The No-Makeup Makeup Look – How To

No-Makeup Makeup Look

“The best thing is to look natural,

But it takes makeup to look natural” – Calvin Klein

There are times when we want to just look natural, without any obvious makeup. But it does take some makeup to make one look “naturally beautiful” with even skintone and well defined features. I had posted a picture of a no-makeup makeup look that I had done a few days ago. Here’s the breakdown of that look with all the products I used….

For this look, I wanted a soft matte finish for the skin rather than a very flat, matte one. Also, I avoided kohl / kajal / eyeliner since that would give a very obviously defined look. Here are the products I have used for this look:

Face:

• The Body Shop Tea Tree Pore Minimiser
• The Body Shop Fresh Nude Foundation Sicily Amber 050 (reviewed here)
• Rouge Bunny Rouge Skin Soul Drops Foundation Essence (reviewed here)
• Rouge Bunny Rouge Impalpable Finishing Powder
• MAC Zac Posen Haute Contour (reviewed here) – just the bronzer
• Maybelline Cheeky Glow Blush in Fresh Coral (reviewed here)
• Ultraflesh Shinebox Highlight and Shimmer Collection (reviewed here)

Eyes:

• Lakme Illuminate and Shine Eyeshadow Palette in Gold

Lips :

• Chambor Extreme Wear Transferproof Liquid Lipstick #481 (reviewed here)

Tools:

• YBP Cosmetics Makeup Perfector
• Sigma F05 Small Contour
• Sigma F40 Large Angled Contour
• Sigma E39 Buff and Blend
• Sigma E55 Eye Shading
• Maybelline Gel Eyeliner Brush.

I wish I was tech-savvy enough to shoot a video and show you the tutorial for this look. But even if I do somehow learn to shoot halfway decent videos, learning how to edit them would probably be a nightmare. So, I guess I’ll just have to give you a step-by-step here…

• For the base, I mixed some of the  Tea Tree Pore Minimiser (which is a really good primer) with two drops of the Fresh Nude Foundation and two drops of the Skin Soul Drops Foundation Essence. I applied this all over my face and neck and blended it with the YBP Makeup Perfector. This combination gave me nearly full coverage but with a natural-looking radiant finish. To prevent creasing in the undereye area, I dabbed on a bit of the RBR Impalpable Finishing Powder there.
• For the eyes, I applied the dark peach colour from the Lakme Illuminate Palette (extreme right shade in the upper  row) all over the lid. Then I applied the darkest brown shade (middle shade in the upper row) in the outer corner and crease of the eyes. I also applied this along the lower lash line as a dry eyeliner.
• Coming to the cheeks, since I wanted the look to be very natural and not overly sculpted, I lightly brushed the bronzer from the MAC Zac Posen Haute Contour in the hollows of my cheek bones.
• To add a teeny-weeny bit of flush to my cheeks, I brushed on the Maybelline Cheeky Glow blush on the apples of my cheeks and added a wee bit of highlighter from the Ultraflesh palette to my cheekbones. All the applications were kept very light-handed in keeping with the no-makeup makeup look.
• Finally, to finish the look, I wore the Chambor Extreme Wear liquid lipstick in 481. On my lips it does turn a bit darker once it dries completely but in the pictures it looks lighter since it is freshly applied.

With my damp, just-shampooed hair, this no-makeup makeup look gave a very fresh, radiant look. There are no harsh lines or obvious bursts of colour anywhere and it doesn’t look like you have makeup on. It is also quite an easy and quick look to achieve. These pictures were taken in the morning in my dressing area which has a big window with white blinds that gives me great lighting. Perhaps that’s the reason why my skin is looking so flawless and bright.

My personal preference has always been makeup that accentuates my natural features and makes me look like a prettier version of myself. When it comes to makeup, I have always played it safe in terms of colours and looks and this look, I fel is the safest of them all. From college to work to even a PTA meeting, this is a look that would work everywhere. You could also add a slightly brighter lipstick to add a bit of colour should you feel like.

What do you think of this no-makeup makeup look? Do let me know your feedback in the comments below.