Wear what, when?
Put your best face forward — literally. If you’re still stumped about what face to put on for what occasion, then let this guide help you figure it out.
Occasion
Going to work
The Goal
MANILA, Philippines - The most important thing here is to look professional, regardless of where you work. You want to look like you mean business, and you want everyone you run into to take you seriously. Everything else sort of depends on what kind of job you do, how relaxed your office is, and whether or not you have an Office Crush. Everything changes when you have an office crush.
Eyes
If you have a straight-up corporate job: Keep it light. Definition is definitely necessary, so a touch of brown eyeliner along your upper lashline (but not the lower; it may be a bit much) is a good idea, and matte neutral shadows in a shade just a touch darker than your skin in the eyelid crease to give your eyes depth. Top your lashes off with some mascara.
If you have a creative job: It really depends on how flexible your job’s HR department is, but you can probably get away with wearing nothing on lazy days (if you’re self-employed, you can do this all the time), and wearing winged liner in basic black or some other jewel tone if you’re feeling playful. Keep it a little toned-down, though; not the kind of eye makeup you’d wear to the club or on a night out.
Lips
If You Have A Straight-Up Corporate Job: Nudes and neutrals are your best bet, like a your-lips-but-better shade, in a sheer finish. You want something pretty, but not attention-grabbing. If you think you need a little color, go for lipstick with a touch of pink or coral, but nothing too bright or too loud.
If you have a creative job: And if that job allows you to have fun with your face, then have fun with your face. Wear brighter colors if you want to, wear darker colors if you want to; just be sure to strike a balance with whatever eye makeup you have on. Never let both features be strong at once; choose one and stick with that. You can’t go wrong with a good red lipstick, though.
Occasion
First date with someone you’ve never met
The Goal
You want to look good on the off-chance that this blind date ends up being The One, but you don’t want to a) look like you tried too hard to look good for this total stranger, meaning: desperate, and b) not look like yourself, because in the event that this actually leads somewhere, you need to manage expectations as early as now. And we all know that “I woke up like this” only applies to Beyoncé.
Eyes
Define your upper lashline with a brown or black pencil, and wing it out. Curl your lashes and top them off with a coat or two of mascara, and make sure it’s not clumpy mascara. If you’re lacking in the lower lash department, define the lower lashline subtly with taupe or brown matte eyeshadow, and make sure to blend it out well. Apply a little shimmery champagne eyeshadow or highlighter in the inner corners of your eyes. This should be enough to make your eyes look bigger and brighter, but simple enough that it’s mostly unnoticeable and you still look like you.
Lips
Go natural, or as close to it as you can get. If you can get away with just using a tint, then just use a tint. Otherwise, go for something peachy rather than pink — pink’s a little too sweet and girly, and you’re a woman, okay? — that’s not too matte. You don’t want to go glossy ever, because glossy is just another word for trampy, but a hint of shine will never do you wrong.
Occasion
First date with someone you already know and have flirted with shamelessly (or: Second date onwards)
The Goal
You’ve known this person for some time now — maybe he’s a friend and you’re both starting to realize that there could be something more between you, maybe he’s an acquaintance you’ve seen around who has finally worked up the nerve to ask you out, maybe he’s that guy you made landi last week — so he has some frame of reference about how you look on the regular. You can either opt to tone it down if you want him to see the “real you” or play it up if you want him to see the “real you.” Your call.
Eyes
A soft, subtle smoky eye will never fail you. For one, you can pair it with almost any lip color and it’ll never overwhelm your face, and secondly, if he makes a move, eye makeup stays on in ways that lipstick never will, so a good eye will keep you looking good. Stick to neutrals in taupe and brown gradients; black may be a little intense, unless your date involves clubbing, then sure, go for black. (I mean, there are guys who think that Kim Kardashian’s makeup look is natural, so…) Apply a wash of neutral shadow all over your eyelids. Ring and wing around your eyes in a dark brown (or black) pencil, then soften the line with matte dark brown eyeshadow, and blend into the crease. Top lashes with two coats of mascara.
Lips
Steer clear of deep or bold colors if you have any intention of locking lips at all over the course of the evening. Red lipstick’s great to look at, but messy to make out with. A good nude’s probably your best bet, or something subtle and mostly neutral that won’t have you looking like extras in a vampire flick on the off-chance that you do kiss at some point. And please, lay off the gloss. Please. Please.
If you have no intention of making momol at all, though, then by all means, go with your signature bold shade.
Occasion
Night out with the girls — or the pa-girls
The Goal
It really depends on what you’re planning on doing, but if you’re going out, then this is the only time that you can let your freak flag fly, and the only group of people with whom you can do so, really. Have fun with it!
Eyes
Going out with your ate girls? You know they’re going to bring it, right? And I mean bring it. So, unless you want to look like their P.A., you need to bring it, too. Go all out with a pageant-worthy smoky eye and top it off with lashings of mascara and your favorite pair of falsies. Conversely, if you’re the kind of fabulous who doesn’t need the inch-thick layer of makeup to feel (or look) amazing on a night out (we hate you), then just make sure that your brows are set to kill, that your eyes are defined just enough with black liner and mascara, and that your perfect complexion is, well, still perfect.
Lips
Now is the time to wear that obnoxiously weird shade of matte lipstick you’ve been dying to swipe on. To be honest, bold lipstick is only ever truly appreciated by your girlfriends and your homosexual life partners. Sure, there’s a rare guy who can appreciate it, but most of them just don’t get bold lipstick, so don’t waste that Limited Edition shade on someone who won’t realize how mind-numbingly amazing it is. (If you do wear the crazy shade out, though, temper the eye makeup. Balance, balance, balance!)
Occasion
Sunday lunch with your family — or his family
The Goal
If it’s just your immediate family, don’t bother. They know what you look like in the morning; as long as you look vaguely human, they’ll be satisfied. If your grandparents, aunts, and uncles are going to be there, then it’ll be good to look presentable at the very least. If it’s lunch with his family, then you want to look like the kind of future daughter-in-law they’ll be begging him to propose to. So: Fresh, fresh, fresh. Oh so fresh.
Eyes
If you feel the need to wear eyeshadow, then make sure it’s neutral or something soft that complements your skintone, like a subtle peach. Otherwise, you can really opt to skip this. Line your eyes with the subtlest liner you own — a good olive green shade will define without being obvious, you can even apply to upper and lower lashlines — then top off with a coat or two of mascara. Blend a highlighter (cream or powder) into the inner corners of your eyes and along your brow bones to brighten up your eyes. And make sure that your concealer game is strong enough to wipe out the dark circles left over from your Saturday night rager.
Lips
Lip and cheek tint will be all you need, really, or something that looks just as natural. Something sweet, probably a little on the pink or peachy-pink side, and definitely on the sheer side. Something that screams Nice Girl. Because that is who you are on Sundays: Nice Girl. (Pair with blush that picks up the same shade, so pinkish if you’re wearing a pink lip, peachy-pink if you’re wearing peachy-pink. Go for a cream blush if your skin’s a little dried out from last night’s partying — it’ll give you a hint of sheen that looks super fresh. If you’re looking a little oily, then use a powder blush instead. Top cheeks off with highlighter for that healthy, luminous, light-of-the-world glow.)
Occasion
Annual family reunion
The goal
You want to — no, you need to — bring your A-game to the big family reunion because it is your first defense against all the titas who will inevitably ask you why you are still single. Your answer to this question needs to be a nonchalant shrug that says “I don’t know, tita, I mean, just look at me, right? Why are men so tanga?” so you need to look appropriate, as in favorite apo appropriate, but still fabulous.
Eyes
Apply a wash of matte taupe shadow across your eyelids, blending out towards the creases. Emphasize that almond-shaped eye with a wing — do it in either black or brown along your upper lashline, then draw from the outer corner of your lower lashline and taper inwards until the middle, where you should allow the line to thin out. This makes your eyes look bigger and more exotically-shaped, but still not overly defined. Apply mascara.
Lips
We’re assuming that your reunions take place around the holidays, and the holidays mean that it’s totally okay to wear red lipstick to your reunion because it’s Christmas. But if you’re not that bold, or if you’ve got a Good Girl Image to maintain, then go for something more ladylike, like a rosy mauve, or a deep nude with hints of pink. Leave the coral-orange to your titas.
