Makeup Tips Every Brunette Should Know
Ten contradicting makeup tips for girls with dark hair. Check out how opposing makeup tips can all work for brunettes.
For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. As is the case with brunette girls makeup. While I doubt Newton ever worked behind a MAC counter, with every makeup tip I could offer a brunette, there’s a contradictory‚ yet equally appealing‚ suggestion. The biggest, most encompassing tip I can give is mix things up. Mix up the colors, mix up the looks, and always always mix up the emphasis. Don’t wear dark eyeshadow and liner in combination with burgundy lips or you’ll risk looking overdone.
Tip #1: You can get away with color. There are some sultry looks lighter haired girls can’t pull off as well as you without toning them down a notch. The traditional, sexy smoky look is much better left to the raven-haired girls, especially when they have dark skin, too. Mixing blacks and grays with nearly excessive amounts of eyeliner and a hint of silver shimmer for a night out looks stunning with the right frame around it and can look even scary with a light hair color attempting to embrace it.
Tip #2: You can get away with bare-faced beauty. You don’t have to use the color recommended above. Flesh tones look just as gorgeous on brunette girls (and are more appropriate for daytime wear unless you work on the set of a soap opera) as the darker, nighttime counterparts. Brunettes with fair skin can choose a light brown with a hint of peach or pink to warm it up, golden shimmer optional, to brighten their faces up without looking like they’re wearing any makeup. A thin line of brown eyeliner on the top lid and a single coat of mascara makes your eyes pop without screaming, “Look at my makeup! Add a bit of coral-pink blush and some clear lip gloss and you’re done.
Tip #3: Wear color on your lips to avoid looking washed out. A nice medium pink or coral will add color to your cheeks and brighten your eyes. You’ll look more awake, whether your skin’s alabaster or ebony. You can skip every other type of makeup in a crunch, but slick on a lip color.
Tip #4: Wear icy bronzes, golds, pinks, or any other light color to plump up the appearance of your lips and add contrast with your hair. Not to mention this one’ll bring out your eyes. This one gives you the opportunity to look like the portrait of wide-eyed innocence if you play your eyes up right. Put a little navy shadow on your lids, line just the tops, and go heavy on the mascara. There’s not a guy who could resist your gaze.
Tip #5: Bronzer is your friend. At least some point in every girl’s life, she wishes she had a tan if she doesn’t. A lot of brown haired girls feel they don’t quite look right if they don’t have dark skin to match (I’m not agreeing with that notion, just offering tips). Some of us are so fair skinned we couldn’t get a tan if we were left on a deserted island for 3 years or, on a more realistic scale, hopped in the tanning bed every day for six months. Bronzers and sunless tanners are healthier alternatives to tans for those who can achieve them from the sun and the only option for those who can’t tan. So if you need a tan to feel good about yourself, turn to sunless tanners and bronzers for an instant boost. And they do look very good with dark hair.
Tip #6: If you’re pale, love it. Renee Zelwegger and Reese Witherspoon recently went brunette with their pale skin. Did they hop in the tanning beds or go for heavy airbrush tanning? Nope! And you know what? They still look hot.
Tip #7: Red lipstick during the day is a faux pas. Even though this is a tip for everyone and not just brunettes, I decided to throw it in. Bright red lips during the day are usually a bit too shocking on everyone else’s eyes. Tone it down a little. Just because you have dark hair and red lips look outstanding with it, you don’t have to wear it all the time. If you love red too much to let it go, opt for a gloss version. It’s sheerer and juicy, not scandalous.
Tip #8: Sport the ruby lips if you wish! Don’t wear bold reds during the day but matte wine lipsticks can look fine for daytime wear if you keep your eye makeup muted and your hair’s on the darker end of the brunette spectrum.
Tip #9: Wear brown shadow: Brown shadow looks good with all hair colors and eye colors. It works especially well with brunettes because it ties their face and hair into one complete picture. Added bonus: it makes blue eyes really stand out (try bronze for blue eyes!).
Tip #10: Skip the brown and be different! Of all the hair colors out there, brown haired girls can get away with the most palettes. If your eyes are brown, you can wear any color of eyeshadow available. With more flamboyant colors, you stand out in a crowd. You may even get labeled as the fashion queen at your workplace. And that’s never an insult.
Written by Crystal Schwanke – 2002 Pagewise
