Party Season Make Up

As my lovelylovely friend Lucy said, we all need to know how to nail that perfect party look 'without looking like a drag queen'. As it is the Festive Season, it is also the time for all that sparkles, glitters and twinkles. This can only mean one thing: shimmer eye shadows and lip gloss.

1. First thing's first. The Face. Think of your face as a blank canvas; making that first mark is always the hardest and so you need to prep the surface first. One of my absolute favourite products is concealer; seriously, the right one works wonders. I have been loving Collection 2000 Lasting Perfection Concealer. I use it in the colour '2 Light". I personally blend this into my skin using a Real Techniques Foundation Brush (I know, I know, the wrong brush but it's so good!), or even sometimes I just use my fingers. I apply this under my eyes, around my nose and wherever else I might have blemishes or any redness.
2. From here, foundation. As it is a party look, I think that a foundation which has illuminating features makes your face have that little extra glow and means that you are left looking even more radiant. The Rimmel Wake Me Up foundation is perfect for this; it has a slight shimmer with it, which not only wakes up but does also give your skin a lovely complexion.
3. At this point I would move on to eyes. If you have an eye shadow primer/base, now is the time to use it! If not, don't worry just take a bit of extra care when applying. If you're going for a sparkly finished look, I would use a matte shade as a base; this will enhance the shimmer and help the top layer blend better. I am currently really loving he MUA Undress Me palette; it is very similar to the Undress Me Too Palette which is a Naked palette dupe, however  I feel that the Undress Me palette could quite easily be a dupe as well! For all eye shadow needs I absolutely adore the MAC 217 brush, (it has served me better than any man ever could!) Blend your shimmer eye shadow from the inner corner of your eye to your brow bone, blending into the crease of your eye. 
4. Over the top of this I would then advise, not even suggest, advise, you to apply a little of MAC's Vanilla Pigment into the inner corner; this really opens up your eyes. Also apply this to your brow bone; it works as a wonderful highlighter. At this point fill in your brows however you wish!
5. Now Mascara. I have absolutely been. loving Avon's Mega Effects mascara so will be applying lashings of that. don't forget to curl them beforehand! This means your lashes will look even fuller and longer once mascara is then applied. 
6. As it is Winter, I also like to give my cheeks a bit of sparkle with a slightly shimmery blusher. I go for reds/pinks during this time as it gives you a nice natural outside glow. I would use either a Sleek blush or Avon Face Pearls. 
7. During this process I would have applied some lip balm of some sort (the amount of lip balms I own is beyond ridiculous; didn't stop me buying two more today though...). This just means that your lips are really ready for lipstick/gloss. I would go for some form of red; I'm really liking Sleek's Rioja Red Matte Me Lip Gloss; it is a very vibrant red. If red isn't for you, maybe try a shimmer gloss such as Soap & Glory's Sexy Mother Pucker. Whack one of these on and you're ready to go!