Eye Sparkle: Beautiful Boys

When I was requesting models for my makeup finals at school, I was floored when I got told by three {THREE!} guys who wanted to get in my turquoise chair and let me doll them up.

And yes, all of them were "guy's guys." But only one was as naturally pretty as Blake.

So even though I didn't take up any of the guys' offers to be part of my makeup school portfolio final, I've still been dying to do a "Makeup for Men" post!

Now, Blake is not that hard to make look pretty and has Dolce & Gabbana model good looks. I will likely do more posts in a series of "makeup for men" for guys with a more rugged appearance.

{I'd like to get my gorgeous husband in the chair, but that would take drugging and dragging his 185-lbs, so I will have to come up with some creative ways of persuasion. ;) }

But for Blake, we chose a Jack Sparrow inspiration!

Anyway... This is how you make up a man.

What I Used...

On the face

Bare Minerals Prime Time primer

Covergirl BB Cream

{FYI, don't use anything Covergirl on men; it just rattles their nerves. Any BB cream will do.}

Almay Smart Shade foundation

Almay concealer stick in nude

Bare Minerals Well-Rested highlighter

Bare Minerals Warmth bronzer

On the eyes

MAC Carbon eyeshadow

Bare Minerals dark brown brow powder

Benefit High Beam illuminator

Any neutrals quad eyeshadow palette

Bare Minerals Celestine eyeshadow dust

Any black eyeliner

On the lips

Any clear lip gloss

Now... I want to address the white elephant in the room, which is that you're putting makeup on a dude. More importantly, and for whatever reason, that dude has put stereotypes and gender formalities on the back burner and trusted you with your fancy brushes and girl products to simply make him look better, NOT FEMALE.

Makeup for men {and in fact, makeup for anyone} is about bringing out a person's features in the best way possible. And with a man, it's decidedly the most natural way. No dude wants to look like he's wearing the latest Maybelline product. Also, as I voiced above, if your client is someone who's uncomfortable with the whole process or idea, then tread lightly around the Covergirl, maybe. Though any makeup is makeup, I feel like Bare Minerals is a little less out-of-one's-element looking.

On Blake, I started with his eyes. I used a mix of the MAC carbon and the Bare Minerals brown brow powder to fill in his eyebrows with an angled brow brush.

I put Benefit High Beam illuminator all over his lids and into the inner corners, following down and half-way along the bottom lash line. I used a medium brown eyeshadow from a neutrals palette in Blake's crease with a rounded fluffy brush. I used a light amount of MAC Carbon with an angled brush and followed Blake's lash lines, top and bottom, and then softened the line with a fluffy brush.

My next step was to add that Jack Sparrow razzle dazzle element. :)

I used Bare Minerals Celestine loose eyeshadow dust (looks like a pewter color), just dabbing it right on the middle of the eyelid at the lash line with a dense flat brush, then lightly along the bottom lash line with an angled brush.

With some black eyeliner, I lined just the outer corners of Blake's lashes and smudged.

Ta da! Jack Sparrow, y'all.

{Don't forget to clean up under the eyes with a wet cotton ball when you're done.}

On his face, I mixed Bare Minerals Prime Time primer with the BB cream together and covered his whole face {I just used my fingers! Easy and natural.} I covered any blemishes by dotting it with the Almay concealer stick and blending with my finger. After it dried, I used a light coat of Almay Smart Shade foundation, blending into the face, over the lips, and down the neck, also with my fingers. {I like this Almay foundation for a man because it's light coverage, and Blake's own skin still shows through!}

I used a flat dense brush to pat some Bare Minerals Well-Rested highlighter under his eyes. And then I finished with some Bare Minerals Warmth bronzer just along his cheekbones and blended into his neck and jawline with a bronzer brush.

Since his lips had already been neutralized with some light foundation, I simply dabbed a bit of clear lip gloss on his top and bottom lips, only in the middle, with my finger.

So now check out my Jack Sparrow male makeup muse...