How to Make it Look Like You're Not Wearing Makeup

There was a time that women would not want to be seen obviously wearing makeup, and several tricks were employed to enhance the face anyways - like pinching the cheeks for a rosy glow. There has been a resurgence of the look of a fresh scrubbed face, which takes more makeup than you might think. Some tips to apply makeup in an undetectable manner include the following. These might be suitable for a bride who wants to have a fresh face look, a young girl who just started wearing makeup, or a business meeting that you do not want to be misconstrued as a just another pretty face but you still want to look attractive.

Moisturize your face so that powders and creams do not settle into fine lines and dry spots. Unless you need to contour or cover skin imperfections, instead of powder on your nose, consider using rice powder or blotting sheets.

Blot your face with a damp sponge to remove excess makeup. Only apply foundation and concealer where you need it and blot and blend edges.

For eyeshadow, use your natural lid color as the base, or find a neutral that is just slightly brighter than you own skin color. Use a taupe or soft brown as a contour in the crease. If the circles around the eyes are dark, consider using Avon Lighten Up which within about a month will fade dark circles and give a brighter look to the eye. When looking for a brown or grey, make sure the colors do not give a muddy look - look for colors like clay or peach or stick to pre-made trios like Maybelline Expert Eyes "next to neutrals" trio. It is important to find colors that are just slightly lighter or slightly darker than your upper lid. Benefit cosmetics makes some great eyeshadows - including some with a little sheen to them - that look very natural on but are not the colors you might think you would like in the box. Don't be afraid to try colors like Benefit High Thighs eyeshadow or their RSVP cream eyeshadow for a luminous but natural look.

Use an eyelash curler to open your eyes. Doing several quick pumps instead of just holding the curler for a set period of time gives a more natural curl.

Use paper towels to wipe the mascara wand clean, and then lightly coat your lashes only once. Consider even only doing the tips of your lashes. A more expensive alternative is to invest in Revitalash or Jan Marini eyelash growth treatments. About $150 a bottle, they grow your lashes so long and so dark, that you will likely have to stop using the bottle and many users forgo mascara all together. It is expensive, but may save you time and money in the long run to be able to skip the whole mascara and eyelash curler and eyeliner routine. If you are very blonde or have very light lashes, consider a brownish black mascara. If your lashes are very red or blonde, a black will just be too harsh. Lash Fusion by Fusion cosmetics has a good brown black that is still dark, and Shu Uemura Basic Black mascara is a muted black that lengthens without thickening.

L'Oreal has a new line of Nude lipsticks suited for various skin colorings, undertones and hair colors - the nude for a blonde with blue eyes is different than the nude for a fair skinned brunette. Benefit Cosmetics, available at Sephora, also has several beautiful nudes that look like your own lips but plumper, bigger, and better. Moisturize and remove and flaky skin first before application, and blend with a lip brush. Skip the lip liner and apply with a brush, q-tip or your finger. Blot your lipstick on a paper towel or tissue.