Beauty / From Lashes To Lips: Embrace The Drama With Head-Turning Beauty Looks For Fall

From Lashes To Lips: Embrace The Drama With Head-Turning Beauty Looks For Fall

Beauty Aug 28, 2018

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Fall is coming, and British Vogue forecast two major trends that are tailor-made for South Asian beauties, namely lush lashes and strong lips. Our colouring and strong features benefit from these trends because they play to our natural, lush physical beauty and are ideal for work and play. So go ahead and embrace the drama with head-turning beauty looks for fall!

Read on below how you can be on trend with a few simple steps that are designed to last all day, and well into the night…

Lush lashes do not mean having to struggle with lash glue while you are running late on a Monday morning. What it does mean is working the liner and picking a dramatic lash formula that separates, lifts and fattens the lashes.

The first step is to add a few precious millimetres of darkened eye line so that the base of the lashes look deep and the subsequent hairs look thicker. I prefer to use a soft black liner such as Burt’s Bees Nourishing Eyeliner in Soft Black because it matches my natural lashes and the mascara. The softness of the shade means that you add definition without the harshness of a traditional black eye liner.

**Beauty Looks For Fall: Burt’s Bees Nourishing Eyeliner.** Photo Credit: www.burtsbees.ca

The pencil glides on softly but sets quickly. More importantly, it is ophthalmologist-tested and is formulated without parabens, phthalates, SLS, petrolatum or synthetic fragrances. I am particular about the eyeliner, because to achieve the illusion of thicker lashes:

Warm the tip of the pencil with your finger.
Curl your eyelashes.
Gently lift the eyelid and starting from the outer corner you slowly draw the line. It feels odd but if your hand is steady and you go slowly, the whole procedure takes five seconds.

Beauty Looks For Fall: I’m lining the upper waterline. Photo Credit: Meena Khan
Put down the pencil.
Look down for a few minute while the line sets.
Repeat steps 1 through 5 for the other eye.

The next step is to pull the eyelid slightly taut in a upwards direction, because you will thicken the intensity of darkness at the base of the lashes by “filling them in”:

Pull the eyelid slightly upwards, making sure to hold it taut.
Gently dot the pencil between lashes, and ignore any dots of colour that are above the lash line.

Beauty Looks For Fall: I’m filling in my lashes. Photo Credit: Meena Khan
The dotting should continue until you have completed the full lash line.
If you like the full dramatic look, line the lower waterline.
Beauty Looks For Fall: Meena lining lower waterline. Photo Credit: Meena Khan

The above steps create the illusion of a thicker lash line and make the heft of the dramatic mascaras appear to be natural and realistic.

Eye lash length is an integral part of the look, and in the event that your eye lashes are extremely short, a lash primer is an excellent ally. I am a huge fan of the Givenchy Base Mascara Perfecto because it feels weightless. Your eyelashes will look white but when you apply any mascara, your lashes will look dramatic, dark, natural and lush. The primer does not flake and it is easily removed so there is no tug or pull. The fibrous brush ensures that even the smallest lash is coated in primer, so the end effect is that of a beautiful fan of lashes.

I have found two fantastic mascaras that meet the challenge of drama without the danger of flake. For a defined corporate look, I enjoy Urban Decay Troublemaker Mascara. The packaging claims to add 13.7X the volume, and I must say that it delivers on its promise.

The bristles on the wand come in two sizes which ensures that even the stubbiest of lashes will be lifted and covered in product. Each bristle is spaced evenly so it is easy to comb through and you can really build on the drama without clumps.

For a nocturnal and saucy look, there is no doubt that Diorshow Pump n’ Volume is the perfect mascara. The bristles are all the same size but quite numerous. The mascara itself goes on thick but the bristles ensure that there is no clumping. It sets quickly and creates a more dramatic and suggestive look. People have asked if I was wearing falsies when I opted to use this mascara.

The two above formulae will not create a lush effect unless you apply them correctly. The application is quite simple:

Place the bristles at the base of the lashes.
Beauty Looks For Fall: I’m wiggling the mascara from the base of the eyelashes. Photo Credit: Meena Khan
Wiggle a few times at the base to ensure that a bit of extra product is applied.
Continue the wiggling until you are mid lash.
Mid-lash to the tips, swoop upwards.

The above little tricks are easily mastered, and create a dramatic effect without the effort required for eye shadow. The lush lashes are beautifully complemented by neutral cheek and strong lips.

Strong lips start with the simple habits of being exfoliated a few times a week, and then being hydrated each morning and night. Exfoliation removes dead skin cells and ensures that the lipstick will not stick to them and create the look of cheese grater lips. I have tried to make my own lip exfoliator using brown sugar and almond oil, and it has never worked. The texture is too rough and leaves my lips sensitive. I prefer the gently, slightly creamy lip exfoliator such as Burt’s Bees Conditioning Lip Scrub which is 100% natural and exfoliates using honey crystals. Honey is a humectant so when I rinse it off I still feel the hydration and it attracts moisture to the lips.

I apply twice daily, a rich lip balm, such as Vasanti Rise & Shine Lipbalm because its butters such as those derived from mango seed and shea, conditioner the delicate skin.

On the issue of colour lip products, always bear in mind that natural pigmentation impacts how the colours appear on the lips. Pinker lips will look more dramatic when covered in a red lipstick but that same shade will look more muted (but equally pretty) on a more pigmented pair of lips. Consequently, creating a neutral base with a lip liner not only guarantees a perfected shape, but it optimizes the possibility of the shade in the tube (and in your hopes) appearing on your lips. I recommend that women with light lips that are pink, should use a neutral liner such as Vasanti Lipline Extreme Lip Pencil in Pink Sorbet, medium lips will look great in Vasanti Lipline Extreme Lip Pencil in Medium Taupe Brown and deeply-pigmented lips will look beautiful in Vasanti Lipline Extreme Lip Pencil in Mauvenberry.

There is a school of thought that preaches that the lip liner should match the lipstick. I disagree with this school because not only is it expensive because each lipstick requires a matching pencil, a neutral pencil will create the illusion of natural perfect lips without the risk of looking overdrawn.

Strong lips are best applied with a lip brush because it ensures a smooth, precise application and can successfully fill in the corners of the mouth. It is imperative that the few millimetres at the corners not be neglected, otherwise you risk creating a fish mouth. I recommend the Make Up For Ever Brush 302 for home and the 304 model for travel. The brushes are stiff but not rough on the lips. They deliver colour precisely and fill in the corners of the mouth marvellously.

After you have defined the lips with a neutral lip liner, dab the brush in the lipstick and start from the centre and mover towards the corners.

I like to use quick strokes to build up the colour and then take a few extra seconds to ensure that it is deposited in the corners. The brush should also be dragged a along the contour to ensure that the liner is mixed with the lipstick.

Despite red being the siren call for fall 2018, I found strong shades in several categories of colour that are incredibly flattering on South Asian complexions.

Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution collection has mastered the red category with Red Carpet Red, an unabashed ruby that adds life to all skin tones.

If your mood is more serious and you need a power colour then Legendary Queen, a no-nonsense brick red, is ideal for all skin tones.

If your mood is a more romantic but you wish to remain in step with the emerging gravitas of fall, then Buxom VaVa Plump in Come to Dolly, is a serious, yet hard-to-miss rose, that flatters medium-to dark lips. This liquid lipstick is long lasting and its doe-tip application hugs the lips for a fantastically smooth application.

For light lips, a strong, vibrant pink that is the ideal kiss good-bye for summer is Shu Uemura PK 368.

Fall is also a time to play with deeper shades, and purple is a fantastic category through which you can channel your creative side. Givenchy Prune Trendy is a gorgeous, deep blue-based prune that flatters all skin tones, looking dramatic on pinkish lips and sensual on darker ones.

Fall would be incomplete without the dramatic brown mouth, and the Dior Addict Lacquer Stick collection answers the need for South Asian lips with Poisonous, a chocolate milk brown that is at once shiny, neutral, flattering and outstanding, on light and medium lips

The equivalent impact is achieved with Sauvage, a dark chocolate brown that is beautiful on naturally darker lips.

I love pairing the trend of the lush lashes with the strong mouth because it is womanly, sophisticated and plays up my natural assets. The trick to carrying of the look is respecting the preparatory steps so that the impact lasts all day. Each trend is strong on its own and errant flakes of mascara and smeared red lipstick is a not s comely combination. The finished, chicness of lush eyes and a strong mouth guarantees an unforgettable entrance into any room.

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Author

Meena (@meenalaregina) always loved the idea of exploring the non-conventional idea of beauty. Having grown up as a pimply chubby teenager, she wanted to see the change in the world that best reflected your uniqueness as well. Her well-received collection of blogs where she tries on various beauty p...

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From Lashes To Lips: Embrace The Drama With Head-Turning Beauty Looks For Fall

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

COMMENTS

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