Question: What's your favourite makeup tip or trick, and if you remember, where did you learn it?

“When I want a more intense colour or blended eyeliner effect, I use a damp Q-tip to apply eyeshadow. (So the Q-tip isn't too wet, I dab it on tissue first to remove excess water.) It's a great way to increase the versatility of your makeup collection -- you can get a wider variety of looks from using the same products. Funny enough, I learned this trick from a friend who usually looks to me for makeup advice.”
-- Corinna vanGerwen

“Got oily but fairly evenly toned skin? Use concealer on undereye circles, inner corners of eyes and around the base of the nose. Then pat over the concealer and the rest of the skin with M.A.C Blot Powder. This powder in particular is light and sheer with very little colour, yet it absorbs excess oil, diffuses the light and makes skin look flawless without looking like you're wearing a stitch of makeup.

"Without fail, this application tricks folks into thinking I have beautiful skin. Silly me, though -- when I get complimented on my complexion, I can't help but confess that I'm wearing makeup. Doh!

"I don't know where I got this -- I think it just evolved over the years.”
-- Janine Falcon, senior editor, Beauty, Canadian Living

“I'm not sure if this is really a trick more than it is advice, but my 85-year-old grandmother used to tell me that the only thing you needed in your beauty regime to look radiant was a quick swipe of Chanel red lipstick. It was dramatic and definitely eye-catching. I still heed it today!”
-- Lara Ceroni

“Mine is foundation because beautiful-looking skin requires very few enhancers. I have acne-prone skin so I have tried several non-comedogenic brands to create as flawless a look as possible, but the shade options are always off and the consistency too thin. Revlon Colorstay has been the best thus far. It's an oil-free and long-lasting skin enhancer.

“I always apply using a sponge applicator to prevent streaking and minimize the amount of foundation required. This foundation is cheapest at Wal-Mart for around $10 and most expensive at Shoppers Drug Mart for $19.”
-- Desirée Brown

“My best secret is by far my liquid eyeliner...I never leave home without it!

"You don't even need the expensive ones –- the NYC brand found at Shoppers Drug Mart for $2.69 will do the job just fine! The secret is to get an eyeliner that has an applicator just like a paint brush. Some people have a hard time putting it on and getting a straight line. I suggest they put a pencil eyeliner on their eyelids first and then follow the trace with the liquid eyeliner. The trick is to follow your eye shape all the way to the end and then extend it past the corner of the eye for a sexy look. Once the mascara is applied that extension becomes part of your eyelashes, giving you the illusion of longer eye lashes and making your eyes look bigger if you have small eyes like myself. The liquid eyeliner stays on all day long...you never have to worry about reapplying or fixing, even during the harsh winter months with all the snow and even rain.”
-- Mitzy Flores

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“I wrote an article about makeup techniques about a year ago and the best advice I got from the makeup artist was that blush should always be applied to the apples of the cheeks, making sure to leave a finger's width between the nose and the blush so the face won't appear wider. Also try not to trail blush below the nostrils, as it will appear to drag the face down.” -– Julie Hunter

“My favourite makeup trick is to put a bit of powder on my eyelids before applying eyeshadow. This provides a good base for the shadow to stick to and ensures that it doesn't get greasy and creased.”
-- Natalie Bahadur

“CanadianLiving.com has a mineral makeup story on our site, and when I edited it, I was intrigued. I hate applying liquid foundation. So I went to Sephora that day and bought a Bare Escentuals foundation kit. It's a set of powders but they look like foundation when you apply them. There's a learning curve in applying it; you have to swirl it around on a brush, tap off the excess, and then swirl it onto your skin. But I love that my fingers don't get all dirty, and it looks nice and light. Mineral makeup is fabulous –- I can't live without it now.”
-- Helen Racanelli, CanadianLiving.com editor

“Here are a few tricks that I collected from friends and a few from me:

• “Avoid putting mascara at the roots, it will look more natural (and less
like spider legs)" -– from Vogue Beauty

• “For a natural look I sweep my blush brush along my eyelids after I have applied blush to my cheeks -- instead of using eye shadow. I don't know where I learned about this. I have been doing it for years.

• “For moist, supple skin I put Vaseline all over my body before I get in the shower. This protects my skin from the hot water (I like my showers really hot!) and helps it retain its moisture. It has made a huge difference for me.

• "For a lighter, sheerer foundation finish I mix it with my moisturizer.

• "I always put lip liner on after the lipstick or gloss, or fill in the whole lip with the liner first, then add gloss.

• "For a smudgy, smoky-looking eye I apply eyeliner first, then sweep lid with a cream shadow (Nars is great), then dab powder shadow along the lash line with a stubby brush or Q-tip.

• "For great big-looking eyes, I always use an eyelash curler. None is better than Shu Uemura."

-- Melissa Morra

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