Golden Summer Make-Up Look

Summer is on its way back to the Northern Hemisphere! I'm psyched, personally - this means picnics after work, parties before class (yes, I'm taking a summer class as well - Biology of Local Plants! Totally stoked), and basically a lot of running around and doing a million fun things one after the other. Because of that, I needed a make-up look that was easy and classy, but could still transfer between work, school, and family events, then straight into lolita if it had to. That's why I designed this make-up look, inspired by that golden time of day right before sunset when I always seem to be outside in warm weather.

Eyes: A good amount of mascara (my technique: dust lashes with translucent powder, apply a tiny bit of mascara, curl, apply a bit more to seal the curl), and a thin line of liquid black liner to act as a base to the color, with a little wing at the outer corner to enhance the lashes. Cream shadow on the inner third of the lid and down into the inner corner of the eye to make the eye look wider and more awake, as well as a bit under the outer half of the browbone to enhance the eyebrows. I applied shimmery amber shadow on the outer corner, starting along the lashline and blended upwards, a bit heavier in the crease (but not much! Heavier dark make-up in the crease will look too mature for lolita, though it's lovely for daily wear). To finish, I lined my waterline with the same shimmery cream as above and dabbed a bit of translucent gold shimmer to just the inner corner.

Face: Start with SPF-added moisturizer to protect the complexion from the harsh summer sun. I then used a very lightweight foundation with a light dusting of mineral powder to cut shine &absorb oil. I didn't have any coral blush, which is what I really recommend for summer, so I only used a very light application of pink cream blush because it blends better. It also helps the bronzer stay on, which is really the secret star of this look and summer make-up in general. I played it up a bit more for the photograph than I would for daily wear so you could see where I applied it - just along the cheekbone. That's it! In the deep summer when I'm a bit tanner I'll apply it to the bridge of my nose and jawline too, but no more than that. Bronzer is meant only to enhance and add a healthy glow to the places on your face where the sun would kiss your skin, not to change your skin's entire color. Very common misconception! I've had so many people cringe when I say bronzer is one of my favorite types of make-up, because they think of something like spray-on tan. It's not so! In my opinion, no other type of make-up will make you look as healthy, refreshed, and awake as a good, tastefully-applied bronzer.

Lips: Since the eyes and complexion are the focus, I went light on the lips. I applied a light covering of Blistex with sun protection, and a light coral gloss over that. The lip balm not only locks in moisture and protects your lips, it will act as a primer and make your lip-gloss last longer. Remember with make-up that you should only have one major area of interest - a bright blush, intense eye make-up, or a killer shade on the lips. Combining too many of these will be totally overwhelming, even for dramatic wear.

The directions may look long, but mostly I'm just waxing poetic about bronzer- the whole look probably only took me about 5 to 10 minutes to apply, so it's perfect for throwing on before heading out in the morning and requires minimal touch-up during the day. I'm excited - it's going to be just as perfect for days on the beach as days at the office. Sigh... is it summer yet?!