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Friday, March 26, 2010

TUTORIAL = RAINBOW EYES

Red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple - the rainbow. You could wear it to work or formal/semi-formal appointments with lighter, pastel-oriented colours; or you could darken the colours and glam it up with fake lashes and glitter for a night out. I edited the pics a little so the colours would show up better and ... well, let's just say my skin isn't perfect and I don't own a bottle of foundation yet. =P

I did this right after my bath on a school day, within around 15 minutes, plus a bit more for photography (I used my Sony Handycam... =x). All you need are 6 colours, which you could easily get by purchasing a 12-colour palette (I bought mine from Daiso Japan at Sungei Wang) and maybe a few extra single pots of shadows to compensate for the missing colours from the palette.
The Coastal Scents 77 or 88 palette would be recommendable as you could experiment with different tones of the colours. If you're going really colourful, you might opt for a 120-colour palette, though I doubt that many people would use that many colours. =x
I'm wearing Princess Nudy Violet lens (the only pair of lens I own, it's not even a pair =s).

We start off with a foundation-ed face and perhaps a teeny bit on your eyelids. Fill in/ define your brows.
Conceal your under-eye shadows with concealer. I use Biotherm's White Detox BIO-A[2] Whitening Pen Immediate Spot Corrector (not exactly a concealer, but it does the job). Dot some on the to-be-concealed areas and smooth evenly with your fingers or a suitable brush. Blend out nicely and set your whole face with loose powder.
Apply an eyelid primer on lids and just the lower lashlines. I use Shu Uemura Cream Eyeshadow in Beige. It has a bit of shimmer in it, so apply it all the way up to the brow bone (right below your brow) for a nice shimmer, but make sure to keep the rest of your face matte. XD
Use a white or beige colour and blend it across your brow bone to highlight it.
Get an eye makeup brush (you could use your fingers or a Q-tip if you want more vibrant colours), get some bright pink (or magenta) and apply it to the centre part of your lid, around just above your iris.
Clean your makeup brush, or use another brush, get some orange shadow and apply it to the inner corner of your lid, blending with the pink. Just don't blend it too high up to avoid your eye looking like a punch-bag.

Note: clean your lashes after every application of shadows to avoid your lashes building up with powder. It's unsightly to see overly clumpy lashes.
Get a yellow shadow (I used gold here, I'm under equipped =P) and blend it out from the pink out, fading it out at the outer corner.

Note: for the shadows, try to blend out the colour to avoid harsh lines, it should look as if the colour fades into your skin. To do this, get a clean fluffy eye makeup brush or a blending brush, just go over any harsh lines to fade them out. Blend the colours together perfectly.
Once you're done perfecting the warm colours, time to do the cool colours. Get a blue (I'm using a cobalt, slightly metallic) and apply it to the inner lower lashline. Be careful not to blend too low, apply it as if applying eyeliner, stopping at the centre of the iris.
Remember, it's a rainbow~! Get a bright green and apply it to the rest of your lashline, blending it out to your liking.

Note: for the lower lash colours, apply some colour to your waterline as well.
Lastly, line your upper lash line with a purple shadow using an angled brush, purple eyeliner or dip an eyeliner brush into your purple mascara (if you own one, that is). To get the wing, close your eye and gently pull the outer corner outwards, then wing it up just a bit, using the natural lashline as your ruler. Reach in to the inner corners and put some there.

Unless you have a suitable shade of purple or very good makeup skills, using purple as eyeshadow. The reason - you'll either look as if you haven't slept all night, or you got punched by someone earlier on. Using it as eyeliner is another case.

I skipped the mascara pic 'cause I got some mascara on my yellow shadow. (crap...) I use Opera Volume Control mascara (you don't have to curl your lashes~!) To avoid happenings like these, there are two ways. One, is to tilt your head back while applying mascara. Two, use a card and lay it on your lid, just exposing your lashes. The benefit of using a card is that you keep your lids perfect, and it also helps you coat every single lash.

Have fun, try it out and comment on my first tutorial please~! Thanks a million~! =)

OMG... Gomen nasai... =>~<=

Yeesh, how many times does my dog want to bite people... OMFG... I'm seriously feeling so guilty I feel like throwing myself off a cliff. Ugh... They were like, playing~ playing~ then suddenly Duke sank his teeth into his fingers. AARRGGGHHH!!

Have finally found the GazettE's Nakigahara video on YouTube. It's so nice, and the pics are even nicer... XD

Technically, it's a school day. The accounts and art classes are having their Science exams today and we don't have exams, so it's sure to say that most of us skipped school today. Of the approximate 40 people of 5H, 28 were present; of the 25 people of 5F, only 4 were present, and from what I heard from Poh Yan, Miss Sim is seriously pissed. I don't think all the other teachers are all that happy anyway, so I don't see what Poh Yan and Mun You are fussing about.

I slept at around 1am and woke up around 7-8am the next morning, to feed Princess and help mum transfer the China trip pics into my initially-should-be-at-home 4GB SD card which belongs to my sis, unfortunately she brought it to Penang with her... =__= So I spent the day editing photos, but since he arrived at my house I only could surf Facebook and read blogs, could write. Eye makeup tutorial coming up, by the way~! =) Keep reading~ =D

UP FOR ADOPTION~!




I apologize for the low quality pics. =P
Found this female mix breed somewhere around my school (SMK Bandar Baru Seri Petaling). By estimation it is around 6 months old and slightly sick and limp. Very good and obedient girl, requires training. No known records of injections and/or deworming. Came with collar chain when we found her. Any kind hearted person who would like to adopt this puppy please leave a message on my blog or Facebook.
Ps. Male silky terrier puppy up for adoption as well, please contact Janet on Facebook. =)

Friday, March 19, 2010

Double eyelid makeup comparison

Everyone who knows me enough should know that I'm head over heels obsessed with Takashima Kouyou aka Uruha-sama from the GazettE~ He was the one who catapulted me into the guitar and makeup world. Among the GazettE members, his eyes are his trademark, though Ruki's neck makeup is unbeatable - double eyelid makeup. His eyes are actually pretty small (you'll find the pics on Google). I tried this look a few times, and failed, always because of the crease line and the blending of black between the patch of shadow at the lid and the crease. I finally did it. =D

So here's a few pics of the original look on Uruha-sama:

This one's makeup looks like Ruki's... =P
My attempt:
You'll find on my previous post. =)

Thursday, March 18, 2010

J-яоск яϋŁεѕ мγ ώδяĿם

It all started one day in 2006, when I was moping around the house on a weekend for something to do. My sis was watching TV upstairs, so I decided to join her. She was watching Music Station on Animax (back when it wasn't in the variety package =P) and at that time I hadn't real interest in Japanese music except for the songs from anime. At that time I was just watching out of boredom, though my sis kept insisting that it was a really good show. I was all 'what's the big deal' till Gackt was up next for his performance. He had dreadlocks and was dressed very ... dramatically, which you see less in the J-pop industry.


[2006] The single he was performing that episode? RETURNER Yami no Shuuen, a more hard-rock style single with a touch of Japanese. Right after watching his performance, I went straight to the PC, went to YouTube then sought out the music video. The samurai-armor clad Gackt really made me melt, though it was his eyes (contacts, rather) that brought my attention to him in the first place. I started searching Google for his pics (around 150 pages of results, I almost died XD) and his info.

Some fun facts about Gackt: he uses candles (or dim lighting, I think) at home and wears dark glasses to bright-lit places as he says the bright light hurt his eyes, he smokes, he loves tight pants, he speaks rather fluent Chinese, his favourite accessories brand is DARTS and he's done movies with Wang Leehom and hyde.

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Gackt brought my attention to his former band Malice Mizer, led by the one and only Mana (I think =P). Malice Mizer has been through a few different band members, though finally disbanding at one point, going their separate ways. Mana created Moi dix Mois, while Gackt went on a solo career until creating a band with Yoshiki from X Japan called S.K.I.N. The superband consisting of Gackt of Malice Mizer, Yoshiki of X Japan, Miyavi of Due le Quartz and Sugizo of Lunasea. There are currently not working on any projects right now, said Sugizo in an interview.

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[2006] Among the Gackt search results for his profile, I kept running into a certain hyde character. I knew he was a musician, but I didn't know for sure till I finally went through a head search into hyde's, um, musical history. He was formerly in a band called Jerusalem's Rod till 1991. He went solo for a while, then became part of rock band L'Arc~en~Ciel (French for 'rainbow'). He did two movies - Moon Child with Gackt and Kagen no Tsuki (The Last Quarter) which was based on a manga by Ai Yazawa. The first of his singles I heard was Countdown.

hyde's fun facts: he's coloured blind, he smokes, he's 160cm, he's married to Megumi Oishi and they have a son together, he's a damn good guitarist, he's the main lyricist for Laruku and he has a pair of angel wing tattoos on his back.

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[2006] A couple of weeks after listening to hyde's first single, I came to witness L'Arc~en~Ciel performing their latest single at that time on Music Station - My Heart Draws A Dream. I was like 'oh gawd, you can't find a better voice to suit this song better'. Laruku consists of hyde, tetsu, ken and yukihiro, hyde composing and filling in the lyrics for many songs. For my 15th birthday, my older sis got me Laruku's Awake album for Rock Corner.

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[2009] In collaboration with K.A.Z from Oblivion Dust, hyde created VAMPS in 2008. Like a little child I was helplessly curious and went all over YouTube to find their PVs. There were 3 very popular ones - Sweet Dreams, Trouble and Love Addict. Sweet Dreams was my fave, with nice soothing tones and beautiful lyrics, though I love the Love Addict PV - hyde with vampire fangs and red contacts~~ <3

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[2007] I completely forgot about how I came across this wacko's name, but it remains in my mind all the time - Miyavi. The eccentric, joyful, self-loving guitarist formerly of Due le Quartz (he really loves his old band ... hello~! He has Due le Quartz tattooed on his inner wrist!) Armed with really good looks, multiple piercings & tattoos and great guitar skills, Subarashiki Kana, Kono Sekai was the first single to defeat my initial thoughts of him, though my fave is still Sakihokoru Hana no Youni -Neo Visualizm-~ =)

Miyavi oresama no fun facts~: he has a really nice lip piercing and a stretched ear piercing, lots and lots of tattoos, loves pink and often mistaken as a female by the non-visual-kei knowing people, is married to J-pop singer melody and they have a daughter, named Lovelie Miyavi Ishihara.

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[2007] If you browse Miyavi videos on YouTube enough, you might find some videos related to this band called the GazettE (not 'The Gazette', not 'the gazette', not 'the Gazette', not anything but 'the GazettE'), consisting of vocalist Ruki , guitarists Aoi and Uruha (not 'you-ruha', ogei), bassist Reita (trademark's the noseband, people) and drummer + leader Kai . Previously, the band's drummer was Yune, but he left for some reason ... Anyways, each band member has his own trademark thing - I'm not so sure about Ruki ('cause his outfits and looks change from time to time...), Aoi's was previously the lip ring, Uruha's were his legs and eye makeup, Reita's was his noseband and Kai's, well, super cuteness. XD

One thing's for sure, this band really rocks it good. They each play their part good - Ruki's vocals are totally heavenly~!!!, Aoi and Uruha's guitar skills rock the earth, whether separate or combined, without Reita and Kai, the band wouldn't even exist~! (I think ... ... ... ) It was ultimately Uruha that made me make the decision to take up the guitar, though hyde and Miyavi had already given me that thought before. The single Cassis I heard mentioned a few times before, and the thing that finally made me listen to my first Gaze-single was an interview article of one of my Taiwanese idols (Jiro Wang) who also really like J-rock (namely Laruku and the GazettE) who said that Cassis was pretty good.

Fun facts: they are totally WACKY~!, they smoke, Uruha drinks a lot, Reita almost never takes off his noseband, they love 'the finger', Kai loves cooking but Reita doesn't like his cooking.

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[2009] After the GazettE, I was almost completely out of visual kei music. I asked one of the people who posted a video I was watching to introduce me to some good visual kei J-rock. I was replied with a rather long list. Every band on the list was searched on YouTube, some of them not found as the names were too common. One on the list was called Versailles, consisting of Kamijo, Hizaki, Jasmine You (RIP), Teru and Yuki. They're easy to spot among the visual kei rockers - they don beautiful renaissance-esque outifts that goes with most of their music.

My first single? The Revenant Choir. So powerfully ... musical? I dunno, there's no words to describe Versailles' music. No fun facts here - I only love their music and Kamijo's eyes~ XD

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[2009] Gensoukyoku -Eternal Silence- was my first single from Phantasmagoria (a real mouthful, huh? XD) You know that Riku (vocalist) has a pretty large number of lip percings? XD The other thing that I really love about this band is the gothic-ness. Almost all their pics look monochromatic, though there is colour.

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[2009] This here is Vidoll. Check out the super hot vocalist in white, huh? XD Blue Star, my sis' only visual kei favourite I think... One thing that bugs me - one of the guitarists (the one with the roundish face on the right top corner) is constantly smiling ... ... ...

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[2009] I had heard about Kagrra many times previously, but I was just too absorbed and obsessed with the GazettE and Uruha. XD Their latest music vid at that time (Utakata) really pulled me in, though part of the gravitational part was caused by Shin's playing the koto as well.

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[2009] Last but not least, SuG -Heavy Positive Metal-. SuG is one of the most eccentric oshare kei bands I've seen, apart from Alice Nine and Antic Cafe. Love Scream Party really ... threw me off my seat. The beat was nice, the song was good, the PV was fantastic and the band members all so kawaii while being so cool~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ <3


Love Scream Party - SuG


SuG - Love Scream Party PV - MyVideo

The daraku daraku Is it aimai ai? I wAnna Go to "seishun PoP Art"
ChuChu RABU wo haishaku aa unmei no HANII wa izuko?

The daraku daraku Is it aimai ai SAIKEDERIKKU jaku HAATO
ChuChu kakehiki wa NASHI juuhonpou honnou de yukou iei

hoka no hito chigau kimi janakya iya
daiKIRAI dakedo suki kokoro no mama majiwaritai
ochiru kara motto yoku shite? horerta hou no make

3 en 2 aNd hiwai ni GOOO...
tattaratarran aimai ni ai ButBut dai dai Diesuki
ChuChu koibito ubaiai "GANGAN ikou ze" gazen rennai taishitsu

mada itai nee? ima janakya iya
suki dakedo daiKIRAI kokoro no mama ni majiwaritai
yokubatte motto ai shite ? horeta mon kachi desho

Get The Party [Started] - Get The Party [Started] - Get The Party [Started] - Ahaan Ahaan

daiKIRAI dakedo suki kokoro no mama ni majiwaritai wasure kata
oshiete yo yume no naka made konai de ?
ima dake wa hitorijime shiawase nante setsuna sugiru yokubatte motto motto ai shite ?
mada hatenai de DAARIN

gouyoku tte koo ze hiwai ni GO Yean Ahaan Ahaan tte hoshigari nee?
gouyoku tte koo ze hiwai ni GO Yean Ahaan Ahaan tte iburitai
motto shitai chanto hoshigatte ne?

PLS TAKE NOTE OF THE HAWT & EXTREMELY KAWAII VOCALIST - TAKERU~!!! <3

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

One step closer to Uruha-sama~~

I'm one more step closer to my guitar god - Takashima Kouyou aka Uruha~~! After around 4 years of looking for tutorials, I finally achieved the perfect (almost lar) double eyelid curve that is Uruha-sama's signature looks, apart from the sexy legs... XD
So what I skipped was:
1. Foundation
2. Concealer
3. Liquid liner (for sharpening and darkening lines)
What I used:
1. Artistry eyeshadow palette colours in Ash Black, Basic Beige and Sand
2. Pigeon Compact Baby Powder
3. Laneige Sliding Pact EX SPF25 pa++ Snow Crystal in 01 Transluscent Skin Tone
4. Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in 2 Sepia Ink (a dark brown, but a black would be recommended)
5. Shu Uemura Cream Eyeshadow in Beige
6. Opera Volume Control Mascara
7. TheFaceShop Automatic Eyeliner Pencil in Black
8. TheFaceShop Shimmer Liner Pencil in White
9. Natural Charcoal Cleansing Cream (for corrections, using Q-tips)
10. Circle lens in Princess Nudy Violet (or some other colour, diameter 14.5mm)
What I did:
1. Put on circle lenses.
2. Prep face with powder (Pigeon).
3. Use slightly shimmery powder (Laneige) around eye area, blending well.
4. Use gel eyeliner as base for black eyeshadow.
5. Apply black eyeshadow on entire lid until just visible on the crease when eye is open.
6. Darken with eyeliner (preferably liquid, but gel and/or pencil would do just fine) and pull down to lower lashline. Line the outer water line.
7. Using light brown eyeshadow (Basic Beige) and angled brush, draw a draft crease line on the eyelid near the eyebrow, adjust as needed.
8. Slowly darken crease line using angled brush and black eyeshadow.
9. Correct as needed using Q-tip with a bit of makeup remover.
10. Touch up where needed.
11. Clean up shape of crease using vanilla or skin coloured shadow (sand), slowly and gently.
12. Apply masacara.
13. Highlight inner corner of eye using shimmery white liner or shadow.
Truthfully speaking this was one of my few first attempts, so it's not perfect yet, especially when both sides are not symmetrical. For an almost exact replica of Uruha-sama's face, you'll need lots and lots of photos and pretty good makeup skills. My attempt was amateur, so there's much more room to improve. You could also actually add colour to the look for a more personalized Uruha-sama look. Have a go and enjoy yourself~! =)

Saturday, March 13, 2010

TIPS = FLAWLESS FACE MAKEUP

Most women (and some men) use makeup on a daily basis, whether heavy or light. The biggest concern for makeup users (and non-makeup users all over the world) are skin problems and other imperfections on the face. The most common problems are eyebags, blemishes and redness. Most women just cake on lots of concealer, or if they don't have concealer, powders. That's the biggest mistake anyone can make, unless the imperfection is super mega ultra supremely subtle. Caking on concealers or powders doesn't help correct the imperfection, but otherwise makes the imperfection more pronounced and obvious.

It all goes down to how you take care of yourself - eating right, sleeping enough, and keeping your skin clean and healthy.
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Šκιή Ĉαяε
STEP 1:
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Get enough sleep. We all know that the average person needs at least 8 hours of sleep per day, but due to our hectic lifestyles or just plain bad habits, we sleep much less than that. Sleeping is the process in which your body and brain gets a rest. It's also the time when your dead cells regenerate and the nutrients from the food you ate to thoroughly be processed and absorbs by your body.





STEP 2:
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Eat balanced meals. Every doctor, teacher, parent, etc tells us to do it. I know it's pretty difficult especially with the fast food chains and vast selection of delicacies, but you'll just have to focus. What we eat nowadays are as fast as the lives we lead now. You go up to the counter, place your order and within seconds your meal is ready on a tray. No, you can't do that anymore. Look out for RESTAURANTS with a menu, preferably one with descriptions of the food and one on a stand at the entrance so you get a rough idea of what you want before you order. Go for broiled, steamed, baked (not in tons of cheese!) and/or stir-fried stuff. Ditch the stuff with cheese (though small amounts are alright, indulge yourself once in a VERY LONG WHILE), cream, coconut milk, lots of oil (deep fried or just fried stuff), breaded stuff (the breadcrumbs pack the calories, unless it's panko, and a very small amount at that), glazed stuff, extra sweet stuff and the really fatty stuff (look out for lean, lean, lean and LEAN!!!).

If you can afford the time (sleep earlier then you could wake up earlier =]), make your home-made lunch-boxes. Make a rough menu for your lunchbox, for example lean beef and mustard sauce with primavera spaghetti for Monday and baked chicken casserole (remember, ditch the cream and cheese!) for Tuesday and so on. If you really have no other choice than fast food, opt for NON-BREADED, MINIMUM CHEESE and LEAN MEATS. Try to go for the juice rather than the soft drinks.
Do your homework and learn more about Chinese eating. Chinese culture involves yin and yang, the balance of the world. Same with eating. According to the Chinese, there are 'cool' foods and 'hot' foods. I don't mean this by the temperature, but rather the chemicals or something else in the food. For example you eat something really heaty (as the Chinese say), usually something of it's counterpart ('cool' foods) will be served to balance things out. What we usually eat are the heaty things - fried, fatty, etc. Too much yang results in becoming heaty - nosebleeds, and MAJOR BREAKOUTS and PEELING.


STEP 3:
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Hydrate yourself! I don't mean soak yourself in a tub of water the whole day, but the universally known thing - drinking water. We all drink water at some point of the day, but it's not enough to hydrate ourselves daily. The thing we drink most everyday - coffee and carbonated drinks, because we need the caffeine and sugar. Two reason why these are no-nos: one, caffeine is bad for the body and stains the teeth and sugar-loaded carbonated drinks are bad for your teeth and makes you fat; two, they dehydrate you even more, although there is water in the concoction. The safest way is to bring 1.5L of water to any almost-whole-day activities like school and work and make sure you finish it before you go home. That way you're sure that you've got enough water for the next 24 hours.


STEP 4:
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Keeping your skin clean throughout the day. No matter how you take care of your skin and how many supplements you take, it's no use if you touch your face everyday with dirty hands. Our hands are in contact with germs and bacteria all the time, and they're especially concentrated with dirt and grime. Always have a packet of tissue/wet tissue and/or hand sanitizer/disinfectant wherever you go, and in the event that you need to touch your face, use a clean tissue to cover up the surface of your hands before you touch your skin to minimize bacteria transmission. After touching anything at all, sanitize/disinfect you hands before touching your skin in case you don't have tissues with you. Avoid using handkerchiefs on your face, 'cause it's loaded with accumulated germs.


STEP 5:
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Sticking to a regular skin care regimen. The moment you put down your briefcase or school bag, go straight to the bathroom, take your bath and WASH YOUR FACE. Being out in the world makes dust and ash particles stick to your skin with the help of facial oils and sweat. Don't just wash your face with water, use a facial cleanser that suites your skin type (preferably mousse or foam kinds then you don't need to drag your skin too much). You don't have to get the really expensive ones just because a magazine recommended it, though brands like Biotherm, and Dermalogica are very good investments. Follow up with at least toner and moisturizer, then apply serums or other creams. Eye creams are important.

Go to a skin care counter or consult a skin therapist (I think they call it that) and have them 'interpret' your skin and recommend some products that you could use. If you're on a tight budget, inquire about the ingredients of the product recommended, then go to a drugstore to get the product - cheaper, but you still have the same effect. =) Do a mask, any mask, at least once a week. Don't put the mask on while you're still in the bath (some people do that), put on the mask AFTER your bath and keep your hair out of your face.
Brands/products recommended:
-Dermalogica (cleanser, toner, moisturizer, mask)
-Biotherm (cleanser, toner, moisurizer, serums, mask)
-L'Occitane (cleanser)
-TheFaceShop (cleanser)
-Estee Lauder (eye cream)
-Clean'n'Clear (cleanser, toner, moisturizer)

STEP 6:
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Relax. Stress contributes to breakouts, wrinkles and other skin problems. In the event of stress, find some way to channel away the stress healthily - do yoga, punch a punch bag, listen to music, read a book, do something rather than just let the stress take over you.




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Μαкєΰρ
STEP 1:
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Cleanse your face using a cleanser that suits your skin type. If you are acne prone or have oily skin, use foam or mousse cleansers which are really foamy so that you don't have to rub your pimples so much and the foam bubbles will help cleanse even deeper into the pores. Wet your face, massage the cleanser to cleanse, concentrating on the more acne prone or oily areas, then rinse off with WARM WATER for best results. Warm water will help open the pores and cleanse the skin even more thoroughly, but avoid using hot water as not to scald your face. Pat dry (DO NOT RUB OR DRAG) with a clean towel, particularly around the nose and other creases on your face to make sure your face is completely dry. If you plan on using a mask later on, use a scrub/exfoliant.
Products recommended:
-TheFaceShop Migamsu Cleansing Foam
-L'Occitane Immortelle Cleansing Foam
-L'Occitane Foaming Rice Cleanser
-Dermalogica Essential Cleansing Solution
-SK-II Facial Treatment Cleanser

STEP 2:
(OPTIONAL)
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I would recommend doing a mask before putting on any makeup. Secure your hair out of your face, then apply the mask (sheet or cream). For cream masks, opt for wash-offs rather than peel-offs as the peel-off masks pull on your skin, making them loose faster than natural. Peel/rinse off thoroughly and pat dry with clean towel.

Product recommendations:
-Biotherm Biopur Purifying Balancing Masque
-Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Masque
-Daiso Japan Charcoal Mask

STEP 3:
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Tone your skin. Some toners will have 'lotion' printed on the tube. If you're unsure, ask the shop assisstant. Always use a cotton pad to apply your toner, never your fingers. The handle of the cupboard and the bottle of the toner isn't all that clean, so using your fingers will just slab the bacteria back onto your face. Shake or spray the toner onto the cotton pad and apply evenly over the face.


STEP 4:
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Moisturizer is essential as it helps keep the skin's moisture balanced and keeps your skin from peeling in the middle of the day. You could wash your hands and dry with a clean towel to apply the moisture if you like, or you could just use another cotton pad to apply your moisturizer. First apply on the cheeks, then on the nose, forehead and chin. Always apply products onto your face with light, upward strokes as not to pull the skin down.

Product recommendations:
-Biotherm Aquasource Ultra-cool Hydrating Water Gel
-Dermalogica Skin Smoothing Cream


STEP 5:
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Apply sunblock. Use a strong SPF product if you will be in constant sunlight. Apply a VERY THIN LAYER of sunblock, spreading evenly and applying more on the areas where the sun hits first - the nose, cheekbones and eyes. Also apply some to the neck so that you won't look like you're wearing a geisha mask later.

Product recommendations:
-Biotherm Sun SPF50 Sensitive Skin Sun Cream Multi-Protection

STEP 6:
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Apply a face primer or foundation. This helps even out the skin tone, block out scars/birthmarks and prep the face for any other product application. Use a foundation one or two shades lighter than your skin tone to get that nice, clean look. Pour some foundation onto your palm or the back of your hand, then use a sponge or a foundation brush to apply your foundation, if you're using liquid. Try not to use fingers as you might leave finger prints/marks on your face if you're not careful. Blend the foundation well using your sponge or brush.

STEP 7:
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Apply concealer on your under eye circles, your eyelids, on blemishes, obvious scars, and darkened or red areas on your face. It would be better to use a colour corrector concealer palette, which comes in a few colours to neutralise the redness/darkness on your skin. Apply using a brush, then blend with fingers or a slightly larger brush. For blemishes, simply dot a VERY SMALL AMOUNT of concealer onto the blemish then gently rub to blend. Set the foundation and concealer with loose powder. Blend well with a soft bristled brush.






STEP 8:
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Draw/fill in and/or define your brows using a brow pencil. For a softer, more natural effect, use an angled brush with two tones of eyeshadow colours that match your eyebrows. Try not to overdo the filling in. Blend with a clean mascara wand/eyebrow colour blender (both look the same, just different names).




STEP 9:
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Prime your lids with an eyelid primer/cream eyeshadow/shadestick, etc. This will help the eye shadow stay on longer and help intensify the colour of the eyeshadow. Apply it from the lashline all the way up to the bottom of the brow, if you're using a light coloured, very slightly shimmery primer. If using a dark base apply right up to where it's needed. Highlight browbones with a white or beige colour before or after applying eyeshadow colours of your choice.

Product recommendations:
-Shu Uemura Cream Eyeshadow





STEP 10:
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Line your eyes using eyeliner or black eyeshadow with an angled brush. Before doing any lining, do some practice strokes on the back of your hand to get used to the brush/pencil for better results later. If using eyeliner pencils, ensure that the tip of the pencil is sharp enough to draw hugh precision lines. If using liquid liner, make sure your hand is steady before starting to line your eyes. If using gel eyeliners, make sure your brush (gel eyeliner/angled) is clean before you dip it into the pot. For a sharp-eyed look, line your waterline as well. Try to avoid lining your lower lashline as it is sometimes a bit too dramatic for day wear.

Product recommendations:
-Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner

STEP 11:
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If using fake lashes, apply them, curl your lashes then apply a MILD, preferably non-volumizing mascara as to blend your natural lashes with the fake ones. If not using fake lashes, curl your lashes, then apply mascara according to the event - more subtle for wet and sweaty days, and more dramatic for parties, cosplay, etc. For big doll eyes, apply mascara on the lower lashes as well, holding the mascara wand vertically and slowly covering each lash with mascara.

Product recommendations:
-Revlon Double Twist
-Majolica Majorca Lash Gorgeous Wing
-Opera Volume Control
-Maybelline Volum' Express Cat Eyes Hypercurl Waterproof

STEP 12:
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Do your contouring using a bronzer, neutral brown eyeshadow or a contouring palette. Use an appropriate brush for this and always start subtle. Only layer on more product if you do not achieve the contouring results desired. Blend the contouring product well at the edges to avoid harsh lines. After contouring, apply blush. Use a large fluffy brush and get some blusher powder, tap off excess then gently dab onto the apples of the cheeks. A better alternative would be to use a lip and cheek tint if you're not doing much contouring on the cheek area.
Product recommendation:
-Bobbi Brown blush


STEP 13:
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Apply a thin layer of Vaseline or lipbalm on your lips before applying lip colour to help prevent cracking and peeling lips. Line lips with a lip pencil then apply your lip colour using a lip brush or your fingers to save on lipstick. Alternatively, use a lip tint or lip gloss. Be careful not to get any product onto your teeth, or you'll look like the pic above.







STEP 14:
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Touch up anything that needs touching up, using a small brush where necessary. Set the applied makeup with a sealing mist or similar. Now go strut your stuff~!!