I was blessed with many things that I am thankful for but thick full brows were not one of them, my brows are sparse, thin and naturally very blonde. Which causes much brow envy of ladies with heavenly defined face framing brows, I can only dream of having to need a brow wax?
My brow routine is quite an intense process an I like to take my time perfecting the shape and colour to be just right to do this my brows cannot live without the Ardell Brow Defining Kit. The kit contains a 4 colour quad, comb, angled brush & a wax pencil, all of which are essential to creating the best brows possible no matter how much of a natural brow you are workin' with. To start I mix the two lightest colours to create a custom brow colour which is a shade or two darker than my natural hair colour, using this I lightly map out my desired shape. I prefer a darker brow tail so I take the darker medium brown and define the tail and add a some depth to my brows. Once happy with my new set of full and sexy brows I take the brow wax pencil and lightly take it through the brow hairs to set them in place. A quick comb through and I am finished #IWOKEUPLIKEDIS.....Ummmm yeh right!
Big brows are definitely trending pretty hard right now, but my best tip is just to accentuate your natural shape and remember only Brooke Shields can be Brooke Shields and you can only be you!
Here are my favourite big browed babes for a little brow-spiration:
Glamour Lashes on Lisa Marie Presely as Marilyn Monroe from Making Faces by Kevyn Aucoin
False lashes are one of the most intimidating makeup application processes for me, everything from the glue to getting them to sit on your eyelids in a natural yet totally unnatural way. Ardell sent me a whole heap of lashes to play with (Thanks Georgie xx) last week and I thought this is a sign that I need to try them out and face my fear.
I decided I was going to wear my new Ardell 120 Demi lashes to the launch of the One Direction fragrance which was quite a fancy party. Since I have never worn or applied strip lashes before I allowed an extra 30mins when applying my makeup for the event assuming I will need a few attempts till they looked right. I use tweezers to apply and the glue in the pack was fantastic, it is easier to make the lashes hold when leaving the glue a minute to get tacky then place on lash line and push the falsies into your natural lashes with the tweezers. To conceal any small gaps or glue I used a Matte pencil liner Make Up Stores Darkest Shadow Soft Matt $34.00which is soft enough to not disturb the lashes. As for removal, I uses an oil cleanser gently rubbing my lashes and they came off quickly and without a fuss.
My favourite thing about falsies is the shadow they create, it's instant drama and sex-eyes, they also give the illusion of a cat liner flick.
Here is a photo from my instagram of moi wearing my new favourite Ardell lashes you can definitely notice a how dramatic they are. (Excuse my under eye bags....)
Yesterday I woke up feeling totally blahhhh, like really blahhhhhhh. I knew the only want to snap myself out of this whirlpool of self-pitty and procrastination was to do my makeup, not just do my makeup but really DO my makeup!
Starting with a heavier base than normal and then doing my eyebrows with precision and not just scraping some pencil through like normal, moving on I did my eyes like proper with the crease and everything then I was on such a roll I thought LASHES! Why not!?! So I popped on a bit of liner on and then fiddled around trying to apply a pair of MAC #20 Half Lash numbers to the outer corners and boom! Instant lady, I felt amazing like I could flirt with every man in the world. I strutted around the house waiting for someone to notice but no one did, so me and my lashes went to the shops to buy some lunch and no one noticed either. I even took my lashes out for a run with me later that evening, my mood had completely altered from feeling like it was the worst day ever to being a productive day and it was all due to my mood lifting lashes.
Here are a few lashes for newbies to the wonderful world of lashes:
MAC's #20's Half Lash $20.00
If you are unsure about using a full strip of lashes outer corner half-lashes are a great option, they are much easier to apply and giving length and flutter to the outer lash line while also opening up your eyes making them appear wider.
Lashes are extremely popular in the Asian beauty market, they can be simple verging on natural or played up as a big feature and very doll like. Dolly Wink is a big cosmetic brand across Japan, Korea and China available from pharmacies and cosmetic chains like Sasa. The No.4 lashes are longer than the Mac Half Lash they span 3/4 of your eye, they are extremely wispy and flirty. These are not natural looking, people will know you are wearing falsies but they are very flattering and cute.
Available from Sasa www.sasa.com and various Asian Beauty Supply Stores.
Shu Uemura Slant Lashes in black US$21.00
These are strictly big event lashes - unless you are a cast member on The Only Way is Essex because those girls would just wear these down the shops.
I like these for topping off a very perfected and precise winged liner a'la Jaime King in Hart of Dixie, for an updated 50's look. Shu Uemura offer lash application at their counters if you want to learn from the experts before attempting lash application yourself.
These are first ever lashes I learnt to apply, my good friend Makeup Artist Molly Oakfield gave me a pair of tweezers, a packet of individual lashes and a tube of Duo glue pushed me towards the bathroom mirror showing me how to carefully place and stick these little guys and I was hooked! Single lash clusters are a good way of filling gaps in your natural lashes and building up the outer corners to create a more dramatic look. If you have naturally quite short lashes there are 3 sizes to chose from which is great and a lot easier to blend in with your natural shorter lashes. Only downside is that individual lashes are a lot harder to re-use than strip lashes.
These are full on pin up glamour styles, make sure you have loaded your lashes with mascara before applying these bad boys. I am pretty sure you could flirt all they way to heaven wearing these lashes.
Katy Perry Lashes created by Eylue 'Sweetie Pie' $14.99
Celebrity lash lines are big at the moment, Girls Aloud have one which is available on ASOS and it is also fab - you too can look like Cheryl Cole/Tweedy with a simple lash application! I haven't tried Katy Perry's line of lashes yet but am desperate too, because I am obsessed with Katy Perry and her makeup at the moment, if anyone has seen the Katy Perry documentary 'Part of Me' you will get it, she completely transforms with makeup and they girl knows a good pair of lashes I'm sure.
Another celebrity lash line I am really excited to try out, Millie Mackintosh from the reality show 'Made in Cleasea' has surprisingly been the break out entrepreneur from the Chelsea set - although maybe not the most charismatic as you can see in the you tube video below. The lashes look very soft but definitely pump up the glamour and will give your eyes that certain false lash intensity which I love.
The Essex girl stereotype started in the early in the 80's and is now defined by the characters from the reality show The Only Way Is Essex. This aesthetic may not appeal to you and you might be revolted by the amount of makeup and fake eyelashes that these girls like to wear. To me the Essex girls look like they are having a lot of fun and if fake tans and eyeliner makes them feel confident then what does it really matter? Whether you feel naked walking out of the house without your tinted moisturizer or if its 3 sets of lashes its all the same! My love of makeup is an obsession and I am kind of jealous that these girls pile it on when I am worried if i blended in my BB cream and natural eye shadows seamlessly. So what does it take to be an Essex Girl?
If you want the Essex look, then go in hard with the bronzer and don't stop. This isn't a contour this is an ALL over application with the biggest brush you've got.
It looks like the Essex girls wear about 2 or 3 pairs at once, but if you are a newbie to the fake lash then just try a single set. This is the cherry on top to their signature smokey-eye look.
You want to go for anything that will make your lips look bigger. Nude lipstick is a must and like everything else on their faces this isn't subtle, although its called 'nude' this isn't meant to look natural at all.
There is a difference between a Jersey Shore tan and an Essex girl tan and its called class! These girls know how to blend a tan like no-one else - it may be a shade of bronze that is not humanly possible to achieve but it is always blended out into hairlines quite well. I am presuming they go for spray tans then top up with a little St. Tropez tanning mouse with a mitt in between sprays.
This post is for my favorite Essex girl of all time Alison Lennard xoxo
