here is a tip I found out today experimenting, lol. If you over powder and you look a little too dry/cakey as the day goes on, take a slightly damp tissue and press it into the makeup being careful not to rub. It worked for me

applying a light dusting of bronzer along the hairline and jawline helps take away the masky look or heavy makeup.

applying a light dusting of bronzer along the hairline and jawline helps take away the masky look or heavy makeup.

i really like that you said brows are sisters, not twins! because mine are slightly different and i always felt people were staring at them and really bothered me lol, but i have to admit mine are actually pretty good.

all those other tips are great too!

What does "blot" mean? D:

What does "blot" mean? D:

But what does that have to do with applying the powder foundation?

Usually you 'blot' (press gently) with paper (rice or tissue) then powder the offending area

i love mac i have so much mac makeup and brushes! oh i love the brushes! you need good brushes ppl! once you get good brushes youll never use those drugstore little foam brushes. mac makes the best eyeliner ever -powerpiont eyeliners! they do not smudge or wear off. and the fluidline eyeliner gel pots are great for a dramatic look, but dotn by if your a beginer, you have to learn and practice to make them look good. all over there eye shadow is great and easy to use, such rich colors. and i love all of there lip products, lip glosses and lipsticks. if your curious just go into the store and ask for help! they are so helpful, just tell them what your interested in and they will help you pick stuff out! i just love M.A.C. !!!!!!!!!!!

ooo i love this! especially the thing about the bronze smoky eye

I've been doing the colored liner with the black smudged liner on the outer corners a lot and I love it!

thanks! great info.

OoO I love all of these tips!! Thanks Rush! Is the Studio Fix compact better than the Studio Fix Fluid? Or just good for touch-ups throughout the day? I have nothing to do touch ups right now.

I been using MAC for the past few months. I just bought some more the other day, I bought True Romantic powder blush, Plush Lash mascara, and a new bottle of SFF. I wonder if I should have gotten the SF compact though. I want the Spiked for eyebrows, but they were out at the store!

Other products that I like/have are:

- Fab Orchid/Dash Lily Dual Edge Eye Pencil

- Select Cover-up(great for spot coverage IMO)

- Bare Canvas Eye Paint(for entire upperlid before putting on eyeshadow)

- Brush 187 (I love that Brush for my foundation!)

- Brush Cleanser

- Eye shadow: Texture(crease/upperlid), Espresso(outer corner), All that glitters(right above pupil on lid)...and blend some

-Charged Water

I want a lot more now that I've read all these tips and stuff! =) I just ordered Dan's Regimen so I'm hoping this will keep me from breaking out, ugh I hate breaking out!

oh and how often should I clean my brushes?

What is a good waterproof mascara by MAC?

I just wanted to let you guys know that I have been using the Benifit Playsticks or whatever there called. Foundation sticks basically. I have the one in Tea Party. I absolutley love it and it does not break me out at all. Unfortunately for me MAC foundation does not work with my skin. Im not saying its bad like everyone else but I dont think it is good for my skin. I still love their eyeshadow and all that other stuff. I even stopped wearing MAC blush and my cheeks have improved sooooo much. Ok thats it! =)

So many tips...does anyone have photos along with the tips?

Very interesting thread..

here is my list........

my lipstick

my hair straightener

my eye liner

When setting your foundation with powder, swirl your brush in the powder, tap off excess, and blot on face softly, don't "brush" it on... it really makes a difference.

For blending in the crease, use a circular motion. When you just drag the brush across the crease, you end up with a big racing stripe...not so cute. So start with running it across, but on the outer edge, use small circular motion to blend, blend, blend.

THANK YOU!!! IT REALLLLY WORKS AND LOOKS SO NATURAL!!!

cool thread. someone mentioned the everydayminerals, I orded some samples but I actually saw that the powder would go into my acne scars the ones that are a lil deeper and well just made it look worse. So i need the liquid foundation it just makes my face look smoother, i do use powder afterwards but notice if I just use powder as foundation I don get much coverage. Now I jsut started the acne regimen today and im a lil concerned about using makeup with it but I will def. not leave the house without makeup well lets just see how it all goes.

Dunno if it's been said, but that business card trick that Michelle Phan uses is really helpful. Cut a crescent into the card until it fits under your eye, wet an angled brush, and apply some eyeshadow underneath your lashes using the business card as a stencil along the lashline (or a bit below). Colors like light blue give your eyes that chic look.

Definitely subscribe to MichellePhan on youtube if you aren't.

Can also use it for mascara.

This isn't for everyday use, unless you don't mind buying them both, but for a couple of months whenever I want longer, thicker lashes I've been using a lengthening and volumizing (not a word...) mascara.

First I use L'Oreal's Double Extend Beauty Tubes and then I use Covergirl's Lash Blast. My cousin has also tried this and we were both shocked and how much longer and fuller our lashes looked. Almost gave the effect of fake lashes. Only thing is that you have to take your time and be thorough so it doesn't look clumpy/sloppy.

I think buying both of them is cheaper than some of the fancier mascaras, with (imo) a more impressive result

^ I had a double-sided mascara, Maybelline's Intense XXL. It was a microfiber mascara; one end is white and adds tubes to the ends of your lashes. Other side was black and covered up the white plus adding more. Worked excellent!

Was reading an old issue of Cosmo:

To make lips look fuller

1. Line around your lips with a natural pinky beige liner.

2. Use a lipstick shade that matches [or closely matches] on your lips.

3. Dab white eyeshadow to the center of your lips.

4. Top with a clear gloss, but avoid corners where the lipstick can spread.

5. Highlight your cupid's bow with a pink eyeshadow. Trace it alone with a wet lip-liner brush to add the pouty affect.

Quick ways to swell down eye puffiness:

-Chill some spoons in the fridge and place on your eyes.

-Use a bag of frozen peas, they'll contour around your face better.

-Put cool, moist black-tea bags on your eyes for 5 minutes or use an eye cream that contains caffeine. Caffeine tightens the skin.

-Watch the salt: any more than 2,300 milligrams of salt can lead to swelling everywhere. Load up on vitamin B rich foods which reduce bloating.

-Drink lots of water!!

Diminish Dark Circles:

-Slice a potato. Leave them on for 10 minutes, the enzymes in potatoes are a skin lightener.

Dryness, Irritation:

-Drink more water and less caffeine.

-Blink more. Staring at the computer, you are less likely to blink as much. Keep a note on the screen reminding you to blink.

For sparkly fresh eyes, rim lower lashes with a nude pencil and apply a shimmery champagne color to the inner corner of your eyes. Swipe on a navy mascara to make the whites of your eyes appear brighter.

Prep lined areas with a moisturizing eye cream to smooth out creases. Tap it on, and don't get too close to your lashes.

To draw attention to bags under your eyes, line your top lashes and apply several coats of mascara.

If you have green eyes, go for plum shadows; blue-eyed girls should choose gold hues, and if your peepers are brown, midnight blue will make them pop.

Anyone have any tips on how to use AHA over my whole face and not have it mess up my makeup?

AHA seems kinda tacky even after letting it set for a while, so while my Everyday Minerals powders go on ok, the AHA seems to make it glob up a bit as the day goes on.

My Question for Ya'll:

I've found the AHA to be pretty tacky to the touch even an hour or two after application, which has affected how my mineral makeup looks throughout the day. AHA seems to be making my face look shinier than BP did, regardless of the moisturizer I've been using either over or under it. Anyone have any suggestions or their own regimen to share?

I mean, I find that, since I'm more inclined to put it on more often, the AHA has kept my skin clearer, but it seems to make it a bit shinier and it kind of gunks up with my makeup. Any ideas out there?

P.S.-I totally recommend the Jojoba and the AHA. Very much worth the price! Just hoping Dan comes up with a less-tacky version of AHA......DAN, CAN YOU HEAR ME??? lol....

Any AHA/makeup suggestions?

BTW, LOVE what the AHA is doing for my acne, just need to recalibrate how it use it with makeup..

My Personal AHA Regimen (Looking for suggestions if anyone has any!)

DAY:

-Wash w/Regimen cleanser in shower

-Since it's winter and my skin's all sensitive/dry on the cheeks, I've been putting like a pea-sized amount of Cetaphil lotion over my face, just enough to cover yet absorb within a minute or two. Maybe I can skip this when the weather's warmer?

-Then, apply the AHA. It stings sometimes, mostly on irritated/broken out areas, but only for a few moments. Really. Still haven't seen any excess irritation develop due to my AHA use.

-Then SPF moisturizer. (still using my hoard of zinc-based Olay Moisturizer, definitely DON"T use the new Olay formula!)The warning on the label's true:the AHA made my skin more sun sensitive, I just got sun burnt in January, even though I never burn! ALWAYS use SPF, ALWAYS!

-Then Everyday Minerals makeup (everydayminerals.com, way better & cheaper than BareMinerals)

NIGHT:

-Wash face w/Regimen cleanser or Cetaphil cleanser

-Pour about nickel size drop of Jojoba Oil into palm (nickel size may be too much for some people, but I like the feeling, and at the end of the day, who cares if I put a dab too much on?), rub hands together, and just slosh it all over my face, including eye area with eyes closed. I read somewhere on here that it helps your eyelashes get stronger since it's like lash conditioner, and have personally found that to be true, plus it helps loosen stubborn mascara, etc overnight, but I only recommend in eye area if you are going to bed soon, otherwise you'll want to blink the haze out and get annoyed, but it doesn't sting or anything for me. (Disclaimer: Don't put near your eyes unless you know your body and feel it will help! Jojoba has never irritated my skin/eye area, but use caution!)

-Apply AHA, let it dry as long as possible, then sleeeeeeep.....

I've found the AHA works probably about as well as the BP for me, with the extra bonus of smoother skin (plumps up my lil' baby 26 year old wrinkles), no bleached clothes, and I find it less irritating than the BP so I want to wear it more, both morning and night.

^ Usually I only use AHA at night because of the tackiness, and drying problem. But, an option for you maybe is to do your AHA first, then BP, then moisturize?

I love mac makeup. However I do it quite a bit differently than you suggest... like I can't imagine using a brighter color shadow on my lids with brown and neutral tones upwards. I usually use the brightest color on my crease, with a muted middle tone on my lid and then the neutral light color on my brow bone.

Also, I only apply eyeliner to the outer half of my eyes because my eyes are kind of close together and I find that that opens them up.