party makeup

How to do wedding/party makeup at home

Want to do wedding/party makeup at home?

So many of us love getting ready for a wedding or a Diwali party or on New Year’s Eve at home. Many of us get confused as to what comes first – eye makeup or foundation, eyeliner or mascara? How to put it all together? This guide is intended to help you in those situations. Hopefully, I have explained the entire look in easy-to-follow steps. So lets get ready for a wedding or party at home!

Step 1: Always begin with skincare and then follow up with foundation

Make sure that you are using your regular moisturizer & allowing it to seep into the skin at least for 15 minutes before moving on to foundation. After moisturizer & before foundation, I would strongly recommend using a face primer. A primer makes your foundation last longer, it acts like a barrier between your skin & foundation & also makes the application of the foundation smooth. Now since you’d need your makeup on for many hours at night (or even during the day), a primer should be applied. Next, apply your choice of foundation – powder, liquid or cream. Make sure that you set the liquid or cream foundation with a loose powder so that your foundation stays put all through!

Step 2: It’s Eye shadow time!

Remember, your eyes should not ‘match’ your outfit. Instead it should ‘compliment’ the colors on your dress. Meaning, use colors that are the opposite of the colors on your dress. The key to applying eye shadow is using a flat eye shadow brush & then using a fluffy dome shaped brush to blend. Make sure to apply a darker color in your crease & follow it up with a highlighter up to your brow bone. This softens any harsh lines that may be visible to the naked eye.

Step 3: First comes kajal followed by eyeliner

Apply a black, brown, blue or green colored kajal in the waterline & then line the lash line with black eyeliner. You could use a pencil, gel or liquid liner – whichever you feel convenient to use. If you’d like, add a ‘flick’ at the outer corner of the eye to add some drama. Indian women look great in a winged liner. Never EVER do a smoky eye & a red lip! It’s always ‘smoky eyes with nude lip’ or ‘bright lips with nude/neutral eyes’. Only if you are walking the ramp you can go for ‘smoky eyes & a dark or red lip’! In this case, I would suggest that you do your eye makeup first and then move on to foundation because you are going to have a lot of fall outs from the eye shadow

Step 4: Time to curl lashes & apply mascara

An eye lash curler is the most underrated makeup product! Just using a curler can make your eyes look ‘awake’! Apply mascara from the roots of the lashes & wiggle the wand in a zig-zag motion till the tip. This will nicely coat the lashes individually & will add definition & volume. Remember, always curl first and then apply mascara. If you do it the other way around, your lashes are going to break!

Step 5: Blush, Contour & Highlight

For a natural looking glow, apply blush on the apples of your cheeks upwards, going into the hairline. The best way to judge where blush needs to be applied is by smiling in the mirror… Use a big fluffy brush to blend the blush on the cheeks. Next, use a brown-matte shade which is 2 shades darker than your skin color to contour your cheeks. This will add structure to your face & will make your face look slimmer in pictures! Suck in your cheekbones, notice the hollows & apply the contouring powder just there & blend! No lines must be visible. It needs to look most natural. To highlight, apply a shimmer blush or powder on the high plains of your face, i.e. the T-zone & cheekbones. The idea of applying a highlighter is simple – when light falls on any of these areas; your skin is going to give out a sheen/glow which looks amazing – especially in photographs.

Step 6: Pucker up

Before starting lip makeup take some face powder on your brush and run it over your lips to make it even . then line your lips with the help of a lip pencil. I feel that lip liners are brilliant as they act as a base for your lipstick! Fill the entire lip with the pencil & then run the lipstick over. Take a tissue & place it on your lips & run some loose powder with a brush over it. This will make the lipstick matte & will make it last much longer! Next, apply another coat of the lipstick & gently press a tissue over. After doing this, if you eat or drink anything, your lips are going to look as fresh as new!

Step 7: Smile

Now that you've followed all the steps, walk with confidence & don’t forget that million dollar smile! Be sure to notice heads turn & people compliment you. If they don’t, they are just jealous :-p Remember, even if you haven’t followed a certain step to the T, no one will notice it if you seem confident & happy!