Make Up Games and Lip Gloss

In the summer months, I’m a firm believer that all we need is a bit of lip gloss. The sun and the fresh air bring a bit of color to your face and your eyes sparkle because they are well rested and there are so many fun things to do over the summer months. So if you don’t need color and your eyes are already popping, all you really need is a bit of lip gloss to make your lips soft and shiny, while also protecting them from drying out from all of that sun.

There is another benefit to not playing any make up games other than lip gloss application during the summer months – you sweat a lot. In my part of the country, we sweat when we walk outside to get the paper. We sweat walking in a parking lot. We sweat letting the dog out the backdoor. I’d rather not be sweating off my make up every time I look outside, so I advise us all to simply not wear it at all – take back the make up games and opt for lip gloss!

Make Up Games and Concealer

One of the most overused and under appreciated cosmetic, concealer is a way of hiding imperfections. Of course, if you’re going to use concealer, you’ll always want to be careful to use it correctly. After all, concealer can have a few extra tricks of the trade.

Buy One Shade Lighter
When you’re buying concealer, you should always buy concealer one shade lighter than your skin tone. The best way to check is to find a concealer that blends in easily without making a bright spot on the back of your hands or under your eyes. Otherwise you end up with the effect of a giant raccoon eyes – only in reverse.

A Dot Does a Lot
When you’re using concealer, you should only use a dot or two at a time. Don’t swipe it under your eyes. This will likely have the effect of white lines under your eyes. Use a few dots under the eyes and a small dot over the spots you’re trying to cover. Blend it in well and you’ll be set.

Make Up Games and Men

I’ve noticed lately, as the media has as well, that more men are playing make up games. The make up games men are playing a bit different than the ones we like, but they are still definitely working within the realm of cosmetics. Young and older men are all starting to sport concealer and powder. They are using toner and bronzer and blush. The men are wearing eyeliner and eye shadow in an effort to look more polished and attractive.

These make up games make sense for men in the spotlight – you need stage make up, after all, but the make up has moved off the stage into the every day and I’m not sure how I feel about that. I love that men feel comfortable enough to wear make up when they want to without worrying about social censorship or opinion, but I guess I’m just old fashioned enough to like to keep make up games for girls only.

Make Up Games and Zits

It will happen to everyone. One morning you’ll wake up and find yourself covered with zits or, more likely facing a single red dot on your chin, nose or forehead. Battling zits can make make-up games much less fun to enjoy and can even make it hard to play those make up games if the zit is painful enough.

Never Pop Zits
Some zits remain as a red dot or even the same color as your skin. Others have raised centers full of white puss. It is extremely tempting to pop a zit, especially once a head is visible. The red and white zip seems to be screaming for intervention, but stop yourself if you can. Popping zits and pimples for that matter is not a good idea. When you pop the zit, you could force some of the gunk back into your pores or introduce new dirt and bacteria through your fingers. These gross things can actually inflame and even infect the zit. In short it will look worse after popping it than it did previously.

Cover Them or Let Them Heal
This leaves you with two choices. If you can’t pop a zit, what do you do with them? You can conceal the zit or you can leave it open to the air to “breathe.” Covering a zit is easy enough. Concealer will leave a dot of color on top of the zit. Blend it into your foundation and dust with powder and your zit is covered.

The other option is to let the zit breathe. Once your zit has a head or is open and seems to have an exposed pore, it would be far better to let the zit sit uncovered so that it can heal properly. Putting make up over an open sore, which is similar to what a popped or raw zit would be, is asking for an infection or another outbreak. Remember, zits can be caused by make up trapped in the pores. Don’t encourage more zits by forcing goo and gunk down into an already inflamed pore.

Make Up Games: 3 Mascara Tips

Mascara can be lifesaver or a very public statement about your makeup skills. Applying mascara correctly can more complicated than you think.

1. Always start at the roots. When you apply mascara, put the brush at the very base of the eyelash. Go ahead and risk getting the mascara on your eye itself the first time or two until you are able to figure out exactly where you need to be to get the roots of you eyelashes. This is especially important if you have light eyelashes.

2. Pick the right color. There are so many colors of mascara that it can be hard to pick the very best one. Ask a sales lady to consult with you or read about your particular coloring online to determine which color of mascara would look good on you. Usually it’s only 1-2 shades darker than your eyes.

3. Don’t put mascara on your bottom lashes. Put on no more than two swipes on each eye on the upper lid. But when it gets to the lower lid, sip the mascara completely or opt only for a very light coating to bring you eyes out without having dark stings of mascara and lashes bringing your eyes down your face.

Learning From Make Up Games

The best games to learn from are make up games. In many cases, when you see someone wearing make up, you know they have it on, but you can’t always pick out exactly what she has done to make herself look so good. Online make up games can make it much easier to find out exactly what steps she took.

Make up games make this much easier however, but showing you exactly what a face looks like before and after you add each item. Start with a blank face and add a bit of blush to lighten up the face overall. Then start with the eye make up. Experiment with different colors to see which makes the biggest impact with eye colors and then be sure to apply mascara as well.

Online make up games let you see the impact of different colors, textures and application styles. It’s an excellent training ground for those just learning about make up, and it also makes for a great opportunity to refine your skills and learn some new techniques if you’re an old hand.

Find Great Gift Ideas with Make Up Games

When it comes to your friends, there is nothing sweeter than getting exactly the right gift. The trouble is, sometimes you don’t know what the right gift is and it’s very possible your friend doesn’t either. This is where make up games can come into play.

Invite your friends over for a make up party. Bring a make up guide along to see what colors everyone needs to be wearing and flip through magazines looking for new styles and things to try. Then get busy experimenting. Add a bit of this and some of that until your friends all look terrific.

But helping them with the make up they have isn’t truly the gift, it’s the fun way to prepare for the gift giving. As you play around with make up games, take notice of what your friends have to borrow from each other and especially what items nobody seems to have that would have been fun to use or try. Then, when the party is over, head to the store and actually buy those particular items for friends. Make up a small gift bag for each with the desired cosmetics.

Bring the bags to a Christmas party or to school and distribute. You’ll be the life of the party and know that you gave a gift everyone truly enjoys.

Make Up Games Prepare You for the Holidays

Is your make up ready for the holidays? I sincerely hope so! After all, Christmas comes but once each year, and this is truly your year to shine. In fact, I hope you literally shine with the glitter and glam of holiday make up.

Holiday Make Up
Normally you might use a bit of shimmer to make your skin look bright and healthy, but the holidays are the excuse you’ve been waiting for to make yourself look glamorous and festive with bold strokes and glitter. Most holiday events are in the evening, so you’ll be able to pull your look together using the more generous evening make up looks and make up games can help.

Make Up Games
Practice applying holiday make up on the models in make up games. Start with a concealing base, add a shimmering powder and blush. Then get started on your eyes. You want them to really pop, so add a glittery shadow, a dark liner, plenty of mascara and possibly even some fake eyelashes. Be sure to use a sprinkle of glitter along your shoulders and cleavage as well to really make sure you shine.