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When it comes to applying makeup, there’s no doubt that practice makes perfect. But despite your experience — whether you’re a certified makeup junkie or a beginner in the beauty department, we’re all guilty of making a few mistakes when it comes to makeup application. From mismatched foundations to over-lined lips, keep reading for some of the most common makeup mistakes to avoid for a flawless look!
Makeup Mistakes: Over-darkening your brows
Your brows are key when it comes to achieving a flawless makeup look. Not only do your eyebrows frame your eyes, but they show an immediate form of expression at first glance. But getting your #browsonfleek isn’t always easy.
Eyebrow trends come and go. In the 90’s, we were all about super thin eyebrows, drawn in sharp and bold. Nowadays, thicker eyebrows are the jam, prompting makeup lovers all over the world to find the perfect brow pencil or the most elite microblading professional. Though we love a bold and lush brow, the key here is not to over-do it. Getting carried away with your brow pencil can leave your eyebrows looking a bit too harsh and unnatural. Avoid over-darkening your eyebrows and stay away from straight, ruler-cut lines.
With makeup mistakes come solutions: Use a light hand with a gentle stroke when filling in your brows. Avoid pressing firmly into your brow line when drawing the outlined shape of your eyebrows. The color of your eyebrows should be at most 1-2 shades darker than your natural hair color. Pro tip: start by filling in the middle of your brows and darken as you move outward. Aim for the inward area of your brows to be the sparsest for a natural look.
Makeup Mistakes: Mismatching your foundation
The ultimate rule of all makeup rules: find a foundation that matches your skin tone. Mismatching your foundation color to your actual skin tone can leave your makeup looking more caked on than it actually is (and unfortunately never shows up well in pictures). One of the more common makeup mistakes made, finding the exact shade of foundation that matches your skin isn’t always easy.
We’re lucky to now live in a makeup world that has evolved from the typical 5-shade foundation shelf, to now have access to hundreds of shades. Brands like Fenty and Huda Beauty are changing the game, with over 50 shades to choose from.
With makeup mistakes come solutions: Test out a few different shades before purchasing your foundation from the store. Rather than testing out a foundation on your hand, apply it on your lower jaw line and neck area to see how it blends. Try out a few different brands with similar shades to you versus the same brand in a few different shades. The formula in some brands may better suit your skin than others – so diversification is key!
Makeup Mistakes: Over-lining your lips
A little lip liner never hurt nobody – but a little too much might just hurt your makeup look. With plump and full lips taking the world by storm, lip injections and filler are becoming more mainstream and accessible for the everyday beauty guru. But if injections aren’t quite for you, over-lining your lips is a great (and sneaky 😉 ) way to achieve Kylie lips in an instant. It’s like lip filler without the filler — but the key is not to botch your false lip injections.
Over-lining is when you draw a slight exaggeration of your lip line further away from your natural lines fall. Over-doing this can leave a not-so-cute result, causing lips to look fake and overdrawn — and at times, a bit clown-like.
With makeup mistakes come solutions: Go from Pennywise to a Kardashian in a matter of seconds by using your natural lips as a guide. You should never line more than one outline of your lips to keep the over-line looking natural. Start with a liner that’s close in color to your natural lip shade. Start with the edges and build gradually on top of your natural lips. Here’s a great guide to overdrawing and over-lining your lips!
Makeup Mistakes: Not blending your makeup
Makeup mistake #4: not blending. Now this applies to quite a lot of parts of your face: not blending your eyeshadow, not blending your contour, not blending your highlight or blush, and not blending your foundation!
A consistent mantra across beauty lovers: blending is crucial for perfecting your makeup look. A good blend is all is takes to go from a boxer black eye to a beautiful smokey eye. Or, what’s causing you to look like a novice artist instead of a makeup pro.
With makeup mistakes come solutions: There are a number of tools and techniques you can use when it comes to blending. From Beauty Blenders to tapered brushes, it can be a bit overwhelming to find the right tools for the right blend case. If you’re a total beginner and are intimated by the blend scene, start small. Use your (clean) finger to blend your eyeshadow colors by dabbing it with a light stroke. If you’re ready to take things to the next level, here’s a great way to learn how to blend across contouring, blush, and more.
I personally love using sponge-based blenders to help blend everything together. The texture helps absorb excess foundation with a light land. If you’re looking for options on sponge-based blenders, you can’t go wrong with the classic Beauty Blender. You can get them in a bunch of different colors here.
Makeup Mistakes: Not taking care of your skin
Behind every amazing makeup look lies a solid base that should never be neglected: your skin.
Not prepping your skin can be all it takes to stop you from achieving your makeup goals. Always prep your skin. That means, ensuring your skin is clean and completely moisturized before applying any makeup. Applying foundation on skin that’s not prepped can leave your foundation looking dry, cracky, and flaky – a big no when it comes to makeup.
And the same thing applies on the other end. Always be sure to remove all your makeup before bed. Leaving your makeup on can lead to clogged pores, resulting in breakouts and blemishes. Makeup always looks more refined on smooth and clean skin. So, be sure to make the effort to take care of your skin prior to and after applying makeup.
With makeup mistakes come solutions: We’ve got a few great tips to help you when it comes to your skincare needs. Check out this article on some of the most common skincare mistakes that are ruining your skin. If you find it a struggle to take off your makeup before bed (we’ve all had lazy moments!) here are a few ways to expedite that process so you can get that makeup off ASAP!
