amazing! You don’t believe me? Well, read on and see for yourself.
1. Prep Your Skin
Ok, first, some ground rules. Before you start putting on your makeup in the morning, be sure to exfoliate and get rid of all the dirt from the previous day. You want a clean and fresh face as your starting point. Then, add a moisturiser to keep your skin healthy and soft. After that, you want to add a primer; this will keep your foundation from falling off your face… think of the witch in The Wizard of Oz scene: I’m meeeeeeeeeeeelting!
2. Avoid Sunscreen
Ordinarily, the next step I would recommend would be to slap on some sunscreen or use items with SPF, but this is a big no-no when it comes to photos as SPF washes you out. Remember: beauty comes before cancer prevention, so avoid these lifesaving lotions with a passion!
3. Ditch the Shine
Now that we’ve covered how to avoid looking washed out, we need to talk about how to avoid looking shinny. Shininess is caused by an oily complexion. To avoid this showing up in your photos, apply loose matte powder over your existing makeup.
This will reduce the shine of your skin. If this doesn’t quite cut it, you could carry around some tissues that help absorb any excess oils that appear during the day. Avoid using pressed powder over your makeup because that creates a washed out look.
4. Brighten Your Eyes
If you’re feeling tired and your eyes are looking red, using white eyeliner makes it look like the day hasn’t totally ended you. Use white eyeliner to line your inner rims as opposed to just randomly during cartoons on your face; this makes the whites of your eyes appear whiter instead of red.
This technique also makes your eyes pop and look bigger like Bambi’s. You can also contour your eye crease—not with white eyeliner; this keeps your eyes as the focus of the picture. Use a neutral matte color that is darker than the shade you used on your lids.
5. Be Bold!
We must account for the flash! As all selfie lovers know, your phone’s flash will wash you out. So, take advantage of bright colors. Try bolder and brighter colors to offset the effects of the flash.
Think about it: You finally have a reason to use that dramatic red lipstick and blue eye shadow combo…or is that just my dream? Nevertheless, I say go for it.
6. Invest in Your Foundation
Let’s talk foundation. Matching your foundation to your skin tone is very important because you want to look human; if not, then go right ahead and do your thing. The best thing to do is to take advantage of free things. That’s right, you heard me—free things.
Go to a department store’s makeup section and commandeer the assistance of the makeup artists there to find a foundation that matches your skin tone exactly. That way you can avoid looking like a very attractive orange.
7. Shiny, Unhappy People
Alright back to the idea of shiny equals bad. Make sure that the makeup you’re using is matte rather than shiny. Anyhow, the reason is that shiny makeup has a tendency to sneak into the crevasses of your fine lines and accentuate them, meaning that they stand out in pictures, which would be utterly devastating.
8. Be Kind to Your Eyebrows
Eyebrows frame the face, so it’s important to fill them in. Use a soft brow pencil or some brow powder, and instead of redrawing your eyebrows, follow their natural shape.
Well, there you go ladies and possible gents. Using these tips, you can finally temper your insistent urge to burn all your bad pictures. If the urge still strikes, I recommend going full throttle and starting a bonfire with marshmallows and sausages.
Did you like the tips? Leave a comment below and let me know. Also let us all know of any hard won tips you’ve come across.