An order of beauty with a side of glamour to go!

No time for spending hours in front of a mirror painting your face? New to makeup and have no clue where to start? Enter the reluctant fashionista with a quick can't miss makeup routine to save the day!

Moisturize that beautiful face
If you do nothing else, apply a moisturizer specific for the face with UV protection. This is your best defense against pre-mature aging caused by sun damage. Think you don't need sun protection on over-cast days or in the winter? Think again. Clouds filter little UV rays, and ever bit of exposure you get adds up over the years to contribute to skin discolouration and wrinkles. It is never too early or to late to start!No time for spending hours in front of the mirror obsessing over makeup? Make sure to get a product specific to the face, as facial skin is different and more sensitive than the rest of your body. Feeling pale or need an extra glow? Try a sunless tanner (again, look for one specific to the face with UV protection). Moisturizers are ideal for all skin types, not just dry skin. By skipping a moisturizer, your skin will get dehydrated, which will cause it to secrete more oil to compensate, with makes for oily skin, clogged pores, and increased acne breakouts!

Some products I would recommend are:











Cetaphil: dermatologist recommended, hypoallergenic, non-irritating, and fragrance-free.

Dove day lotion for sensitive skin: nice, light-weight
SPF 15 moisterizer

Oil of Olay touch of sun daily UV facial moisturizer: nice light scent, goes on smoothly for even application, natural-looking tan

Curl those sexy eyelashes
Squeeze the curler at the base of the lashes for a few seconds, then with gentle squeezes work your way out to the ends of your lashes. Finish with another firm squeeze at the base of your lashes. If your lashes don't hold curl well, try heating up the curler with a blow dryer (test temperature with your hand first - no one likes scorched eyelids!), and setting the curl with a water-proof mascara. Nervous about curling? Try a mini-curler, which has less pinch-potential. One last note: always curl lashes before applying mascara (it's messy, and has the potential to stick to lashes and pull them out)!

Maximize those peepers with eyeliner

It only takes a few minutes to add some eyeliner, but the effect is larger-looking eyes and fuller-looking lashes. Eyeshadow applied with an angle brush can have a similar effect, and makes for one less makeup product purchase. Start by applying a dark/rich colour to the upper lash line. Make sure to get right against the lash line, or there will be a noticable gap between the line and your lashes. Have trouble drawing a straight line? Make a series of small dashes. Next, take an angle brush and gentle smooth it over the line to create a softer look. With a dark colour at the base of your lashes, you instantly have a thicker lash line! Black for day is too harsh for most people, so try a deep colour that contrasts with your eye colour, such as emerald, olive green, or navy for brown eyes, burgundy or brown for blue eyes, and amethyst or violet for green eyes. I sometimes add liner on my bottom lashline, from the centre of the eye to the outside corner. This is optional, but is particularly useful for enlarging and emphasizing the eyes. I always put on eyeliner first, since some flaking may occur, and you'll need to lightly brush your eyelashes (with your finger, a q-tip, or an eyelash comb) to remove the flakes prior to adding mascara.

Paint your way to longer lashes

A little mascara goes a long way. Stick to the top lashes to avoid flakes and smudging under the eyes (aka racoon eyes). Because of my fair complexion, I usually choose brown-black, but black is also perfectly acceptable for day. Unhappy with a red- eyeThe technique for long, lustruous lashes is to start at the base of the lash and wiggle the mascara wand slowly to the edges of the lashes. For every full sweep of the wand, turn the brush to expose another side with fresh mascara. This will help you get a maximum application of the product. I use the tip of the wand for getting into hard to reach places like the inner and outer corners of the eye. Finally, I spend more time on the tips and the outer edge of my lashes - if done correctly your lashes look twice as long! Be sure to pick a marcara less prone to clumping. These are usually the products with small, fine wands. My advise is to stay away from volumizing mascaras, or those with a priming base coat all together if you are a clump-a-phobe. My favorite is Mabelline's lash exact. No clumps, one year and counting!

No one will know you aren't perfect

Back to my secret weapon, the q-tip, for fixing those inevitable makeup mishaps. Pay carefull attention to the under-eye area, where there is bound to be some loose eyeliner and mascara. Wet one end of a q-tip, and away you go!

Stay up all night, you crazy thang

Banish under-eye circles forever with an under-eye concealer. Opt for yellow for excessive purple-ness (opposite colours neutralize each other). If discolouration isn't so much a problem, go for light pink, which will bounce the light under your eyes and give you a dewy-fresh glow. I recommend products by Benefit (a favorite of Carmindy from TLC's What Not to Wear), which are available online or at the Bay.

Left: You're Bluffing, yellow concealer stick, by Benefit. Right: Eye Bright, pink pencil, by Benefit.

Perfect your pout

Call attention to those sultry lips of yours with some simple gloss, or up-the-ante with lipstick. Shades on the blue side of the spectrum (think purple-reds instead of orange-reds) enhance the look of your smile, making your teeth look whiter!

Universal beauty secret

The final and best beauty tip I can give you is to love yourself, have confidence in your beauty, and hold your head up high! You don't deserve to take a backseat to anyone!

Stay beautiful,

RF