Category Archives: tutorials

Tutorial: How to Conceal Dark Circles

There are some days that I get plenty of rest but still receive comments from friends that I look tired. And I wonder… What could be the cause? Doing a little research (and a lot of staring into the mirror) I realised… A-HA! It must be the dark circles under my eyes. They make my eyes look dull and droopy. :( I’ve tried various methods to conceal and lighten these under eye dark circles to no avail, and eventually realized that dark circles aren’t just caused by the lack of sleep. Other causes of dark eye circles include stress, aging, loss of collagen, nasal congestion and pigmentation irregularities.

Applying Under Eye Concealer - Before

However, in recent months, I’ve been to a couple of new makeup launches and shoots where make up artist, Larry Yeo, worked his magic on me. It seemed that no matter what product he used, he always managed to chase them blue-ish circles away. I was amazed and wondered what his secret was. So, instead of trying to smuggle him home with me to consistently ensure I had a gate-keeper of the dark (circle) realm, I got the make up guru to share how to conceal under eye dark rings using some of my current go-to products.

How to Apply Concealer Under Eye

My current favourite products are:
1. Lancome Mat Miracle Liquid Foundation in O-03
2. NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Medium GINGER
3. LA Girl PRO Concealer HD Concealer in Pure Beige and Medium Bisque

Step 1 – Apply liquid foundation

Lancome Mat Miracle Liquid Foundation

Larry recommends applying a thin layer of liquid foundation first. I like the new Lancome Mat Miracle liquid foundation because it is extremely lightweight and comfortable to wear. On top of that, the Satin Light Creator gives a radiant glow even with minimal foundation.

How to Apply Concealer - Step 1: Foundation

I dab the Lancome Mat Miracle Liquid foundation all over my face, like I would applying foundation, and this time remember to also apply it under the eyes.

Step 2 – Apply NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Ginger

NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer

The next step is to lighten the dark areas. Larry recommends applying a peach based concealer (NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Medium GINGER) over the grey areas.

How to Apply Concealer Under Eye - Step 2: NARS Concealer

I apply the concealer just on the perimeter of the dark circle and lightly blend it with a concealer brush.

Applying Under Eye Concealer

By this step you can already start to see the difference between the two eyes.

Step 3 – Apply a mix of LA Girl Pro Conceal HD Concealer

LA Girl PRO Conceal HD Concealer Swatches

These concealers are great for those on a budget. Going at USD$2.50 a tube, I got two colors: the Pure Beige to brighten and the Medium Bisque as a color corrector. I would have never thought of it myself, but the expert, Larry, taught me to mix an equal amount of the LA Girl PRO Conceal HD Concealer in Pure Beige and Medium Bisque to achieve fuller coverage of the under eye circles.

Applying Under Eye Concealer

With the new mixture, gently dab from the lower lash line towards the cheek bone. Cover the entire under eye area with this concealer. Be careful not to smudge the previous concealer – in this case the NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer – at the edges.

Remember, the skin under the eye is the thinnest part of your face and should be handled with care. Avoid over-tugging and pulling as this causes fine lines.

Step 4 – Powder with loose powder

Lastly, to finish, cover the entire under eye area with loose powder.

The result?

Applying Under Eye Concealer - After

Brighter under eye that puts the focus on your pretty peepers!

Here’s a side by side comparison of the difference….

How to Conceal Dark Circles

My eyes look brighter and less tired! No photoshop required. Yipeeee! I DID IT!
Thank you Larry Yeo for the tips!

I hope this tutorial was useful for you. How do you girls conceal your dark eye circles? What products do you use?

Simple Day Makeup Look Video Tutorial

As much as I love doing the black smokey eye for piercing eyes in photos, heavy dark eye makeup isnt quite so suitable for daily wear when you’re going to work. You wouldnt want your boss to think you just came from an overnight party! Haha. Black smokey eye makeup can also take up quite a bit of time, so you’ll probably need to get up at least 2 hours before reporting time to get ready. (Oh trust me, I know. Hahaha.)

That’s when I like to turn to what I call my 5 minute make up. Technically, it doesnt actually take 5 minutes but it’s easy enough that it sure looks like it. The focus of this simple day make up look is a a fresh, clean face. You want to look like you got out of bed and look this naturally beautiful every single day. Dark eye rings are a big no-no, so concealer and colour corrector IS. A. MUST.

If anyone were to ask me how to get rid of dark undereye circles, I’d have to say colour corrector or corrective concealers is the secret to getting rid of dark eye circles. Concealer seems like a misnomer because concealer actually lightens instead of changing the colour of dark eye rings. It’s all about neutralizing with colours.

For instance, if you have redness on your face, you’d want to use a green make up base to help reduce this redness, while a purple make up base can help correct yellow-colored skin. So depending on your dark-eye rings (either blue or grey-blue), you’ll need to the get the corresponding neutralizing colour to really rid your makeup face of dark under eye circles. Hip hip hooray to not having two white patches under your eyes anymore!

Here’s a look at the products I used in this simple day makeup video:
Face
Bare Minerals Matte Powder Foundation *
Bobbi Brown Colour Corrector in Dark to Medium Bisque *
Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer *
Bobbi Brown Sheer Finish Loose Powder
Sephora Sculpting Disk

Eyes
Sonia Kashuk Eyeshadow Quad
MAC Superslick Liquid Eye Liner
Maybelline Define-a-Lash Lengthening Mascara

Lips
Bare Minerals Lip Gloss in Chiffon

* must-haves for getting rid of dark under-eye rings

Simple Day Makeup Look

Black Smokey Eye Makeup Tutorial

During the Miss Universe competition in Sao Paulo Brazil, I used the Sigma Brush Kit alongside a very specific set of make up items inside my make up bag. At the various places we had to go, photo opportunities were a-plenty.

Black Smokey Eyes

For eyes to stand out in photos, black smokey eyes was the make up style I adopted because unlike Western facial features, Asian eyes are slightly smaller and less deep set. Using dark eyeshdaow colours makes eyes look more piercing and definitely draws attention to sexy eyes!

Miss Universe Singapore Thailand

So I finally make a make up tutorial video on how to create a black smokey eyeshadow!

Here’s the product list breakdown:
Face
gloMinerals gloProtective Liquid Foundation
MAC Prep + Prime Pro Series Transparent Finishing Powder
gloMinerals makeup Bellini blush

Eyes
NARS Pandora Eyeshadow Duo
Cosmoprof Eye Palette
tokidoki Perfetto Eyeliner
Maybelline Define-a-Lash Volume Mascara
MAC Eye Kohl Liner in Smoulder

Because your eyes are the focus of attention, always balance the entire look out with a light blush and clear lip gloss. Definitely one of my favourite and go-to looks always. What do you guys think?

Black Smokey Eyes Tutorial

Twiggy Inspired Makeup

Vintage Wedding Vintage Style

Vintage Flowers Vintage Makeup

The recent union of Daphne (@daphnemaia) and Nicholas (@furryphotos) was 60s inspired and the beautiful couple took great pains to theme everything about their wedding to the 60s.

It was admirable and a very beautiful wedding because every single element of the Daphnick wedding down to the smallest detail, including flowers, seating tags, table displays and decorative postcards, was carefully styled to the 60s. Naturally, to complete the 60s wedding, the guests had to be dressed in 60s hair styles and makeup.

From the list of suggestions they gave, I had originally wanted to do an Audrey Hepburn, but was lucky I didnt because the gloves wouldnt have been a pretty sight sticking to my arms no thanks to perspiration. Another style icon of the 60s was Twiggy and I thus adopted Twiggy’s iconic makeup look.

Twiggy Inspired Makeup

I did some research and figured out how to do a Twiggy inspired makeup look. The focus is all on the eyes. Here’s how to do a Twiggy’s 60s inspired makeup:
– Apply dark eye shadow on the crease and eyelids.
– Define the eyes with thick black eyeliner ending in a wing tip.
– Add dark and voluminous fluttery eyelashes whether with volume mascara or a pair of falsies.
– Blend dark eyeshadow on the bottom eyelids for a smokey eye effect.
– Draw clean bottom eyelashes with a pencil.
– Fill in the eyebrows to get strong eyebrows.
– Blusher is not necessary. So, skip the blusher unless it’s a very light pink one.
– Twiggy’s make up style had nude lips. Conceal your lips before applying lip balm or choose a matt nude lip colour to finish the look.

Twiggy Inspired Make Up

MAC Disco Tech Look with the Glitter and Ice Collection

Christmas is coming and I had the great honour of getting a preview of the pretty MAC Glitter and Ice Collection early last month. The best part was learning how to create a MAC Disco Tech Look with MAC Senior Artist Beno Lim using the Glitter and Ice collection. A big thank you to TANGS Singapore and MAC for the awesome makeup tutorial!

When you look at this brand new MAC makeup collection, it will send shivers down your spine. In a good way of course. It is silvery, glittery, pretty, wintry, icy… everything relating to a white Christmas! I am thoroughly enchanted by the moving swirly bits on the Ice Parade Snowglobe eyeshadow palettes. It’s just like someone took them ice crystals and put them in a snow globe for you. Now, you have a portable snow globe in your purse.

MAC Glitter and Ice 2011 Collection Lineup

The new MAC Glitter and Ice Collection is unlike the usual MAC makeup because for one, it’s white! I love everything white because it gives you such a clean feeling. Gimme gimme gimme. As with all their Christmas collections, the Glitter and Ice collection is no different. They launch the entire works for the holiday season including lipsticks, Dazzleglass, Technakohl Liner, Mineralize Eye Shadow, Paint Pots, Beauty Powder, nail polishes and falsies in the lineup.

If you liked the makeup video using the MAC Glitter and Ice Collection, here’s a closer look at the collection itself. Pay close attention to the makeup swatches because you could just win $150 worth of MAC products to glam up your Christmas look!

Continue reading →

How to Apply Fake Eyelashes

I remember being asked in the initial stages of setting up this Singapore Beauty Blog how to apply fake eyelashes. Despite its popularity, it seemed applying false eyelashes can be really difficult if you dont know the basic how-to. I honestly dont remember where I learnt how to apply falsies, but I would like to think I’ve gotten the art of applying fake eyelashes down to a pat. Fake eyelashes do a fantastic job at enlarging your eyes and adding definition. You can choose to add either massive volume or length to your natural lashes or be extra glamorous and add both for maximum effect!

I didnt go through in detail how to apply fake eyelashes in the vintage make up tutorial I filmed with SuperKawaiiMama, so I’m going to personally show you how to apply fake lashes yourself.

How to Apply Fake Eyelashes

Apply eye makeup
I normally apply my eye make up before I put my false eyelashes on. When it comes to mascara, however, there are two different camps. Some people prefer to apply lashes before their mascara, while some do it after. I personally prefer to already have mascara on before the application of fake eyelashes to help hold the curl.

How to Apply False Eyelashes

Measure the eyelash
It is important to first measure the eyelash against your natural lash line. Most eyelashes are manufactured longer than the average eye. I’ve heard many complaints about how the eyelash hardly stays and seems to come off. One factor that causes it to come off is having the lash bone stab your eyelid. The false eyelash should start at where your natural lashes are and end slightly beyond the eye to enlarge your eyes.

Fake Eyelashes

Cut the eyelashes to size
This bit is probably the most important step of the entire process next to measuring the eyelash. Once you’ve got the correct size, cut the lashes such that the outer most corners of the eyelashes are longer than the inner corners.

How to Apply Fake Eyelashes

Apply glue on the lash bone
Applying a thin layer of glue on the lash bone and letting it dry until it becomes partially dry is the best method to keep your lashes stuck to your lids all day. To prevent the corners of the lashes from coming out, apply slightly more glue on the corners.

How to apply fake Eyelash Tutorial

Apply the eyelashes
Now comes the exciting part. To apply the fake eyelashes, I usually position the end of the lashes where I want it to end before pressing the lash down down in the middle using a pair of tweezers. Make sure the lash bone is placed as closed to your real lashes as possible. There should be no gap between the fake eyelash and your real lashes. Pressing the false eyelash down in the middle allows flexibility when it comes to adjusting the outer corner for varying effects.

Bottom Eyelashes

Remember the extra bits that you cut off from the original too long eyelash? Well, now is the time to bring them out and reuse them. Instead of spending money on an entirely new box of bottom eyelashes, you can use these on your bottom lashes!

How to Apply Bottom Eyelashes

Apply the bottom eyelashes on the outer corner of the eye
For the bottom eyelashes, apply mascara over your real eyelashes before applying the fake eyelash. After glue application, use a tweezer to help you place the fake eyelash on the outer corner of the bottom eyelid. This will help to really open up your eyes.

How to Apply Fake Lashes

Line the lower eyelids with eyeliner
To blend the fake bottom eyelash with your natural lashes, line your lower lids with black eyeliner both on your waterline and lower eyelid. You can also apply another coat of mascara on your bottom lashes for a more dramatic effect. Do up both eyes the same way and hello doll-eyes!

False Eyelashes