Cover It: The ultimate guide to concealer

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beauty, beauty tips, complexion, concealer, cosmetics, makeup

Turns out the secret to having flawless skin is knowing how to apply concealer. Read on to find out how to brush up on your camouflaging skills.

How to conceal puffiness

You need: highlighter + liquid concealer

Mix a liquid concealer with a tiny bit of highlighter, and dab it on the puffy areas of your face. This will help reflect light and give the effect of smooth skin. I recommend recommend Peter Thomas Roth Un Wrinkle Concealer & Brightener, $55.

How to conceal redness around the nose

You need: cream concealer + latex sponge+ loose powder

It’s a known fact that the area around your nose gets oily quickly, so it’s best to use an oil-free cream concealer for heavier coverage. Use your ring finger to pat and blend the concealer into the crease around the nose. Then take a damp makeup sponge, dip in loose powder, and blend. Try Youngblood Ultimate Concealer, $43 coupled with Lavera Fine Loose Mineral Powder, $38.

How to conceal a pimple

You need: green concealer + concealer pencil + latex sponge + translucent powder

Pencils are best at coating blemishes because the pointy shape allows you to go on the pimple and around it easily. Reach for RMK Concealer Pencil, $51. Then take a damp sponge and powder over the area. If your pimple is red, try neutralising the color by using a green concealer first.

How to conceal scars or dark spots

You need: cream pot + lifting concealer + concealer brush + latex sponge+ loose powder

To completely erase dark pigment or scars, the heavy coverage of a cream concealer works best thanks to the thicker texture which contains less oil than liquid and therefore lasts longer. Apply the concealer with a brush over the problem area and then apply a dab of lifting concealer, which will provide a highlight. Finish with a damp sponge and loose powder to blend it all together. Try Laura Mercier Secret Concealer, $40.

How to conceal under-eye bags

You need: liquid concealer with lifting ingredients + latex sponge + loose powder

To counteract the yellow, bluish hues under the eyes the key is to use a peach-based concealer as it brings warmth to the area. A lifting ingredient like vitamin A prevents the concealer from settling into creases and fine lines. Another key trick is to dip a damp makeup sponge into loose powder and then dab over the under eye area to set the concealer.  Try Diorskin Sculpt Lifting Smoothing Concealer, $56.

❤ Kristina xo

PS. In a beauty fix and need some advice? Or maybe you just want to chat about all things pretty? Drop me a line: kristina@fragrancesandcosmetics.com.au. Or, if you’re in the mood for some eye candy, come and see what I’ve been Pinning over at www.pinterest.com/freshdiscover. Better yet – join me on Facebook for more beauty fun www.facebook.com/freshfragrances. And for a plain old good time, come and follow Fresh on Instagram – @freshdiscoverbeauty – & Twitter@fresh_fragrances.

Hey There, Bright Eyes! How to make your peepers appears wide awake

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beauty tips, concealer, cosmetics, eye makeup, eyeliner, eyes, eyeshadow, mascara, wide awake eyes

Late nights, icky winter weather — there’s lots of reasons why your peepers may be looking a little lacklustre. Luckily for you, there exists a few simple makeup tricks that can take your peepers from half asleep to wide awake in moments. Read ahead to learn how to how to troubleshoot tired eyes (something I’ve been seriously trying to exercise lately to banish my dark shadows… and it’s been working!).

ELONGATE THE LASHES

A few lashings of mascara will instantly make your blinkers appear larger than life. To get your longest-looking lashes, start by taking the tip of the mascara wand and apply the formula directly to the ends of your lashes in an upwards direction. Then, continue to apply mascara to the base of the lashes using quick right-to-left strokes to coat the lashes as much as possible.

I love Bare Escentuals i.d. Weather Everything Waterproof Mascara, especially perfect for all this rainy weather.

ADD SHIMMER TO YOUR LIDS

To appear more doe-eyed, concentrate on applying an opalescent or shimmery shadow to the middle of the lash line to emphasise the widest section of your eye shape.

Reach for Kevyn Aucoin The Loose Shimmer Shadow in Citrine. 

ENHANCE THE EYE SHAPE

Experiment with blue-hued eyeliner as the cooler tones will make the whites of your eyes appear brighter. You can also brighten the inner corner of the eye and the water line with flesh-toned eyeliner. Remember – light colours open up the eye! To fully enhance the eye shape, softy smudge eye shadow along the bottom lash line. This will make your blinkers appear larger, especially with the contrast of the nude liner.

CURL YOUR LASHES

Curling your lashes will work wonders on your eyes. Start at the root of your lash and gently pulse the curler shut three times.

PRO TIP: If you have stick-straight eyelashes one of the best ways to curl them is to heat your eyelash curler with a hair dryer for 5-8 seconds. Heating it will act like a curling iron and that paired with waterproof mascara (which dries faster) will give you perfect eyelashes.

My choice is Tweezerman Professional ProCurl Curler.

CONCEAL IT

Use peachy, pink concealers, instead of yellow-based ones, to erase under-eye circles as the orange undertones are better at camouflaging blue tones.

PRO TIP: After you apply concealer to your under-eye area, use a makeup sponge to lightly buff out any globs. To prevent distracting streaks, you should blend all the way out to your temples to catch any lingering foundation traces.

ILLUMINATE AND HIGHLIGHT

Use a light, illuminating highlighter to open up the eye area. Brimming soft, light reflective pigments along the inner corner of the eyes and the contour of your brow bones will make your peepers pop.

Now go and bat those lashes to the world!

❤ Kristina xo

Ps. In a beauty fix and need some advice? Or maybe you just want to chat about all things pretty? Drop me a line: kristina@fragrancesandcosmetics.com.au. Or, if you’re in the mood for some eye candy, come and see what I’ve been Pinning over at www.pinterest.com/freshdiscover. Better yet – join me on Facebook for more beauty fun www.facebook.com/freshfragrances. And for a plain old good time, come and follow us on Instagram – @freshdiscoverbeauty – & Twitter@fresh_fragrances.

Working Overtime

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aloe vera, beauty, Bliss, Bliss Daily Detoxifying Facial Toner, bronzer, cleanser, concealer, cosmetics, Dr Denese Hydrashield tinted moisturizer 15 +, exfoliate, First time mother, Kevyn Aucoin Curling Mascara, Lancome, Lancome Flash Retouche Brush On Concealer, L’Occitanne Cherry Blossom Lip Gloss, LOccitane, MAC Mineralize Skin Finish, MAC powder, make up, make up pads, makeup, Makeup forever, Makeup forever bronzer, Makeup Forever Mat Bronze Bronzing Powder, mascara, moisturiser, moisturizer, night moisturizer, Olay Regenerist, Olay Regererist Revitalizing Cream, Philosophy, Philosophy Microdelivery Micro massage exfoliating wash, rosewater toner, sensitive skin, skincare, skincare routine, sunscreen, tinted moisturizer, tinted moisturizer with sunscreen

As a first-time Mother, I didn’t realise how much my own routine would be thrown out of whack by setting up my mini-kind’s sleep-eat-play habits.

Before my son was born, I had a regular skincare routine, exfoliated weekly and made sure I put on body lotion everyday. Oh how that has changed. It’s not that I don’t care, I do. I’m just time-poor most-mornings in between getting a sippy cup full of milk and changing a dirty nappy plus managing to squeeze in a hot coffee. And I’m exhausted at night.

It took me no time at all to realise that I had to cut down my skincare and makeup routines so that I could prioritise other things, like sleep and coffee. To do this I had to make my products work double as hard so that I could effectively cut my time in the bathroom in half. So this is how I began…

I am a big advocate for making sure that your skin is moisturised daily. Even though I’ve been worn down and am tired, I’ve made sure I’ve continued that routine. When I have only slept 3 hours a night, it has made me feel a little more human. I also have a rosewater toner that I only use occasionally that is great for refreshing tired skin (Bliss has a similar one to mine called Daily Detoxifying Facial Toner). It’s important however, to make sure your moisturiser has sunscreen in it (covering two products). Even better if you have a tinted moisturizer with sunscreen (extra points for 3 products. I use Dr. Denese Hydrashield Tinted Moisturizer).  At night, I use a night moisturiser (Olay Regenerist Revitalizing Cream) as it’s richer, has no sunscreen that will clog your pores and is totally pointless in the dark.

I have sensitive skin and only exfoliate weekly with a cleanser that has clear beads in it in the shower (I use Philosophy Microdelivery Micro-massage Exfoliating Wash. Nightly, I simply remove my makeup with aloe-vera lotion on makeup pads. I have learnt from experience that anything harsher will cause me to break-out. This is also very quick.

When Cam was very little, I was known to either not wear any makeup as I was simply too tired, or I would put on my concealer with some bronzer which doubled as eyeshadow. Luckily, I have more time these days.

A good way to get your makeup done in 5 minutes is to use a good-quality concealer that you know will last the day and that will hide those tired eyes (Such as Lancome Flash Retouche Brush On Concealer $45 from Fresh). Use a powder (MAC Mineralize Skin Finish is fantastic) to seal your face and ensure that the concealer lasts the day. Use a bronzer on your cheeks and eyes (one like Makeup Forever Mat Bronze Bronzing Powder), therefore giving your face some much-needed colour after a sleepless night.  A great mascara (Kevyn Aucoin Curling Mascara I cannot rave about enough) also opens up your eyes. To finish, put on a coloured gloss (L’Occitanne Cherry Blossom Lip Gloss provides a light colour, lots of gloss and no stickiness). There, you’re done in 5 minutes!  Now, where did put my mug?