Get that glow-y, dewy look in a flash! (AKA, how to fake it)

me, smiling 'cause i finally got it right.

Hello, lovely Voyagers!

Want perfect skin? Well, you could drink tons of water, eat nothing but vegetables and lean meats, take plenty of vitamins, and sleep 8 hours a night…OR? Get thee some beauty products STAT!

Since you've already done your eyes but not your mascara (see my eye makeup blog for why that is), next comes face makeup. I have tried it ALL over the years. And by all, I mean from drugstore cosmetics to Chanel, & everything in between. These are my current faves, in order of application. If I try a new product & love it & things change, I promise to let you know.

I am not using a primer these days; instead a color corrector is my new best friend. Balmain’s is fabulous. Maybelline makes one for a reasonable price, too.

My favorite foundations right now are Josie Maran (talk about glow-y!) and the classic Doublewear from Estée Lauder will last all night long.

Undereye concealer from IT is great, but if you want more coverage, Huda will make you look airbrushed.

Huda concealer.

A gorgeous and fabulous girlfriend of mine used it to cover surgery scars. That’s how powerful it is!

Next, use NARS HD powder, applied with this fan brush, even before you use bronzer and blush, because you don't want your bronzer & blush to all smear with your foundation. And, be sure to brush the powder over your eyes, too.

Use a darker shade of foundation for your bronzer (Lancôme has a great stick) if you want more coverage. Draw it just along under your cheekbones, around your hairline & jawline in a C motion. (This handy chart shows where bronzer, blush & highlighters go.)

And for strictly bronzer, nothing is better than NARS Laguna.

Blush. I am in love with two right now. One is a powder from Makeup Forever. The other is a gel that I found because I was obsessed with the skin from Riverdale and Glossier Cloud Paint is what their makeup artist Erin Mackenzie uses on Lili Reinhart. It brightens your face without being too neon or sparkly. Just the right amount of shimmer.

Highlighter is my newest obsession. Charlotte Tilbury’s is very *spendy* but it literally caused a girlfriend of mine to propose marriage to me for suggesting it! That’s how lovely your skin will look with it.

A note about highlighting: If you have concerns about your eye area (wrinkles? "freckles?" whatever you DON'T want highlighted), after all of this is done, take your foundation brush & smooth a bit of foundation over the entire area, blush & bronzer included, & blend, blend, blend. This is how you get the lit-from-within glow.

Finally, don’t forget how a powerful lip sheen can light up your entire face. I am now obsessed with Formula Z’s Diamond Gloss. My friend Zach’s lips are beyond.

Don’t be scared of the neon!

In the tube it’s super-bright; on the lips it’s super shiny & flattering!

And Zack’s company does such good work for the Trevor Foundation. Order some of his products NOW and you can do good while you’re looking good.

Use your fan brush to put more HD powder to seal it all in, and finish with Urban Decay All-nighter spray. Done and done.

Now, go forth. Make chic happen.

-VV