1.    Always put on sunscreen. Protect your skin from sun damage even while wearing make up by putting sunscreen on your lips, face and neck especially when going out. Your lips can also get darker even if you have sunscreen all over your face. And remember to add sunscreen on your neck because it is the extension of your face, so that’s one whole part.

2.    Apply the right make up base. The shade of your foundation should be identical to your skin tone. The key is to go for the flawless fresh look where you don’t know where the makeup ends and begins as supposed to pasty white but dark everywhere else.  If you get your foundation wrong, everything else would be wrong. You could also use a tinted moisturizer like the Colour Collection Gluta Whitening BB Cream as your base. It is a versatile 5-in-1 product that acts as sunblock, moisturizer, whitening cream, makeup base and foundation in one. You can mix other foundation with BB Cream to make it darker or lighter, or a little bit of lipstick to create your own cream blush.

3.    Fix your eyebrows. The eyebrows frame the face. When you have groomed eyebrows, everything else will look groomed. Never over pluck because thinner eyebrows make you older, while fuller eyebrows show youthfulness. So, if you don’t know how to shape them, go to a salon. Have a professional shape them once, and just let them teach you how to follow the shape later on. Finally use an eyebrow pencil color lighter than your hair to fill in the gaps. This will make your face more lit up.

4.    Curl your eyelashes. Asian eyelashes tend to go down. It creates a shadow underneath, which makes the eyes’ dark circles more emphasized. So always curl your lashes and add waterproof mascara to prevent the curl from going down. Doing this will open up and accentuate your eyes.

5.    Find warm tone make ups. The best colors for Filipinas are neutral, warm tones like brown, peach, gold, cream, beige and bronze because these are the shades similar to our face. Apply just a brush of color to give warmth to your skin. For blush, try to find a shade similar to when you run or exercise and get the flush effect. This gives off a more natural and healthy look.

 6.    Accentuate your lips. For a dramatic effect, use a red lipstick (try Colour Collection Colour Intense Lipstick SPF15 in True Red) and pair with a black liquid eyeliner.  For an everyday look, create a soft finish similar to the finish of your natural lips. Always keep your lips hydrated. Use lipsticks that are enriched with Vitamin E like all of Colour Collection’s lipsticks. It makes your lips still look moisturized and supple even if the color wears off.

7.    Always consider the occasion and venue when putting on makeup. If it’s for a date, keep it simple. If it’s for a fashion thing with a lot of girls, you can go all out. If it’s in the office, know if it is a creative environment or more business and formal. Remember that it’s not just the clothes you’re wearing, because you also have to match your makeup to your clothes and the occasion.

8.    Use good makeup brushes. Have one set of even just the basic makeup brushes. If you have great brushes, then your application will be flawless. Great products will be useless if you don’t have the right tools to apply them with other than your fingers.

9.    Don’t spend a lot to look good. Invest on basic makeup products with the appropriate shades for your skin. Colour Collection offers a wide array of high-quality and dermatologist-tested makeup products that are affordable and right for the Filipina skin. Remember that beauty is not something you need to spend a lot on.

10.    Carry the right attitude. No matter how great your makeup is, your body language will show how you feel about your total look.  So make sure you feel comfortable about your clothes, hair and makeup. Remember, when you are confident and feel good about yourself, the people around you can tell and will react to you accordingly.

By following these tips from Colour Collection’s chief makeup artist Bianca Valerio, you can bring out the best of your unique Filipina features.