Wednesday, March 14, 2012

All About Eyes: Find Your Eye Shape

Knowing what is your eye shape is beneficial to makeup application, it gives you the advantage to know how to apply eye shadows or eyeliner to enhance or detract from your eyes. Your eyes are one of the features on your face that is very noticeable and if you know what your shape is its one step in knowing how to play it up or down. I am just going to be focusing on helping you figure out your eye shape but in upcoming posts I will also give you some tips on altering the shape of your eye with liner and eyeshadows. Also you may very well fall into more than one category of eye shape like deep-set small eyes or something like that.


To begin makeup sure your face is devoid of makeup and that your muscles are relaxed (so no tension in the brows). Stand in front of a mirror with eyes open taking not of how much space is around the eyes.


Now taking a look at your face and eyes as a whole do you notice anything in particular about your eyes that stand out?

Are your eyes very pronounced or seem to be bulging out of its socket? Are they prominently set forward and is there a lot of visible eyelid? If so then you have Prominent eyes. Some celebrities with prominent eyes are: Nicole Richie, Lala Vasquez, Octavia Spencer, Penelope Cruz






Are your eyes proportionally smaller to the rest of your face in comparison? If so you have small eyes. You may also have very little space between the brows and eyelid. Some celebrities with small eyes are: Amanda Bynes, Jessica Alba, Jennifer Hudson


Do the inner corners of your eyes have a less pronounced lid than the outer corner? When your eyes are open does the space between your lashes and brow bone seem to recede? If so you have Deep-set eyes. Some celebrities with Deep-set eyes are: Tori Amos, Taylor Swift, Cameron Diaz, Sandra Bullock, Iman


When your eyes are open are your eyelids not visible?Is the crease not readily visible? If so then you have Hooded eyes. Also with age the skin above the brow may sag and cause a hooded eye. Some celebrities with Hooded eyes are: Blake Lively, Iman Chanel, Selma Blair, Hayden Panettiere


Do you have little to no eyelid or crease? Do your eyes have a definitive lift at the outer corners? If so then you have Asian eyes. Because Asian eyes come in a wide spectrum we are going to compact them only for this post. Some celebrities with Asian eyes are: Lucy Lui, Maggie Q, Sandra Oh, Jamie Chung, Kristen Kreuk, Devon Aoki, Thandie Newton, Gabrielle Union, Moon Bloodgood, Cassandra Hepburn, Sophie Okonedo, Jenna Ushkowitz


Are your eyes literally shaped like an almond? Is one side more tapered while the other side is more rounded? If so then you have Almond eyes. Some celebrities with Almond shaped eyes are: Mila Kunis, Aishwarys Rai, Rihanna,Kate winslet, Scarlett Johanson, Gwen Stefani, Minka kelly, Jessica alba, Anne Hathaway, Zoe Saldana, Olivia wilde, Eva longoria, Leighton Meester, Kerry Washington, Kim Kardashian, Beyonce, Octavia Spencer, Penelope Cruz


Do your eyes appear very large and open looking? If so you have Round Eyes. Some celebrities with Round shaped eyes are: Christina Ricci, Zoe Deschanel, Tracee Ellis Ross, Penelope Cruz,  Ashley/Mary-Kate/ElizabethOlsen, Emmy Rossum, Demi lovato, Christina Applegate, Amy Adams, Katy Perry



One thing to keep in mind is that everyone's face is not symmetrical, so you can very well have a mix of more than one eye shape. Each eye can even have a mix of two, for example, prominent Almond eyes. Figuring out your eye shape is the first part to applying eyeshadow that will enhance or detract from your eyes. My next post will be exploring more aspects of eyes so stay tuned!


Hopefully this post helped 

Friday, March 2, 2012

Beauty Blunders

After my extended hiatus from posting I am back and going to talk about a few Beauty Blunders that I see often and others that make me cringe. For the most part some of these Beauty Blunders have been committed by everyone at some time or another. This is part one of a two part post.



Over Plucked
Whether you have done this or not everyone has seen someone with over plucked brows. It always looks weird because usually they have them thinly shaped into a unnatural looking shape. Not all of them are in odd shapes, just very thin than what they should be. I've heard some people say they have always had very thin brows (although I have never seen someone born with them) or the rest admit to over plucking them. Only once have I had over plucked brows and that was the only time that someone else has ever done my eyebrows for me. I allowed my aunt (who has extremely plucked brows) to do my eyebrows and they came out pretty thin, especially to what I was used to. Luckily my brows don't give too much of a fuss about growing back. Anyways to make sure my brows don't stay thin or what not I like to pluck my brows only and also alternate times when I will let my brows grow fully out. I don't have full thick brows but I do let them grow out to its natural state and then just clean up the area around them. It's just my way of making sure they don't get accustomed to being over tweezed or anything. And here is a picture documenting my thinnest brows.
(No idea whats with the book and picture taking)


Snowy Liner
Thankfully I have been smart enough not to make this error, but I have known others that have done it. Okay so White eyeliner is all well and dandy for the waterline and maybe the inner corner to act as a highlight, but that's about it in terms of everyday makeup. I just don't understand why anyone thinks its okay to draw a medium-thick line on the lashline. It's not like a black liner that makes sense, its white! I've seen so many women do this and in varying skintones, it just never works. I've noticed the women who do this usually don't wear mascara or any other makeup for that matter, they think some white eyeliner is suffice.

(The first was for the runway, but really how many people can actually wear this and make it work?)


Faux Pas Lashes
I wish I could find a picture that represents this but describing it will have to do. Okay so I have seen this more times than I can count and I always end up shaking my head when I see it. Women who wear unnaturally thick and long lashes. Now I only shake my head when they are usually sans any real makeup but have on these crazy lashes. They think that we the public will be fooled to think they are their actual lashes. The lashes are very thick and black and shiny since they are fake and they place them always very close to the lashline if not on it. Also usually you get to see the glue peeking out as well. I understand having thin, short lashes since I have them myself but wearing thick lashes isn't going to make it appear natural. As an example of the types of lashes that are used here is a picture of Ardell Lashes called Tyra.
(The lashes are either this thickness or thicker)


Over Bronzed
This is another one many people have probably seen as well. There's such a thing as giving yourself what appears to be a sunkissed look or even slightly bronzed skin, but its another thing to pack it on all over. I've never bothered using bronzer since I am tan but I did have a moment when I looked unnaturally tanned. I allowed one of the girls at mac to convince me that a NW45 (I believe, it was in the 40 family) was my shade in foundation, when it was definitely the wrong tone. To begin with the foundation had to much of a red undertone which my skin doesn't and it made me look like I had a bad fake tan. Luckily I figured it out after using it the one time and started learning how to pick out a foundation that worked with my skintone (best one so far has been Face Atelier). I do have pictures documenting that unfortunate moment so when I locate them I shall put up a photo for reference, in the meantime here's a picture.


Bountiful Blush- Blushing Plenty
Oh how many have fallen victim to the excessive use of blush. I've done it once or twice, being distracted or in poor light and applying too much but I know its not a good look. On the other hand there are some women who don't seem to think that using a lot of blush is a beauty blunder. If your cheeks are looking like clowns then it's time to put down your brush. I believe blush should look somewhat natural not painted on like a clown would wear it.
(She happens to do a lot of Beauty Blunders, Blush just being one of them)
(The way her makeup's packed on she reminds me of a ventriloquist dummy)


The Ursula
Everyone starting out with makeup and some others that like the look have made this blunder. It basically means only using one eyeshadow and managing to extend it either up until it meets the brows or far out the sides or both. I've done it unfortunately and then later on was able to realize what I was doing wrong and correct it. I know some females like to apply eyeshadow up into their brows and think its a suitable look but in general outside of some dramatic looks I don't view them as very wearable. When I see this happen I always think of Ursula from the little mermaid and how very dark and dramatic her makeup looked, but not in a good way. So here's a photo of me doing the Ursula if you will.
(Technique I'm speaking of just in a color that doesn't stand out too much)


Spider Lashes
I have seen plenty of people committing this beauty blunder but not a whole lot and thankfully. I've actually encountered a lot of elderly women who fall prey to the spider lashes, the Ursula and bountiful blush. Anyhow the person puts on several coats of mascara to make the lashes pop and sometimes will wear falsies as well. The end result usually ends up with them having really dark clumpy lashes that seem to crawl away from the eyes. I just don't find this flattering.
(Kim is very fond of spider lashes)


Dirty Contours- Chocolate Outlines
I see more and more people that end up making this horrible mistake. Contouring is meant to help shade certain parts of you face so that other parts pop. By no means is it meant to look like you have a dirty face or as if you are outlining certain areas of your face. Yet some females don't seem to know how to contour without going overboard. It's almost similar to the blush where they don't realize they've put too much on. I've seen noses with noticeable lines running down the side, or cheeks that look like they were passed over with a chocolate bar. Whatever the case learning how to contour and highlight subtly is something everyone should focus on. I've fallen victim a few times in the beginning to over contouring my nose but now I've found a light touch goes a long way.
(This falls under excessive highlighting also)
(Her cheeks and nose look dirty)

The Reversed Raccoon
I feel ever since Kim Kardashian has become more famous there are more girls and women out there committing the Reversed Raccoon. Basically the person has highlighted their eye area way too much in a noticeable way that contrasts with the rest of their face. As in the picture above with Monique she actually didn't do the Reversed Raccoon but she did highlight way too much. Anyway the end result ends up looking like they forgot to wipe away their setting powder.
(Her makeup artist should be scolded)

(To be fair this isn't the completed look but honestly some people end up looking like this anyway)


Badly Blended
Everyone who has dabbled in makeup has done this, and I mean EVERYONE. When you are first starting off its all about trial and error and there is no one out there makeup artist or not that hasn't done this. Somewhat connected to The Ursula its basically applying eyeshadow/s and not blending them, so you are left with a lot of shadow. Besides beginners I have encountered some individuals who have been doing their own makeup for years and still have not learned how important blending is. An example of my ignorance of blending is shown below.
 (Well.. I tried I guess. Anyway I did do another Beauty Blunder which I will cover in part 2 of this topic)


Overdone Brows
Oh how I lament thee! This always sets my head to shaking in a slow manner. I have no idea where this trend or look came from but so many women do it. I'm sure you may have or do it yourself or you have just seen others do it. It's one thing to fill in your brows to look fuller yet natural its a whole other thing to draw them in cartoon style. Going heavy on the brow pencil or whatever it may be gives the brows this harsh look. I've seen the sharpie thin ones, to the thick caterpillars. I've overdone it on the brows a couple of times but thankfully only when I have been at home messing around with makeup.
(Dark and thick)

(The sharpie)
(I also don't get this style either)
(Her's are naturally that dark)


So these are just a few of the many Beauty Blunders out there, I will be doing another post with more of them later on. Hopefully you enjoyed this post :)