The Art of Illusion (Part I)

us women, have always depended on tricks to tweak reality a bit -- creating the appearance of bigger eyes, lusher lips, a smaller nose, higher cheekbones and smooth unmarked skin -- and we probably always will.

nothing looks good as naturally healthy skin, but let's be honest...we all have moments when we want to fake it: to cover up or correct perceived flaws, to enhance what nature may or may not have given us.

so for today, here's some tips on how we can--with a little sleight of hand, like a judicious swipe of cosmetic color can create the desired illusion for a more beautiful you.

FACE

Full Face
- a strong arch in the brows can de-emphasize the fullness of the face. hold a pencil vertically alongside your nose. the brows should start where the nose side of the pencil meets your browline. then place the eraser end of the pencil along your outer iris. your arch should peak to where the top of the pencil points. proceed slowly -- tweezing only a couple of hairs at a time then check the mirror time to time to avoid pencil-thin or round brows

Narrow Face
- if your face is long and narrow, like Sarah Jessica Parker's, apply blush to the apples of your cheeks and not out to the temples since it will make your face look longer

Square Face
- to soften the shape, apply blush to the apples of your cheeks and then fan it out to your temples

Wide Face
- apply blush only on the apples of your cheeks, but don't go too close to your nose and don't fan the color out to your ears since it will make your already wide face look wider

Double chin
- this takes a bit of practice, but if you would want to camouflage a double chin, brush a bit ot rose-brown blush along your jaw from your earlobes to your chin. highlight your chin with light translucent powder and make sure to blend really, really well.

Fine line erasers
- makeup that contains light-reflecting particles can reflect light away from your lines and make them appear to disappear. apply it all over your face or under the eyes or on laugh lines.

Lofty forehead
- to make a high forehead look less lofty, take a matte powder bronzer or blush that's a shade darker than your foundation and brush it along your hairline from above your ears to the middle of your forehead. blend well, brushing toward your hair.

Great cheekbones
- using a powder blush, stroke blush upward, once, on the apples of your cheeks toward your ears then go back over it in a choppy, up and down movement

Get glowing
- mix your foundation or tinted moisturizer with a luminizer or illuminating moisturizer or, when the lights are low and you want to glow, try a foundation with a bit of shimmer.

Blah day
- when your skin just looks blah, try a lotion with pinkish undertones to give it some radiance. but not too much -- apply to cheeks and browbones only or you'll look shiny. (shining shimmering splendid, eh!?)

Staying powder
- powder blush will give you a nice, matte finish and cream blush will give your cheeks a glow, but they dont always have a great staying power esp if your skin is oily. for long lasting color on the cheeks, try liquid blush or cheek gels.

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* taken from Fast Beauty 1000 Quick Fixes