Maia Moura
continues with the makeup tips she mentioned in her interview.
Good quality ingredients, reasonable prices and a plan that works
for the individual woman form the basis of Maia's philosophy of
looking radiant, healthier and natural.
Foundation:
Getting the perfect look from your foundation
is often a mix of the right product plus the right application. The key
to perfect, long-lasting makeup is in the foundation.
Choosing the right foundation and finding the
right color:
Selecting the foundation has
more to do with your skin type and skin tone than your preference. There
are two kinds of foundation: oil free and moisturizing. For best
results follow these three steps before applying foundation:
-
Cleaning: (makeup removers and toner).
-
Moisturizing: (moisturizers and lift serums).
-
Eye creme: essential.
To find the right color apply a few drops of
foundation onto the neck area and blend in. You will easily determine if
the color is right for your complexion. Don’t forget “the less you
apply, the longer it will last, and better it will look”.
How to apply:
Dab three dots on each cheek, two on the forehead,
one on the nose and one on the chin. Then blend foundation all over the
face in long, even strokes down the neck, up to the hairline. Use your
fingers or sponge to apply.
Types of foundation:
Creme: gives the most coverage and can
create the look of a milky complexion.
Liquid: medium coverage with light moisturizing
effect.
Sheer: light coverage using, for example,
tint moisturizer.
Matte: powder finish.
Powder foundation: soft powder finish
look. Apply with dry sponge, for heavier coverage apply with wet
sponge.
Concealer
Concealer is one of the most useful products
you can have in your makeup bag, as long as you know how to use it.
Using a color corrector: Before you
use any concealer, consider what you are trying to cover. A flesh tone
concealer is great as a foundation replacement for small areas you’d like
to cover, while color correcting concealers (yellow, green, mauve) hide
discoloration on the skin like dark purple under eye circles, red blemishes
and dark spots. Color correcting concealers can be tricky to use, but it
helps to at least understand how they work.
Color correcting:
-
Yellow or yellow-based concealers are designed to
cover dark blue or purple under eye circles (the yellow cancels out the
blue/purple).
-
Green is for concealing redness on the face like
acnes scars or birthmarks.
-
Mauve is to correct overly yellow skin tones.
If you are using a
concealer in coordination with foundation, always apply it after the foundation
so you know which areas of your face need more coverage. If you apply the
concealer first, it will be wiped away when you blend your foundation.
Tools to apply concealer:
Apply either with a clean fingertip, a wedge
makeup sponge or a small, square or slightly pointed, synthetic makeup
brush.
How to apply:
Start with a small amount of concealer applied
in a gentle dabbing motion to the area you want to cover. Don’t rub or
apply pressure. Continue to dab and blend the concealer until the area
is covered. If you are using the color correcting concealer, use just enough
to cover the area, then very lightly apply a flesh tone concealer over
the top with the same gentle dabbing technique. Carefully blend the edges
into the skin so you don’t see an obvious line.
Tips:
Whether you are
covering under dark circles, blemishes, or splotchy patches on your skin,
try to set your concealer with loose setting powder (translucent). Not
only will keep any oily shine to a minimum, loose powder sets the concealer
so it will last longer and crease less.
For larger areas, you
may want to use a powder puff to press the powder into the skin, then use
a large powder brush to remove any excess. On blemishes, press a small
amount of powder very gently over the concealer either with a puff or a
clean wedge eye- shadow brush.
Lips
The mouth is an immediate attention getter
and the effect lipstick can have on creating the right mood is amazing.
From 'sensual' to 'just natural', 'sophisticate' to 'just pale'.
Types:
Matte: sophisticate.
Shine or glossy: volumnizer and gives
a sexy look.
Clear red gloss: super sexy.
Semi matte gloss: glow and heighten the
natural color
Creme: most popular look.
Metallic: dramatic.
Sheer: keeps the natural lip color show
through.
Clear lip gloss: simple and effective.
Tips:
Play with colors, using
dark colors on the eyes and light on the lips or vice versa. Putting powder
over the top of the first coat of lipstick and then reapplying will help
it to last longer.
Use a lip liner to line
the lips or to fill in the lips, forming a base for the lipstick and creating
a new color by blending with a different lipstick color.
Applying lipstick with
the lip brush will create a smoother effect, last longer and afford more
control; the overall look is cleaner and more polished.
Shapes:
Big/full lips: Outline lips within the
natural line.
Small: Outline lips outside the natural
line.
Droopy: Follow bottom lip line/Underline
up and out the mouth.
Tips:
Lip liner should not stand out, but blend into
the color lipstick you select.
Use a lip brush to stroke color onto the lips.
For a fuller appearance, leave the center of your lips open and fill in
with a matching gloss. Blend with lip brush.
