Makeup Tips for Special Occasions

Greetings everyone! Since we're getting into warmer months, it's the season for proms and weddings. Now, my wedding was a fall wedding in October but my best friend's was in June that same year and most weddings are typically in the warmer months. As a matter of fact I have once coming up at the end of this month actually. So I wanted to go over some things that I've found were necessary and helpful for special things. So lets get into it:

• Drink lots of water. Water makes your skin more plump and clears up imperfections
• Moisturize. I don't care if you have oily skin you still need to moisturize daily. It helps with aging and actually levels out oil in the skin and can help your oily issues.Just find one that works for you
• Sunscreen. Wear sunscreen everyday for aging benefits but on the big day of your occasion you'll probably want to use something that doesn't have sunscreen in it for that event. Sunscreen can cause flash back, which is that white cast on you skin when the camera flashes.
• Whiten your teeth. Whitening Lightning has teeth whitening pens for actual teeth and even for vaneers. They run sales all the time and you'll need to start about 2 weeks before you're event cause that's how long it takes to get maximum benefits from them. They also have Dial A Smile kits that have whitening gel and LED lights with other things as well.
• Stick with subtle colors. Prom is a little easier to do color because dresses are usually colorful and bright even so you can do glitter and fun stuff. I always feel it's better safe than sorry though especially if you're doing things on your own. So stick with neutrals or soft colors. Plum and cranberry/burgundy are great colors to use if you want a color but not sure what to use. 
• Use a setting spray. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I like Ben Nye Final Seal and Urban Decay All Nighter Spray. Setting sprays set the makeup so it's less likely to move or break up during your even. MAC Fix + is really popular and smells great but I don't like it to hold my makeup in place I actually prefer it before makeup to prep the skin because it's rich with vitamins and hydrates the skin really well too.
• Use a primer. There are tons of primers that you can use to fit your needs, Makeup Forever just released a whole line of primers that do everything from smooth, hydrate, illuminate all the way to color correcting. There are calming primers, pore minimizing, so on and so forth. What you need it for is to hold on to your makeup. So I recommend Benefit 15 hour Primer. It's like a gigantic glue stick. It's more like a balm but I use it for every client that I work on. I used it in my own wedding and it did a great job. If you're incredibly oily I might would use a mattifying primer either by itself or under a stronger primer like the Benefit one I mentioned.
• Use an eye lid primer. This keeps your eye shadow from creasing and helps it go on evenly as well. It also keeps the eye shadow more vibrant through out the day. I really like Too Faced Shadow Insurance and NARS Pro Prime those are my favorite and I feel they hold up better than other. MAC Pro Longwear Concealer can also be used as a primer and it covers the veins and discoloration on the eyelid too so you have a clean canvas to work on so to speak.
• Use your perfect shade of foundation. This is obvious but the reason I want to stress it is because there's nothing wrong with mixing two foundations to get your perfect color. Blend all the way down under the jawline and onto the neck. Not adding extra product just blending what you have left down to make it even. Work with a small amount and build from there because you'd be surprised how little it can actually take to get the coverage you need and using to much makes you look a little cakey. Also try to use a foundation without spf if you can to avoid flash back. I really like NARS All Day Luminous Foundation if you aren't super oily, Laura Mercier Oil Free Foundation if you are oily, and Makeup Forever Mat Velvet + if you're combination. If you feel like your foundation is too thick you can add a drop of Almond Oil or Jojoba Oil to one pumps and it thins it out without losing its coverage. True story.
• If you want to contour I recommend powder contouring instead of cream contouring because cream contouring has to be set with powder contour and it makes the makeup really heavy. So if possible powder contour.
• Use subtle highlighter but definitely use some on the cheek bones unless you have a lot of texture issues.Highlighter mimics sunkissed skin and gives you a "healthy" look so I always use it. I again prefer powder over cream so I recommend Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Luminous Light, Becca Opal highlighter used lightly, and Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Highlight 01. Those are my favorite and the most universal in my opinion.
• Do not use an over powering blush you want to look healthy and not like you have pink cheeks. Makeup Geek Spell Bound is a fantastic neutral pale pink if you're fair to light. Becca Songbird has a healthy sheen to it and is a darker coral that is stunning on tan skin. The NARS Dual Intensity bush in Fervor is lovely for light or dark skin because it can be used dry for a subtle effect or wet for a more luminous and darker look.
• Go for lip color instead of nude lips. When I say nude lips I mean like Kim K nude. MAC Myth and Creme d Nude colors. If you want to be more nude than go for something that is your lip color but better or maybe a shade darker or lighter. They always say the perfect nude color for you is the color of the inside of your bottom lip. Also you'll want a lipstick that won't wear off so I prefer liquid lipsticks. I love Lovely from Anastasia Beverly Hills is a neutral pink that suits almost all skin tones, I love Bellisima from Stila is a pale peachy pink nude great for fair to light skin, and I love Vamp from Anastasia as well for darker skin tones. If you want something a bit darker but still neutral then mixing Vamp and Lovely makes a beautiful muted burgundy that's not incredibly dark. Also Color Pop Brink which isn't a liquid lipstick is a beautiful everyday slightly more mauve color. I also use MAC Faux lipstick and YSL Ultimate Beige #3 on my clients as well.
• Bring oil absorbing sheets with you especially if it's going to be hot or if you're prone to oily skin.
• Always fill in your brows, you don't have to sculpt them if you don't want but fill in any gaps because the brows frame the face. If you're getting them waxed or tweezed do so a few days before your event so any redness has time to go away.
• Use waterproof mascara my favorite is Loreal Voluminous Carbon Black.
• If you want to wear lashes wear more natural ones that won't be too heavy or irritate your eye. I prefer shorter band lengths as well. My favorites are Red Cherry 213, Kiss Lashes in Chic, and Luxy Lash in Woke Up Like This or Hollyhood. Also I prefer to use DUO waterproof lash glue.