How to get a natural makeup look

Nov 01, 2012 1:22 AM by Elizabeth Mitchell

Posted in How-To / Beauty & Style How-tos

How To... Get Barely-There Beauty

Guys are always blabbing on and on about how much they love the natural makeup look. The truth of the matter is — so do we! It’s simple, yet has the ability to accentuate all your best features — believe it or not. So go ahead: Try something new this season and get rid of the heavy foundation and false eyelashes. We caught up with celebrity makeup artist, Julia Papworth, to find out how.

woman with natural makeup

"Barely-there makeup gives every woman’s skin that gorgeous, healthy, youthful glow. Not to mention, it’s quicker and easier to pull off than a face full of caked-on products,” Papworth explains.

Step 1: Wash and moisturize

To start, you’ll need to make sure you wash your face. After doing so, moisturize and dab on a great eye cream to help combat tiredness, puffiness and dark circles. This is especially important if you stayed out late or didn’t get enough sleep the night before.

Silk foundation

Step 2: Foundation

Let your moisturizer sink in for a few minutes, then apply a primer to help smooth away any fine lines, brighten your complexion and prep your skin for foundation application. "I love Giorgio Armani’s Luminous Silk Foundation (Nordstrom.com, $59),” says Papworth. “It’s weightless and goes on so nice and even.”

smashbox primer

Step 3: Concealer

Once you’ve fully blended in your foundation, it’s time to put on concealer. Add coverage wherever you need it, but before doing your under-eye area, dab on a hydrating primer to prevent any caking or dryness. Papworth recommends Smashbox’s Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer (Smashbox.com, $29).

Step 4: Bronzer

Next, to fake a good glow, dust bronzer onto the areas of your face where the sun would naturally hit — in other words, the top of your forehead, the bridge of your nose and your cheekbones.

Step 5: Subtle color pop

Speaking of your cheeks, for a subtle flush, apply Stila’s Convertible Color in Peony (Stilacosmetics.com, $25). It’s a cream blush that not only glides on flawlessly, but provides the perfect pop of color as well.

Step 6: Your eyes

Finally, moving on to your eyes: tame any unruly brow hairs with an eyebrow gel, curl your lashes to really open up and awaken those peepers and then swipe on a couple coats of a fab lengthening and volumizing mascara.

Step 7: Lips

Finish off the look with a neutral lip gloss, and you’re good to go.

Expert Tip

"Don’t forget to use a Beautyblender sponge to avoid that streaky look," says Julia. "These innovative, egg-shaped applicators make foundation application simple to control.”