Top 10 Wedding Makeup Tips

Everyone knows a woman’s wedding day is one of the most important and why not learn a few tricks on how to make that gorgeous face radiate even more!

Here are a few of my favorite tricks to help the bride look her best on that special day:

1.       Prep – The base of your beauty is your skin.  Be sure to always stick to a good skincare regimen, i.e. cleanse, scrub, tone and hydrate!   To get your skin really looking its best for the big day, treat yourself to a professional facial service that includes a light peel or microdermabrasion about 1-2 weeks before the actual wedding day, that way your skin will be glowing and fresh!

2.      Groom – Shape brows to give an instantly polished look!  Visit a professional esthetician to obtain a basic brow shape.  This will also clean up any stragglers underneath the brow.  If you have naturally thinning brows or have gone overboard with tweezing at home, you can fill them in with a pencil or powder.  Choose a color the same or one shade lighter that your hair color, using natural thin brush strokes to fill in any needed areas.

3.      Conceal – Shh, we won’t tell!  Use a concealer on any blemish marks, scars, under eye circles or other areas that might need a bit more coverage.  This will act as a great base on those imperfections under foundation.

4.      Base – Test foundations beforehand that best fit your skin needs.  For dry skin, look for creamy hydrating formulas with light-reflecting particles for a more luminous look.  Combination skin should try oil-free or cream to powder foundation which can fight shine but also leave a soft finish to the skin.  Oily or acne-prone skin tones should try an oil-free liquid foundation or tinted moisturizer.  Avoid heavy formulas which will create an overabundance of oil on top of the skin.

5.      Emphasize – Highlight a few key areas by dusting a light colored powder with a hint of shimmer (avoid real glitter) on the tops of the cheekbones, underneath the brow bone and the inner corners of the eyes.  Also great on the collarbone area for those brides with strapless gowns.

6.      Shade – Sweep a bronzer a shade or two darker than your normal skin tone underneath your blush.  Use a “C” motion while applying, blending well, to define the cheekbones. 

7.      Define – After applying eye shadow, use dark eye liner (creams are best for staying put) on the upper lash line to really thicken the lashes and open up the eye.  For smaller eyes, you may also want to line the inner rim of the lower lash line with a white pencil.  This will give the illusion of bigger brighter eyes!

8.      Mascara – Apply a waterproof thickening and lengthening mascara to the top and bottom lashes.  Wiggling the brush from root to tip when applying will ensure every lash is coated creating a feathery look.  Use a clean mascara wand or plastic lash brush to remove any clumps.

9.      Falsies – Adding false eyelashes are a must for any event where photos will be taken.  Make sure the length of the strip lashes is a few millimeters shorter than the length of the eye; trim the strip with brow scissors if needed.  Starting from the outer corner of the eye glue lashes at the base of your natural lash line and let them set.  Reapply eye liner if needed and add a coat of mascara to really blend the falsies in with your naturals.  This will enhance the eyes and give the bride an absolute wow factor!

10.  Finishing Touch – Add a pop of color to the lip!  For long-lasting wear, line and fill in lips with a lip pencil, followed by a layer of matching lipstick.  Blot the lips lightly on a tissue to remove any excess product and finish with a coat of clear or same shade gloss. 

Voila!  Here comes the bride!

Wish to see more of my bridal makeup work? Visit CarlyJonellMakeup.com/Bridal.html

Throwback Thursday!

My first official “Throwback Thursday” post!

Let’s go way back to when I was attending makeup school at Westmore Academy!

My lovely classmate, Lauren, all done up with a GREEN avant garde makeup by yours truly. (:

Have a lovely night bloggers!

From Day to Night in Under 5 Minutes!

Easily transform your makeup from day to night in under 5 minutes!

Next time you need to quickly amp up your daytime look, try out one of these tricks.

Add a pop of bright lipstick like red, coral or pink. If you also have a clear lip gloss on hand, swipe a coat on top for an extra luscious lip!

Dab on a vivid blush! Apply from the apples of the cheeks upward toward the hairline for the most dramatic look.

Dazzle everyone with a hint of shimmer! Loose, cream, pressed, any form of shimmer! It can always be fun, but use it sparingly and pick one place to emphasize with it such as; the top of the cheekbones, center of the eyelids, collarbone, a little on the arms or legs.

Bring on the most seduction with a little eyeliner. Outline your eyes on top and bottom with a dark color such as; kohl, black, dark chestnut or even a jewel tone such as purple or blue! Use your finger to lightly smudge the eyeliner just a tad to give a smoky sultry eye. Apply a coat of mascara to the top and bottom lashes if you didn’t already have some on from the daytime.

 

Bangstyle Hair Care Video

Awhile back I had the lovely pleasure of working with some very talented people on Bangstyle’s hair care product instructional video!

Here are some behind the scenes from the video:
(Makeup by me!)

Hair Model: Laura

Hair Model: Melissa, Hair Stylist: Steve

Hair Model: Laura and Melissa, Hair Stylist: Steve

Hair Model: Stacia

…And of course we had a photo booth!
Photos taken by photographer Tiffany Kyees.

Hair Model: Laura

Hair Model: Melissa

→ Check out Bangstyle’s website for more information on their products, promotions, education and more!

Blackheads Be Gone!

Skincare Trick: To minimize blackheads, use sugar with a few drops of lemon juice as your facial scrub! It works well and it’s a  Saver!

Why these ingredients?

Lemons contain Alpha Hydroxy Acid, which is a key ingredient in most acne medications. Lemon juice offers a natural and effective remedy for blackheads.

Sugar is great for gently exfoliating the skin and it is a natural ingredient. Perfect for those DIY body/facial scrubs!

That was my quick tip of the day. Have a good one!

Skin Brightening Tricks

As the weather heats up and the sun starts to shine brighter, why shouldn’t your skin be just as warm and bright?

Here are a few of my tricks to beautifully glowing skin!

1. Exfoliate your skin with a scrub. I do a light exfoliation every day, because my skin is prone to excess oils. If your skin is on the dryer side, I would recommend exfoliating every other day or maybe even just twice a week.
 Saver! – I use natural sugar with a few drops of lemon juice or a few drops of almond oil as my scrub. (View the Skincare Tips category for scrub recipes and benefits)

2. Be sure to moisturize after cleansing the skin. Without moisture, skin can tend to look dull. I am currently using Garnier Moisture Rescue Refreshing Gel Cream moisturizer. Gel moisturizers are great for oil/acne prone skin. If you have severely dry skin, you may want to invest in a hydrating serum to mix with your moisturizer.

3. Eye cream and primer are also steps to achieving glowing skin. I am currently using Aveeno Positively Radiant Eye Illuminator (which is around $10 at Target or local drugstores) and MAC Prep + Prime Skin. I apply my eye cream before moisturizer and the face primer after moisturizing, but before any makeup is applied.

4. Before applying foundation, I highlight my face with small amounts of concealer in specific areas such as; under the eyes (a popular place for concealer!), tops of the cheekbones, eyelids and blend up under the brow bone, down the sides of the base of the nose (the area between the base of the nose and where you start your blush), and occasionally down the center of the nose and even around the mouth for a poutier lip! (View Guide to Highlighting & Shading the Face for more in depth instructions)

5. Next, I apply my usual daily makeup and finish with a pop of cream shimmery highlighter on the tops of cheekbones, under the brow bone and for nights out, I also add some highlighter to the collarbones and down the centers of my arms and legs for gorgeous glowing skin all over!
 Saver! – Mix your own cream highlighter using a small amount of natural tone shimmer eye shadow (champagnes and golds are my favorites) with a small amount of your daily moisturizer.

6. Finish off your look with a spritz of MAC Fix+ which will add hydration to the skin and help set the makeup.
Saver! – Don’t have the budget for another MAC product this month? You can also use regular water instead. Fill a small 2 oz. spray bottle with water, spritz onto a makeup sponge and lightly dab on to areas you want to look dewy and hydrated!

Stay beautiful!

Made for Television

I had the opportunity to work on another television show!

Here are a few behind the scenes shots from NatGeo’s, “I’ll Buy It.”
Makeup and hair by me!

Talent (from left): Malcolm Varner, Shelley Rodriguez, James Hill, David “Spunky” Halpin
Shot for the opening credits of the show. Filmed in the Culver Hotel. I love the beautiful marble floor!

Continuation frame from the shot above. The talent throws $100s into the air to make it rain! Slow motion playback on the camera for this shot was amazing!

James Hill’s shot was in this beautiful car!  Note Savannah as the “sexy girl” role in the car with him.  Savannah’s big sexy curls were styled by me!

Here is a close-up shot of her hair style.  Va-Va-Voom!