Last week I wrote a blog on Personal Style and a request was made seeking advice on how to apply make-up for first timers. I encourage all my readers to please send me topics on what they would like me to touch on and I will do my best to answer you.

Make-up is something that is very complex and can get complicated as you move on to the more advanced levels. But it is not scary and should not be seen as unachievable. The purpose of applying make-up should not be to change who you are, but to rather enhance what you already have. Make-up can be used to cover-up pimples, pores, scratch marks, unwanted tattoos and many facial or bodily afflictions that you do not wish to be seen.

I am going to be giving you tips for beginners and hopefully a future blog will be dedicated to the more advanced staff. But the main questions you should be asking yourself is, why am I applying make-up and for which function or time? Because day-time make-up is different to night-time make up and also depending on which kind of function you’re attending, you might need more or less make-up.

1. Make sure to wash your face before you start applying anything. Use a cleanser and toner to remove any impurities or oil build-ups you might have and/or are not aware of.

2. Once you have a clean, clear face, apply some moisturisers or skin primer on your face. This will help your skin in reducing dryness or breakage and it will also stop your skin from becoming too oily.

3. Once the moisturiser has been absorbed into your skin, take your foundation and using your fingers, apply all over your skin. We use fingers because they give you a better application all over your face. And then take a Beauty Blender or Make-Up Sponge to blend in the foundation on your skin. This process allows your foundation to look flawless and without leaving uneven patches.

Trick to picking the right foundation for your skin is go to the shop and take the testers, put different shades of foundations on your hand. Carry on with your shopping or walk around the mall and after a while, check to see which foundation has set well on your skin and which has blended well with your skin tone. That will give you an indication of how the foundation will look on your face after you have applied it.

4. After you have carefully smoothed the foundation on your face, you now use a concealer and put some under your eyes. If you are not familiar with what a concealer is or looks like, I suggest that you consult any make-up consultant at one of the leading stores and they will assist you. If you also feel like this process is just too complicated for you, you are welcomed to skip it. As I said, this tutorial is only the beginner basics.

A concealer should always be one shade lighter than your skin because it is applied under the eye as that area of your face is darker to the rest. It also can be applied at other dark patches of your skin that the foundation could not cover. It can be applied on your nose, forehead and chin areas where the light might naturally hit the most to give it a more highlighted look. Once you have applied the concealer don’t forget to blend it with your sponge as you don’t want it to stand out of place.

5. Set the concealer and the foundation with a translucent powder. This is a powder that looks either the same shade of colour as the foundation or close enough. And you can get this also at your local stores in the make-up section. If you are still confused as to what the powder should look like, go to the shop and take the powder, rub the tester on your hand and see how it looks on your skin. Same goes for the foundation, take a little and put it on your hand to see if it matches your skin tone.

Blend the powder on your skin with a make-up brush and only take a little, not too much as you don’t want to overpower the foundation and concealer. The powder is just there to set everything and not make your face look oily and cause the foundation to rub off easily.

6. Apply the eyeshadow of your choice to your eyelids. This is a beginner blog so I will not be going into details of layering different eyeshadows and highlighting certain areas of your eye. Because you are a beginner at this, I would advise that you go for an eyeshadow that is a natural colour. Apply the eyeshadow from your lash line to just beyond the inner crease area.

7. Once you set the eyeshadow, now this is my favourite part, applying the eyeliner. This can also be tricky and there are different styles that you can draw and different types of liners that you can use from liquid liner to pencil liners, the choice is yours. But for an easy application and a more visible look, use a liquid liner. Buy the one with a pointed edge, for a beginner again I advise that you stick to basics, which is a simple straight line just above your lash line.

8. Apply your black mascara onto your lashes to give your eyes a more finished look. Also take a tooth brush or old mascara that no longer has any liquid in it, use it to brush your eyebrows. In the more advanced tutorial you can actually use a pencil liner to highlight your brows. But for now just brush them into place.

9. Finally don’t forget your lips. Always apply a lip moisturiser to smooth your lips and avoid cracks before you put on any lipstick. But there are some lip sticks that already contain moisturiser, which you can apply straight. But if you are not a lipstick kind of person then a colourful lip gloss will do.

Apply blush to the apples of your cheeks and for a beginner, give a big, broad smile, then apply for easy access.

Tips 1 to 5 have to go in that order, but the rest can be done in any order. Remember this is just the foundation to applying make-up. As you learn more tips and tricks you build on what you already know. Don’t forget to experiment, and there are lots of tutorials available out there which you can use, mine is not the only way of applying make-up.

Send me more suggestions on what you would like me to write next and remember visit our facebook page, like, share, comment and send us pictures of your finished looks. Stay Trendi

Written by Phoebe Sibomana

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