4 Eye Makeup Mistakes You're Probably Making

NOT USING AN EYE PRIMER
The virtues of a pre-foundation primer have been drilled into us pretty hard by now, so why do so few of us utilize one for the eye, too? The premise holds up: a primer creates a barrier between product and skin, not only to keep it on for longer, but also for skin protection. Shadows, crèmes, pencils, and gels can be drying on the lid so for the best canvas possible (minus creases), apply a skin-smoothing primer.


NOT BLENDING EYE MAKEUP
Do you shy away from even trying a smoky eye look now because you just can’t get the colors blending right? For the perfect gradient (read: no muddiness between the shades), you can’t just use the same brush that you applied them with. Application brushes contain more densely packed fibers so that you can press color onto the lid for longevity, however a blending brushfeatures soft bristles in a dome shape, perfectly for sweeping color outwards, blending up into the crease or gently merging two shades.

NOT USING TAPE TO GET THE PERFECT CAT EYE
Liquid eyeliner is tricky, but if you’re spending four hours every Saturday night trying to match up your flicks to the perfect symmetrical degree, you are wasting your time. Even top makeup artists cheat with Scotch tape! It’s one of those duuuh tricks that once you start, you’ll never stop.


NOT USING THE RIGHT EYE MAKEUP REMOVER
Heavy removers that are sold on most shelves leave behind a “sludge” residue that sits on the top layer of your skin and can travel into your eye for a damaging effect. Also, any moisturizer or eye cream you spend the next five minutes carefully patting into your skin just can’t get through the heavy, oily film. Try this DIY: Natural Eye Makeup Remover that won't hurt your skin.

Prevent Your Eyeliner From Running

Say goodbye to raccoon eyes! These two easy tips are fool-proof ways to keep your liner in line all day!

1. Makeup primer. If you don't use it already, you need to. One of primer's MANY benefits is it keeps your makeup in place all day long. Many forget to apply it to your lower lid as well, which is essential to preventing those nasty smudges. I use Younique's Moodstuck Primer. It's gluten-free, 100% natural, free of parabens, oils, synthetic fragrances, and cheap fillers so a little goes a long way.

2. Pressed Powder. 

You'll need:

• A tightly packed concealer brush for perfect precision
• Pressed powder [use one that is a shade lighter than your skin tone so you get the bonus effect of highlighting the area to draw even more attention to your eyes]

Directions:

1. Dip the brush into the powder to load up both sides.
2. Place the brush in a vertical position directly and precisely below the liner, but adjacently touching it, then stamp and sweep it from one corner to the other. This will set it and keep it from traveling downward.
3. With the same brush, this time without reloading it with powder, sweep back over the area to really blend it in.

Makeup Tricks to Make Your Eyes Look Bigger

There's nothing like having a big pair of beautiful sparkling eyes.  If you'd like to make your eyes look bigger, there are several ways to go about doing that, and not all of them involve makeup.

Prep: You always want to prep your eyes first! Even if you're going without eyeshadow, applying a primer will even out your skin tone and fill in any wrinkles, which detract from your gorgeous lookers. I use Younique's Glorious.  It's 100% natural, gluten-free, free of parabens, oils, synthetic fragrances, and cheap fillers so a little goes a long way. 

Eyeliner basics: Don't apply eyeliner all the way around your eyes. When you apply eyeliner on your lower lashes, do it just below the lash line, not inside the rim. Don't let the line come all the way to the inner corner of your eye.

Extension: Extend the eyeliner beyond the outer corners of your eyes. This line should move upwards a little as well, mimicking a very long eyelash. This technique will make your eyes appear wider.

White: Add white eyeshadow or eyeliner to the inner corner of your eyes. This technique helps to bring more light into your eyes and produces the effect of larger-looking eyes. Use soft white though; a harsh white will look theatrical.

Eyebrows:  In much the same way a picture frame affects the way the picture looks, your eyebrows affect the way your eyes look. The simple act of removing stray hairs can make your eyes more noticeable.

Eyelashes: You want to make your eyelashes longer. A good way to go about this is a eyelash curler. I, personally, am still deathly afraid of them and prefer to use Fiber Lashes. It's a two bottle mascara system that uses the natural fibers from tea to extend your lashes & add  great volume, while still looking natural.

Bags: You definitely want to get rid of dark circles and bags as the puffiness makes your eyes seem smaller. The easiest way for me to do this is to splash a little rose water around my eyes in the morning. Other good ways are applying slices of raw potato or chilled tea bags for 20 minutes. 

Enjoy your big, beautiful eyes!

Beauty 101: Makeup Primer Basics

Primer is the ultimate makeup multi-tasker: it helps prevent oil production, fills in fine lines& wrinkles, provides an extra layer for the pigment in the rest of your face makeup to adhere to, and acts as an invisible buffer between your skin and the elements. Not only will the color of your makeup be more vibrant, but it will also last longer throughout the day. 

I use Younique's Glorious -- it's gluten-free,100% natural, free of parabens, oils, synthetic fragrances, and cheap fillers so a little goes a long way.

You may also like: Benefits of Makeup Primer

Makeup MUST HAVES!

This mineral makeup kit is overflowing with MUST HAVE products from Youniqe: a company that's dedicated to high-quality, all natural make up that is GOOD & BENEFICIAL for your skin. 

Grouped together in this beautiful black case:

3D Fiber Lashes: Packaged in two separate bottles, the Transplanting Gel and Natural Fibers are used together to enhance and magnify your OWN lashes. This uses the 100% natural fibers taken from the campanulaceae of green tea and gives you a 300x increase in thickness and volume. Fake lashes are so 2012! (Gluten-free)

Four (4) Mineral Pigments: 100% natural, mineral-based pigment powders consisting of finely crushed minerals that bond to the skin offering long-lasting, sweat-proof coverage. High-quality pigments that do not contain talc or other unnecessary filler ingredients. (Gluten-free)

BB Cream: 

All-in-one moisturizer, treatment, and foundation as a single-step cream to immediately balance the skin, correct its complexion, and protect its youthful appearance. Comes in 3 shades for any skin tone. (Gluten-free, vegan)

Brilliant Moisturizing Gel: Made with Pearl Powder, Brilliant Moisturizing Gel is a rich and restorative facial moisturizer that is formulated to leave the skin hydrated, energized, and healthy. (Gluten-free)

Lucrative Lip Gloss: A rich spread of color, very smooth and highly-pigmented -- bright, bold, or subtle. 10 awesome shades to choose from. (Gluten-free)

Primer: Primer has a ridiculous amount of benefits (which you can learn about here). Creating a smooth surface & making your makeup last all day, this mineral primer is 

100% natural, free of parabens, oils, synthetic fragrances, and cheap fillers. (Gluten-free)

Awake Facial Cleanser: Awake contains a range of beneficial ingredients that awaken and cleanse the skin. Its thick texture transforms into an effective lather to dissolve oil and makeup, rinsing away pore-clogging surface debris, impurities, and excess oil. It refines the skin texture, brightens skin clarity, and minimizes the look of pores over time. (Gluten-free)

Grab a kit today! Orders made by December 15th are guaranteed to be delivered before Christmas!

Benefits of Makeup Primer

Like an artist primes their canvas before painting it, you should be priming YOUR canvas - your beautiful face. Primer, a gel applied before your makeup, creates a flawless face while providing many other benefits:

Creates a smooth surface: It smooths fine lines and wrinkles by filling them in, also helps fill in facial scarring.

Evens out skin tone: Reduces inflammation and redness

Hydrates and nourishes skin: Trehalose (found in some primers) is a plant sugar with water-binding properties for skin, as well as humectant (moisture preserving) and moisturizing benefits.

Tightens pores: This, along with being a barrier between your skin & makeup, helps keep your pores clean and free of makeup. It also helps prevent your pores from secreting oil, reducing shine.

Makeup lasts longer: This is especially important during harsh winters and humid summers. No matter what time of year, your need to touch up will greatly be reduced!

Makes your makeup POP: This shows the difference of hues without and with primer - 

Younique's Moodstruck Primer is gluten-free, 100% natural, free of parabens, oils, synthetic fragrances, and cheap fillers.