Aside from my wedding day, I never had my makeup done professionally, save for a few bridesmaid experiences in which I was so overly made up that I thought I resembled a drag queen.
Then my editor assigned me to interview Guy Lento, former makeup director for Chanel, and suggested a before-and-after makeover.
In his Salem home one day last week, Guy spent more than an hour making me up and imparting numerous beautification pointers along the way.
He began with an astringent to strip my face of any residual makeup and moisturizer. Next came an eye cream to fill in small lines and dryness, and a concealer to cover a few blemishes.
Then he smoothed on the foundation, after which he used a Q-tip to blend it into my hairline and along the jawline, followed by powder that he pressed onto my face.
"I love powder," he said. "It takes any shine out of makeup."
He advised using one's ring finger to pat on concealer and other makeup because it provides less pressure than the middle or pointer finger.
At one point he joked, "I'm giving away all my secrets!"
I don't pluck my eyebrows; they have always been small and light, so he darkened and extended them. He applied blush in rounded strokes and advised holding the brush close to the bevel for maximum control.
He used a yellow eye shadow as a base on my eyelids to conceal the transparency and pink color. He applied eye shadow to "add depth" to my eyes, followed by eyeliner — "always sharpen the pencil," he advised.
He outlined and colored my lips with lip liner before applying lipstick, and when he walked me out to the hallway mirror, I was stunned by how flawless my face looked; it reminded me of a China doll.
At one point Guy told me, "There's an old saying that it takes a lot of makeup to look natural. Natural is when you get out of bed in the morning, and no one wants that."
That prompted me to look in the mirror first thing the next morning and come to the realization that, yes, bronzer and blush are my friends.
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For makeup questions, e-mail Guy Lento at guy.lento10@gmail.com.
