Melissa Walsh is a celebrity makeup artist based in Hollywood, who’s work has been featured in Maxim UK and Cosmopolitan UK.  Her impressive client list includes Alec Baldwin, Blondie and Depeche Mode.  Melissa has been kind enough to offer you lovely readers a few tips on creating the perfect evening look.

MELISSA:

My tips for a special evening out look:   For a special evening out or a first date I like to set aside some time and really prepare! It makes you feel and look good…

First, I clean off the day’s makeup with a good creamy cleanser and then like to put on a layer of Sugar Face Polish by Fresh and leave for 5 minutes. When you rinse it off it leaves you with soft, smooth, glowing skin. Next, massage in a liberal amount of Janson Beckett Alpha Derma CE moisturizer and let it sink in for a few minutes.  This provides a great non-greasy base for make-up and also smoothes out fine lines. I then apply foundation with a sponge and blend thoroughly – I like Hourglass Veil fluid make-up.  Add concealer where necessary and if you need a little help with dark circles under the eyes (I know I do!), use Jouer Age Repairing Brightener.  If you like cream blush now is the time to add some to the apples of your cheeks and once again blend, blend, blend. Finish your base with a light dusting of loose powder – Hourglass Invisible Veil is great as it suits all skin tones and really brightens.

For gorgeous evening eyes, I start by drawing a line as close to the top lashes as possible with an eyeliner pencil in whatever your favorite shade is: black is always good but I like to experiment with other shades like navy, forest green, plum or gunmetal too – Urban Decay do a good selection and their 24/7 Glide On Pencils really do stay on!  Next, add a complimentary shade of eye shadow all over the lid and just into the crease and blend. If you are using black I find a nude shade or gold, silver or a bronze work really well. Go over the lash line again with a deeper shade of eye shadow to really define the eyes, then line the lower lashes with a metallic version of whatever shadow you are using to brighten the whole eye. Add lots of volumizing mascara for thick dark lashes – Texas Lash by Cargo is amazing for this.

Then add a light sweep of a pinky-peachy blush for pale skins – Urban Decay in Quickie is my choice – or for darker skins a more bronzey shade is best – Tarte bronzers are good. The shimmering blush also acts as a highlighter and makes your cheekbones stand out! Finally, for your lips start with a plumping moisturizer for smooth lips – Janson Beckett Beautifull Lips isn’t at all sticky and sinks in providing a great base for gloss or lipstick. Line your lips with a nude lip liner and blend the edges with a cotton swab. Fill in with your choice of gloss or lipstick, depending on your preference, and you’re done! Glamorous makeup but never overdone…

You can view more of Melissa’s gorgeous work at Beauty and Photo!

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.