If you’re after that flawless blend through your eyeshadow, we have the trick to make it happen every time.

For anyone that’s studied makeup, you may have been taught to start with the lightest shade all over your lid, then use a transition colour and finally, your darkest colour. So, what’s the problem? We’re so glad you asked. If you think about this method, it means that every time you layer in a new, darker shade, you’ll be creating some kind of seem. This will take a lot of blending to diminish and often results in harsh lines and visible transitions from shade to shade anyways.

To completely negate this issue, we’re going to have to break some ‘rules’, of which we are firm believers should not exist in makeup anyways. Start with your very darkest colour first. Just hear us out, okay? We wouldn’t steer you wrong! If you start with your darkest colour shadow, blending it to have soft edges, and then add your transition colour, you won’t be adding any harsh lines because you’re going in with a lighter colour. Keep this same plan for your last, lightest colour too and you won’t have to spend half of your day blending.

When doing this, you can follow your usual placement of shades and colours, just try out the theory of dark to light rather than light to dark. It could very well be a game changer for you.

Happy glamming!

xx The Bliss Babes

How to Hide Dark Circles, Blemishes & Discolouration

Have you ever been to a makeup counter or shop and seen those palettes of seemingly random and useless creamy colours like green, orange, purple and pink? A bit daunting, we agree. But these confronting colour wheels are actually little magicians walking the earth with the sole purpose of evening out skin tone differences caused by frustrating things like dark circles, pimples, sun spots and more. We’re here to take the fear out of using them so that you can achieve an even and flawless skin tone!

Of course, treating any discolouration issues possible for long term solutions is ideal. However, there are always times when we need a quick fix for a current problem and using colour correcting concealers definitely offers that.

We’ll start by walking you through what each crazy colour can correct. If you think back to elementary art class, you would have learned all about colour wheels. Whatever colour you’re trying to cover up will be cancelled out or neutralized by the colour directly opposite it on the wheel.

Green Concealers

This shade is used to neutralise the colour red. Redness can be caused by anything from rosacea to pesky pimples and it’s a wonderful trick to be able to take away that noticeable colour.

Purple Concealers

This can be used to eliminate yellow tones which can be more prominent in some skin types, such as those of us that are pale or experience dullness in skin tone. If you feel you have an all over undertone of yellow, then a purple based primer is great option for general colour correcting.

Pink/Peach/Salmon Concealers

These shades work wonders around the eye area for brightening up any dark circles. They are opposite the blue/purple/green shades on the colour wheel which are the ones that can create darkness under our eyes.

Yellow Concealers

Are you starting to see a pattern here? Yellow will cancel out purples, such as those caused by prominent veins or bruises. Because of how thin the skin is on our eyelids, tiny streaks of purple can be visible so a yellow based lid primer or a yellow concealer can also offer a great base before applying eyeshadows.

Orange Concealers

This will help those of us with darker skin pigment to cover even darker circles or spots by bringing them back to the beautiful, all over dark shade of the skin.

Neutral Concealers

For those that have very minor or infrequent needs for concealing, neutral concealers specific to your skin tone are super handy to keep around. If the occasional dark circle due to a late night or individual blemish is your concern, these offer a thicker coverage option to your regular foundation and are extremely versatile.

Choosing products for colour correction:

Many companies offer options for colour correcting wheels/palettes as well as individual colour correctors. If you have a few different colour correcting concerns, you can add a single tool with multiple colour correctors to your kit. If you have one major concern that seems to be an ongoing issue, you can always pick up that individual colour corrector without needing to bother with ones you won’t get much use out of.

As we mentioned in the purple concealer section, if you have a colour concern that covers most of your face (such as all over redness or lots of dark spots), you may be better suited to utilising a primer that has a base of the appropriate colour corrector. For example, all over redness would suit a green based primer, and so on. It is important to remember that concealers tend to be thicker and give the skin less ability to breath, which is super important for our skins health. So, if you’re wanting to cover an all over issue, colour correcting primers offer a more breathable option to traditional concealers.

Seeking long term skin tone evening solutions:

We’ll definitely touch on ways to naturally work on evening out skin tone for a more long term solution in a future post. One of our current favourite ways to work on those under eye circles and fine lines are our 24k gold and collagen eye masks. We have them available in a Brisbane studio for purchase or as a luxurious add on to any of our regular brow and makeup services. Keep in mind, the colour correcting wheels are on the spot correcting options (pardon the pun), they aren’t going to offer a permanent solution.

Have fun using this tool to get an even more flawless look!

xx The Bliss Babes

To all the Bliss Babes out there I haven’t yet had the pleasure of meeting (or are a bit far from our Brisbane studio), I’m Reanin, the owner of Beauty by Bliss! And if there’s one trend I can get behind with full support, it’s highlighting. In an industry predominately based around hiding, covering, and concealing, highlighting smashes all those precedents. This fabulous tool is encouraging our gorgeous trendsetters to show off their amazing features and that is definitely something I love.

So, in honour of this sparkly trend, I thought I would list off my personal favourites. These amazing products are my go to for all the beautiful brides, formal and event attendees around Brisbane that come to see us in the studio each week!

As always, these products and this blog are not sponsored by those listed. It’s just a fact that our Bliss Babes love a good glow and we love to help achieve that!

1. Cover FX Custom Enhancer Drops
These. Are. Awesome. Start with them, end with them, whatever you do…use them! With a range to suit any glowing goal for any skin tone, these bad boys will change your highlighting life. My personal favourites for clients are Sunlight (for more of a golden glow on anyone, especially those with a fake tan – I’m looking at you Brisbane formal girls) and Halo (for anyone with skin on the more pale side).

2. Becca Cosmetics x Jaclyn Hill Champagne Pop
While I’m always up for experimenting with the variety of highlighters in my professional kit, this one is a staple in personal makeup bag. It’s my everyday go-to for highlighting goodness and is always a winner with my clients too.

3. Literally ANYTHING Anastasia Beverly Hills
My very favourite is Amber Gold in the Glow Kit – Ultimate Glow palette. It has a stunning rose gold hue that suits all the trending eye and lip combos right now. Others from this palette that get a lot of love on our Brisbane Babes: Snow (we adore using this as a base under coloured highlighters), White Sand and Sunray.
Not only are their highlighting palettes next level in terms of glow, there’s so many reasons to get behind this family oriented, cruelty free brand.

4. MAC Hello Darling
This beauty gives a far truer gold shade and offers huge versatility. On top of your usual high points for highlighting, it’s stunning as an all over shadow. Of course, I have to give special mention to MAC Soft & Gentle. You saw this one coming…right? Due to the well-known nature of this highlighter, I decided it wasn’t worthy of its own dot point. But, tried and tested, it delivers on everyone with a pure glow rather than a coloured sparkle.

5. Benefit Watts Up
Discounting my natural bias caused by the creative and fun names for all their products, this is a fantastic cream highlighting tool. It has heaps of different uses, which is one of the reasons I absolutely love it. Watts Up is perfect to use while doing your cream/liquid bases to intensify the final product when using powders and powder highlighters on top. Alternatively, if you’re going for an all over dewy finish, this cream highlighter can stand alone too.

6. BONUS: MAC Vanilla Pigment
Even though it’s not technically a highlighter, this pigment makes a wonderful base (similar to the way Snow gets used, as I mentioned above). I love to pop a bit of vanilla on the highest point of the cheek bones, tip of the nose, and cupids’ bow when I’m planning to layer a more colourful highlighter on top, such as ABH Amber Gold or Sunray.

Happy Highlighting Bliss Babes!

xx Reanin

While everyone knows that the incredibly talented Adele recently graced little old Brisbane, you may not have connected the dots that this meant her spectacular makeup artist did too. Yes, the king of #eyelinergoals and creator of what cat eye dreams are made of, Michael Ashton, accompanied the superstar and gifted the world with a few of his top makeup tips, which we’ve outlined for you below:

While touring around, Ashton bestowed upon the mere mortals of the makeup obsessed world a few fantastic tips and tricks on all things makeup, not just his signature eyeliner look.

What can you take away from his recent interview with Grazia? A fabulous explanation of why many makeup artists, like those of us at Bliss, place concealer under clients’ bottom lips…and why you should too!

While the top lip is often home to a bit of fluff, making it a less than ideal location for concealer, underneath your bottom lip can sometimes play host to a bit of redness and fine lines, which are the perfect match for concealer.

He also divulged the two Marc Jacobs products he uses to create his signature liner look:

Fineliner (to create the initial shape)

Magic Marc’er (over top, to define and create the ‘flick’)

Ashton’s personal technique includes starting with the centre of the lid, then lining the inner corner, and finishing with the outer corner flick.

We hope you enjoy these fun tips and give them a try for yourself!

Wondering what other areas are best to pop some concealer on during your morning makeup routine? We’ll be sure to cover that in the next post!

xx The Bliss Babes

I’ve put together a short list of the makeup products we can’t get enough of this week in the salon, from highlighters to eyeliners and a few things in between! Each makeup item was individually bought by members of the Bliss team, so you can rest assured there are no sponsored picks here.

Highlighter of the Week

M.A.C Soft & Gentle

This one is an oldie but a goodie, so you may have even tried it for yourself already! I adore this highlighter because it’s so versatile. While it can do the trick topping off the occasional ‘strobing’ look, this highlighter really shines (pun intended) when you’re going for a natural glow. It’s subtle enough that you can use it to highlight under the brow bone but can be built up enough for a striking sheen over the cheeks as well.

Eyeliner of the Week

Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner

I love this one so much, I bought two; one in Intense Black (of course) and one in Snow (a fierce white). The texture is gorgeous gliding on easily and dries so fast there is no risk of your makeup client or yourself looking up and smudging it all over your perfectly blended eyeshadow. I’ve had fun with creating your standard black eyeliner looks and adding swipes of Snow under, over or halfway through for a stark contrast. It comes in a variety of different colours as well, so you can really master one product but get lots of different results.

Colour Corrector of the Week

Kryolan Colour Correcting Wheel

These beautiful makeup creations never get the love they deserve. They save me every day by correcting the dark circles under my eyes and any blemish that surprises me when I wake up. I’ll definitely be doing a detailed post dedicated entirely to maximising the use of colour correcting wheels, but for now just know that this specific one is my absolute favourite. The texture is perfect, making it easy to smooth onto the appropriate areas and the colours are subtle (not like some that sport unnecessarily fluorescent shades) so it’s then easy to top off with powder and call it a day.

Makeup Remover of the Week

Benefit They’re Real Remover

I love this makeup remover because it’s a cream rather than a liquid, so you aren’t left feeling oily but moisturised instead. I can comfortably let it sit and dissolve the day’s makeup before gently wiping it all away. It’s also fast acting and super effective on everything, including water resistant and waterproof makeup.

If you have a chance to test out any of these products, definitely let us know what you think. We’d also love to hear any of your go to products that we should try out for ourselves!

xx Reanin

You’ve just realized you’re snoozing your third alarm with no planned outfit for a day full of meetings and you can’t even fathom the added time caused by Brisbane traffic. The last thing you need is anyone you’re seeing today thinking you overslept. We’re here to give you a step-by-step guide to powering through your morning makeup routine and arriving on time, Brisbane traffic or not.

Step 1:

Unscented Baby Wipes

I love these because they’re cleansing, refreshing and nasties free. They won’t leave residue, fragrances or anything that could be harming to your skin.

Step 2:

Foundation

This can be applied with (clean) hands and with no brush applicator necessary, it means one less item to deal with. As an added bonus, the warmth of your fingertips helps the foundation to go on super smoothly. I highly recommend testing out different foundations and wearing them around all day to get a great feel for how it works for you before committing to one. You can do this with any of the counters at places like David Jones or Myer and they will generally be able to give you a take home sample as well.

Step 3:

Colour Correcting Wheel/Concealer

The two colours I use most are the pink/orange shades for under eyes which cancels out brow/purple/dark skin tones (such as those created by a lack of sleep) and the green shade which counteracts redness (such as that caused by blemishes and spots). Dap the colour corrector on that you need and cover with another thin layer of your foundation to even it out completely.

Step 4:

Powder

Mattifying skin using a powder can help to add a youthful look and diminish shine/oiliness. It gives a more flawless overall finish like that of airbrushing.

Step 5:

Tweezers & A Spoolie Wand

You can a do a lot to shape your brows at home between appointments with your brow shaping specialist. If you can find time to have them shaped and tinted every 4-6 weeks, you won’t need to worry much about filling them in and can simply stay on top of tweezing the noticeable stray here and there to tide you over. Brush through with a clean spoolie wand (like the brush on the end of your mascara wand but without any product) and you’ll be good to go.

Step 6:

Mascara

A quick swipe of mascara draws more attention to the eyes, creates a stark contrast between lashes and the whites of the eyes to generally make them pop.

Step 7:

Blush

Blush is a great way to bring a little colour into a lack lustre look if you’re feeling a little flat and two dimensional after you’ve finished with your foundation and powder. It adds a youthful colour to your cheeks and interest to your overall look.

Step 8:

Pinky Nude Lip

Your ideal ‘nude’ shade, contrary to what many people think, should sit about 1 to 2 shades darker than your natural lip colour. You want your lips to be enhanced and given a wash of consistent colour without specifically drawing attention to them, but you definitely don’t want them to fade completely by going too light.

I haven’t included products here because the purpose of this blog is not to inform you on what to buy as it’s entirely up to personal preference. The best option with every product is to test them out for yourself and seek hands on advice from local professionals to cut through wasting time with products that aren’t for you anyways. The main goal here was to show you that with just a few low-cost staples that suit your personal needs you can create a polished look in minutes and it doesn’t require specific training or skill. Makeup is all about displaying to the world exactly what you want to embody and feel. This style might be perfect for you or might be completely left field, but either way, it’s a perfect starting point for an easy to achieve and timeless look in a pinch.

Have the best day!

xx Reanin