Ten Of The Biggest Makeup Mistakes To Avoid

• Oooops - choosing the wrong foundation and concealer. Girls can often pick a foundation colour that is far too light as they remember the old rule "does it match the skin tone along the jaw line". Unfortunately, using this method can often result in a very light shade of foundation when applied over the face leaving the complexion looking washed out and uneven particularly if the skin has darker patches of skin tone or freckles. Choosing a foundation which gives your skin tone a slight golden glow looks youthful and revitalised - think of the natural glow shown off by Jennifer Aniston.
• Avoid Harsh eyeliner. We love the smoky eye look, but that is a softer, dark and sultry look which is blended along the lashes and into the eyeshadow. Don't be tempted to use eyeliner, especially liquid black eyeliner, to greatly exaggerate the shape of the eyes unless you are creating an OTT party look for a night out. This look for day wear is harsh and false. If you use a liquid liner for your day to day makeup create a thinner line close to the lashes to define the eyes.
• Don't over emphasise all of your features. The old rule here is true - don't try and make both eyes and lips the main features of your face - it's just too much. Either create dramatic eyes and neutral lips or emphasize your mouth and keep your eye makeup natural.
• Just too shiny! Remember not to apply too many shimmering products together - unless you are going to a '70s party! Shimmering lipstick does not look good with frosted high-lighters and eyeshadow. Use matte products and finish with one shimmering product, such as a frosted lipstick, or use matte lipstick on the lips and make a feature of your eyes with glittering eyeshadow.
• Don't apply too much mascara to the lower lashes. Keep it to one natural looking coat of mascara on the lower lashes and be careful until they are dry that they don't smudge onto your skin.
• Don't use a white high-lighter on your brown bone. This can look very odd - just use a lighter shade of the eye-shadow you have applied over your eyelids, applying it lightly upwards towards the brow bone, but not right up to your eyebrows.
• Don't make your eyes look smaller. Be careful when applying eyeliner to the inner eyelid, i.e. inside your eyelashes, as this can make your eyes seem much smaller and again looks pretty unnatural. If you have a darker complexion and eyes, then black eyeliner applied in this way can look stunning, but otherwise we don't like this method of application.
• Don't be a clown. Applying a darker lip liner to the outer contours of your lips and filling in with a lighter shade of lipstick is not a good idea - it's rather like clown lips. It might work for models in a studio for a photo shoot, but in real life it looks pretty fake and your lipstick will generally wear off leaving an unnatural dark line around your lips.
• Do you look like Aunt Sally? Yes, Aunt Sally was a character in a children's program who had bright rosy cheeks applied in big circles. One of our tips is to apply blusher to the apples of your cheeks, but this should look like a natural blush and be blended - be careful of creating unnatural looking small red circles. Blend from the apples of the cheeks towards the cheekbones.
• Don't apply lipstick on its own. Applying a swipe of lipstick may seem like a quick fix to brighten up your face, but without any other colour on your face it will look unnatural, harsh and ageing.
• Do you have makeup lines around your jawline? Always check your jawline after applying your foundation, give it a moment to "settle in" then check your jaw on both sides for any unnatural looking "tidemarks" which just look grubby. Remember to blend foundation into and over your jawline for a natural finish.

Have you made any terrible mistakes when applying your makeup or have you learnt any great makeup techniques - we are interested to hear about them, so let us know, we love new tips!

The Best Makeup Tips Ever From The Hollywood Makeup Artists

Have you ever wondered how the makeup artists create the perfect looks for the stars when they have to appear on the red carpet - how do they look so perfect - and stay that way all evening too? What exactly do their makeup artists have in their makeup kits and what techniques are they using? Well here are a few of their tips and secrets shared with us - read on for some goodies ...

Eyes

• Although you may have applied a base makeup, apply a neutral colour eyeshadow to your eyelid and blend towards your brow before applying your chosen colour of eyeshadow as this will create an even base and help build up your colour evenly.
• Use a good quality eye-cream which will keep the skin around your eyes hydrated as it is dehydration that causes fine lines which can be accentuated by makeup. Only use a small amount, about the size of a grain of rice and apply this by patting in a semi-circular motion underneath your eye.
• Eyelash curlers are a must if you are not going to apply false lashes - they are the key to opening up the eye. Find ones that fit neatly over your eyelid and let you get to the root of your lashes with the curler which avoids breakage.

Lips

• Exfoliate any dry skin off your lips before applying lipstick to stop lips looking rough and lined. Use either your toothbrush with toothpaste or add some sugar granules for extra exfoliation power to smooth your lips.
• Matte lipsticks are the latest trend, but you might find them drying. Before applying smooth some lip balm over your newly exfoliated lips - your lipstick will stay matte, but your lips will feel moisturised.
• To get a matte effect with a normal lipstick apply as normal, and then place a tissue over your lips. Brush loose powder through the tissue, this will set the lipstick and give a velvety matte effect.
• Create a Bardot look by applying your foundation over your lips as well as your face.

Skin

• Eliminate shine by using blotting papers rather than powder which can become uneven and clog your pores particularly in a hot environment.
• Ensure that at the end of the night you are cleansing all the makeup and inpurities from your skin - check this out by wiping your face with a white towel or flannel when you have finished cleansing.
• Sculpt your face with your blusher rather than just applying to the apples of your cheeks. Use it along your cheekbones, up towards your temples and blend above the creases of your eyelids for a natural, glowing effect.

Sandra Bullock - Winner Of Best Actress In A Leading Role - Oscars 2010 - Get The Look

Sandra Bullock has just had one of the best weekends of her career, by first turning up at the Golden Raspberry Awards (the Razzies) to accept her award for the Worst Actress for her role in All About Steve, where she handed out free copies of her movie in a delightfully comic way before accepting her Oscar for the Best Actress in a Leading Role with an endearing, but slightly batty speech for her part in The Blind Side. SB is an actress that we all seem to have grown up with (who remembers her in Speed and While You Were Sleeping?) and unbelievably, looking at this picture, she turned 45 last year. She looks amazing in this Marchesa silver gown with straight, sleek locks and classic Hollywood makeup, and if you want to create this style yourself here is how Sandra (or her makeup artist - Angela Levin) did it on the night.

The products Angela used on Sandra were:

• Chanel Hydramax + Active Cream
• Chanel Vitalumiere Satin Smoothing Fluid Makeup in Gentle Ivory
• Chanel Eyeshadow Irreelle Duo Brun Express
• Chanel Inimitable Waterproof Mascara in Noir
• Chanel Tweed Blush Duo in Tweed Rose
• Chanel Rouge Coco Lip Colour in Paris

• Prep the skin with Hydramax + Active Cream or a similar rich moisturiser which ensures there are no dry areas.
• Using a foundation brush apply Chanel Vitalumiere Satin Smoothing Fluid Makeup in Gentle Ivory all over the face. Using a foundation brush ensures a perfect, almost doll like finish, perfect for this Hollywood look.
• Create quite a strong and structured browline using an eyeshadow brush and the soft brown powder in the Irreelle Duo Brun Express. Using shadow creates strong brows, but it is easier to get a smoother effect than when using a brow pencil.
• Again, use the darker shadow around the eyes on both upper and lower lids, blending across the upper lid. Use the lighter shade in the palette over the brow blending into the darker shade on the eyelid.
• Apply two strong coats of Chanel Inimitable Waterproof Mascara in Noir for real glamorous Hollywood starlet lashes.
• Using a lip brush apply the Rouge Coco Lip Colour in the shade Paris.  Take note, all girls obsessed with lip glosses, Chanel has just launched a new campaign (with Vanessa Paradis) promoting the benefits and feel good factor of a glamorous lipstick colour - such a great way to brighten up your look with minimal spend in these credit-crunch times.
• Last of all apply the Chanel Tweed Rose blusher to the apples of the cheeks.
• Sandra's hair was finished in a sleek style by hairdresser Adir Abergel using Fekkai products, but you can do this yourself, by creating a strong side parting and then using straighteners and adding a soft, modern wave to the ends of the hair. 
• Sandra's Marchesa silver embroidered dress is amazing, and best of all Marchesa are British designers.  Unless you can afford their gowns, a similar look would be a lace or embroidered cream evening dress which is just perfect for summer parties.

Makeup Tips To Create The Kristen Stewart Look In New Moon

I first heard of Kristen Stewart when she played Tracy, a teenage, guitar playing daughter of travelling folk in the film "Into the Wild". Since then she has risen to fame playing Bella Swan, the heroine of the Twilight Saga, which follows the story of a teenage girl (Bella) moving to a new town, Forks, Washington, where she meets Edward Cullen, a boy who is a little bit different, and who sees Bella as the soul mate he has been waiting for. Anyway, lots more of this story can be found in Stephanie Meyer's books and, as fascinating as this story is, we are here to look at how to re-create the natural, beautiful looks of Bella in the story.

Bella is described in the novels as pale and beautiful, with large, chocolate brown eyes, and a natural beauty, which is the look we are going to achieve here.

• Step 1: Using a light coloured foundation (stay away from golden or tanned shades), apply a thin even base of a matte finish foundation.
• Step 2: Using a matching concealer, lightly apply to disguise dark circles under the eyes and any other noticeable imperfections.
• Step 3: Using a loose powder and large powder brush, sweep a translucent powder over the forehead and mainly over the t-zone to keep away any unwanted shine.
• Step 4: Using a peachy or earthy toned blusher, brush a powder blusher from the apples of your cheeks outwards along your cheekbones, keeping the look natural.
• Step 5: Unless you already have dark, defined eyebrows, use a dark brown eyebrow pencil to define the shape of your brows, starting at the inner corner and working outwards. Don't use solid lines, but draw in hairs over your natural brow shape, and then blend with an eyebrow brush.
• Step 6: Using matte eyeshadows, apply a natural coloured shadow all over your upper eyelid area and blend out towards the brow bone. Then using a slightly deeper colour, such as a light brown or matte grey, work this along the eyelid crease and out towards the outer corner of your eyelid blending it to the middle of your lid above your iris.
• Step 7: Using either a brown or grey eye pencil draw a line along your upper and lower lashes and blend this in so it gives a hint of definition rather than a harsh line.
• Step 8: Using a brown-black mascara apply a thin coat to your upper and lower lashes.
• Step 9: Then finally, using a chocolate or plum shade of lipstick (muted shades are best), apply a matte lip colour to your lips using a lip brush for better coverage and staying power.

How To Create The Makeup of Miss Holly Golightly For A Romantic Valentine Look

It's almost time for the most romantic evening of the year, and whether you will be spending it with a new love or having a romantic evening at home, it's one evening of the year where you can go whole-heartedly for the romantic, girlie look. The Spring Season 2010 will be full of floral and pastel outfits with frills and girlie accessories, and these styles are perfectly matched with the romantic and classical Hollywood makeup techniques used on starlets, such as Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's. The makeup artist on Breakfast at Tiffany's was actually a guy named Wally Westmore, who was born in England, and who was one of six brothers who all became makeup artists. In his memory, here are some of the great Hollywood makeup tips which he worked to perfection on Miss Hepburn in that movie.

• Always have a perfect canvas to work on - use either a good quality foundation or a primer which will ensure a smooth, flawless and dewy coverage. Audrey never sported a tanned look in BAT, so use a foundation which is the lightest shade which suits you and which looks natural. Apply a concealer if you need one under the eyes and on any slight imperfections using either a concealer in the same shade as your foundation or my preferred product which is Touche Eclat by Yves Saint Laurent, which brightens as well as conceals.
• Using a large powder brush, lightly apply a dusting of loose, translucent face powder, which looks much more natural than set powder.
• Next you need to work on your eyebrows. Depending on what your natural brows are like you may have to work harder to achieve a look like Audrey's. If you actually study her brows, they are pretty heavy by today's standards, but working with an eyebrow pencil in a shade close to your own natural colour you need to draw in an almost straight outline on the underneath of your brow and create an arch along the top of the brow. If you are naturally fair or have very slight eyebrows try to work in as much definition as your feel comfortable with.
• We are intending this look for a romantic evening, so next to the eyeshadow. This is a relatively simple application and we recommend a dark brown shadow which is applied relatively deeply all over the eyelid and which is then blended out beyond the crease line, gradually fading it out.
• Audrey had beautiful, rosy girlie cheeks. Using a large blusher brush, apply a rose pink blusher to the apples of your cheeks. Limit the application to a subtle application of colour. Next apply a highlighter along your cheekbones to give an almost ethereal glow.
• Audrey's lips sported very neatly applied matte lipstick. No brash or bright colours should be involved, look for colours such as a light cherry red, and apply this with a lip brush, carefully outlining your lips, then filling in the centre and finally blotting the colour.
• Audrey's eyelashes where black and beautifully curled. Use a good quality mascara for curling lashes, and make sure that you apply lots to the outer corner lashes of your eyes to get the full fluttering effect.