Holla Sno-Bunnies!
The past couple of weeks I've been spending some time mountainside, and from what I've seen, we need a little snow-makeup-101.
It seems like girls go to one of two extremes when hitting the snow:
full makeup - which looks ridiculous, even if you are a super-celeb
or full blown commando (makeup, not undies) which unless you are a perfect nordic beauty
can leave you looking like one of the boys.
(And you are unlikely to have landed on my page if you want to look like one of the boys...)
Regardless of whether you are an alpine athlete or a chalet girl,
it doesn't hurt to look just right.
So check out this picture of my lovely friend,
Apart from the fact that she is staggeringly beautiful anyway,
Marlowe gets her snow makeup perfect, every time.
With this being the type of look we are going for, here is
Snow Makeup 101
1. Moisturize (like crazy)
You will need much more moisturizer than normal when getting alpine. The high altitude will strip the moisture out of your skin in no time, so start the day by super moisturizing your skin, ideally with a heavier formulation than you use every day.
Your moisturizer will need extra time to soak in, so go do something else for a couple of minutes and let it really absorb.
2. Facial SPF
I can't say it enough, but a free standing facial SPF of no less than 30 is essential every day, and even more so when you hit the slopes.
The air is thinner, the altitude puts you in a far greater burn zone and sun damage zone. Even if you have an overcast day the sun's harmful rays are bouncing off the snow and into your beautiful face, wrecking all kinds of havoc, from a bad burn to super aging sun damage.
I always go with the highest SPF I can find, normally around SPF 85 to 100
There are some schools of thought that nothing is more effective than SPF 30 anyway, but they also used to recommend smoking to relax you during pregnancy, so I use the highest SPF for the face that I can find.
3. BB Cream (or CC Cream)
Foundation looks kinda crazy when you are at the snow. The multi faceted BB and CC creams make for the perfect solution. They give your skin some added treatment benefits, but also smooth out and even out skin tone, giving you the benefit of a foundation without the weighty-ness of it.
They last amazing all day long, and really give you the look of great skin rather than makeup.
4. Eyebrows
Your eyebrows are so important - they not only frame your eyes, but give your visage dimension as well.
Makeup Forever Aqua Brow is an ideal option as it is waterproof, and will stay on all day, even if your snow-goggles are pressing up against it.
It is super, super concentrated, so use the tiniest amount.
5. Cream Blush
Not so that you look like you have makeup on, but just to sweeten your cheeks, and give you a slight flush.
Unlike a powder blush that sits on the surface of the skin, a cream blush will look like its your natural complexion.
6. Keep Your Eyes Simple
You will have sunglasses or snow-goggles on all day anyway, and a full eyemakeup looks a tad ridiculous.
If you are going with eyeshadow, opt for flat matte neutral shades that you can create dimension with, but not look over done. Keep liner minimal but build some good lashes with a water resistant mascara.
7. Lips
The one thing you will really see is your mouth, and this is where you should draw focus.
Firstly use a really strong lip balm with SPF, and reapply it all day. Scaly, flaky, dried out or burnt lips are anything but kissable. In fact they look hideous. So keep your your lips protected and super moisturized all day.
Draw attention to your mouth with color. Red can be too vampy, and when the light bounces off the snow a red lip can look overly harsh.
Instead seek out bold fucshia and magenta hues.
If those shades feel too intense, look at sunny pinks and corals (not pastel, not opaque). You need a color with life in it. Make sure the formulation isn't too matte and drying, but also not too glossy. Gooey glossy lips look silly up in the alps, and also can work like baby oil on the beach, and burn your lips like crazy.
Go girl...
