Listen To The Pros
Influencers, advertising, and trends are always coming up with new ways to apply your makeup. You purchase an item, excited for the face-filtering effects you were promised you would see, only to be left with a patchy, dry, or cakey mess. Unfortunately, these individuals don’t have your best interests at heart. Rather than turning to Instagram yet again, try one of these hacks the next time you’re getting dolled up.
1. Apply Concealer With A Brush
Putting concealer directly onto your face is a waste of product and an excellent way to spread bacteria into your products. Apply some concealer to the back of your (clean) hand, and really work it into a brush that’s around the same size as the areas you’re looking to cover up.
2. Liquid, Then Powder
This appears to be common knowledge, but every so often, a “hack” will come out that promises photo-finish flawless skin, only to have you apply setting powder under your foundation. We promise you, this will come out looking cakey.
3. Eight Basic Brushes
Investing in high-quality makeup brushes won’t make you cut that crease any better, but they can provide an overall better application for your products. Professional makeup artists recommend the following eight brushes: foundation, concealer, fluffy powder, blush, small blending brush, flat eyeshadow brush, precision angled brush, and lip brush.
4. Avoid The Duck Lip
Often, a common misconception, thanks to the likes of Kylie Jenner & co., we try to achieve the perfect pout with a little too much overlining. Instead of overlining your entire mouth, simply overline your cupid's bow to achieve this fuller-looking lip.
5. Mix Concealer With Color Corrector
If you’re really looking for a flawless, even base, color correcting is where it's at. Like concealers, we often see folks applying color correctors directly to the problem area, before loading on concealer or foundation on top of that. Mix your color corrector with some concealer on the back of your hand to prevent intense makeup buildup.
6. Pressed Powders Are Good
Forget baking, most of us only need to set our makeup with a pressed powder. Loose powder can make the face look quite cakey, and the heavy application isn’t really needed unless you’re doing a heavy-duty look. Applying a pressed powder with a large, fluffy brush is the best way to get a natural look.
7. Stipple
From the great Cody Martin, “Dab! Don’t Rub.” Sure, he was talking about how to get a stain out of silk, but the statement still stands for us makeup wearers. Dabbing, or stippling, is a much more effective move when it comes to liquid makeup products. It blends the product into the area you want it to go, while swiping tends to move the product (and the products underneath it) around.
8. Contouring Is Effective
The problem with so many contouring videos these days is that influencers tend to lean into a very heavy application or do some insane type of contouring just for the fun of it. But learning where to shade your face is worth the practice, and opens a new world of perceived bone structures.
Apostolos Vamvouras on Unsplash
9. Layering Product Powders
If you’re not worried about products moving around, you can definitely stick to your press powder and go about your day. For those of us who want to maintain the vibrancy of our mug, it's recommended that you apply a corresponding powder over a liquid or cream-based product. Cream contour, cream blush, powder contour, powder blush, and so on and so forth.
10. Blend With Translucent Powder
To avoid muddying an eye look, try blending the edges of your eyeshadow with a translucent powder instead of a skintone shade. This will keep your look as crisp as possible, and also avoid overapplying a base shade.
11. Eyeing Your Brow
When applying an eyebrow product, start at your brow arch instead of at the beginning of the brow. Once your arch is perfected, you can brush the product through the rest of your eyebrows! This keeps you from having to use such an intense amount of product.
12. Prone To Creasing
If there are areas in your face that are more likely to crease throughout your day (undereyes, around the mouth, etc), this is the time to whip out that loose powder. Use a powder puff or a smaller, fluffy brush to really push the powder into the skin. You don’t need to bake; you just need to work on the little product you use effectively.
13. Match Your Concealer
We know a lot of us are still reeling from the 2016-ification of the “bright under eye.” It’s a tough one to beat, but we promise that you will have a much more natural-looking face if you find a concealer that matches your skin tone. Too-bright concealers, especially around the eyes, can create an unflattering “goggle effect.”
14. Highlight Your Waterline
To create the illusion of brighter eyes, you can apply a shimmery waterproof pencil to your waterline. It’s best to use a color that offsets any redness in the eye, and a waterproof formula will ensure that it stays on all day.
15. Use Your Fingers
We swear to you, sometimes you just have to use your hands. Applying lid shimmer, blemish correction, or highlighter with a finger is just as effective as a brush, and your skin is much less absorbent than a beauty blender. Again, we must emphasize the importance of clean hands for this scenario.
16. Blend Up
The direction you blend affects how your face looks—especially when it comes to blush and contour. Blending in an upwards direction will help to lift and brighten your face, while blending downwards can give the visual appearance of sag.
17. Start In The Centre
When it comes to foundation application, you don’t have to spread it all over your face. Start in the centre of your face (forehead, around the nose, chin) and blend outwards. This still gives you the coverage you’re looking for, with half the product.
18. Waterproof Mascara
It sucks to take off, but waterproof mascara is a game-changer for the curled lashes game. It keeps your eyelashes in place better than regular mascara, and it moves less throughout the day. If you really want to go all out, apply a regular mascara for lengthening effects before swiping on a waterproof product.
19. It Starts With Skincare
Flawless makeup starts with your skincare, so it’s important to know what type of skin you have and what products are most effective for your skin type. It’s also important to note the difference in oil, water, and silicone-based products, as these three can react poorly with one another.
20. Less Is More
Ultimately, the best professional makeup hack is that less is more. By really working product into a brush and only applying it where needed, you’ll find that your makeup looks and feels much more natural, and you’ll save big bucks by not overusing your products.
