The 3 game-changing tips I learned from a makeup artist

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A week ago I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Andreea in person at a studio nearby so she could do my makeup! I shared a few sneak peeks on Instastories, but today I’m telling you all about the experience as well as the major things I learned from having a pro apply my makeup. Also, find a link to her video, where you can watch the WHOLE experience at the bottom of this blog post!

The first video I watched by Andreea was this one where she shared common makeup mistakes people make and how to do it differently. I loved it and sent it to all my friends!

Then I posted about it on Instastories and so many of you watched it and commented that you found her because of me, which allowed her to find and reach out to me!

We chatted a bit back and forth on Instagram, and then I got a message from her that she was coming to the USA from Paris and wanted to collaborate on a video! I’m pretty sure my jaw dropped open and I was so surprised that this may actually happen!

The day finally came and we met at a studio in Durham (a city near Raleigh). It’s crazy to meet someone in person who you only know through social media because you’re already so familiar with them! We chatted a bit while the videographer set up the studio which was great because I got to know her even better.

But enough backstory, let’s get into the makeup talk.

I showed up to the shoot with a bare face and told her she could do whatever she wanted. I was very excited about her doing my eyebrows as I have never had a professional do them before and wanted to see what she would do that was different than what I’ve tried to teach myself. Beyond just the eyebrow shaping and filling, I learned so many things while she was doing my makeup and want to share a few of the tips here!

Tip #1 Spend more time than you think prepping the skin before applying makeup. She applied a base by Bobbi Brown all over my skin and spent a few minutes rubbing it in and then pressing it further in with her hands. She mentioned that it’s not unusual for her to spend several minutes prepping her clients’ skin with products to make it deeply moisturized. I knew that it was important to apply skincare and give it time to settle into the skin before applying foundation right on top, but I didn’t consider that it would also help to apply extra hydrating products or primers for my dry skin, AND to spend time massaging it in.

Tip #2 Apply eyeliner directly into the lash line. This is something that I would say that I knew already, but feeling her really press the liner right into the base of my lashes was a lightbulb moment for me. The tendency is to apply liner on top of the lash line, but really you’ll get the best impact from it by lining the skin between lashes instead of just above. The quickest way I’ve found to do this is to dot liquid liner between my lashes to fill in any skin that may show through.

Tip #3 When determining the shape for your eyebrows, pick up a little bit of light brown eyeshadow or eyebrow powder on a brush, and dot it at the 3 points used to establish shape. I wasn’t confident on how close to my nose or how far out to go with my eyebrow filling since my natural eyebrows are so short and thin. I knew the method of laying a brush or pencil against your nose to create the points, but I loved the trick of dotting actual product onto your skin so you can know exactly where to start and finish. I’m not sure why this never occurred to me but it was so helpful and made filling in my brows at home so much easier! You can see Andreea using this technique during the video!

Andreea has a video showing how she does her eyebrows here, but she also does them in a lot of her other makeup tutorial videos too. I have a post about a few different eyebrow products if it’s helpful see how different products look on the skin! Here’s a post I found on Pinterest demonstrating how to determine the starting point, arch, and ending point of your brows.

A few other big takeaways for me were how lightly she touched my skin with the brushes. She also didn’t load up the product on her brushes either, which surprised me. She picked up some loose powder to dust on my skin to set the foundation and I noticed that she only swirled the brush in the lid of the powder, and then tapped some of the excess off. There was also never a time that she was pushing hard enough against my skin to flatten the brush at all. Sometimes I will do that when blending out bronzer or blush, but I’m trying to have a lighter hand in general since I saw how much easier it was to build up and blend out the powders that way.

The overall look was a smokey eye and nude lip, something very different from my typical makeup. She wanted to do that since I’m fairly comfortable with my typical “everyday” look and I have to say it was so much fun to see a whole different look on my face. I loved the warmer tones of brown on my eyes! In fact, when I got home from this shoot Justin said he thought my eyes looked much more blue than they usually do. I know that warm browns tend to bring out blue eyes more, but I’m so used to gravitating to neutral tones with my shadows. I’m going to rummage through my shadows, though, and find some warm browns to incorporate now that I’ve seen it done right on my own face.

It was such a fun experience! Not only did I get to meet Andreea, but I had the absolute pleasure of sitting in a chair and letting her work her magic on my face.

Watch the video of Andreea creating this makeup look, including all the products she used (and bloopers at the end) HERE!

Photography by Jordan Maunder, earrings can be found here

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Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says · 02.27.18

Thank you for sharing these tips! I totally agree with point one. Makeups no use if you don’t build up a good palette to work on. 🙂

Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com

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Allie says · 02.27.18

You look beautiful! I love the golden brown on your lids, and the way she smudged the shadow in below your eyes. Do you know what colors she used? Thanks! xAllie http://www.theallthatglittersblog.com

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Mary Anna says · 02.27.18

I really enjoyed watching the video and seeing a different look. I am very similar to you, in that I lean more toward browns and pinks for eye shadow, but I love this look! And you earrings!! What are they?

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Kate says · 02.27.18

Added a link to the bottom of the post! Thank you!

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Vickie says · 02.27.18

This was so fun to read and the video was even better! Especially loved the bloopers at the end. You look beautiful!!

Been loving your blog, instastories and YOU for a while now – thanks for always bringing a smile to my face!

P.S. I LOVE those earrings – where did you get them?

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Kate says · 02.27.18

Added a link to the bottom of the post! Thank you!

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Brianne says · 02.27.18

LOVE the eye shadow on you! It really makes your eyes pop! Definitely going to spend more time on prep after reading this as well!

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Erinn says · 02.27.18

I am in love with that eyeshadow look! And those booties are super cute. Target right?

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Karly says · 02.27.18

How Fun & So pretty! LOVE LOVE LOVE the way your make-up came out. Great tips also!!

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Catherine says · 02.27.18

I just discovered your blog and am loving it! Where are your earrings from?

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Lauren says · 02.27.18

The third picture up from the bottom is STUNNING. You look like a model! I love the bronzed eyeshadows.

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Jill says · 02.27.18

I can’t believe how blue your eyes look with the coppery shadows. Stunning! I definitely need to try this.

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Crystal Petersen says · 02.27.18

I 100% agree with Justin… the warm tones make your blue eyes POP!! Beautiful! I’m super excited to hear that you’re going to try out more warm tones. Good luck!

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Kate says · 02.27.18

thanks!

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Debra Freund says · 02.27.18

Thank you do much for this info and video!♡

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Kim says · 02.27.18

That look really does bring out your eyes! Gorgeous!

Kim

http://trendkeeper.me .. Blogging Tips: Starting out!

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Angela says · 02.27.18

Stunning, Kate! Did Andreea say why she used bronzer and highligher and not blush? Thanks!

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Kate says · 02.27.18

No, I’m guessing she was just going for a nude/bronze look and didn’t feel like it needed blush!

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Ellen says · 02.27.18

You look amazing! Love your new makeup look. Could you link the products used in a widget or something?

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Kate says · 02.27.18

You can find all the products listed below her video! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mmDg_3WIvI

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Katie says · 02.27.18

First – you look gorg! Second – totally watched that first video you linked and learned so much! DAMN I am so guilty of doing it wrong!
Finally I have an issue with my mascara always rubbing off on my skin under my eyes. Is it because of my under eye concealer or my mascara? Anyways to prevent it or help?

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Lorie says · 02.27.18

I LOVE the nude lip! Beautiful and really draws the eye upward to your eyes.

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Michaela says · 02.27.18

Wow this was my favorite video! Loved all the tips and tricks shared! 🙂

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Kristy says · 02.27.18

Beautiful, Kate! Her techniques really make your blue eyes pop. Looking forward to trying these!

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Amanda says · 02.27.18

Andreea was adorable and did a fantastic job! But your brows looked absolutely incredible after Cara of Maskcara did them, too.

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Kiran says · 02.28.18

You look great Kate, that bronzey smokey eye is gorgeous!! I’ve watched Andreea’s YouTube video and I’m gonna try recreating it

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Elle says · 02.28.18

Beautiful! I love the copper-y colour around your blue eyes! You also look a little like Hilary Duff (not a bad thing in my books, lol). 🙂

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Fortune Dushey says · 03.01.18

Love your make up! So much easier to apply eyeliner directly into lash line instead of drawing a line above. Makes life easier for sure!

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Gallantly, gal says · 03.01.18

Great tips! Eyebrows are so important to me, and it’s hard to keep a consistent shape, so the 3-point system is something I will definitely try out. I also realized the importance of having a base, so to spend time on the skin. Otherwise, no matter how fab the rest of your makeup looks, it just won’t stand out as well if your skin looks blotchy. That’s tricky for me especially with things like blush or contouring. They just kind of melt into the complexion and make my skin look worse.
I learned the eyeliner trick recently too and I love it! I like doing it on the lash line (and between the lashes) instead of just on top.

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Rebekah says · 03.01.18

If I were you, I would wear my makeup like that every day!! It looks so good. It makes you look younger, too- not that you looked old.

I would love it if you could redo this look in simpler form so I can imitate at home with drugstore makeup (or whatever kind). I looked at the video yesterday and immediately tried to recreate it on my face. However, my eyes just didn’t come out as dramatic. Help, please!

Thanks for your blog. Enjoying the pregnancy posts. I am expecting as well.

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Tanya says · 03.03.18

Your brows!!! SO so gorgeous. They are just so natural looking!

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Molly says · 03.04.18

Where did you find your top? It is adorable.

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Cherie says · 03.04.18

I agree with Justin! The warmer tone really does bring out the blue in your eyes! I would love to see you with some warm highlights in your hair as well!
PS. I learned how to curl my hair from your videos just a few years ago! 🤗

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Julia says · 03.04.18

Oh my gosh she is so funny, I just watched her makeup mistakes video for the first time! Did she inspire you to do your blowdrying mistakes video?

Going to watch more of her vids stat!

xo Jules

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Elese says · 03.06.18

You look so fresh & glowing, these are really solid tips. It’s amazing how much a good base does for your overall look & I think that the pencil tip is really key especially for blondes, my lashes are basically non-existent otherwise!

elese | elesedowden.com

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Susan says · 03.07.18

Enjoy u both , So was fun for us to see her do your makeup as well! So happy you found each other as we feel you are in “ real” life too😳
Wishing u a quick healthy happy delivery!!

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Caitlin says · 03.07.18

OMG. I finally watched the video. I learned SO MUCH. I always learn tips and tricks from you, but Andreea Ali was just great! So many good ideas and tips that I can take away! I want to shout from the roof top-this was fantastic. Thanks so much!

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