Flawless festive makeup tips for all skin tones by Shahnaz Husain

The festive season will soon be here. Girls love to dress up and look their best on festive occasions. However, make-up is all about choosing the right shades of colour cosmetics. Selecting them according to skin colour and tone is as essential as learning the techniques of application. Your natural skin tone is most important while selecting foundations. Try to buy one that is closest to your skin colour as possible. Face powder may be of the same shade as the foundation. If you wish to tone down a tan, select a powder that is one shade lighter, but in the same colour tone, i.e., either beige or pink. 

Fair Skin

While choosing Foundation for very fair skin, go for beige with a rosy (pinkish) tint. For fair skins, use beige, pink, or orange undertones. If the complexion is fair, but sallow (i.e., yellowish), avoid pink tones and go for beige or biscuit shades. For eye colours, a brown eyebrow pencil may be more suitable than black. Apply dark brown or dark grey eyeshadow over black eyeliner. It will tone down the stark black look. For fair skin, try pinks and reds for blushers, and avoid dark colours in lipstick.

Wheatish Complexion

Most Indian complexions are wheatish. Go for water-based foundations. Choose a colour as close to your skin colour as possible. Avoid choosing a lighter colour foundation. It will not provide a smooth finish but give a mask-like effect. Use bronze or brown eye shadow. Add a touch of gold under the brow. For blusher, try bronze. For the lips, go for warm earthy colours, like coral, wine, plum, red, and shades of red. A dark pink or rose red would look good too. Avoid maroon, bright orange, or very pale pink. The lip liner colour and lipstick colour should be the same. 

Dusky / Olive: (Slightly dark)

Dusky, or olive complexions, look better with brownish-beige shades for Foundation. It should be a colour that will add some glow to the skin. For blushers, avoid mauves and light pink. Go with darker pink, or even some brown shades. A highlighting powder will help to add glow. Try it on your cheeks, along your nose, and forehead. For eye makeup, go for darker brown shadow, or try bronze or silver. For dusky complexions, dark eyes look captivating. So, go for black eyeliner and mascara. Apply eyeliner and smudge with a cotton bud, or apply eye shadow over it. It will give the smokey-eyed look. Go for gloss for the lips and nude shades in lipstick would be good to bring out the glow in the complexion.

Dark Skin

If you have dark skin, choose liquid foundations, instead of a creamy one. The foundation should not be lighter than your skin tone. Try to get one that is as close to your normal skin colour as possible. Try out foundation colours in natural brown tones. When you apply foundation and powder, your aim should be for a lighter coverage. Special attention should be paid to blending. Avoid white and light-coloured shadows. Soft brown combined with darker brown would be good. Use a kajal to outline the eyes. This can have a stunning effect on dark skin. For blusher, try a dark rose pink colour for the day and shades of bronze, plum, or wine, for the night. For special occasions at night, use a touch of gold. It can really look glamorous on dark skin. Apply it at the temples and under the outer corner of the eyebrows. For lips, a dark complexion looks good in vibrant colours. Avoid very pale colours. Go for warmer tones, like coral, bronze, red, and wine. Try mixing two colours to get the shades that suit your skin. Bright red lipstick can be toned down with tinted lip gloss. Avoid very dark colours like maroon or dark brown.