Everyone wants to look good. They want to be noticed for the smile on their lips to the gleam in their eyes, and nothing is more alluring than the confidence gained from knowing one looks their best. That beautiful glow is much closer within the reach of the modern woman than you may think! Proper use of skin care products like cleansers and moisturizers combined with the right colors and types of eyeshadow, eyeliner and blush can give you the appearance you want.
Your Skin
The first and most important thing to reflect on is clean, healthy skin. It retains a personal glow not available from any bottle, tube, spray, or compact. You’ll need a gentle cleanser for everyday use; a product such as Cetaphil Gentle Daily Cleanser is ideal for the woman with sensitive, dry, or irritated skin prone to the tight, dry feeling most harsh cleansers leave behind. In addition to the soothing feel on your skin, your wallet will feel at ease with a comforting price estimated at $10 per 16 oz bottle. Do you have oily skin? You may be tempted to scrub away at your skin to get rid of the oil. Do not give into temptation! Too dry skin will overproduce oil in effort to correct itself. Instead, try, Johnson & Johnson’s Purpose Gentle Cleansing Wash, and never go anywhere without a packet of blotting papers nearby. Since the wash contains no soap and no oil, it is also ideal for the tricky task of cleaning up combination skin and getting rid of make up after a long day. Secondly, a light, non-greasy, no fragrance lotion will be your best friend through thick and thin. Heavy creams used during the day may trap in your pores in addition to making your face feel weighted, and fragrance often comes from chemicals that may irritate skin. For you lucky women without sensitive skin, Olay Regenerist UV Defense Regenerating Lotion, while pricey, is one of the top rated lightweight moisturizers on the market. For those of you with irritable skin, never fear. Aveeno Ultra-Calming Daily Moisturizer with SPF 15 may easily become a lifesaver for you. Best of all, both products mentioned protect against the sun’s rays that, while they may feel good for a moment, can cause a lifetime of skin problems along the line.
Building from the Bottom Up
Healthy skin is happy skin, and often needs no more compliment than your favorite lotion and lip gloss, but we all have our occasions where we need more protection: the often dreaded foundation. The wrong product can cause much more harm than it does good, because they are known to be loaded down with chemicals, oils, and other nasty things that make our skin feel like our worst enemy. One of the most embarrassing mistakes a gal can make is mismatching her foundation to her natural skin. You should be searching to even out your skin tone, not change it. Since the fluorescent lighting in a store often alters the color of products, whenever possible you should test these in your most natural surroundings, and never force yourself to settle on just one shade. If you feel torn between “Dreamy Ivory” and “Honey”, buy them both, and mix your own shade. Guaranteed that no other woman will have your color! There are as many types and colors of foundation as there are women on this earth. From the versatile liquid foundation in oil-free which typically suits breakout spots, to tinted moisturizer which covers with a sheer veil perfect for a summertime glow. Mousse and creams are great for dry skin, while Hollywood-style stick foundation is better left to heavily scarred areas, and should never be used as a daily product. Whiter shades compliment every skin tone for a special glow; Green tints will tone down rosacea or those easily flushed; Lavender hues make tired skin perk right awake; apricot shades chase away the dullest winter blues. It will take a lot of trial and error until you find your perfect fit, but the end result is worth it for a natural, comfortable-feeling you.
Eye of the Beholder
Little is more alluring than a pair of bright, alert eyes, and whether smoldering in stormy hues or perked with a little shimmery streak, there are a few basic rules to consider when choosing makeup. The first is color to color. Green eyes Do: Get along well with warm purples, pinks, bronze, and deep green eyeshadow. They also play nicely with black and brown eyeliners and mascara. Green eyes Do Not: Like cool colors. Blues, silver, white, and eye matching green will produce a faded, washed out look. Blue eyes Do: Need a darker than natural eye color eyeshadow to make them pop. Rose, gold, violet, silver and peach, along with brown mascara and eyeliner serve to intensify your blues to enviably lengths. Silver and soft black eyeliner work especially well. Blue eyes Do Not: Want to wear eye matching colors. This makes them appear dull. Brown eyes Do: Play well with light colors. Purples, pinks, green, blue and gold, makes brown eyes the easiest to enhance. Black eyeliner and mascara is ideal, as is Navy, in making up your big brown eyes. Brown eyes Do Not: Like too much dark make up. Smoky eyes are one thing, but caking on black eyeliner will very quickly turn doe eyes to dead eyes. The second rule is: Black. Just like every woman needs a little black dress, every woman needs black eyeliner. Green and brown eyes handle jet black liner the best, but the type defines for what look. A black pencil such as Jordana’s Kohl Black ($0.99 at your local drug store, score!) delivers a creamy hue and gives a rocker girl appearance when smudges over the top lid and lightly defined alone the lower lash line. Liquid eyeliner, one the other hand, such as Covergirl’s Liquid Eyeliner Pencil smooths on a very adult, elegant line. And, just as you would never wash your little black dress in hot water, you should never overdo the black liner. This makes your eyes appear small, not enticing. If you desire a heavier coverage or have blue eyes, find a softer black to cushion the harshness.
Blushing bride
Unless you’re planning to attend a Vampire’s ball, you’re probably not aiming for a flat, pale, look. Jane’s Shimmer Bronzer in Fiji, Sedona, Tahiti, and Mojave work hard to give you that sun-kissed California surfer-girl blush without the hard work on your budget. If bronze isn’t your thing, Wet ‘n’ Wild has you covered with their Silk Finish Blush available in many soft, supple colors for a sweet doe look. Pucker up Far superior to lipsticks these days are lip glosses, with their all in one shot of color and sheen. Your options are endless. For a muted, natural look, Jordana brings it to you again with InColor Squeeze n’ Shine Super Shiny Tasty Lip Gloss in every color from Super Clear to bright in Coral. For a more lasting look? Try Covergirl’s Continuous Color Shimmer Lipstick. Carried in dozens of colors, you’re bound to find one you love. You can see now that you do not need tons of money to look and feel good. Just a bit of time, patience, and a slight affair with drugstore makeup products.
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