Beauty / Glow Like A Diya With These Diwali Beauty Looks

Glow Like A Diya With These Diwali Beauty Looks

Beauty Nov 11, 2020

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

The diya is a beautiful symbol of the joyful and hopeful festival of Diwali, when Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs from around the world commemorate the long-awaited return of Lord Rama after 14 years in exile. This season, when many people will celebrate the Festival of Lights virtually, learn how how to glow like a diya with these Diwali beauty looks.

My family is Muslim but we have always been excited to attend our family friend’s Diwali party because it is festive, welcoming and beautiful. I always appreciated how the diyas are carefully placed on the walkway and steps that lead to the house. I swear as you walked past each one, the lights became brighter until you reached the door. The effect was stunning and inspires my proposed beauty look for Diwali.

THE DIYA — FLIP THE BEAUTY SCRIPT AND GLOW!

In our daily lives, we are required to wear masks as part of the collective effort to combat the spread of the coronavirus. The result is that for the most part we can engage with people’s eyes but two-thirds of their faces remain a mystery. This season, as many families celebrate within the safety of their homes and share good wishes via teleconferences, instead of focussing on the eyes, incorporate the diya’s beauty into your own.

The diya’s beauty starts at its centre where the flame is intense and impenetrable. As the flame spreads upwards, the intense centre slowly fades into a soft metallic glow. On the face, the gradation starts from intense lips, morphing into defined cheeks and finishing with gilded eyes. The treat of this beauty look is that instead of intensifying the eyes as you would likely do on a daily basis, you allow your lips to occupy centre stage .

COMPLEXION —SOFT MATTE CANVASS

The Diwali look employs colour and different finishes which means that the complexion plays a supporting role. Regardless of your skin type, experiment with foundations that have a soft matte finish so that your skin is a canvass for your artistry with the colour cosmetics. I love the Nars Soft Matte Complete Foundation (34 shades available) because the liquid is lightweight, pigment is rich, and formula is long lasting. I require only three droplets to fully cover the trouble spots on my face and it did not cake on the oily parts after a full day of wear.

**Glow Like A Diya With These Diwali Beauty Looks: Nars Soft Matte Complete Foundation.** Photo Credit: www.narscosmetics.ca

The contour of the eyes should look fresh, and I recommend that you make up this area after applying the eye shadow. The contours are thin skinned so it is important to use a corrector (if required) and a concealer that will neither sink into the fine lines nor weigh down the area. I suggest using a liquid corrector such as Vasanti Cosmetics Liquid V02 Corrector, an intense yam shade, that neutralises dark circles with a single droplet.

I top the liquid with a pot concealer because the texture will meld with the corrector and stay in place. I recommend the Nars Soft Matte Concealer because it is easy to apply, using your ring finger and easily blends into the corrector and surrounding skin. The finish, like its sister foundation, is seamless and lasting.

LIPS FIRST

Typically, I start with the eyes but since this look is all about lips, I flip the script and work from the mouth to the eyes. Prior to applying any makeup, it is important to exfoliate and moisturize the lips prior. An easy way to exfoliate is to gently pass your towel over your lips after you finish cleaning your face. I then immediately apply a thin layer of lip balm and let it soak into my lips while I apply my skin care. Typically after 10 minutes, the lip balm is fully absorbed and I am ready to add some colour.

I suggest using a neutral lip pencil to define the lips. I start from the top centre of the upper lip and draw a soft line until the outer corner of the lip. I repeat this step for the remaining three quarters of the lips. I found the following pencils to be suitable for the various shades of lips that exist in the rainbow of South Asian beauty; they are all from the Make Up For Ever Artist Color Pencil collection and leave an excellent, matte, durable imprint on the lips:

Completely Sepia (light lips that are a uniform pink shade)
Anywhere Caffeine (medium lips which are a mix of pink and mauve)
Up and Down Tan (dark lips, that are a more intense shade of mauve).

Once the lips are defined, the fun begins … choosing a strong lip colour!

Fall 2020 has produced a range of lip colours from deep matte to vivid shimmers whose pigments are such that their richness fully compliment South Asian beauties. I noticed that there are indeed several shades which flatter all South Asian enchantresses:

If you want a classic matte finish that doesn’t possess hint of shimmer and harkens back to the nineties (without the dryness), then try Givenchy Le Rouge Deep Velvet in Grenat Fumé. As the name suggests this sumptuous shade is an ode to garnet with a dark edge. I only need to apply a single layer to feel glamorous;

If you want an overall matter finish with a touch of fun, then experiment with the new YSL Beauté The Slim Glow Matte collection. These rectangular shaped lipsticks leave a lasting impression and brighten the lips. If you veer towards reddish and berry shades then Private Carmine, is a perfect addition to your collection. If fall’s foliage makes you dream in sepia, then try Transgressive Cocoa, a chocolate brown that veers in into penny territory;

If your style is more glossy, then run to try on the Charlotte’s Jewel Lips in Walk of No Shame. This glossy, shimmer infused interpretation of the iconic berry pink transforms your lips into a seventies goddess;

If your style is more subtle and you appreciate a stained look, like you chugged sharbat, then experiment with the Clé de peau Lip Glorifier in Break of Dawn (limited edition), a glowy raspberry that enhances your shade to berry prettiness. It is glossy and glamorous.

TOUCH OF CHEEKINESS

Once the lips have set the stage, the next step are the cheeks which play a supporting role in terms of colour cosmetics. The cheeks need to be defined and continue the lines of beauty from the lips to the eyes. The approach should be light-handed and the colours should be neutral with a soft finish.

I recommend the Wander Beauty Trio for Two Bronzer and Blush Duo (2 kits available). The duo allows you to softly contour the cheek area with the bronzer and then to add a pop of colour on the apples. The lighter kit’s pink shade is called Bellini and is a true pillow pink neutral. The darker kit’s pink is called Daiquiri and it veers into a berry territory.

GILDED EYES

The edge of the flame is where heat meets the heaven, and it is somewhat ethereal because the heat just gives way into what appears nothingness. As with the cheeks, the approach should be light-handed and the application should be somewhat whimsical, like a fading flame.

I found two kits that are again universally flattering for South Asian skin tones:

Le 9 de Givenchy in Le 9.05 is a nonet of shadows whose colour range includes ice shimmer white, copper, bronze, gold, terra cotta, milk chocolate, bark, garnet and dark chocolate. The finishes are matte, shimmer and satin and they are designed to be mixed together to create bespoke shades and individual looks. I think these two combinations interpret the fading flame beautifully: use the gold on lower lid, define the crease using copper, and define the eyes using bark; or apply the milk chocolate on the lower lid, define the crease using the bronze and lightly dab the dark chocolate long the upper lash line.

If you wish to create a more ethereal, almost fairy-like look then the Charlotte Dazzling Diamonds Luxury Palette of Pops is a great option. This quartet of shadows all include shimmer and contains 4 shades: champagne, antique gold, bronze and smoked grey. I love tapping the champagne over my lids and then mixing the antique glow and bronze on my mobile lid, and then define with the smoked grey.

You can finish the look with a coat of a defining mascara and you are ready to shine at your Diwali party.

KEEP THE FLAME BRIGHT

Diwali will be different this year because of the pandemic but this is not a reason to tone down the celebration. It is an opportunity to rethink how to celebrate such a lovely festival and a great time to twinkle like a diya!

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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Glow Like A Diya With These Diwali Beauty Looks

by Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

Meena Khan | Features Editor - Beauty

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