There’s nothing more romantic than a night out on the town with someone and a gorgeous makeup look to go along with it. You should always set aside an evening where you and your partner can step back and spend some time to value your relationship. From working different hours, raising kids and managing everything else in-between, life can certainly get busy. I give you permission to be selfish and do whatever corny, fun date night you have in mind.
Who am I you may ask? My name is Julia Dantas. Toronto based makeup artist, content creator, finalist on Kim Kardashian West’s TV show Glam Masters, and Burberry Makeup Ambassador. I love filming tutorials on new makeup looks and capturing content that gets people inspired. My biggest motto is ‘what you think about you bring about’. You have the power to live your dream life. 2019 is the year to live your best life!
Okay, enough about me! Let’s chat makeup. I am going to give you a step-by-step makeup breakdown so you can get all glammed up for your special night with your lover or bestie. This night we are going BIG! What speaks date-night more than a bold red lip? I want to keep the face looking fresh and flawless with the main focus on those Ruby Red lips!
The first thing you ALWAYS need to start out with is a base. Moisturizer! Whether you have oily or dry skin, you need your skin hydrated. Grab your favourite cream and give your face some love. Before we move onto makeup, you will want to use a good primer. If you have oily skin, you will want to use a mattifying primer like Rimmel London – Stay Matte Primer. If you have dry skin, you can stick to using just your favourite cream or you can go a step further and use a good luminous primer to give you a nice radiant glow. My personal go-to is the Burberry Beauty Fresh Glow Luminous Base.
Next, we are going to be applying foundation. A lot of people skip this step because maybe they already have perfect skin? Trust me…you want to apply foundation because it is the base for your makeup and will help all your makeup stay in place all day long. This is your canvas now, not a face. You want all the colours to blend out evenly on your canvas, therefore you want the canvas to start off with the same colour everywhere. Some of my personal favourite foundations are: Burberry Fresh Glow, Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Cover Stick Foundation, NARS Radiant Longwear Foundation and Too Faced Born This Way Foundation.
Who has under eye circles? Don’t worry…I do to. Time to fix that problem with concealer. Concealer is pretty much like a full coverage foundation so you only want to use it on your problematic areas. Use a shade that is 2-3 shades lighter than your foundation, so it will help brighten under your eyes. I apply my concealer in a triangle under my eyes, down the bridge on my nose, my chin and a touch on my forehead. I know this may seem like a lot…but you will look like Kim Kardashian West by the end of this look.
Next, you want to accentuate those gorgeous cheekbones and hide that lovely double chin, because I know mine isn’t cute! Thankfully we have something called contouring, and it doesn’t have to be as scary as you think. Use a contour shade that is more of a cool undertone and avoid using orangey colours. All you want to do is mimic a ‘three’ shape. At the top of your forehead, right under your cheekbone (pro tip: try a kissy face and where you see the line is where you should shade in) and right under our chin. Try using Kat Von D Shade & Light Contour Palette.
Moving on to the blush. Blush has totally come back so feel free to be generous with this product. I like using tones like are more peachy than pink. Smile big and apply the blush right at the apples of your cheeks. You can then blend with the extra product back into your cheek bones. Give NARS Orgasm Blush a go!
Time to highlight to the gods! But seriously. Highlighting is something that has been extremely trendy over the last few years, and personally I never want it to go out of trend! You want to apply this at all of the high points of your face so that when the light catches you, you will have a nice pop when applied correctly. I like to apply my highlight right at the tops of my cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose, right under my brow bone and in my inner ear duck. Some of my favourite highlighters are: BECCA Cosmetic in Champagne Pop, ColourPop Super Shock Highlighter and Burberry Fresh Glow Highlighter Pen.
My favourite part of my makeup application…the brows! I have found brows can completely transform your look. Sometimes they just need a little bit of assisting. Using my Benefit Precisely My Brow Pencil, start at the tail of the brow, where you can be a bit more heavy-handed and building your way to the front of the brow. Do light strokes and be patient. This process can take a while to perfect but once you got it, you got it. I then use the spoolie on the other side of the pencil to comb all my hairs up and blend out any harsh lines.
Moving on to eye makeup. We want to some create something soft, glowy and to give ourselves some Victoria Secret vibes. All you want to do is apply a brown eyeshadow or contour shade right in the crease of your eye with a fluffy brush. This is super easy and will give your eyes a bit of definition. You can continue by using your highlighter that you applied on your face and using your finger to place this right on your eyelid. This will help brighten up your eyes. Lastly, use your go-to mascara to coat your top and bottom lashes. I like using the NARS Climax Mascara.
Time for the show stopping lipstick. This is your time to step out of your comfort zone and try out a new look. I know sometimes it can be scary to try new things, but this final look is going to be one worth taking a selfie. Finish off by using a true red lipstick to create a classic and timeless look. In the photo above, I’m using the KKW Beauty Classic Red Lip Liner & Lipstick. Pro beauty tip: use setting powder on your lips afterwards with a sponge or brush to matte your lipstick and help lock it in place.
Last but not least – we need this to stay in place all night long. For this, you want to use a setting spray to lock it in. My ride-or-die is the MAC Cosmetics Fix Plus. I promise you, you will be surprised how long this stays intact with the right products and setting spray.
Now is your time to shine while you’re out with your new lover, long-time companion or BESTIE! You look stunning and should feel stunning too. All those head-turns are because you are rocking this look!
WORDS & PHOTOS: JULIA DANTAS
