I have received so many requests to teach some simple minimizing and maximizing tricks that here we go!  The first extremely common complaint I hear is my eyelids bulge out and are puffy; I can’t wear eyeshadow.  If this is you, stay away from light, shimmery shades of eyeshadow.  Instead, apply an eyeshadow in a medium deep neutral from above the lashes to just above the crease.  This will minimize the puffy, bulging appearance of the lid and draw it back.  A great neutral for this is Portobello.  Another common complaint is I have darkness above and below my eyes all the time and nothing covers it.  For dark lids above and below, start with a cream concealer/primer on the top lid and bring it around to the corner of the nose and teardrop area on the underside.  I recommend our pot concealer for this.  Next, after cleansing and moisturizing face, apply a Liquid Powder Mineral foundation in your appropriate shade and bring it up to just underneath the bottom lid of the eye.  This foundation will set into a powdery finish that will not move around; and when used in conjunction with the concealer, it will blot out any problem darkness you are experiencing.  And lastly, while on eyelids, is the common complaint of my lids are droopy, and I can’t see my eyelid anymore.  I can’t wear eye make-up.  If very little of your top lid shows, make sure you apply eye make-up that is not going to move around when your lid is rubbing.  First apply a liquid eyeshadow on upper lid too above the crease of the eye.  Next, lightly dust a complementary shade of powder shadow over the lid.  Line eyes, upper and lower, with either a waterproof gel eyeliner in a pot or an Ultimate eyeliner in a pencil.  Finish with waterproof mascara.

Switching over to facial features, any feature that you perceive to be too long or too prominent can be minimized with a foundation stick or mineral concealer  one shade deeper than your skin tone; apply the foundation stick to, for example, the tip of your nose if you believe it is too long, along your forehead if you think it is too prominent, or along your chin line if you think it is too much for your face.  Blend the line out gently into your skin and apply a foundation all over face in your natural skin tone.  Any feature that you believe is not prominent enough can be maximized in just the opposite way; by applying make-up that is lighter than your skin tone to that area and then applying your foundation.  The same applies to lips.  Small lips look larger when lighter, shimmery lipsticks and glosses are applied to them.  Small eyes pop with light, shimmery pastels and colored eyeliners.  Nonexistent cheekbones appear when a deeper foundation stick is applied underneath, and a lighter, shimmery bronzer or blush is applied on the cheekbone itself.

A bit of practice will go a long way with these techniques, and good lighting in your application area is definitely a plus!