Q: I have dark brown lashes, but I never wear mascara. My lashes don't curl either - they just point straight out. What would be the best brand and colour of mascara to use on my wedding day?

A: With all the mascaras out there, it's quite easy to be overwhelmed by the amount of choice. Hopefully these tips help you narrow it down, as there are a couple of things you want to look out for in your wedding day mascara:

1. Choose a volumizing mascara.
For lashes in photographs, I prefer a mascara that adds volume rather than lengthens. You'll notice that the brush of a volumizing mascara has larger and wider spanned bristles to help pump up the volume of the lashes. I prefer the fullness that a volumizing mascara adds and the definition that it gives to the lash line. Lengthening mascara looks fantastic from a side profile view, but from a straight-on view it can make the lash line look more sparse and less defined.

2. Opt for a black or black-brown, rather than a brown mascara.
Especially for lashes that are naturally lighter in colour, dark mascara will add impact to your eyes in photographs. Your eyes will appear bigger and the whites of your eyes will appear brighter with a darker mascara.

3. Use a waterproof mascara.
This one's a no-brainer! Your big day is one filled with emotions, a stacked schedule and often minimal sleep the night before. To prepare for those tears of joy, be sure to opt for a waterproof mascara as the last thing you would want is for it to start running! Black mascara isn't the easiest to clean off the face once it smears, so be pro-active and choose waterproof!

Before you actually apply your mascara, use an eyelash curler for an eye-opening effect. Shu Uemura, Japonesque, and Tweezerman all offer great and easy-to-use eyelash curlers. For the mascara, try to use a brand new one for the Big Day (or one that is less than 1 month old) to help ensure the mascara remains fresh and glides on smoothly to coat each lash. Some of my fave mascaras include:

drugstore level -Cover Girl's Lash Blast and Lash Exact, L'oreal's Voluminous, and Maybelline's Full'n' Soft

department store level - Lancome's Hypnose, Dior's award-winning Diorshow and MAC Plush Lash

The great thing about mascara is that you can easily try different types without breaking the bank. There are some great ones out there in between the $8-$10 price range. Just be sure to stick to something that's black, volumizing and waterproof and you'll be wedding day set!

Location: Fiorio Salon (Yonge/St. Clair)

Model: Katie B
MUA: Rhia Amio
Hair Stylist: Fabio Persico
Styling Assistant: Keith Sam
Styling/Photography/PP: Nadia Cheema

Where to buy: MAC counters/stores
Price: $20 CAD

I've always been a fan of cream eyeshadows and from the ones that I've tried, MAC is definitely on top of the game. I've spoken of my love for Paint and Paint Pots before for their colour intensity, ease of blendability and ability to extend eyeshadow life. Enter the Metal Urge collection (November 2008) and MAC's latest release of cream eyeshadows. MAC's Brushed Metal-X cream eyeshadows are available in a gorgeous array of metal-inspired colours. The colour pigment is potent and glides on the skin true to how it appears in the packaging. You have to be quick working with these, as I find they tend to set faster than MAC Paints. But once the cream eyeshadows are on, you're set for the day (no touch-ups required with the long-lasting formula!). My current faves are Metalblu (a lovely shimmery navy that's perfect for achieving the trendy blue eye make-up look) and Verdigris (an evergreen colour with silver pearl that makes a great option for that evening smoky eye look!).

For an amplified metallic effect, use Brushed Metal-X cream eyeshadows with the complementary glitters, pigments and liquid liners of the Metal Urge collection. If you're after a high-voltage look, MAC's Metal Urge is the perfect way to get your shine on this season! Enjoy!

For the next few posts, we’ll be focusing on festive looks to get you dolled up for your holiday parties. So while you’re focusing on prepping for the parties you’ll be hosting and shopping for the people on your list, we’ve got your make-up tips covered here:
Smoky eyes are a gorgeous and effective way to prep for the office holiday party or for a night out. The application doesn’t have to be complicated – the look is meant to be messy so don’t worry about making it too perfect!! The intensity of the application is totally up to you. You can opt for a softer look and use brown eyeshadows (as in the example here), or go for a more dramatic look with grays and blacks. Once you have the smoky eye technique mastered, you can use any colour (even purples, blues and greens!) and even add texture (shimmer, glitter) to get the look. Try these application tips for a smoldering look that will get you noticed!

What you’ll need:
1. neutral cream eyeshadow (for use as a base)
2. black eyeliner
3. base (neutral/medium coloured) eyeshadow
4. contour (darkest coloured) eyeshadow (i.e. gray, chocolate brown)
5. highlight (lightest coloured) eyeshadow
6. black eyeshadow
7. black mascara
8. black cream eyeshadow (*optional)

Tools:
Medium dome eyeshadow brush
Crease eyeshadow brush
Blender eyeshadow brush
Eyelash curler

How to apply:

1. Use a base to prevent creasing.
Grab your base coloured cream eyeshadow and apply all over eyelid up to the eyebrow. Using a base is an integral component of the smoky eye – you want to make sure the shadow stays where you initially apply it and not travel south to give you a raccoon eye! A base will help to keep everything in check and prevent your eyeshadow from creasing.

2. Take the neutral coloured base eyeshadow and apply all over the eyelid (see area "a" above).
This part of the application doesn’t have to be too neat. Once the cream eyeshadow layer has set, take the medium dome brush and apply the neutral eyeshadow colour all over area "a". This will smooth out the eyelid for application making other eyeshadows applied atop of it easier to blend.

3. Use the crease brush with the dark coloured eyeshadow and push the brush into the crease of the eye, swiping back and forth to deepen the hollow of the eye (see area "b" above).
Concentrate the bulk of the dark colour on the outside corner of the eye and blend gently inward towards the centre of the eye. For added drama, build up the intensity of the dark eyeshadow by applying a couple of layers. Blend well and keep this dark colour concentrated in and below the crease.

4. To up the smoke factor, take the crease brush and dip it in some black eyeshadow and build up the shadow in area b.
Tap the brush to get rid of any excess flakes and apply it close to the lashline and blend it upwards into the crease.
*optional: For a super-smoky effect, layer on black cream eyeshadow atop and blend. Creams eyeshadows appear more vivid than powder eyeshadows and are perfect for those after a strong smoky look.

5. Use your tapered blending brush to soften the dark colour into the crease blending so there are no harsh lines.

6. Highlight atop the browbone to create the illusion of more depth.
Using a highlighting eyeshadow plays up the light and dark areas of the eye. It brings the most prominent part of the eyelid forward (the area just atop the browbone), while making the hollow of the eye seem deeper by contrast. You can also use the highlighter on the inner corner of the eye for a gorgeous light-catching effect.

7. Apply your liner keeping it tight to the lashline. Line the bottom keeping the line thicker on the outer corner and gradually tapering it off as it approaches the inner corner.
You can line the inside rim of the eyes for a full-on smoky effect, but as this area of the eye is wet, be prepared to check your eyes throughout the night to make sure the eyeliner hasn’t shifted downward.

6. Curl your eyelashes and add two coats of mascara.

Balance the look:
Complete the look with a neutral coloured lipliner and some high-shine gloss. If you prefer to go deeper on the lips, try a coloured lip gloss or a lip stain. Avoid lip colours that are too dark and too matte, as pairing them with a dark eye will have a tendency to make you look aged. Add a bit of blush/bronzer to ensure the cheeks aren’t washed out and voila - you're ready to party and get noticed!
Artist tips:
I prefer using a gel liner or liquid liner for a smoky eye, as they have greater staying power. A pencil works well and is super easy to work with, but unfortunately does not last as long.

Don't forget the importance of polished brows and concealed under-eyes for a completely polished look!

Pack a mini-touch up kit with q-tips, concealer, powder and eyeliner just in case you need to touch up the look.

Remember the diagram above is just a rough guideline of where colours should be placed on the eyelid. As long as you keep the darker eyeshadow colours in areas that recede, the lighter coloured eyeshadows in areas that come forward and blend in between, you'll be fine. So experiment and have fun with it to find your hottest smoky eye yet!

For the next few posts, we’ll be focusing on festive looks to get you dolled up for your holiday parties. So while you’re focusing on prepping for the parties you’ll be hosting and shopping for the people on your list, we’ve got your make-up tips covered here:

GET THE HOLIDAY LOOK | Red Lips
If you’re donning that little black dress for your holiday party, a pair of red lips is the perfect make-up match to complete the look. Red lips make a bold statement and can be an intimidating colour to buy (and wear!). But rest assured, there is a red out there for everyone!

How to apply:
Trace the desired shape of your lips with a matching red lipliner. Lipliner will help prevent lipstick from feathering into the fine lines around the mouth. Fill the lip in completely with lipliner to act as a base for the lipstick. Blot. For a sharp finish, use a lipbrush with your red lipstick and trace around the edges of the mouth. Then apply the lipstick directly to the mouth from the tube, swiping back and forth a couple of times on the top and bottom lip.

How to make it go the distance:
Once lipstick has been applied, blot with a one-ply tissue and reapply one more coat of lipstick. You can also take a large clean powder brush and while holding a tissue to cover your mouth, dust some translucent powder atop the mouth area using a brush. These methods will help stain the lips with some colour so if you end up caught under the mistletoe, you’ll still have some colour on the lips post-kiss!

Complete the look:
Keep the look balanced by going light on the eye make-up – a stroke of black liquid liner and neutral eyeshadow on the lids looks gorgeous with red lips. Red lips also have the tendency to make the face look washed out. Add blush/bronzer for colour and definition after applying lipstick, but use just a small amount so that the lips remain the strongest element of the make-up look.

Artist tips:
If red is still too bold, blot the colour slightly and apply a clear gloss atop to soften the look. If you're not a lipstick kind of girl, there are plenty of red lip stains or cherry coloured glosses to help you achieve that festive red look!

To avoid the dreaded lipstick-on-the-teeth look, take your index finger, place it in your mouth and pull it straight out. This technique will help remove any excess lipstick and keep your pearly whites in check!

It's best to first try on a red you plan on buying and looking at it outside of department store lighting. Use this as a guideline to narrow in on reds that will work best for you:
For pale skin tones, try a cool and bright cherry red. (Think Gwen Stefani, Christina Aguilera).
For medium yellow and olive skin tones, give a warm-toned fire-engine red a go.
For dark skin tones, try a berry colour or crimson red.