xmas makeup looks

There s a reason we love tinsel on Christmas trees and strings of lights around our homes: They make everything look beautifully glowing. The same is true for highlighting makeup. To get your own shimmer, sweep a glittering powder over your cheekbones, below your brow bone and on the inner corner of your eyes. If your skin is light, reach for a pink based highlighter, while medium to dark skinned women should try golden tones.

Brows do so much to frame your face that simply grooming them, which includes combing the hairs and filling in bare spots, will give you a prompt pick me up. Try any of the handy brow grooming kits, such as Tarte the Toolbox which comes equipped with mini tweezers, stencils, a mirror, and brow powder, pencil, brush, and wax for a complete touch up.

What better nod to the holidays than a French manicure revamped with luminescent versions of the standard pink and white colors? You ll get the same effect but with an extra twinkle accompanying every gesture.

The ponytail might be your everyday hairdo, but you ll be amazed how well it can pretty up your holiday look. Roy Teeluck, a New York City salon owner and expert stylist for Nexxus, recommends teasing the hair at the crown for extra volume before securing it at the nape of the neck. A beautiful finishing touch is to pull a strand of hair from the ponytail and bring it around the elastic, he adds.

Black liner swept across the top lid makes a bold yet elegant statement that needs very little else: Think Angelina Jolie, who s hardly ever photographed without her signature eye look. The trick, says Ashunta Sheriff, a makeup artist who works with Alicia Keys and other celebrities, is to swap your pencil for a liquid or gel liner. (Sheriff is a fan of Vincent Longo s Liquid Eyeliner in Black.) Close the eye and, starting at the inner corner, move the line outward and wing it slightly at the end, she advises. If you have trouble holding your hand steady, create little dashes along the lash line and go back and connect them. Stick to a neutral tone, such as MAC Eye Shadow in Bisque a muted pinky beige shade, on the rest of the lid.

Chocolate not only is the yummiest treat of the season but also a sweet alternative to red lipstick. Skip the matte browns and reach for those with mauve or reddish undertones.

Do you wear your hair parted on the left? Then part it on the right. Or do you usually part down the middle? Try a new side part. It sounds almost too good to be true, but changing your part not only gives you an entirely different look, but it also bestows your hair with extra body that you probably didn t know it had, says Teeluck.

When it comes to getting holidaypretty,blushis non negotiable. Amp up your natural rosiness by mixing complementaryblush colors, one darker and one lighter. Or start off light with the paler shade in the compact and tweak it by layering its darker counterpart over it.

Short hair can be styled just as glamorously as long hair, but in half the time! Most boyish haircuts now have feminine features, such as softer pieces around the face, says Teeluck. Bring attention to your short do by working a styling product, such asNexxus Designing Texxtur Styling Cremethrough your hair with your fingers, recommends Teeluck. It s got hold and breaks up the hair to give it a more piecey look.

What happens when you take basicgrayshadow and infuse it with flecks ofgold,purple, andgreen? A whole new way to make up your eyes, that s what! A color that s this multitextured will work harder for you, too. The trick is to contain it between the lid and the crease, advises Sheriff. Don t take it up to the brow bone