Covering Up Dark Circles  By Bobbi Brown

What You'll Need:

To conceal dark circles, you'll need a yellow-based creamy concealer, in one shade lighter than your natural skin tone. This color masks the blue discoloration and brightens the skin. If you're extremely fair, a porcelain-toned concealer will work. 

If you're lucky and you need very little coverage, a stick foundation one to two shades lighter than the rest of your face can double as your concealer. 

If you have extreme darkness, use a corrector. Peach or pink in color, a corrector counteracts the purple or green tones underneath the eyes that a concealer can't cover on its own. If your skin is pale, choose the lightest colors, starting with bisque or light pink. For deeper skin tones, choose a medium or dark peach.

How To Do It:

• Apply a light eye cream underneath the eye area. It should absorb quickly and leave your skin feeling smooth. 
• If you're using a corrector, use a concealer brush or your fingertip to apply it at the inner corner of the eye. Continue placing the corrector underneath the eye, staying close to the lashes and patting the corrector wherever your see darkness. Gently blend the corrector by pressing it with your fingers. You're now ready to apply your concealer.
• Use a concealer brush or your index finger to apply the concealer in thin layers. Be sure to blend well.
• Apply the concealer all the way up to your lash line and - this part is critical - onto the dark areas by the inner corners of your eyes.
• Use more concealer than you think you need, and blend it into the skin, using your fingers in a soft, patting motion.
• If you still see dark circles, go ahead and apply a second layer of concealer.
• To  lock the concealer into place, apply pale yellow powder over the concealer and on the eyelids with a powder puff.

TROUBLESHOOTING: Corrector or Concealer  By Bobbi Brown

Your concealer and corrector should be undetectable. If they aren't, you'll have to tweak your application method. Here are some common concealer and corrector problems and my time-tested solutions for solving them.

If it looks crepey
The thin skin underneath your eyes needs to be hydrated, since makeup settles into those tiny dryness lines. Remember to apply eye cream every night and every morning before your makeup application.

If it slips off
You've likely applied too much moisturizer beforehand. Keep your concealer and corrector on for longer by using less than a pea-sized amount of moisturizer, and then waiting until it fully absorbs before applying your makeup.

If it creases
It needed to be set with enough powder. After applying your concealer, sweep sheer loose powder over the under eye area to lock your makeup into place.

If it's cakey or streaky
Your ratio of eye cream to concealer is off. If your concealer looks thick and muddy, you'll need to apply more eye cream. If your concealer looks greasy and separated, you've applied too much eye cream. Add or remove product as necessary. (You may have to start from scratch.)

If it's too light
Very carefully, use the lightest dusting of light bronzing powder to warm up the area.

If it's not bright enough or if it's too dark
Add a tiny dab of fast-absorbing eye cream, and then re-apply your corrector and concealer. 

If your eye makeup falls onto your concealer
You'll have to start over. Use eye makeup remover, a cotton swab, or a makeup sponge to carefully remove all under-eye product. Then pat on your eye cream, let it absorb, and re-apply your corrector and concealer.

How to Apply Mascara according to Bobbi Brown:  

To Curl Or Not To Curl                           

Done right, curling your lashes has the eye-opening effects of a double espresso. Make sure you’re using a lash curler that’s wide enough to cover the entire lash line and that the rubber pads are properly in place. Always curl bare lashes; if you do it after applying mascara, they’re more prone to breakage.

Applying Mascara
1. Blot the end of the brush on tissue to get rid of excess mascara.
2. Don’t pump the wand in the tube. This will push air into the mascara and cause it to dry out.
3. Holding the mascara wand parallel to the floor, work from the base to the tip of the lashes. Roll the wand as you go to separate lashes and avoid clumps.
4. Always apply mascara to upper lashes from underneath; brushing mascara over the top will weigh the lashes down. If you wear mascara on your lower lashes, use a lighter hand than you did on upper lashes.
5. To prevent clumping, allow mascara to dry in between coats. Apply one to two coats if you want a subtle look and two to three coats if you want a more dramatic effect.
6. Don’t tug or rub when removing mascara because this irritates the eye area and can make lashes fall out. Soak a cotton ball with remover, press down on lashes to dissolve mascara, then gently wipe it away.

How to Choose Makeup Brushes

Having the right set of brushes can mean the difference between years of great makeup applications—and years of mediocre ones. Makeup artist Troy Surrat, who has worked with Jennifer Lopez and Freida Pinto, tells us how to choose the right ones:

· Buy the best you can: "I really believe high quality brushes are worth the price," says Surrat. A $60 blush brush, for instance, can last for decades (really!) if you care for it properly. Natural bristles work best; they're fluffier and have a natural cuticle, like human hair, "that grabs pigment and holds it until you place it exactly where you want on the face." Blue squirrel is the finest (and most expensive), but pony hair, goat, and kolinsky sable are also good. Don't skip synthetic brushes altogether though—they're best for applying creams and liquids.
· Keep them clean: Once a month, mix warm water with a little soap and swish the head of the brush around in it. For natural bristles, Surrat recommends shampoo (Aveda Shampure works well) and for synthetics, simple dish soap will work. Once they're clean, rinse them well and blot with paper towels, then lay them flat until they dry completely. Don't stand them up in a cup to dry—gravity will go to work on the wet hairs and pull them out of shape.
· Get the right set: The four most useful brushes are a large powder brush; a slightly smaller, fluffy brush for blush and bronzer; an eye-shadow brush that's about the size of a fingertip, and a smaller shadow brush for smudging and blending. "Look for a slightly domed shape," says Surrat. "It rolls best across the skin and deposits less pigment [all at once] so you can be precise."
· Build a base: Don't bother with a brush for foundation, says Surrat. "Foundation brushes tend to blob too much coverage right where they first touch your face," he says. "I prefer using a damp Beautyblender sponge to stipple on makeup, because it allows for very sheer coverage."

Elizabeth Angell/ALLURE Magazine