Glam Slam: Makeup Mondays — Fall Trends For Women Of Color

Alicia Keys, looking glamorous in grey Dolce & Gabbana, was positively radiant on the red carpet Thursday night, no doubt due to her momma-to-be glow! You can look luminous too, courtesy of gorgeous makeup and here to reveal how, is Celebrity Makeup Artist Napoleon Perdis.

“My career long mantra has been ‘not to prime is a crime,’” says Napoleon, who has worked with Serena Williams, Leighton Meester and Debra Messing. “To prep your skin, always start with a primer like my Auto Pilot Pre-Foundation Skin Primer. This creates an amazing base for your foundation to glide over and ensures that your makeup lasts throughout the day.”

Here are Napoleon’s how to’s for every skin tone.

LIGHT SKIN LIKE HALLE
Face: Balance the complexion with my new Sheer Genius Liquid Foundation. It ensures a luminous coverage and blends flawlessly into skin. The key to perfecting your foundation application, is to blend with a foundation brush to the feature focus areas of the face. For additional freshness and glow to the skin, blend in a liquid bronze luminizer like my NP Set Liquid Veil in Houston.

Cheeks: For that glowing-from-within appearance, I’m all for cream-based products. Apply a creamy, warm, pink blush, like my Barely Blushing in Barely Rouge to the apples of the cheeks, and then lightly tap in and blend around the hairline.

Eyes: I start and end every look with mascara. This helps to frame the eye and map the rest of your makeup look. Blend together shades of brown to heighten and define the eyes. Use an eye palette like my Prismatic Eye Shadow Quad in 5. Blend the medium champagne shade as a base, the shimmering coco brown for the lids, and the chocolate dark brown for the crease.

Lips: For a pop of color in a coral shade, use my DeVine Goddess Lipstick in Hara. I like to line lips last to perfect the look and add definition where necessary. Line the lips with my Lip Pencil in Terracotta, filling the lip for extra depth. Finish the lip look with a warm, shimmering gold base gloss like my Luminous Lip Veil in Gold & The Beautiful.

MEDIUM SKIN LIKE JADA PINKETT SMITH
Face: Work a velvet matte finish into the skin by using my Foundation Stick and a finishing powder like my NP Set Pasarella Powder Foundation. To address uneven pigment, try selecting two foundation shades that best match the lighter and darker areas of your complexion. Apply powder on the forehead, nose and front of the cheeks, but keep the cheekbones free from powder to allow a natural highlight.

Cheeks: For a flattering flush of color use shades in plums and burgundies. Sweep the powder blush across the apples of the cheeks and gently along the cheekbone for contour.

Eyes: Apply a deep earth brown liner onto the upper and lower lash lines as well as outer corner of the eye to build the structure of the eye. I suggest using my China Doll Gel Eyeliner in Earth. For the color feature, use an emerald and dark khaki eye palette and start by blending the khaki color on the outer corner of the eye like my Color Discs in Arabian Nights. Then sweep the emerald shade on the center of the eye lid like my Loose Eye Dust in Emerald City for a pearly, iridescent finish.

Lips: Since the eyes are such a strong statement, opt for a more neutral lip. A creamy lip shade in a warm pink like my NP Set Lipstick in Athens is the perfect match. Layer on a complimenting gloss like my Luminous Lip Veil in Sugar Plum and line to give a natural shine, and then use a lip pencil in mocha to keep lipstick in place.

DARK SKIN LIKE GABOUREY SIDIBE
Face: Keep shine in check and even out skin by using a matte foundation like my China Doll Foundation. Create contour and dimension to the face, working a reflective bronze base cream to the high points of the face such as at the top of the cheek bone, brow bone, and along the length of the nose. I recommend using my Bronze Luminizer Foundation Stick.

Eyes: Start with a coat of mascara to map the rest of your makeup look. If your lashes are naturally curly, opt for a mascara with thickening and lengthening properties to enhance the curl. Define your brows with a brown pencil—black can look too harsh on any hair color. Line the eyes with a black gel liner on the inner rim and upper lash line. Then work deep charcoals and silvers on the eyes. Start by using a black shade around the lash line and a charcoal shade on the lid. I love the combination of my Color Disc shadows in Midnight Express and Gunmetal Glam for this sultry look.

Cheeks: Apply a flattering berry-colored cream stain on the apples of the cheeks or for a powder option, use my Color Disc in All That Shiraz.

Lips: I suggest using a merlot cream lipstick on the lips like my DeVine Goddess Lipstick in Zoe, but don’t fill in the lips completely on the bottom center of the lip. Instead, use a pink or ruby gloss to create full lips with a touch of shine. To finish up your lip look, always apply liner last – this way the liner will glide on smoothly, leaving a more natural outline and the color won’t bleed. Try my Lip Pencil in Plum Role.

For more info on Napoleon or his products, check out www.napoleonperdis.com.