How To Maximize The Use Of Your Cream Concealer

Ever wonder how makeup artists get those perfectly defined brows, perfectly shaped lips and flawlessly applied eye makeup? Are you really getting the most benefit and use of your cream concealer?

Today's makeup tip and trick will answer all of those questions. I will  be sharing with you three awesome ways to maximize the use of your cream concealer. If you have been using your cream concealer just to spot treat your blemishes and skin discoloration, then, you probably  are missing out on some amazing tricks that your concealer can do for you. This trick will change the way you apply your concealer and change your look in the most subtle way.

Let's begin. In this makeup tutorial, you will only need a cream concealer  (the closest color to your skin) and a small brush  with defined edges. In my case, I am using the Mac Studio Finish Concealer in NC30 and a detailer brush from Real Techniques, which comes from their face brush set. 

Perfectly Shaped Lips/Cupid Bows

If you find yourself sloppily putting on your lipsticks- which by the way I am guilty of, then your cream concealer is your friend. A bleeding lipstick (lipstick that goes out of your natural lip line) is not so flattering. It will make you look like you do not know how to use your makeup or that you are a novice teenager, who have just discovered makeup. Either ways it's not good. This trick is especially useful when you are wearing bold vivid lip colors.

1. So, to give you those perfectly shaped cupid bows (see the circled part on the pic above), reach for your brush and cream concealer. Dab your brush to your concealer making sure you cover the tip of the bristles
2. Carefully draw the natural shape of your lips and give more detailed attention on shaping the curves of your cupid bows (the arch  on your upper lips). 
3. Finally, slightly press the concealer with your fingers so that the warmth from your hands melt or blends the concealer to your skin further. 

Perfectly Applied Eye Shadow or Winged Liner

This technique is especially helpful if you want to get a well-defined cat eye look (which I have two ways of doing, I'll share the other one next time). Or if you simply want to clean up the edges of your eye makeup, then this is also a good trick.

1. You might not see anything wrong on picture 1, but if you look closely, the darker shadow goes beyond the line where I drew my winged liner. You can go out with this look it is perfectly normal. However, if you want to put more emphasis on your winged liner, then grab your concealer and brush.
2. Draw a line where you want to get that crisp winged look and blend your brush further down to make sure you erase any smudges from your eyeshadow.
3. Finally, use your finger to blend your concealer to your skin. Tips: Remember to use your ring finger as explained on my previous post on concealing undereye circles.

Perfectly Defined Eyebrows

As I have mentioned on my post on how to define your brows, your brows are the most important part of your makeup. So, never disregard them because they are the ones that can pull off any looks you go for. Did I mention that concealer does not only create those clean and crisp lines below and above your brows, but also help cover up the tiny hair growth you have? In days when I am so lazy to shave or pluck  any regrowth under my brows, this technique comes in  handy.

1. After filling in your brows with brow pencil/powder/pomade, grab your brush and dab it to your cream concealer.
2. Following the natural shape and arch of your brows, draw a line on your top and lower brow line. If you overdraw the part where your brows start, use the excess concealer from your brush to lighten that part out. Tips: For covering hair re-growth, dab more concealer and build up the coverage as you desire.
3. Using your ring finger, blend the concealer to your skin making sure there are no harsh edges or weird patches. 

The picture below, shows a comparison of my defined and undefined look. Can you tell the subtle differences on the eyes and lips?

There you go, dolls. I hope I was clear enough. If you have questions, comments and suggestions for a next tutorial, please comment below.

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P.S.: I am writing for ideafortoday.com. You can also see some amazing blog posts of any random topics from different bloggers out there.

Always remember! Everyday is a day to doll up,

Gelie (Jelai) xoxo

Concealing Undereye Discoloration/Circles

Hello dolls,

Waking up with an ugly discoloration under your eyes from a late night partying or working hard is a normal scenario that could happen to anyone of us. I really didn't know a lot about undereye circles until I began applying makeup and became more aware of my skin and what not. At first, I thought foundation will just suffice in concealing them but obviously it doesn't.

Don't  worry though, I have found an effective way of covering them and I am so excited to share it with you. All you  need are three things.  You need a color stick in salmon peach/orange. Well, you might think orange color corrector/concealer might look strange on your skin (I thought exactly the same thing at first), but actually you'll  be surprised as to how effective it is in covering any cool-toned discolorations in your skin. You will also need a concealer. You can choose to use a concealer that is the same shade as your foundation or if you want a more lifted and highlighted effect on your face, then a concealer that is two shades lighter than your skin is perfect.  Finally, the last optional thing you need is a dampened sponge. Or if you don't have one, don't sweat it out, your fingers are just as effective. Although, blending it with your finger might take a bit longer than blending it with a sponge. Finally, a translucent powder is also needed to set everything in place. 

Please find the step-by-step picture tutorial and the detailed instructions below.

1. Get ready with your orange color corrector, concealer, sponge (optional) and translucent powder. 
2. Start with a bare face (before applying your face makeup). Applying it before your foundation, works better because you don't want to mix your color corrector on top of  your foundation. You would want to use it to correct the exact shade of the discoloration.
3. Apply the orange corrector to areas with redness and blueish color.
4.  Use your "ring finger" to gently press and even out the product.  Tips: You would not want to be tagging or pressing too hard on the skin around your eyes since it is the softest skin on your face. That's why using your "ring finger" is important because it gives the lightest force among all your fingers. Always remember to use your ring finger when ever you are pressing product around your eyes including eye creams and eye primer.
5. Then, layer up with the concealer that's 2 shades lighter than your skin. Create a triangular shape along the corner of your nose. This will highlight the area and bring it forward.
6.  Repeat step 4.
7. To make sure everything is blended, take a dampened sponge and use a tapping motion to blend everything out. Make sure to blend it outward towards your temple.
8.  See the difference! You can then, apply the rest of your face makeup then set your undereye with a translucent powder. The translucent powder will not add anymore color to your skin it'll just set your concealer so it doesn't move throughout the day. 

There you go, dolls. I hope my tips are useful and that it helps you create a healthier well rested look. 

Let me know how it works for you.

Thanks for reading!

Keep dolling up,

Gelie (Jelai) xoxo