Meet the lovely Allison, one of my gorgeous brides for 2011! We focused on a subtle smoky look for Allison’s Big Day to highlight her enchanting blue eyes.
To achieve this look on your own, try out these products:
MAC’s Bare Canvas Paint – to neutralize the colour of Allison’s eyelid and act as a base for eyeshadow application
MAC eyeshadows
– Bisque:Â I applied this medium shade all over the lid up to the browbone to add slight depth.
– White Frost + Phloof: I love these two eyeshadow shades for highlighting. I wanted something brighter than Phloof (an off-white) but not as bright as White Frost (a frosty white) on its own…so I swirled my brush between both shades to get the perfect balance. Highlighting done right is key…and the key is subtlety! Many brides do not want to see a harsh white highlight on their browbone when they look at their wedding photos! Yep, dated!
– Handwritten: blended in the outer V of the eyelid to add depth and contrast Allison’s gorgeous eyes
Maybelline’s Lash Stiletto – waterproof and lengthening. I love how the bristles coat every lash…and how the tapered wand lets you get even the tiniest of eyelash hairs.
L’oreal’s Lineur Intense – Old faithful. My go-to waterproof mother of all liquid liners!
Quo Eyelashes in #804 – add length and instant oomph with these lashes. Fuller lashes also help to make Allison’s beautiful blues pop! See more on the power of lashes with Quo here.
I also used an angled brush with a blonde eyeshadow (it’s a Yaby eyeshadow, not sure of the colour!) for Allison’s brows. Remember when dolling up the eyes, it doesn’t stop at well-blended eyeshadow application. Think of it as a 360-degree effect and look at the areas around the eye: i) make sure you groom/fill the brows for framing and ii). add concealer/colour corrector to the undereyes for a professional and polished eye make-up application.
For the lips, I used MAC’s Subculture lip pencil – a soft, neutral pink to outline the lips. With a lipbrush, I also blended the pencil in towards the centre of the mouth so that the lip liner could act as a base for the lipcolour. I used a small amount of MAC Freckletone and then MAC’s Kissable Lipcolour in Woo Me to top it off. I’m loving MAC’s Kissable Lipcolour – it’s the perfect choice for many of my natural beauty brides (you know who you are!) who like the effect of lipstick, but don’t necessarily like the feel of it! Kissable Lipcolour appears beautifully on camera and shows more colour than just wearing a colour lipgloss would, while for the bride does not feel too ‘goopy’ on the lips!
Cheeks – I layered Make-up Forever Cream Blush #6 under Cargo HD Blush in Peach for a natural toned flush. Allison and I met later in the afternoon, and by the time we did the ‘after’ photo, it was later in the day and we were losing natural light. Looking at the ‘after’ photo now, I would like add another layer of Peach blush to really highlight Allison’s apples. The key is to start light, and layer as you go – it’s easier to build in layers, rather than trying to tone down harsh streaks on the face after the fact!! :)
Other products used:
Face
Make-up Forever Primer
FACE atelier foundation
Kett Cosmetics translucent powder
MAC Shimpagne
MAC Fix+
Can’t wait to work with Allison this year! Stay tuned for more with this beauty! ♥
