For your face and eyes
First picture, left to right: Make Up For Ever HD Complexion Kit, Eye Rock Designer Liner, Make Up For Ever Holodiam Powder in 302, Make Up For Ever Holodiam Powder in 303, Eyeliner from Sonia Kashuk Limited Edition Precious Gems set
Second picture, left to right: Topshop Highlighter in Sunbeam, BareMinerals READY Luminizer in The Love Affair, BareMinerals READY Luminizer in The Shining Moment
Third picture, left to right: Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Candlelight, Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Moonlight, Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Sunlight, Benefit Cosmetics Sun Beam
Put your best face forward, no? Make your skin look as flawless as possible with the Make Up For Ever HD Complexion Kit, which includes items from MUFE’s HD Complexion line. Start with HD Microperfecting Primer; tackle blemishes or dark spots with HD Invisible Cover Foundation in the shade of your choice (the kit is available in 25 different shades); and top it all off by using the HD Kabuki Brush to apply HD Microfinish Powder, which adds smoothness and softness to your overall look.
Next, go to your eyes: For a fancy eyeliner look, use decals like Eye Rock Designer Liner, which includes four different styles of swoopy, complex eyeliner designs in one pack.
But if you’re comfortable working freehand and don’t want something that dramatic, add a dusting of MUFE Holodiam Powder in shades 302 (a plum that flashes pink and blue) or 303 (an iridescent white that flashes purple, blue, and gold) and line your eyes with a metallic gold, like the liquid liner included in Sonia Kashuk’s Limited Edition Precious Gems set. Your eyes will be sparkly and perfect for New Year’s Eve festivities.
And, if you want, don’t overlook adding shimmer to the rest of your face, too. A shimmery blush would work, but I prefer highlighter, and I think it would be perfect for this kind of look. Add a swipe of gld shimmer with Topshop Highlighter in Sunbeam or BareMinerals READY Luminizer in The Shining Moment, which are both powder-based, or Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Candlelight or Benefit Cosmetics Sun Beam, which are liquid-based. Whether you pick a solid or a liquid, each will add a glowy, champagne-colored shimmer to your cheeks, browbone, or wherever else you dab it on.
For a more pink look, think about BareMinerals READY Luminizer in The Love Affair, Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Moonlight, or Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow in Sunlight; they’re all more peach- and coral-based.
Add a little highlighter on top of your foundation and you’re set, looking beautifully ethereal. No blush required.
PRICE AND AVAILABILITY: $79 for the HD Complexion Starter Kit at Sephora.com; $6.99 for Eye Rock Designer Liner at Beauty.com; $25 each for MUFE Holodiam Powder at Sephora stores; $12.99 for Sonia Kashuk Precious Gems set at Target.com and stores; $18 for Topshop Highlighter at Topshop.com; $26 each for BareMinerals READY Luminizer at BareEscentuals.com; $32 each for Tarte Maracuja Blush & Glow at TarteCosmetics.com; $26 for Benefit Cosmetics Sun Beam at BenefitCosmetics.com.
For your lips
Left to right: Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in Authentic, Black Dahlia, Electric Grandma, Lydia, Marion, Psycho, Super NSFW, Sybil, Yaoi; Lip Gloss from Sonia Kashuk Limited Edition Precious Gems set
My lip ideology for New Year’s Eve is simple: If you’re keeping the rest of your face mostly bare, with only foundation and highlighter, then you can try a more opaque, pigmented lip. Whether you go bold, like with purple or plum, or classic, with red and pink, try something that will stain, last for hours, and won’t transfer onto the person you kiss the moment the New Year begins. That wouldn’t be so welcome, I don’t think.
And when I think of a super-pigmented lip, I immediately think of Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics’ range of Lip Tars, a liquid lip product that dries down to a satin finish, can be paired with lip gloss, and has an incredibly long weartime (and that we’ve featured before on About Face in a Halloween-themed post). OCC added many new additions to the Lip Tar color range this year, and chances are you can find something that draws your attention. I would recommend bronzed copper metallic Authentic; blackened plum red Black Dahlia; metallic coral Electric Grandma; medium plum Lydia; deep peach Marion; blood red Psycho; metallic gold red Super NSFW; dark chocolate brown Sybil; and metallic gold fuchsia Yaoi. And if you don’t like any of those, there are dozens more options on OCC’s website.
If you want shine, top any of them with the clear, gold-flecked Lip Gloss from Sonia Kashuk Limited Edition Precious Gems set for added dimension. But on their own, dried down and set, the OCC Lip Tars are beautiful enough.
PRICE AND AVAILABILITY: $16 each for Lip Tars at OCCMakeup.com; $12.99 for Sonia Kashuk Precious Gems set at Target.com and Target store locations.
