my valentine’s day look

I decided to have a little fun with this look and let Adam dictate what HE thought Valentine’s Day makeup should look like. I always love seeing/hearing about the differences between what guys and girls think of as being attractive, so this was a fun experience! He described his vision: grey eyes that are smokey along the lash line but light on the lid, dark brows, red lips and a “pale face”. I took that last part to mean no obvious blush.

It turned out to be a very classic, almost vintage glamour look, so I opted to skip false lashes and went with a high gloss red lip to lighten things up. There’s nothing wrong with a classic glamour look of course, but it does carry the connotation of being quite rigid and I wanted to do a fresher take on it so I’d be more comfortable wearing it casually.

And I do mean casually. Our big plans for this evening include slumming it at an open-air roadside grill, because we are morally against overpriced, underwhelming prix fixe Valentine’s menus, and coming right home to watch TV in bed so we don’t have to be subjected to every other couple’s desire to make out in public. I know this makes us sound like a cranky, old married couple…but actually yeah. We are totally a cranky, old married couple.

Also we have the worst luck in the universe and every time we go out for a nice dinner we’re inevitably seated next to a couple on an absolute TRAINWRECK of a first date. There have been times where I was honestly convinced our terrible poker faces were to be victims of a hidden camera show. But I digress.

The makeup here is actually very simple but looks bolder because of the tightlining (which I don’t normally do) and of course the red lips.

For my eyes, I tightlined and lined with Tarte Tarteist Clay Paint Liner before smudging it out with a little bit of Fashionista from Tarte’s Tartelette palette. The rest of the eye look was also mostly from the Tartelette palette – I used Free Spirit as a shadow base, and Power Player in the crease, with more Fashionista to darken the outer V. For a bit of dimension and sheen, I used Vermeer from my Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance palette on my inner V and as a lid topper.

PS I cheated a little on the “pale face” since I didn’t want to look dead, and used a bit of Burberry Light Glow Blush in Earthy to give a little bit of colour and definition to my face.

Adam’s verdict? That I nailed it! And while that could just him being polite, I enjoyed both the challenge of interpreting his description and the look that resulted. I don’t wear a lot of grey eyeshadow, but after this experiment I think it’s growing on me. I’ve always considered myself a warm colour person, so this newfound appreciation of cool-toned shades is going to be a lot of fun.

As always, thank you for reading. I hope you have a lovely Valentine’s Day, whether you’ve got something special planned as a date, hanging with friends or just appreciating your own company and spoiling yourself!

Face: It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC Cream in Fair, Innisfree No-Sebum Powder, Urban Decay Naked Skin Concealer in Fair Neutral // Cheeks: Burberry Light Glow Blush in Earthy, Kevyn Aucoin The Celestial Powder in Candlelight // Eyes: Tarte Tarteist Clay Paint Liner in black, Tarte Tartlette, Anastasia Beverly Hills Modern Renaissance, Make Up For Ever Excessive Lash Mascara // Brows: Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Pwoder Duo in Ebony // Lips: YSL Glossy Stain in #9 Rouge Lacque

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