Beauty 101

SHINE-FREE T-ZONE

By Ms. Cherry Ordonez

Summer afternoon. A perfect day to just hangout with friends or relax walking on the beach. But it is also a time when the dreaded oil slick appears on your forehead. And that ruins everything, right? Well fortunately for us we can do something about it. A few tweaks on our usual regimen can make all the difference.

The T-zone. The common place for excess oil, acne and blackheads. That is your forehead, nose and chin. Unfortunately, these are the places that other people see first when they look at you. But you don't need to worry because with proper care you can have a shine-free skin - morning, noon and night.

Wash right. Despite the fact that you wash it off, the right cleanser can still make a major difference in controlling the oil under your skin's surface. You will need to use a cleanser meant specifically for oily skin in that area. Even if your skin isn't acne-prone you should still use a cleanser designed for acne. It will be gentle and lightweight but at the same time oil eliminating.

If your skin is oily, do not use a moisturizer altogether in the morning but never leave home without a sunblock. A healthy dose of sunblock is an essential part of controlling oil and shine. Apply sunblock to bare skin so it absorbs properly and remember that quantity is important. If you're not applying enough, you won't get the full benefit.

Since your skin loses more moisture at night, the best time to moisturize is before you sleep. But you need to minimize your usual nighttime products.

During summer, the less makeup you wear the better. Perspiration makes imperfections more noticeable and it doesn't mix well with heavy foundation leaving an unevern texture which will lead to increase acne and oil production.

It may be tempting to reach for a powder puff everytime you want to get rid of the shine, especially during summertime. Well that is not the best way to deal with it. Instead, use a blotting papers with a touch of translucent powder. They soak up excess oil and don't overstrip so you really can't overuse them.

Lastly, you need to watch what you eat. Limit your intake of alcohol and spicy foods because these increases your level of perspiration, making you look oilier. It is recommended to eat food high in vitamin A. These help slow oil production.

BYE DARK CIRCLES BYE

By Ms. Cherry Ordonez

Have you ever had a day were you didn't get the needed 8 hours of sleeps? And to make matters worst, you have a very important meeting the next day. Im sure you have, a lot of times i bet. Well we need to do something about it. Here are some ways that you can do to have the 8 hours of sleep instantly!

Choose a concealer one shade lighter than you natural skin color to hide dark circles and even out skin tone. Use your ring finger, it applies theleast pressure to dab it under eyes and on lids.

Swipe a champagne-colored eyeshadow across your entire lid to create a soft glow.

To brighten eyes, apply white eyeliner to the inner corner and drag inward on top and Bottom to where your lashes begin. Use a highlighter on the bridge of your nose and outer corner of your eyes, blending into our temples, to illuminate the area surrounding your eyes.

Finally, curl your lashes and apply mascara to look wide awake. Mascara works wonders to perk up tired eyes. Don't limit your arsenal to just one. Use different mascara for daytime, Nighttime and for weekends.

BEAUTY COVER UP

By Ms. Cherry Ordonez

Flaws can be beautiful or they can send you to a mission for every breakout, gray root or dark circle.  Regardless of what we are there are parts of us that in some way or another need covering up from time to time.  Some of what we can call tricks are only last ditch  solutions such as temporary color to hide gray roots or have a concealers that would mask blemishes and scars.  These can be used again and again once you know the right product to apply.

To prevent gray roots avoid severe hairstyles such as stick straight hair with no volume at the root, sharp parts and slicked back ponytails.  Instead you can use volumizing spray and let it part naturally and style it so it falls softly around your face.  You can also use the spray-on hair powder and spray it directly on the roots let it dry and brush it through. But if this doesn’t work for you , the root touch-up product is always available for you.  Just follow the application instruction and you’re good to go.

For brows if you over tweezed you can always boost them with makeup.  On thin patches, pencils are a bit too heavy and harsh.  Covering them with powder softens the look.  What you can do is apply a brow powder or eye shadow with an angled eyebrow brush.  Blow-off excess powder before dappling color onto the brow area.  Do not apply very dark brown or black powder unless your brows are naturally that color.  As always the rule of thumb is pick a shade that close to or only slightly darker than what is already there.

Hairstylists have all the tricks up their sleeves even for women who already own an arsenal of thickening products.  Hair tends to be weakest at the hairline or crown, avoid styles that draw attention to them such as ponytails.  Quite simply the hair color adds body.  Where the scalp is visible tinted hair powder or other makeup can be applied directly to the scalp.  Keratin protein fibers that get sprinkled on the hair make your hair look fuller.  Then apply a lightweight serum to add shine on your hair.

Breakouts and acne scars would require more magic than other discolorations because they present problems of texture as well as color.  Because zits are raised and throw a light shadow, it is suggested to use a firm brush to apply foundation or concealer slightly darker than the skin tone on the top part of the pimple and a slightly lighter shade below.  Then add a dusting of translucent powder on top.  For acne scars, use a small concealer brush to fill each groove with dense concealer or foundation the same color as the surrounding skin then set everything with a light dusting of translucent powder.

For dark circles apply foundation first.  Avoid concealing products that are too dry and be cautious by applying it with fine lines.  Keep in mind that heavy application around the eyes can make you look older.  For purple circles use yellowish concealer, for dull brownish gray use pink tones; and for bluish use a more orange toned concealer.  Do not use a concealer that is much lighter than the skin it will look grayish.  For a more precise application use a concealer brush.

NEW WAYS TO PLAY UP YOUR EYES

By Ms. Cherry Ordonez

This spring eye makeup is fun and soft.  Making it easier for anyone to update their look. For a natural day look, use beige to brown hues on your eyes.  To create a clean look, eyebrows should be well groomed.  For a sexy evening look, use rainbow paste colors.

    

If you want a formal effect, think of elegance.

You need to emphasize on the lashes and use a mascara to create an elongated eye look. When it comes to choosing your shades for your spring look avoid colors that will appear too light.  Choosing colors such as blue, green or purple in small doses will help you look up to date with the trend without looking too bright or clown-like. 

When it doubt, you could always go back to basic.  Apply just a touch of pastel eyeshadow to the corner of the eye to brighten a look and keep it simple.

For eyeliners, stay away from heavy black or gray colors.  Use purple or soft rich blue shades.  You can also blend the eyeliner into the lashline for a soft sultry look.

And for the final touch, maximize your eye lashes.  Lashes for spring are focuses on length and definition.  Choosing a mascara that defines the lashes that will keep them looking fresh, natural and uncluttered will complete any eye makeup look this spring.

 

Yet for more drama, before putting on lashes apply creamy nude shadow to lids.  Then swoop black liquid eyeliner from the inner corners, widening from the iris and ending with a tiny bit of a wing at the corners.

SPRING 2009 MAKEUP TRICKS AND TRENDS

By Ms. Cherry Ordonez

For this spring season, there are so many makeup and beauty trends on the rise. Old classic and new favorites, but you just need to remember for these spring look less is always more when it comes to beauty.

Get a little golden. A wash of shimmery shadow on our top lids is pretty. But more makeup pros are sweeping the same shade beneath for eyes that look all glowy all the time. Use your finger for the sheerest application. Swipe candy-pink lipstick onto a fingertip, press over your mouth and blot.

For a night out, starting at your eye's inner corner, apply pink or purple shadow and swoosh it up and over top lid. Next swipe shimmery gray or silver below your eye, extend to outer corner and blend up into the crease. Smudge with a Q-tip. For lush lashes, do a black liner top lids, two coats of mascara and four faux lashes above your iris.

For nails down to just beyond your fingertips. It's the now length and it also prevents nail-caught-in keyboard trauma. More the file in one direction for snag free tips. Start with a base coat, then apply color like a pro; a stroke down the middle, and one on each side. Finish with topcoat to smooth away smudges. You'll get a good week out of this manicure; glimmery polishes last longer than matte ones.

For lips, apply concealer all around your mouth for definition and to prevent runaway color. Next lipstick, slick on a cream formula right from the tube, wiping away any smudges with a tissue. Then brush on a pale pink gloss or shimmer powder in the middle of your lower lip to make it look even fuller. Gloss over lipstick creates a temptingly creamy texture.