Yaba ‘Derby’ Do!

It's the Derby season – and that means taking double the care to look your chic best on the D-Day. Hair and make up are one of the most important elements that can make or break your look. As a rule of thumb, keeping your make-up fresh and clean is the trick to ace your style game at this day event.

Skin: Use a primer before applying an all day long foundation. This assures more staying power. After all, who would want cakey skin The perfect foundation, when applied the right way stays for longer and gives your skin a fresh clean look. Applying a fixing spray after foundation also helps in increasing the staying power and giving your skin a soft fresh dewy look.

Eyes: Softer hues like a soft brown, soft peach or pink are recommended. Depending upon the colour of your outfit, lift up the corners with a deep aubergine or a dark brown. Avoiding black is strongly suggested. Winged eyeliner is back with a gusto! So make use of the classic style for a striking yet fuss free appeal. Steer away from a kajal overload; instead soften the look of kohl eyes like application towards the outer end of the lower rim and smudging with a soft brown pencil. If you are sticking to only the winged eyeliner, give definition to the lower eyes by running a soft brown kohl right outside the waterline. This gives your eyes a soft shape and definition. Water proof mascara works best as it’s long-lasting and exudes subtle drama!

Lips: Lips are the fun part when applying makeup. Using contrasting shades to your outfits is what I love to do. I would team up a green or blue outfit with a bright matte red or pink and go glossy on the lips if I want to keep it soft like a peach or pink. Long stay lipsticks are fabulous for longer events.

Contouring: Despite the fuss around it since quite a while, contouring can be skipped while decking up for the derby. The strobing technique is a better option, as it helps you achieve a natural looking contoured look, without showing any contrasting lines. But again, knowing the technique and having the right shades for this is the trick to achieving perfection. So, ladies, play your make-up card well!

The writer is a professional make up artist and grooming consultant.