Wednesday, April 16, 2014

My Spring Makeup Look

Hey! Yes, I'm still alive. It's been far too long since my last post. I've been meaning to do this for so long, but circumstances have been preventing me, along with a hint of procrastination. But I'm finally getting around to things. This will be a series of posts about what I like doing with my makeup for this spring, and probably into the early summer as well. Enjoy!


My inspiration is from two things: youth and freshness, and the early 20th century. As you can see, the key elements are dark, thick, wispy lashes, bold blush, a fresh, coordinating lip color, full eyebrows, and a pop of color on the lids. In order of importance and reason:

  1. Blush: I took a lot of inspiration from the early 20th century when makeup was starting to make its way into the heart of the everyday woman. One of the very first things women started using was rouge. What's so great about rouge (or in today's terms, blush)? It simulates the rosy complexion associated with youth and health. It also helps you look awake. So if you're running late and don't have much time to put makeup on, if you reach for anything, it should be blush. Besides all those things, I was drawing from the flower and mainly rose-themed trend I've seen companies promoting. I think rosy toned blushes make you look so gorgeously flushed and youthful. 
  2. Mascara: Another symbol of youth and femininity is dark, fluttery lashes. I think it looks so fresh and cute to have flushed cheeks and full lashes. In my mind, these are the epitome of girliness, and in the spring I think it's when we start dusting off the cobwebs and seeking out more relationships, possibly of the romantic variety? 
  3. Brow powder: Brows are very important element of any makeup. It's weird to think about since it's just hair above our eyes, but they give us a means to express ourselves. They really help frame your face, and can even make or break a look. Believe it or not, full brows are also a sign of youth. For this spring look, it's best to skip heavy waxes and pencils, and just stick to powder. It gives the softest look, and is harder to overdo (though it can still be done, so be careful!). Filling in brows with a powder and then combing through them with a spoolie gives a nice, soft look. We want full brows, not man brows. It can be a bit of a tightrope walking act between the two, sometimes.
  4. Eyeliner: To help fake thicker lashes, smudging black eyeliner along your lash line works wonders.
  5. Lip product: What's the point of having a glowing complexion, only to have dry crusty lips? It defeats all the other work. Even just keeping your lips hydrated with a colorless balm is better than nothing. It adds a little something more to dab on a coordinating lipstick, gloss, or balm. Having similar shades of cheeks and lips makes it slightly more "believable" that it's actually your coloring instead of makeup! Just make sure to keep the lip color light and not thick, dark, and opaque. I like using my tinted lip balms from this post.
  6. Eye shadow: This is the least important part of the look. It doesn't help you look younger to add color to your lids, but I think it's fun. The idea is to pick a light shade and keep it to the lid. If it's too dark or goes very far above the crease, it can take away from the lashes and the freshness of the look. I like to continue playing off the idea of floral colors, so green, pink, purple/lavender, or anything found in nature/flowers.
As to the canvas for the makeup, I've only been using a tinted moisturizer so the blush has something to stick to rather than for coverage. If you have the need for coverage, then try to keep it light by spot treating with concealer. I don't really bother with highlighter because the tinted moisturizer gives me enough of a dewy look, along with the fact that I'm starting to get oilier skin as the weather warms up. In fact, I'll probably have to start really bringing in powder as the weather gets even hotter. 

So there's the basic method to my madness. I'll be doing some follow-up blogs on recommendations for blush and eye shadow, and also showing some looks I've put together. Have a good day, and I'll talk to you soon!

~Stacie

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