Bare Naked Natural Beauty...face

If you are opting not to wear make up or not too much make up and go for the natural look of bare skin....

You need to put your best face forward

1. Still wash your face every day
                  There may not be makeup on it but it will still get sweaty, oily, and dirty. You should                     also be exfoliating one or twice a week to help clear your face of dead skin cells.

2. Moisturize
                  Keep skin hydrated by applying moisturizer. While we're on the subject of hydration
                  make sure you are getting enough water. You don't have to drink eight glasses but if                       you are thirsty then drink water, your body probably needs it.

3. It's summer, wear sunblock!
                  Even during other seasons it is good to wear sunblock. Keep your skin protected and
                  healthy.

4. Lip balm
                  Sometimes my lips feel dry after I wash my face (no I don't put the soap on my lips),                     other than that they don't usually feel dry. Some brands of lip balm made my lips dry                     and the consistency of the lip balm felt gummy...but I loved the Jamba Juice one!-it                       was the only reason I went to Jamba Juice and then they stopped making it. Mary Kay                   has a nice one.
5.  Lip gloss
                  Tainted or plain. It doesn't add too much of a difference so it looks natural (as long as                     the color is in the natural range for your lips) but it makes your lips stand out. Only use                   a little bit though, make sure your lips don't look gummy.

Do you use two shades?

Do you use one shade of foundation in the winter and then a slightly darker shade in the summer?

That's Normal

I heard of one person who actually uses a lighter shade in summer. Basically, if your skin tone changes then your foundation should change. Unless, you are using it as a concealer or corrector, foundation that doesn't match your skin won't be flattering (even then the shade difference shouldn't be too extreme). 

Do you need to change foundations? Well, that is your judgement call. If you think that your shade is perfect year round, then great. If you want to switch it up, go ahead. Some people test foundation on the wrist, I read that it should be tested on the jaw line. Check it in different types of lighting-I once used a color that was perfectly fine in the house, but in the car I could tell it was too dark. 

I had a hard time between two shades of the Mary Kay Luminous Liquid foundation so I ended up putting half on one side of my face and half on the other and comparing. I found that really helpful but its not ideal to do in a store. That's the fun thing about buying from a Mary Kay consultant is that you really get to apply the makeup and create different looks before deciding what to get. 

Makeup My Summer

Summer, how do you destroy my makeup? Let me count the ways. Sweat and humidity will melt that stuff right off your face. If you have oily skin, it looks even better! (sarcasm) Summer heat intensity differs depending on where you are, some summers are hotter/dryer than others. I live in Southern California, so for me, summer is HOT. Here are some tips for this super hot summer.

First things first,

1. Moisturizer
2. Primer
3. Makeup (foundation or CC cream.)

In that order.
Make sure you are using the right one for your skin (oily, combination, sensitive, dry). Also make sure you are cleansing in the morning, when you wake up from the skin repairing itself, and at night, the time the skin repairs itself. 1 or 3 should have sunblock of some sort!

It's summer, GO LIGHT. less is less and that's why its so much better in this heat. Instead of foundation you can use a tinted moisturizer, or primer and CC cream, or just the CC cream by itself. The natural look would be the easiest, and least likely to melt (because you won't be packing anything on to show extreme/awesome colors).

Liquid foundation is also good. If you have some spots/areas where you want to add concealer, you can use the stick concealer. You could also use a liquid foundation that is a tad lighter than your skin tone for dark areas. This can be applied with a damp sponge and dab in upward strokes starting from the center of the face moving out to the edges.

I dab my face with streaks of liquid foundation and spread it with a brush. (I use three colors, one for my natural color, a lighter one for concealer, and a darker one for blemishes). After the brush I blend with a damp sponge, and then LIGHTLY dab pressed powder on for a nice finish. That holds nicely all day...still, I want CC cream!

Eyes and Cheeks: I've heard that powders get cakey and creams work better, but creams tend to melt while powder sticks better. I think the solution would be to use a highly pigmented product so that you use less of it. Eye Primer also helps powder stay on better. Take it easy with the creams and ALWAYS blend well. Lipstick can also be used as blush. I used a cream eye shadow as blush and it stayed pretty well.

Another good idea for the summer (and always) is

Oil absorbing tissues. Helps get rid of the oily, sweaty, look...or gently use a normal tissue if you don't have these.

For lips use a tinted lip balm or lip gloss. At least rub in some lib balm on your lips before applying a LIGHT coat of lipstick. A lip stain will work well.

Other tips that work for me:

Use bright lighting when applying makeup

Let moisturizer set onto skin for a bit before applying makeup

If foundation looks cakey, powdery, or runny, dab with a damp sponge and blend it

If the foundation still looks runny then add pressed powder to damp sponge and blend-lightly add powder.

Blend with fluffy brush with lots of bristles, it collects and drops less powder (blush and bronzer)

Use eyeliner after shadow, goes on top, not covered with powder.

A coat clear gel for eyelashes over mascara can substitute for water resistant mascara.

Keep in mind skin color when going for the natural look, basically try to match the colors already on your face. Find a balance between sheer and natural colors and outstanding, unusual, shades.

If it doesn't look good on you, its not you, its the color or the texture or the method of applying it. 

You're Beautiful!!! 

Beauty starts with you.

     I started selling Mary Kay because it seemed like a lot of fun. I'd be selling something people liked and trying makeup is fun. It also seemed like a good way to empower women, telling them they are beautiful before they buy makeup.

     Then I started looking up makeup blogs and makeup tips and tutorials and I found a few that made me rethink selling makeup at all. Apparently there are women who don't have the confidence to step out of their house without makeup on their faces. This concerned me because, as a woman, I think it is important for women to have confidence in themselves (body, mind, and soul) rather than relying on outside forces. Not that its not okay to gain confidence from dressing up or one thing or another. I just hope that women can find their main source of confidence to be in themselves. (Actually as a Christian my main point of confidence is Christ, but not everyone chooses this. If you don't have a "higher calling" then you are the "higher calling".)

     So I sell makeup but I don't want to contribute to the ridiculous beauty standards of today. Is this possible? Everyone is beautiful and should wear the clothes and make up they feel comfortable in; the one's that build confidence. I do believe there are appropriate styles for appropriate places or events (for example one wouldn't wear dark smokey eyes to a job interview) but for the most part each person define's their own beauty. Beauty is defined differently across the globe. Your best friend may have a different opinion of beauty than you do when it comes to certain styles or accessories. Beauty starts with you. You have your own innate beauty.

     At first I thought it was weird that I started selling makeup when I didn't wear any to begin with but I don't draw my confidence from makeup and I don't tell women that they need makeup to be pretty, or confident or happy. I sell accessories for skin. You can dress up or dress down.