Naturally Flawless with Minimum Makeup

Going au naturel with no makeup at all is a new trend in the beauty world. In fact, Alicia Keys made it popular with her choice to wear a clean face. Some women find it liberating to embrace their natural beauty. Not wearing makeup can be budget friendly and a time saver. Other women find that they need a little enhancement and go for the no–makeup makeup look.

You can enhance your look without spending tons of money, too much time, or applying tons of make up to your face. In fact, a little eye liner and a glossed lip might be all you need to enhance your look. The no–makeup makeup look has also grown quite popular in the land of beauty and is quite achievable even for the woman who doesn’t wear makeup, but is interested in trying something different. This look can be worn for work, date nights, or evenings out with the girls. I have mastered the minimal make up look with using only 5-10 (your preference) products to get the job done. Take a look at some of my go-to products that I use to achieve my flawless no–makeup makeup look.

Skin Preparation

 Start with clean, exfoliated and moisturized skin. This will give you the ideal canvas so makeup blends easily. Knowing whether or not you have oily, dry, normal, or combination skin is extremely important when it comes to prepping your skin. I am a combination girl. I tend to get oily in my t-zone area (forehead, nose, and cheeks). As I stated previously, your face is your canvas and at this point you are building the foundation to achieve a sleek and polished look.

1. Primer
A primer gives you a flawless surface for makeup by smoothing skin and minimizing imperfections. Use a primer before applying liquid makeup, or use a tinted moisturizer. Below are a few of my favorite primers:

Ulta Mattifying Face Primer- $18
Tarte Poreless Mattifying Primer- $32

2. Tinted Moisturizer/BB Creams
A tinted moisturizer acts like your regular face lotion but includes a bit of tint like liquid makeup to give you light coverage. BB or CC Creams offer more coverage than a tinted moisturizer, but are less heavy than foundation. They also usually include other benefits like light SPF protection and anti-aging ingredients.

Camera Ready BB Cream-$42
BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydration Gel Cream- $30

3. Concealer
Use a light touch, apply concealer to cover any imperfections such as blemishes or dark eye circles. Concealers offer double duty work by flawlessly evening out your complexion while providing coverage to target trouble spots. If you don’t havean  issue with blemishes or uneven skin tones you can just add concealer under your eyes and skip right over the tinted moisturizer/bb cream.

Sephora Bright Future Gel Serum Concealer- $7.00
Nars Creamy Concealer-$30

4. Powder
If you have normal to dry skin, you can probably skip the powder step. However, if you have combination or oily skin, apply a loose or packed powder in your T zone or oily areas of your face. Use a large, fluffy brush in a circular motion to apply and blend powder to reduce shine without looking too matte like the ones below.

Maybelline Fit Me Poreless Powder- $7.99
Sephora Matte Perfection Powder-$20.00

5. Bronzer
This product is my absolute fave! This is also an ideal way to achieve a natural/dewy glow. Apply a light layer of bronzer anywhere the sun would naturally hit your face, such as your forehead, top of your cheeks, and your jawbone. Don’t forget the bridge of your nose, and your chin for a natural, sun-kissed look. With a highlighter or illuminator, use your fingers or your favorite brush and add on the tops of cheekbones, bridge of your nose, brow bones, chin and Cupid’s bow (that space just above the middle of your top lip).

Make Up Forever Pro Bronze Fusion Bronzer- $36
Black Radiance Pressed Powder- $3.99

6. Highlighter
I love a good highlight!  Too much highlighter can make you look like you’re sweating, not glowing. The goal is to be as natural as possible.

Tips:

• To make your cheekbones look higher, use highlighter on the top of slightly on the side of your under eye.  Be sure to keep very shimmery highlighter on the cheek at about a finger tips length away from the eyes.
• To enhance  your eyes, apply it around your tear duct or dotted onto the center of your eyelids adding a subtle glam to the eyes after every blink.
• For an instant brow lift, dab highlighter under the arch of your eyebrows.
• To give the appearance of a slimmer nose, swipe it down the center of the bridge lightly you can use your fingers or a small brush.
• Make your lips look poutier by applying it in the bow of your lips.

TheBalm Mary-Lou Manizer Highlighter & Shimmer Compact- $24 (Kohls) $12.39 (Walmart)
Maybelline Face Studio Master Chrome Metallic Highlighter 100 Molten Gold- $7.89

7. Eyebrows
Full or filled in brows add a youthful touch to your overall look. Chances are, you had fuller eyebrows when you were a teenager. Use a brow powder or pencil one shade lighter than your natural brows to fill in bare spots, then comb with a brow or spooly brush. To stay on the natural side, make sure they’re not overdrawn, just filled. You can also skip this step completely and brush through with a brow gel.

Benefit Cosmetics Goof Proof Brow Pencil Easy Shape & Fill- $24.00
L’Oreal Paris Brow Stylist Definer- $7.99

8. Eyeshadow
Remember… We are going for a natural look so as a tip you can use your bronzer, or a nude color from your favorite eyeshadow palette and apply it to the lids of your eyes to add some color. Not necessary, but definitely adds some pop to the eyes.

Morphe 350M Eyeshadow Palette-$23
ItsMyRayeRaye-21 Color eyeshadow, highlighter, and contour palette- $22.50 (If your new to makeup this is a great option that provides you with almost everything you need to achieve your desired look).

9. Mascara
Mascara is the quickest and easiest way to brighten eyes and showcase their natural sparkle. Start by curling lashes, then add a single or double coat of mascara to top lashes.

Maybelline Great Lash Mascara- $5.99
Essence Mascara Dramatic- $4.99

10. Lips
When it comes to natural lips, you have a few options:
• Choose a shade of lipstick that is close to your natural lip color or one shade brighter.
• You can also use a lip pencil in a nude shade to outline lips. Blend color inward, and finish up with a lip balm for long-lasting color.
• Finally, you can go super natural by using a tinted lip gloss for max moisture with just a touch of color. This is a great option during dry seasons when chapped lips make lipstick a challenge.

Revlon Balm Stain- $9.49
NYX Butter Gloss- $6.49

Extra Deets:
If you’re interested in stocking up on some make-up, here are a few reward programs.

Sephora Rewards Program:
Ulta Rewards Program:

If you don’t wear makeup and are not ready to invest, but would like to try some different products before purchasing, try Ipsy,  a monthly subscription service that provides subscribers with a makeup bag of five cosmetic samples for $10 a month. These products include skincare items, perfumes, nail and skin products and makeup.

Remember…
The whole point of no–makeup makeup is to let your natural radiance shine through. It’s all about embracing what you’ve got and subtly accentuating your already beautiful features.
Highlight your glowing skin, show off your sparkling eyes, and enjoy the effortlessness of this look. After all, you’re already gorgeous. Show off your best bare faced look!