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IF Mario Dedivanovic tells you he wears too much makeup and that less is more, you listen.
He’s not just any makeup artist, he’s the man behind most of the Kardashians’ looks of the past 15 years, and his self-titled brand Make-up by Mario is one of the best sellers at Sephora, so he’s no stranger to setting the agenda.
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If you’re a fan of the Kardashians, you may remember the masterclass he gave to Kim on the original series Keeping Up With The Kardashians.
I was fortunate enough to attend such a masterclass myself.
All in all it took me about two and a half hours, which is eight times longer than the time it takes me to apply my own makeup in the morning. It was packed with golden tips for glamour.
Here’s everything I learned from the man who invented contouring.
BLENDING MAKES OR BREAK YOUR LOOK
You might be surprised to learn that the majority of the masterclass was blending. He applied so little product at a time, carefully pressing and rubbing it into the skin, that you could barely see it until you had applied a few layers.
According to him, this is the key to a natural-looking base.
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Make Up By Mario Dual Ended F4 Brush, £32
The main conclusion I came to is that I was applying my makeup wrong. I should have been using a thick brush, like the Make Up By Mario Dual Ended F4 Brush, £32, to push foundation into my skin like you would with a sponge, rather than smearing it across my face.
After applying the foundation with a brush, Mario grabs a damp BeautyBlender Original, £17.50, and pat it all over the face to disrupt the top layer so the end result looks less heavy.
START WITH YOUR EYES
The key to not overdoing any one area, he tells us, is to bounce back and forth between your functions to avoid one area looking overdone, as you are more likely to apply too much makeup to one area without any other context.
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There is one hard and fast rule, though: apply your eye makeup before applying your complexion to minimize mess.
And if you do your eyes first, you won’t need to put as much makeup on the rest of your face, because you’ll be more drawn to your eyes than to any imperfections.
APPLYING EYE MAKEUP WITH YOUR EYES OPEN
He also advises that when it comes to eye makeup, it’s best to do it with your eyes open so you can see what it will look like when you wear it.
Mario recommends using a pencil on the waterline rather than above the lashes when using eyeliner. This will add definition without sacrificing space on the lid.
And if you want to try out a new shape, use a cream pigment, such as MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot, £22, that is darker than your skin. You can then easily touch it up with a cotton bud. It’s much harder to experiment and touch things up when you’ve got loads of layers on.
CONTOUR IS NOT JUST FOR CHEEKS
When sculpting the face, it’s important to shade the inner corner of the eye so that the eyes connect with the rest of the face. Apply a cool contour shade such as Milk Makeup Sculpt Stick, £22 , under the brow at the side of the nose towards the brow bone (though avoid this if you have small or close-set eyes).
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Milk Make-up Sculpt Stick, £22
According to Mario, this is the key to accentuating makeup and preventing it from looking amateurish.
…BUT DON’T TRY TO SCULPTURE YOUR NOSE
He also warns that the nose contour rarely looks natural.
It can have a transformative effect for stage, TV and photo shoots, but it is not applicable for everyday situations.
Instead, use a bronzer with a warm tone, such as Refy Crème Bronzer, £18on the bridge of your nose for a sun-kissed finish.
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Refy Crème Bronzer, £18
THERE IS A NATURAL WAY TO LINE LIPS
When lining your lips, start directly above your cupid’s bow and then taper the line towards your natural lip line, toward the corners.
This will reduce the gap between your upper lip and nose, giving you a more youthful appearance. Overly contouring the outer corners of your face can create a sagging effect, pulling your face downward.
Do the same for the bottom lip. Draw a line down the middle to balance the top. Then work your way up to the natural lip line and out to the corners. You can also skip the inner corners altogether.
This, he says, is his signature “lip lift” and the best way to get fuller lips without needles!
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INSIDER SECRETS
When asked to choose a favourite product from his brand, Mario cheated a little and picked two: Makeup By Mario Surrealskin Awakening Concealer, £28, because it’s ‘self-setting’ so you don’t need to use powder, and Makeup By Mario Master Blade Brow Pencil, £26, because he can use it to fill in his facial hair and eyebrows!
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Make-up by Mario Surrealskin Awakening Concealer, £28
Also a good tip: all shades with the word ‘perfect’ in them, like Makeup By Mario Soft Pop Plumping Blush Veil in Perfect Pink, £30 – are also his favourites, so if you can’t decide on a colour, start there!
A final piece of advice from the man himself: TikTok brings a new trend every day, so don’t take them too seriously and trust your intuition.
I completely agree with you!
How to Save Money on Beauty Purchases
IF your wallet is feeling tighter than ever and you’re looking to save money on your makeup routine, have you ever considered trying out beauty dupes?
