How-To: Bold Lips

     A brightly painted lip is an accessory in and of itself. It can compliment an outfit, shift a look from day to night and can also improve one's confidence! To wear a look-at-me lip color you do not have to be a celebrity but you do have to know a few of the celeb tricks to making a bold lip really look finished and flawless.
     Before you apply any lip color you should always moisturize your lips, but this is especially true of a standout lip color such as red or hot pink because a bolder color means more pigment and this can be more drying. Next, cancel out the natural color of your lips and the color around your lips too. A lot of us have a bit of a reddish-pink shading around the outside of our lip line. To cover this put your concealer (the same one that you use for your face) onto and then around your lips, and blend. Also, to help ensure that the color you put on stay's put, set all this with a touch of powder on a large blending brush.
      Now it's time to line your lips. Lining the lips keeps color from feathering and gives the lipstick something to grip to. Choose a color that's close to your desired lip color and then create your lip line (make sure the pencil is nice and sharp). If you want to alter the shape and size of your lips this is the time. To make lips larger, apply the liner just outside of your natural lip line; thinner, apply slightly inside your lip line. You can reshape your cupids bow at this point too. If you really mean business and don't want that beautiful color to run then I suggest Benefit's She' Laq Makeup Sealer. A thin line applied on your lip line will insure your shade won't feather and a thin layer over your lip stick makes sure it won't fade.
     Time to do some coloring! When you want to achieve a precision color application a lip brush is the way to go. They come in various shapes and sizes, just choose the one that's right for you. Neatly lay down the first layer of lip color making sure to get the edges, corners of the mouth and the inside of the lip where bits of your natural lip color can peek out when talking and such. Then, blot with a piece of tissue. Repeat these two steps as needed until you get the color as sheer or as opaque as you'd like. If you mess up and go outside the lines then just take some of your concealer on a small, pointed brush or a clean lip brush and reverse line by covering the spot where the color bled out of your lip line.
     Top with a sealer or use a fluffy blending brush to pat on a little powder to set it all. Last, if you choose, you can add a dot of gloss to the center of your pucker for shine. But beware, this can cause your color to wear off faster. If you are planning on a long day (or night!) then I recommend you bring your lip color and lip brush with you. A cutesy little pencil case (think girly flowers or Hello Kitty) works great and is easy to find in your purse! Just throw in your favorite shades and a lip brush and you'll always look fresh and flawless...

Mascara Application Technique

Look Pale in Pictures?

I can't tell you how many pictures I have of myself where my face looks ghostly pale and 2 dimensional. My body could have been as dark and as bronzed as a Butterfinger bar, but for some reason, every time I'd get my picture taken, my face became devoid of all color. I started the Cullen vampire look years ago...minus the sparkling in the sunlight thing. If this seems to happen to you as well then read on for my simple fixes for this pale problem...

•  When you get your picture taken it's often taken with the flash on. This can be part of the reason that your face looks lighter than it really is, so if flash isn't necessary than try not to use it. However, if the natural lighting isn't very good then you will have to use flash.

• Face products such as moisturizers and foundations that have SPF in them are made to reflect the sun's rays, but they also reflect the light from the flash on a camera. If you are going to have your picture taken for a special occasion or if you're only wearing makeup for an evening out then do not wear products with an SPF. Of course, for daily wear, these protective products are recommended.

• Apply a translucent high definition finishing powder on top of your makeup. These high definition powders are made to even out the appearance of your skin on both film and camera. It will slightly mattify your skin without changing the color of your foundation. You can also wear it alone. While the difference is not that noticeable in person it does make a big difference in pictures.

• Contour your face with a matte bronzer to give your face more dimension. A matte bronzer will enhance your faces natural shape, which can be lost a little when the flash goes off. Don't use a bronzer with shimmer in it because it can make you appear shiny/oily and will enhance imperfections. Using a blush/angled powder brush, apply light layers of bronzer to the hollows of the cheeks, temples, along the jawline and across the top of the forehead. Then blend gently back into the hairline. Finish off with a little more blended down the neck.

Follow these tips and you'll notice a big change in the way you look in pictures!

Trina's Current Favorite: e.l.f. High Definition Powder ($6)