Saturday, May 4, 2013

Naked Beauty - A Tutorial

All Products In This Post Purchased By Me

Naked Beauty - A Tutorial 

This post was requested by one of my Twitter followers. While there are many YouTube tutorials on this palette, and a whole host of different looks one can create, I chose a very natural, naked daytime look that would be appropriate for work, school and anything in between. This simple look can serve as a base for other more dramatic looks. Just pop on a teal eyeliner along the lower lash line for a trendy Spring look. Smoke out some of the deeper shadows in the palette, and you are ready for a night out. 

What inspired me to create this look, is a recent fashion show that I attended in New York City.  While everyone was looking at the clothes, I was focused on the makeup. Every single model had barely there, nearly naked makeup on. Their skin was obviously evened out with foundation, concealer and powder, but there was no blush anywhere to be seen. Lips were kept nude, and eyes appeared to have nothing more than some neutral shadow and a little mascara. This very naked look is on trend, and with the Naked palette by Urban Decay already in my stash, it seemed like a good look to create. 

Here is how to get the Naked Beauty Look:  

Begin, by priming the eye with an eye primer. I chose Urban Decay Primer Potion. Apply the primer to your lid, and blend up toward your brow bone. Be sure to take a little underneath your lower lash line as well.  This will help make your eyeshadow color appear slightly bolder and more even, as well as help prevent creasing. 

Next, you'll need a flat shader brush. Any flat stiff brush will do, but you want to make sure that it isn't too large. You want to really get into the inner corner of the eye with your brush. If you have smaller eyes, you will always want to use a smaller brush to more precisely place the color.

With your flat shader brush, pick up some of the color Virgin (satin nude), the lightest shade in the palette.  Apply it to the inner half of your eyelid, being sure to apply some to the inner corner of the lid.



  Using the same shade, switch to a pencil brush. If you don't have a pencil brush, a small brush, or even a cotton swab will do.  Apply Virgin around your tear duct, and bring it down to the inner corner of the lower lash line. This  will help make your eyes look more open and awake. If your eyes are very wide set, this is not going to be the most ideal look for you. 


Next, go back to your flat shader brush and flip it over to the clean side.  Pick up some of the color Naked (matte buff). Apply this in a gentle patting motion to the outer third of the eye.  Use only a small amount of product. It's better to layer the color than to pack it all on at once. This will help your eyeshadow look last longer. Bring the Naked shade slightly up into the crease.  You are using the flat shader brush just to place the color. Then, go in with a clean fluffy brush, one with no product on it, and blend the Naked color inward into Virgin. Pull Naked up and into the crease using that same brush to blend.



 Repeat applying Naked, and blending with the fluffy brush until you reach the desired level of intensity. 
For more definition, pick up the color Buck (matte brown) with your flat shader brush and apply it to the very outside corner of the eye, patting some color slightly into the crease.  Again, take your clean fluffy brush, and blend up and into the crease creating a smooth gradation of color. You may want to layer more of the color and blend as we did with the Naked shade.



 Now we need to define the lower lash line. Going back to your pencil brush, pick up some of the shade Naked.  Feather it along your lower lash line, being careful not to take it too far in as to disturb the Virgin shade we applied earlier.  



 Using the same pencil brush, pick up some Buck. Start at the very outside corner of the lower lash line and blend it inward just about 1/3rd of the way in. 








 To highlight the brow bone, go back to the shade Virgin. This time, pick up some of the color using a fluffy brush as we don't want the color to be too concentrated.  Apply it just beneath your eyebrow as a highlighter. 




 

This shade is very shimmery, and since shimmery under brow highlights can be quite dated, I chose to blend it out a bit with a clean fluffy brush to soften the shimmer. Another way you could do it, is by using a very small brush, and applying it just beneath the brow.  However, I've found these shadows are so pigmented, that it's actually difficult to get the small amount of product you need. So I seem to always have to blend to tone down the shimmer. 




To further define the lash line, we are going to use the shade Creep (metallic black) from the palette. I would have preferred a matte black, but since this palette doesn't offer one, we will use what we have. Using a stiff angled brush, lightly draw the shadow close to the outer corner of the upper lash line. Using just what is left on the brush, take some under the lower lash line as well, staying on the outer corner only. To keep the look naked, blend Creep by using a clean pencil brush to soften. Apply more and blend as desired. 

Another option would be to use a push liner brush, and push Creep into the upper lash line. 



 


  That's the completed eyeshadow look using the Urban Decay Naked Palette. To complete my Naked Beauty look, I curled my lashes and applied 2 coats of mascara to top and bottom lashes. I defined brows, applied foundation and bronzer. To keep the look natural looking, I skipped blush. On lips, I mixed E.L.F. Natural Nymph lipstick with a little bit of Stila Convertible Color in Peony.

Here is the completed Naked Beauty Look:








You may have noticed this look is similar to the look I created using the Naked 2 palette. The reason for this, is that this type of look looks good on nearly every eye.  One of the reasons the Naked palettes have been so successful, is that the shades in the palette are universally flattering because they are neutrals. However, the large amount of shimmer in these palettes, makes it difficult for some more mature women to wear, especially for daytime. So, I wanted to show you how these palettes can be used in a less obvious way, than many of the metallic looks typically seen.

Other links that might interest you:

How I do my brows:

http://makeupmattersbylnc.blogspot.com/2013/04/my-perfect-brow-trio.html

Cruelty-Free Collab: 

Look using Naked 2 Palette:  

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4 comments:

  1. Very pretty :) I do a really similar look with this palette when I use it for everyday. Looks very effortless and natural on you, Liza

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  2. Hello! I've nominated you for the Liebster Award! You can see the post here: http://purplesaid.blogspot.pt/2013/05/liebster-award.html

    stay well xx

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  3. Looks beautiful on you, Liza! The perfect no-makeup makeup look! :) It's always amazing how much makeup is required for looking like you're not wearing makeup! :)

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