Ksenia Wagner - about how our beauty life has changed over the past 20 years and what to do if you do not want to be known as a retrograde.
1. Choose a foundation based on your skin type
Our mothers only had the “Ballet” tone - and then, if you're lucky (in the company of ink in a plastic box with a brush - remember her?). Today, every self-respecting beauty brand classifies foundations by skin type. And to ignore, or rather, faces, this classification is a mistake. Reviews from bloggers, advertisements, recommendations from a girlfriend - all of this, of course, can be useful, but only passed through your own filter, taking into account your skin type. If oily skin is "fed" with dense silicone products, rashes are likely. Alcohol in the composition is also taboo: it will dry the skin, and in response, it will release even more sebum. But the mark "non-comedogenic" is required.
Dry skin needs more water, and water-based products are good for it. But if there is already peeling, then the "water" products will only emphasize them, here it is impossible to cope without silicones. On the combined, you need to combine different tonal means: in the T-zone - matting, on the rest of the face - lighter, moisturizing.
Determine your skin type from a dermatologist - and ask the consultants in the store to offer you strictly appropriate tones. My skin is prone to breakouts in the T-zone and dryness in the rest of my face. This fall, I'm using Clarins' new tonal serum, Clinique's long-proven Luminous Silk by Giorgio Armani, and I'm planning to try the tonal novelty Benefit - I once adored their Hello Flawless tone.
2. Don't forget about eyebrows
In your cosmetic bag - only an eyebrow pencil, and that is not suitable for the fall of a warm shade? Sit down, deuce. Without proper eyebrow makeup, eye makeup is lost, and the entire face looks unkempt and older than it is. The best thing you can do is go to a good brow-bar to correct and dye your eyebrows (my favorite eyebrow artists work in Keep Looking salons, Moskvichka, if you want painless wax correction - in Wax & Go), and then support the result with competent means houses.
The best thing that has happened to my brows personally is Anastasia Beverly Hills' Brow Wiz, and Benefit and Guerlain shades are good for brows that lack volume. If the eyebrows are thick and, on the contrary, need to be pacified - pay attention to gels, for example, colorless Art-Visage. But the orange pencils, which look brown in the lead, will not be forgiven for beautiholics - this is one of the gross mistakes in makeup that I talked about here.
3. Contouring - yes
No, not like Kim Kardashian's. There is no need to transform into a tiger or change your race. But you can slightly highlight the cheekbones or thin the back of the nose with a corrector slightly darker than your skin. There are three rules: apply a little product, carefully blend it with your fingers or a brush, do not forget to apply blush or highlighter on top - so that the contouring "merges" with the skin. It is most convenient to use correctors in sticks, but palettes are also good and more economical - they have many shades that can be mixed depending on the season, sunburn, etc. Look for both from professional makeup brands - M. A. C, Make Up For Ever, Inglot.
4. Have a matte lipstick
Yes, she's still in vogue (for which season!). And yes - this is a much more durable option than regular lipstick. But there is also bad news - matte lipstick can age if you choose the wrong shade or apply it, forgetting about the tone. Rule one - perfect skin: in order not to look with matte lipstick babulence, make your skin glow, the right tones and highlighters will help you. Rule two: if the lips are bright and matte, let the eyes have light arrows or an accent on thick eyelashes. Otherwise, you can overload the face.
And for dessert: cold berry shades make teeth whiter, everything with a warm undertone - yellower. Matte lipsticks emphasize the smile more than usual. Look for the most persistent and rich formulas from Lime Crime, NoUBA, Chanel, Giorgio Armani, Caylin, M. A. C.
5. Use concealer
The skin under the eyes is thinner than on the entire face and the usual tone can dry it out. As, however, and too dense concealer. Choose liquid formulas: the more “flowing” the product, the less it will accentuate the expression lines that are always present in this area. Apply these products with the pad of your ring finger, lightly patting them - this will make the coverage as natural as possible, and you will not stretch the skin. Brilliant concealers - from the brands Erborian and Yves Saint Laurent. And I talked about the best cream for the skin around the eyes here.
6. Prepare your skin for makeup
Ecology, food, the speed of life - everything is different today than it was 20 years ago. If you do not take care of the skin from youth, as a result of modern external influences, it will age prematurely. Preparing for makeup is one of the most important acts of such care.
Firstly, you can only apply makeup on a thoroughly cleansed face - otherwise acne. Secondly, it is important to moisturize the skin before applying the tone, as even the best tonal formulas dry out. Thirdly, any tone fits much better with a special base - a primer, especially if you have oily skin with enlarged pores. For a dry base, you can also use a regular moisturizer for the face. And if you use both the care and the base, then apply the base only when the care is completely absorbed - 20-30 minutes after the cream. The most effective base + tone tandems (it is better to buy products of the same brand) - from Make Up Forever, Promakeup laboratory, Estée Lauder, M. A. C, Tom Ford.
7. Do not be afraid of blush
Matryoshka cheeks, like those of movie heroines of the 80s, - many are still on the "you" with blush, because they do not know how to use them correctly. I agree that it is easy to overdo it with a dry product (although an "overdose" can always be corrected with powder or tone). But with liquid and especially blush in sticks, life is easier - put a small dot in the middle of the cheek and gently blend it with your finger. The natural effect is guaranteed! By the way, such formulas are especially good for dry skin - unlike classic blush, they do not emphasize flaking and do not give "soreness". Blush-sticks are available from Sleek MakeUp, Bobbi Brown, L'Etoile. Instructions for using the most capricious pink shades and four more bonus beauty tips from me are here.
