Bobbi Brown’s Complete Makeup Guide: How to Apply Makeup

Makeup always looks best on skin that’s been properly cleansed, moisturized, and is free of any flakes or texture. “You have to make sure that the skin is smooth—not dry, not oily,” Bobbi says.

A good moisturizer for your skin type will do the trick, and a dab of eye cream will fill in any fine lines around the eyes. For dry skin, go for a nourishing cream (you can even add a drop or two of face oil if your skin is extra parched), and if you have oily skin, opt for an oil-free moisturizer. You don’t need a lot, just enough to hydrate your skin and make it look refreshed. This will give you a good starting point to know where to place foundation; oftentimes well-moisturized skin looks fresh enough that you may realize you don’t need foundation all over your face, just in certain spots.

There are a few ways to get foundation onto your face and have it look seamless:

• Your fingers: A good way to blend creamier formulas into the skin because the warmth from your fingers will melt the formula into your skin more seamlessly.
• A makeup sponge: Leaves a fresh, natural finish with cream and liquid formulas. Dampen the sponge before applying for a more sheer and natural finish, and build coverage by dabbing and blending over certain areas.
• A foundation brush: Great if you’re going for full coverage or blending large areas. Easy for applying precisely around the nose and under the eyes. Learn more about different makeup brushes in our guide here.

Whatever tool you prefer, make sure you’re applying it in good lighting. Natural daylight is best, but if it’s nighttime, bright, natural-toned light works as well.

Foundation should appear to melt into your skin without settling into any fine lines, so starting with a light application and gradually building or layering it in the places where you want more coverage is the way to go.

Think of concealer as a concentrated and targeted version of foundation—it’s not for all over the face, but you can apply it with the same technique as you do foundation. Concealer can be worn on its own or as a complement to foundation when targeting specific blemishes or spots. You can blend it in with your fingers, a small fluffy brush, or a makeup sponge to make the application look seamless. Keep in mind that concealer for brightening your under-eye area and hiding dark circles will be slightly different than concealer meant for hiding blemishes.

1. 1. Since under eye shadows tend to have a bluish or purple cast, a peachy or yellow-toned concealer helps counteract that, no matter what your skin tone is.
2. 2. Apply a tiny bit of eye cream before applying your under-eye concealer to plump and hydrate the area.
3. 3. Blending under eye concealer with the warmth from your fingers helps to melt it into your skin seamlessly, but if you want more coverage, a brush or makeup sponge would be more effective.
4. 4. Don’t forget to set your under-eye concealer with a bit of powder if you’re wearing eyeliner or mascara to prevent the rest of your eye makeup from smudging.

1. 1. Any dry, flaky skin patches around a blemish will be highlighted by concealer, so you do need to apply moisturizer before concealer to these areas to hide the appearance of flakes.
2. 2. Choose a highly-pigmented formula in a shade that matches your skin tone because anything lighter will draw attention to what you’re trying to conceal.
3. 3. Building layers of light coverage will look more natural than globbing on a heavy concealer, which may be more than you need.
4. 4. A small concealer brush is best for blemish-concealing because your fingers may smudge it out of place. You’re going for precision here.

Once your foundation and concealer are on, you can use a fluffy powder brush to set them with a light dusting of face powder. This will prevent your makeup from sliding around, and it’ll cut excess shine. If you have oily skin, you don’t want to skip this step, but for drier skin (or if you’re going for a dewy look), you can target your powder placement with a smaller powder brush.

Bronzer and blush are great products to warm up your face and help you look more awake and refreshed. You can use bronzer to give yourself a healthy glow, even out your skin tone, and warm up your neck and chest.

Bronzers come in liquid, cream, and powder formulas and in matte or shimmery finishes. Matte bronzers look most realistic and are more versatile to use as an all-over face color, while shimmery bronzers work great as a highlighter, applied sparingly on the high points of the face or just on the cheekbones—not as an all-over color.

Different mediums yield different results. Powder bronzer is the most versatile, especially because it comes in different finishes. Cream bronzer is great for its ease of use—you can apply it with your fingers, pressing it into the skin and blending with your fingers for a fresh, glow-from-within finish. Whatever you do, don’t mix cream on top of powder or powder on top of cream—it won’t blend well and will likely look streaky.

For bronzer, you want a wide, rounded brush with a dense but soft head to be able to pick up and deposit a bronzer powder onto your skin as well as buff it out. Aim for where the sun naturally hits your face—the tops of your cheeks and cheekbones, the bridge of your nose, and sometimes a tiny bit at the top of the forehead. Bobbi suggests investing in two: one shade that’s slightly deeper than your natural skin tone but still works on your neck (so you can even out the shade difference between your face and neck), and a brighter shade with a pinkier or peachier tone to liven up your face and make you look more awake.

For blush, you want a medium-sized, round, fluffy brush. A brush that’s too big or wide will make it more difficult to target specific areas of the cheek. Smile, and find the apple of your cheek. Apply blush there and then blend outwards towards the temples.

Highlighter has become massively popular in the past few years, adding a whole new category to complexion makeup. It’s meant to give your face a dewy, fresh, glow, but some highlighters veer very sparkly and can make it look like you’ve just smeared glitter on your face. The key is to look for one that has a super-fine micro-shimmer so you can build your glow—a less-is-more approach is key here.

Highlighters come in cream, powder, and liquid formulas. Cream tends to be the most realistic-looking because you apply it with your fingers and it melts onto skin, while powder and liquid formulas tend to sit on top—that’s not a bad thing, it just means that it’s more noticeable (which might be what you’re going for, especially if you’re being photographed).

Apply highlighter to the high points of your face, or anywhere off of which light naturally reflects: your cheekbones, the brow bone, and sometimes even on the bridge of the nose.

Eyeshadows come in all colors of the rainbow and in tons of finishes as well. Bobbi’s basic eye involves three shadows: light, medium, and dark neutral shades (in a matte or flat finish), all of which are geared toward your skin tone.

• Light: a pale bone- or ivory-colored shadow, taupe, and a chestnut brown
• Medium-to-tan: a taupe, chestnut brown, and an espresso brown
• Dark/Deep: medium brown, dark brown, and a deep brown/black shadow

When applying your eyeshadows, use the below as a general guideline:

• Lightest shadow: used all over the lid as a base to nix excess oil and even out the tone of your eyelid
• Mid-tone shadow: used on the visible lid below the crease for depth
• Darkest shadow: used for extra definition along the lash line or when you’re creating a smoky eye

A fourth dark shade can be added for a smoky eye, and you can play around with texture since eyeshadows come in matte, or flat, and shimmer finishes.

1. 1. Always make sure to tap off excess powder from your eyeshadow brush before applying to your eyelid to prevent shadow fallout.
2. 2. Take a step back from the mirror in between each step of your eye makeup to make sure your shadow and liner placement is where you want it. If it’s not, adjust accordingly.
3. 3. Keep cotton swabs around to fix tiny errors or pick up fallen shadow that might land on your cheeks.
4. 4. For those with mature skin or fine lines around their eyes, using an eye primer under your eye makeup will be immensely helpful to prevent any of the color from creasing.
5. 5. Heavily textured eyeshadow that’s either extremely matte or very shiny looks much more dramatic on mature skin as well. Opt for shadow with a subtle shimmer or satin finish for a natural-looking effect.

The most dramatic way to emphasize and define your eyes is by using eyeliner. There are pencil, gel, and liquid eyeliner formulas available to create whatever look you’re going for, be it a striking cat eye or a subtle pop. You can also use a dark powder shadow to line your lids.

1. 1. “Warm up” a pencil by running it over the back of your hand a few times. That way it won’t drag along your eyelids in a jerky motion when you try to apply it.
2. 2. For liquid eyeliner, it’s best to store pens tip-side down. Some of them require a good shake before using them or running the brush-tip on the back of your hand to get the ink flowing.
3. 3. With gel eyeliner in a pot, choose a brush with a fine point (whether it’s angled or tapered), and don’t pick up too much of the product to avoid clumps or smearing.
4. 4. To apply a line as close to your lashes as possible, try looking downwards at a mirror as you apply or gently tug your eyelid upwards (like makeup artists do when applying on other people).
5. 5. Eyeliner placement can change the effect of your eye shape. For natural definition, don’t stray away from your eyelid. To emphasize your eyes more, extend your eyeliner beyond the corner of your eye into a wing shape or cat eye. The result is a wider-looking effect.
6. 6. For a stronger liner effect, combine formulas (i.e., a gel on top of a shadow or pencil.)
7. 7. Cotton swabs are great for softening harsh lines or cleaning up liner mistakes.
8. 8. For mature skin, crisp lines tend to be more difficult to create and inevitably end up looking a bit wobbly since the skin around the eyes is thinner and looser. A smudgy pencil or gel liner topped with dark eyeshadow can create a nice effect that looks organic and not super harsh.

The mascara formula and shape/material of the wand is your preference, but most mascaras come in lengthening, volumizing, or curling options.

1. 1. Keep clean spoolie brushes on hand to separate lashes that have been stuck together right after applying mascara.
2. 2. Before applying, wipe any excess mascara from the tip of the wand onto the tube’s opening or on a tissue to prevent clumps.
3. 3. Look down when applying so you can get the wand as close to the root of your lashes as possible without smudging the makeup onto your eyelid.
4. 4. Whether or not you curl your lashes before applying mascara, gently lifting your lashes upwards with a finger after the mascara is freshly applied will help set them into a curl while the makeup is drying.
5. 5. Pressing a small amount of powder onto your under-eye area with a flat foundation brush or a fluffy eyeshadow brush will help keep your mascara on the lower lashes from smudging under your eyes. If you find that your mascara always smudges no matter what, try a waterproof or tubing formula. (Tubing mascaras contain micro-fibers that form a “tube” around each individual lash when you brush it on—they’re made to be non-smudging, water-resistant, and easily removable by slipping off each lash with warm water and a gentle cleanser.)

There are many brow products out there to define your eyebrows. You can fill your brows in with an eyeshadow or a brow powder that’s the color of your brows using an angled brow brush and a spoolie. There are also brow pencils, waxes, and gels, with pencils and gels being the most versatile. If you’re using a pencil, make sure you keep the tip sharpened (if it’s a twist-up pen, find one with a fine point). Brow gel comes in many different formulas, but it’s mostly meant to darken and shape your brow hairs. Brow wax has a stronger hold and can really mold your brow hairs into the look you want.

1. 1. Always work from your inner brow towards the ends, lightly brushing upwards and outwards, following the direction of your natural hair growth.
2. 2. Brush a spoolie through your brows to diffuse any harsh lines after filling them in with powder or pencil.
3. 3. If your brows begin looking overly filled or too dark, brush a tiny bit of face powder through them with a spoolie to diffuse it out.
4. 4. Your inner brow should line up with the inner corner of your eye, and the arch should be three-fourths of the way across your eye. When defining the tail end, follow the natural direction of your brow.

Lip colors come in all kinds of finishes and shades: tinted lip balms, lip gloss, lipstick, and liquid lipstick, all of which can come in different finishes including sheer, satin, matte, shimmer. Sometimes lip color can be tricky to apply or require a bit of maintenance, especially when it comes to really bold, saturated colors. Keep in mind that sheer, tinted, creamy formulas will be easy to wear and more comfortable for long periods of time, while matte and liquid formulas can feel a bit drying and uncomfortable (but make a stronger statement).

1. 1. Wearing a lip balm underneath lipstick can make the lipstick more comfortable, but it will sheer out the color and finish. Applying a moisturizing lip balm and then blotting it off with a tissue will help moisturize your lips without affecting the finish too much.
2. 2. Any dryness and flaky skin on lips will be highlighted by matte lipstick—make sure you gently buff your lips with a lip scrub or, better yet, a warm, wet washcloth to remove any flakes.
3. 3. It’s always a good idea to blot. The most important thing with wearing red or any bold-colored lip is to make sure it doesn’t end up on your teeth (or your chin, if you’re eating).
4. 4. Lip liner will help keep your lipstick from bleeding beyond your lip lines, but it can look a bit harsh if the line is too crisp—go for mimicking the natural edge of your lips rather than over-drawing.
5. 5. Pressing a lip color into your lips with your finger in a dabbing gesture (similar to how you apply cream blush) will give your lips a flushed-from-within look, and you can control how saturated you want the color to look.
6. 6. Remember: the sheerer the lip color, the more forgiving and versatile it will be. One way to make a nude lipstick work for you is to sheer it out with lip balm.

At the end of the night, it’s time to take apart your lovingly crafted makeup look and give your skin some time to breathe. Eye makeup can be the trickiest to remove: Apply eye makeup remover and let it sit for a few minutes, rather than scrubbing with a cotton pad. Dip a Q-tip in olive oil for detail work along your upper and lower lash lines. Wash your entire face with micellar water or an oil or gel cleanser, and don’t forget to moisturize after cleansing.

Whether you already know a blush brush from a bronzer brush or are simply looking for tips on bringing glamour into your daily routine, navigating the beauty industry takes knowledge, skill, and practical experience. No one knows their way around a makeup bag better than Bobbi Brown, the makeup artist who built a career and a multi-million dollar brand with one simple philosophy: Be who you are. In Bobbi Brown’s MasterClass on Makeup and Beauty, learn how to do the perfect smoky eye, find the best makeup routine for the workplace, and hear Bobbi’s advice for aspiring makeup artists.

Get the MasterClass Annual Membership for exclusive access to video lessons taught by masters, including Bobbi Brown, RuPaul, Anna Wintour, Marc Jacobs, Diane von Furstenberg, and more.