Easiest Makeup Tricks Ever

Lip Service

1. Pick the right shade.

What most of us do: Swipe a possible new color on the back of our hand to see if it flatters. A better idea, says San Antonio-based celeb makeup artist Starley Murray: Test the lipstick on your fingertip — that way, you can hold the color next to your face to see how it looks. (No mirror? Your finger is still a better gauge, since it's similar in color and texture to your lips.)

2. Get buff.

For the prettiest finish, run your toothbrush over your lips to exfoliate any dry skin (a damp paper towel also can do the job). Post-scrub, lipstick will glide on without caking.

3. Fill in fine lines.

Here's a way to keep lipstick from feathering (a great trick if you have tiny wrinkles above your upper lip): Coat your mouth and go slightly outside your lip line with a clear balm ‑- like plain ChapStick — before applying color. "Like invisible spackle," says celebrity makeup artist Shalini Vadhera, "it keeps your lipstick from traveling."

4. Extend the life of your lipstick.

So you'd like your color to last through lunch, but you don't like the feel of long-wearing formulas? Here's a tip from makeup guru Laura Mercier: Apply a coat of regular lipstick, then press it with a single-ply tissue and powder lightly (over the tissue) with a puff or brush. This sets the color and prevents running and feathering.

5. Plump up.

For a finishing touch, dab the middle of your lower lip with a bit of silver or gold lip gloss. Any makeup artist worth his shimmer powder will tell you this is the fastest route to creating the illusion of fullness. But remember: If you blot or purse your lips, you'll blur the Jolie effect.

Fresh Eye-Deas

1. Fight droop.

Lightly shade the area just above the arch of your brow with a nude or white liner and blend, advises Jo Davis, artistic director for Trucco Cosmetics. "This subtly lights up your face and creates the illusion of higher brows and lids, which is great for droopy or tired eyes," she says.

2. Smudge-proof your liner.

Apply it with a pencil or a tiny brush, then trace over the line with a matching powder shadow. To make it last even longer: Wet your shadow brush with Visine first.

3. Make your eyes look larger.

Place a lash curler at the roots of your lashes, then slowly "walk" it out to the tips, pressing as you go, says Sydney, Australia, makeup expert Napoleon Perdis.

4. Outsmart your mascara.

Love the waterproof kind but hate wrestling to remove it? Celebrity makeup artist Nick Barose applies a coat of regular mascara first, then tops it with waterproof. "This way, the waterproof formula locks onto the other mascara instead of your lashes, so it comes off more easily — when you want it to," he says.

5. Widen your eyes.

To look more refreshed, use white or nude eyeliner — but this time, below your eyes, not above. Pull down gently on your undereye and trace the line between the lower lashes and the inside rim. Stop before you reach your tear ducts.

Complexion Perfecters

1. Conceal flaws...strategically.

A full face of foundation — or too much concealer — can look and feel unnatural, says Mercier. She advises using cover-up only where you need it (and, where you don't, letting your own skin shine through). Blend.

2. Try a soft touch.

Your ring finger is the perfect tool for applying makeup, says Davis, because it's the weakest digit. The more powerful index finger may apply color too boldly or tug too much (hello, wrinkles!) on your delicate skin.

3. Look luminous.

Every face has natural shadows, and you'll look better if you brighten them, says Craig Jessup, makeup artist for Kevyn Aucoin Beauty. To find the shady spots, he says, just smile at yourself in the mirror. "You'll see darker areas — like your Cupid's bow, under your bottom lip and at the inner corners of your eyes." To lighten those areas, dab on shimmery white eye shadow. Blend if necessary.

4. Give yourself a mini face-lift.

Apply blush starting at your upper cheekbone (at the hairline near your ear) then brush across your cheek horizontally — not diagonally or downward — until you get to the center of your face. "You'll be thrilled to see the difference when your blush is darkest at the hairline and faded at the apples, instead of vice versa," says Murray, "because it's more youthful."

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