Make-Up Tips for Dark Skin

It is a fact that the darker the skin, the more fractionally thicker the keratin layer. In youth the skin holds more oil and many girls complain that their skin is greasy. This natural oiliness begins to disappear in the 30s, the skin often goes very dry and women who neglect their skin or fail to clean it meticulously sometimes, develop a gray or ashy look.

Moisture control is very important. So is the use of a light emollient cream for nourishing. A moisturizer should be used under make-up, if you are going to be outdoors. Protection against wind is important, and head scarves should be worn, particularly near the ocean. Dark skin individuals have only a little more natural protection against the hot sun than fair ones. They can burn and sunscreens with built-in moisturizers should be used when the sun is hot.

Baths should be warm, not hot, and plenty of body and hand lotion should be used to keep the skin smooth and with a natural sheen.

Many dark-skinned girls, including the models, do not like a lot of makeup. They are very selective about it. Dark skins need little or no tinted foundation or powder, for they usually have a natural glow and a good allover tone. Where skins are lighter, however, there is often patchiness of color with a flush in the cheek and a greasy panel in the center that looks darker. Make-up can help to even up the color, but red or yellow tints are not usually flattering. Cool brown and earthy shades are the best.

Most girls utilize creams or powders for shaping. Blushers are useful in helping to contour the face and should be in brick or wine shades, hardly ever in light pink or red. Brown or wine-red lipsticks are most becoming. Girls with the lighter type of brown skin like the occasional brightness of a red or cyclamen. Avoid pearlized lipsticks, for they make the mouth look bigger. Girls with well-shaped mouths often look best without any lip color at all, just gloss.

For eye make-up, pearly colors are bad if, the lids or eye areas are at all puffy. Where the lids are narrow a pearlized gel can help to shape the lid. If lashes are on the short side a narrow band of cream or bone color on the lid helps. False eyelashes should be avoided unless the eye area is large. Colored eye shadow is not usually becoming, but a little soft blue or green can be attractive.

Dark girls usually have fragile hair and although it looks plentiful and springy it is actually fine and soft in the Afro style. When you observe the Afro style under a microscope the hair appears as a flat oval. The more curly or frizzy the hair is, the more oval. Straight black-Chinese or Indian-hair is almost round under the microscope. Persons of mixed blood can, of course, inherit mixed characteristics not only of hair and skin texture but also of subtle color.