Contouring is an Art

I’d talk about the art of contouring. What is contouring you may ask? Contouring is essentially the opposite of highlighting. While highlighting is meant to accentuate features in your face, contouring is meant to minimize features by darkening areas. Contouring is a great way to make your face look thinner and more structured.

To contour, you can use a contour brush, sponge, or your own fingers. Then you would either need a bronzer, liquid or powder foundation, or I have heard some people use eye shadow. Whatever your choice, you must choose a shade only slightly darker than your skin tone; maybe only two or three shades darker. Any darker will make your contouring look unnatural. The usual areas to contour are on the sides of your nose, under your cheekbone, on the sides of your forehead, and under your neck, if necessary.

Darkening the sides of your nose makes your nose look thinner. Darkening under your cheekbones gives the appearance of hollowed cheeks, which makes your cheek bones look more prominent. Contouring the sides of your forehead makes your forehead look thinner, and darkening under your neck makes your neck look thinner as well. 

When using liquid foundation, it would be best to use a sponge or finger tips. You would really need to blend the foundation into your face in the areas needed, so the areas look like they are in the shadow. If you use eye shadow or powder based foundation  to contour, you should use a contouring brush. If you need help finding a good contouring brush, MAC #168 has great reviews. Since there are both liquid and powder kinds of bronzer, you should use either liquid or powder methods to apply the bronzer. Here are pictures of Kim Kardashian before and after her makeup routine, which happens to include both highlighting and contouring.

Before

Contouring definitely takes a lot of practice, but with enough practice, your face will be ready for the cover of any magazine! I hope my tips helped, until next time!

After

Applying Foundation: Fingers or Brushes?

Applying Foundation: Fingers or Brushes?

When applying foundation, what do you usually do? Do you blend directly with your fingers or do you use tools, like brushes or sponges? 

Let's take an in-depth look at these two different techniques for applying your face makeup. 

              Fingers              Brushes

Fingers      

Why it works:

• The natural heat of your body allows the makeup to melt in your hands.
• Many members agree that using your fingers is more precise.
• Brushes cost money, but your fingers are free! No splurging on expensive tools.

Why you should avoid it:

• If you don't wash your hands, using your fingers can spread bacteria to the face.
• Even if you do wash your hands, fingers still spread oils around that lead to acne.
• Finger application can be messy - watch out for stained hands!

Brushes

Why it works:

• With so many brush types, you can experiment for the perfect finish.
• Having a brush set allows you to apply makeup on friends without the germs.
• Brushes (and sponges) usually give a lighter, less caked-on finish.

Why you should avoid it:

• Brushes and sponges are absorbent, so you might waste more product.
• Without proper cleaning, these tools will be full of bacteria and dead skin cells.
• Makeup brushes and sponges can be expensive if you're a newbie. 

Final verdict:  Both techniques have the same number of pros and cons, so there's no clear answer as to which is the best. Experiment and find what works best for you. You might find, for example, that brushes are better for powders while fingers are better for liquids.

No matter which technique you use, though, make sure you keep your tools (whether they're attached to your body or not!) clean before makeup application. Brushes should be washed at least once a week with brush cleanser, and your make sure you wash your hands before rubbing on product.

Recommended Products:

• MAC #190 Foundation Brush
• Chris Krenzer 24 piece Synthetic Brush Set
• NIMA Brushes
• e.l.f. Studio Brush Cleaner

TOP 3 BLACK GEL LINERS FOR ALL BUDGETS

TOP 3 BLACK GEL LINERS FOR ALL 

BUDGETS 

With black gel liner a key staple in all our makeup kits these days I get asked a lot by clients or by you lovely lot via Facebook message which I would recommend so I've compiled my top 3 suitable for all budgets. I've chosen these 3 for their long lasting, easy to work with texture along with the fact they don't dry out as quickly as some others on the market :-)

1: Essence Black Gel Liner : priced around €2, available at Pennys, Sam McCauleys Chemist and all Essence stockists nationwide.

2: Inglot no77 Black Gel Liner ( my personal fave): priced approx €12 available at all Inglot stores nationwide

3: MAC Blacktrack Gel Liner: priced around €17 available @ MAC counters @ Brown Thomas Limerick, Cork, Dublin & Galway.

***For those of you with pots of dried out gel liner pick yourself up a tube of Duraline from Inglot priced at €10 - a couple of drops of this little gem will instantly revive your pot of liner ***

***Top tip: When using black gel liner I ALWAYS use an angled brush as it gives a more precise and sharp line around the eye especially at the corner where sometimes it can be difficult to achieve that evenly finished point ***

Acne Prone Skin

What is your acne telling you?

1 & 2: Digestive System — Eat less processed or junk food, reduce the amount of fat in your diet, step up water intake and opt for cooling things like cucumbers.

3: Liver — Cut out the alcohol, greasy food and dairy. This is the zone where food allergies also show up first, so take a look at your ingredients. Besides all this, do 30 minutes of light exercise every day and get adequate sleep so your liver can rest.

4 & 5: Kidneys — Anything around the eyes (including dark circles) point to dehydration. Drink up!

6: Heart — Check your blood pressure and Vitamin B levels. Decrease the intake of spicy or pungent food, cut down on meat and get more fresh air. Besides this, look into ways to lower cholesterol, like replacing “bad fats” with “good fats” such as Omegas 3 and 6 found in nuts, avocados, fish and flax seed. Also, since this area is chock-full of dilated pores, check that your makeup is not past its expiry date or is skin-clogging.

7 & 8: Kidneys — Again, drink up! And cut down on aerated drinks, coffee and alcohol as these will cause further dehydration.

Zone 9 & 10: Respiratory system — Do you smoke? Have allergies? This is your problem area for both. If neither of these is the issue, don’t let your body overheat, eat more cooling foods, cut down on sugar and get more fresh air. Also keep the body more alkaline by avoiding foods that make the body acidic (meat, dairy, alcohol, caffeine, sugar) and adding more alkalizing foods like green veggies and wheatgrass juice. Another thing that most of forget – dirty cell phones and pillow cases are two of the top acne culprits and this area is what they affect the most!

Zone 11 & 12: Hormones — This is the signature zone for stress and hormonal changes. And while both are sometimes unavoidable, you can decrease their effect by getting adequate sleep, drinking enough water, eating leafy veggies and keeping skin scrupulously clean. Another interesting point: breakouts in this area indicate when you are ovulating (and on which side).

Zone 13: Stomach — Step up the fibre intake, reduce the toxin overload and drink herbal teas to help with digestion.

14: Illness — Zits here can be a sign that your body is fighting bacteria to avoid illness. Give it a break, take a yoga class, take a nap, take time to breathe deeply, drink plenty of water and know that everything always works out!

So the next time you break out or notice dark under-eye circles, look to your face map: your skin is probably trying to communicate on behalf of the internal organs. However, do remember that, as with all medical issues, it is always best to see your doctor or dermotologist for a proper prognosis. This is just a general guide to head you off in the right investigative direction – just because you break out between the brows doesn’t always mean you have a bad liver!

Mineral makeup is an amazing

Mineral makeup is an amazing option for women for so many reasons. Here are a few:

For those with sensitive skin–
Chris Krenzer Mineral Makeup™ does NOT contain any known irritating ingredients like Bismuth Oxychloride, Heavy Minerals, Coated Minerals, Preservatives, Parabens, Fragrances, Silicones, Petrochemicals, Artificial Colors or Dyes, Animal Derived Colors, Silica, Boron Nitride, Talc or Cornstarch. This makes mineral makeup among the best options available for sensitive skin.

With mineral makeup, there are no preservatives. Chemically processed cosmetics normally add water to the product to create a smoother texture and to make it easier to apply. Adding water also makes a product susceptible to bacteria, so companies have to add preservatives to protect the product and to give it a longer shelf life. You should know that those preservatives are designed to protect the product, not your skin. In fact, preservatives are one of the leading causes for skin irritations. Mineral makeups are loose, dried fine powders with no water added — and therefore absolutely NO preservatives to cause irritation or damage to your skin.

For busy women who doesn’t have time for several touch-ups–
Chris Krenzer Mineral Makeup™ premium products with Dead Sea Minerals, it not only feels silky, soft and natural, but also hydrates your skin. These premium products have excellent coverage with longer staying power, requires fewer touch ups throughout your day. It truly is lower maintenance and more economical because the products last longer than traditional cosmetics.

For those who wear makeup frequently –
Chris Krenzer Mineral Makeup™ is a great alternative for those who wear makeup daily – especially models, actors, and actresses. If you wear makeup frequently, it’s simply better for your skin to use mineral makeup that causes less irritation, fewer clogged pores and breakouts. With mineral makeup your skin will remain in better shape and the irritation of frequent wear will end. In fact, if you are using makeup with Dead Sea minerals, you are also likely to see vast improvements in the health of your skin. The more you use it the more it will benefit your skin. Your skin will thank you for this.

For young makeup wearers–
Chris Krenzer Mineral Makeup™ gentle on young skin and provides a more flawless look for youthful skin, making it an ideal tool for teens. As stated our products contains none of the harsh ingredients or oils found in other products that irritates your skin or contribute to acne prone skin. For those who are just starting to use makeup, choosing the right natural makeup for your skin is critically important. Do it right the first time.

For women everywhere–
Chris Krenzer Mineral Makeup™ sooths and protects most skins types and offers a beautiful natural look and healthy feeling on your skin, “you’ve got to feel it to believe it”. These are healthy and real all natural mineral makeup at truly affordable prices.

Reflexology Map

Reflexology is a service where the therapist works primarily on your feet (and hands). The theory behind reflexology is that there are "reflex points" in the feet, hands and ears that relate to specific organs and glands in the body. Practitioners believe that stimulating those reflex points promotes health in that organ via the body's energetic pathways.

Green Eye Shadow Trio Chris Krenzer

Chris Krenzers  Clinical skin  Care make line is embraced by leading skincare professionals. Created by  Irish makeup artists and skin care professionals Tina Newman & Hazel Reilly. Chris Krenzer offers innovative new products with a Colour palette rich with the hottest hues and timeless Classic Colour.

I think this is a fantastic, velvety soft eyeshadow trio! I know it's an eyeshadow product I like when I can't decide which shade I like best! They all look great together- and if you'd like to see a tutorial using these shades, let me know. All of the colors have a subtle shimmer- without looking like over-the-top glitter mania. The champagne color is gorgeous- makes a great lid shade or highlight. The brownish color shade is actually more of a plum- it's so unique. It has a reddish-coppery sparkle that I love. Looks pretty as a smokey powder liner! And the green is phenomenal. Even if you don't gravitate toward green eyeshadow- I promise this is a gorgeous, wearable shade. Can't say enough about these colors. While they're powder- they have this unique creamy-smooth texture. When used with a primer, they're long wearing & delightful!

Thanks to Chris Krenzer Mineral Cosmetics for allowing me to try these products, and if you get a chance to try them yourself, let me know what you think! Have a great day!

www.beautybrands.ie