Makeup mistakes to avoid

Primer Don’t skip primer, especially if you have dry, oily or textured skin. It can make the world of a difference by blurring texture and providing a smoother, more long-lasting finish to your makeup. Be sure to use a primer that suits your skin type.

Foundation Don’t use a foundation that doesn’t match. Since your face can be a different colour than your body, you shouldn’t match foundation to your face or hands. I recommend matching your foundation to your chest, since this will give you the most uniform appearance. Also, blending a foundation that obviously doesn’t match down your neck, won’t make it suddenly match.

Concealer Avoid using concealer that is too light or ashy under the eyes. Instead, use a corrective concealer 1-2 shades lighter than your skin tone with pink undertones for fair skin, peach undertones for medium skin, and orange undertones for deeper skin. Also, you should use a concealer that matches your skin tone on blemishes, since lighter concealer will simply highlight your imperfections instead of hiding them.

Powder Don’t apply powdered contour, highlight, blush or bronzer on wet or tacky foundation, as this will create uneven patches.

Instead, set your foundation with a translucent powder before you apply any other powdered face products.

Contour and Highlight Don’t use bronzer to contour; if your contour is too warm or orange, it won’t look natural. Instead use a more neutral shade, or even a slightly ashy shade to create natural-looking shadows on the face.

Try to avoid contouring for no reason. If you already have defined cheekbones or a straight nose, contouring them will only make your features appear harsh, exaggerated and unnatural, particularly in natural light. Save heavier contouring for night events and flash photography, which can sometimes wash your features out.

Don’t make your cheekbone contour too thick, or too close to your mouth, as this can look unnatural and muddy. Instead, imagine a vertical line going down your face from the outer corner of your eye and keep your contour behind it, for the most natural effect.

Avoid applying frosty highlight to textured skin. If you have wrinkles, acne, scars or dryness, excessively shimmery highlight will only accentuate them. Instead, use a light hand and _ nely milled highlight powders for a more refined effect.

Blush and Bronzer Avoid using frosty blush on areas with enlarged pores or texture. Instead, use a matte blush, and apply a highlight to the cheekbones for a similar, luminous effect. Also, avoid smiling and applying blush to the apples of your cheeks. When you stop smiling, your apples drop, and your blush will be too close to the centre of your face, which will make your features droop. Don’t contour with bronzer. Instead, use bronzer to add warmth to your face, to create a sun-kissed glow.

Eyes Avoid using frosty shades to define your crease. It will actually do quite the opposite, by accentuating fine lines and creating a muddy appearance. Instead, opt for a matte shade to define the crease of your eye.

Don’t apply black eyeliner to your lower waterline only. This can make your eyes appear tired, droopy and small. Instead, apply eyeliner to your upper lash line to lift and define your eyes, then you can smudge some eyeliner under the eye, but never by itself. If you have smaller eyelids, avoid making your eyeliner too thick, as this can reduce your eyelid space significantly.

Eyebrows Don’t draw brows in too harshly and sloppily, then try to correct it with concealer. This will never look natural. Instead, try to take your time, so you shouldn’t have any mistakes to correct. Use either a pencil, powder or pomade depending on your preference, and set the hairs in place with an eyebrow gel.

Lashes Don’t curl your lashes after applying mascara. This can be catastrophic, especially if your lashes get caught in the curler.

Ouch! If you’re going to wear false lashes, measure them to ensure they _ t your eyes. Lashes that are too long will make your eyes appear droopy and will be extremely uncomfortable to wear. Trim any excess from the outer corner of the lash, then apply.

Lips Don’t apply matte lipstick to dry, chapped lips. It will only accentuate the texture, particularly if the shade is light, bright or metallic. Either exfoliate first and apply a hydrating balm, or opt for a satin or glossy lip.