No-Makeup Makeup – How to Get Natural, Glowing Skin
In the summertime, the last thing you want is to be sweating off a thick layer of foundation. No-makeup makeup is the best summertime trend; it’s easy to do, looks great, and stays on during the warmest days of the year. This makeup look is subtle and light, so you can feel confident all while letting your natural features shine though. By following these steps, you can achieve this natural, beautiful look with ease.
It Starts with Skin
The first step is a strong skincare routine. Having a good routine is the key to perfecting the no-makeup makeup look, as it will keep your skin healthy and glowing without any makeup. While there are products for every skin type under the sun, it’s important to find a combination that works for you. A good skincare routine should start with a deep cleanser. This step removes any dirt or excess oil from your skin so that any other products can penetrate the skin properly. Exfoliating products can get a deeper clean and scrub away all the debris that can dull your skin, revealing new, healthy skin.
Step 1: Forget the Foundation
During the summer months, it’s best to let your skin breathe. When it comes to natural-looking skin, it can be as easy as letting your skin be its natural form. In order to get your skin ready, make sure you wash and exfoliate your face regularly, and apply a good-quality moisturizer to keep your face looking soft and supple. To finish, make sure you use a sunscreen or a day cream with a high SPF. Healthy, protected skin will have a youthful, glowing appearance to it.
If ditching foundation all together isn’t something you’re comfortable with, that’s fine! Instead of wearing a heavy full-coverage matte foundation, try a light or medium buildable formula with a radiant finish. Another great alternative is a tinted moisturizer. These options will provide you more coverage so you can feel confident all summer long.
Step 2: Spot Conceal
Without foundation, you might want to use a little bit of concealer to help even your skin tone. The trick to concealing smartly is to use a very small amount only on the areas you truly need it. Feel free to use either a small concealer brush for blemishes, and your fingertips for any dark circles. The heat from your fingertips will help the concealer blend into your skin for a seamless finish. Try setting the concealed areas with a light dusting of translucent setting powder to make sure it lasts all day.
To prevent piling on layers of concealer, try colour correcting before applying any concealer. Colour correcting primers are great to eliminate any unwanted redness on the cheeks or dullness under the eyes. This way, you have more of an even canvas to apply concealer and you’ll end up using less product.
Step 3: Choose Cream Eyeshadow
In order to create the appearance of bright, wide-awake eyes, find a cream eyeshadow in a shade close to or slightly lighter than your own skin tone. A brighter colour will draw attention to the area, and make your eyes pop. A shimmery eye shadow will help catch the light, and draw even more focus to your eyes. Cream products provide a radiant finish and are easy to apply. They also wear very naturally throughout the day.
For an elevated night-time look, try one shade darker than your natural skin tone all over the lid or just near the lash line. This will add drama to the look without jeopardizing the no-makeup makeup vibe.
Additionally, you could use a brown cream, pencil, or liquid eyeliner to add definition to the lash line. Remember, the key to this look is to keep things as natural as possible. When using a cream or pencil eyeliner, try applying just a thin line as close to the lash line as possible and smudge it out with your finger or a brush to achieve a subtle, smoked-out look. With liquid liner, keep your line thin and super close to your lash line. This is great for summer nights where you want more emphasis on your eyes without overdoing it.
Step 4: Brighten Up Your Eyes
A classic trick to make your eyes appear wider and more awake is to use a lighter eyeshadow colour in the inner corners. Try using a shimmery champagne cream eyeshadow right in the inner corners, and blend out using a finger or a small brush. This will create the illusion of wider, brighter eyes.
Step 5: Groom Your Lashes and Brows
Speaking of wider and brighter eyes, curling your lashes and applying a coat of mascara is another technique to trick people into thinking you got a full night’s sleep. When your lashes are curled, your eyes appear to open right up. For extra hot days, try a waterproof mascara to prevent it from running down your cheeks. You can also choose to go for a super-natural look and wear a brown mascara. This will give your lashes the length and volume you want without drawing too much attention to them.
As for brows, the fuller the better! Natural brows are in, thank goodness, and we’re all for it. A clear brow gel will help sculpt your natural brows, framing your eyes without looking too overdone. On the other hand, a tinted brow gel will fill in any sparse areas and add a tint of colour as well as grooming the hairs into place. You could also define your brows with a very fine tipped brow pencil for any really sparse areas before applying brow gel. This option is great for those with thinner or lighter eyebrows. Remember, when it comes to eyebrows, the bigger the better!
Step 6: Bring on the Blush
Sticking with the theme of cream products, try finding a natural shade of cream blush to wear daily. This can be applied with a brush, but using your fingertips will help blend the product into your skin for the most natural finish. To figure out placement, imagine where your face flushes naturally and place the product in those areas. Blush brings colour to the face and also helps give a more youthful appearance.
Blush placement can also change the look of your face. By placing colour in certain areas, you can make your face look longer, fuller, or more youthful. For a more sculpted look, place the blush on your cheekbones, right under where you would apply your highlighter. Blend upward towards the temple to create the illusion of higher cheekbones. To create a fuller appearance to the face, smile to find the natural apples of your cheeks. Place the blush right on the apples, and blend outwards. Lastly, for a more youthful look, apply blush right above the apples of your cheeks and on the bridge of your nose. Think of applying it wherever you might get the most sun. Applying blush on the nose is very trendy right now, and looks adorable on everyone. Just make sure to choose a natural shade and blend it out properly so you don’t look like Rudoplh!
Step 7: Highlight the High Points
Dewy skin is the perfect accessory to any summertime makeup look. Playing off the natural dewiness of your skin, apply a cream highlighter to the highest points of the face. Dabbing on a pearlescent champagne coloured highlighter on the highest points of the cheekbones, the tip of your nose, and above your eyebrow will make your features stand out.
To make sure that your highlighter stays all day, you can also layer products. If you find that cream products alone tend to slide around throughout the day, feel free to layer a shimmery powder highlighter over top of your cream highlighter to help set the product. It will make sure the highlighter doesn’t move all day and also intensify the look.
Step 8: Moisturize and Tint your Lips
When it comes to lip products, think natural and light. A tinted lip balm or tinted lip oil are great options that provide a swipe of colour without weighing your lips down. They also wear beautifully throughout the day and are easy to apply, so you don’t have to think too much about what your lipstick looks like.
To get more definition, try a satin finish lip pencil. You can outline your lips first using a natural shade of lip pencil before going over it with a gloss, balm, or lip oil. This will give you the perfect photo-ready lips without weighing your makeup look down too much.
Enjoy Your Summertime Signature Makeup Look
The no-makeup makeup look is a favourite for people everywhere, from beginners to makeup experts. With these simple steps, you can achieve the perfect simple and natural look for everyday use. Much like a skincare routine, this makeup look is fully customizable. Feel free to skip a step or add a step based on what your specific preferences are.
With some SPF, lashes, and cream blush, you’ll be looking youthful and radiant all summer long.
