Setting straight those facial flaws

Muara Bagdja, Contributor, Jakarta

In strict beauty terms, a perfect face is a symmetrical one where the eyes, nose, lips and bone structure come together in some out-of-this-world flawless arrangement.

Unless you landed a gene coup and your name is Christy Turlington, you are probably like most of us mere mortals, who have to deal with slight flaws, whether they are lips that are too thick or too thin, a flat nose, chubby cheeks or other imperfections.

With the power of cosmetics, however, it's possible to hide those flaws and put your best face forward.

Below are several tricks to disguise the less-than-ideal parts of your face:

Eyes: If your eyelids are droopy at the outer corners, smear eye shadow in arc shapes at both corners toward your eyebrows.

If you have close-set eyes, apply a light color to eyelid areas near the nose and make it darker around the eyes with your eye-pencil.

If you have wide-set eyes, apply a dark color to eyelid areas near the nose and also make it darker around the eyes with your eye-pencil.

For big eyes, use a black eye-pencil for the lower part of your inner eye rims.

If you have small eyes, use a white eye-pencil for the lower part of your inner eye rims and make dark eyelines. Curling your eyelashes helps broaden your eyes, too.

If you have deep-set eyes, apply pale eye shadow evenly to eyelids without the arc. The eyes and eyebrows should be made prominent with your eye-pencil. Be sure to crimp eyelashes to make your eyes look bigger.

If your eyes are so big that you appear "bug-eyed", use eyeshadow in such a way as to create eyelid folds.

Dark circles: Diminish the appearance of bags under the eyes and dark circles, either hereditary or from lack of sleep, by using a concealer stick and smearing a lighter hue than the color of your foundation in this area, soon after applying the foundation. Add white eyeshadow to the same area after using powder.

Lips:If your lips are too thin, draw lip lines slightly beyond your natural lines in a darker shade than the lipstick you will use. A lighter lipstick color with transparent lip gloss will make your lips fuller. Smear a bright-colored lipstick with a fingertip in the middle of your lips to increase their dimensions and volume.

If your lips are too thick, make the lip lines closer to the natural ones. Be sure to cover the lips with a foundation or powder in advance so that their original color is not revealed. Dark and matte lipsticks give an impression of thinner lips.

If your upper or lower lip is thicker, use a dark-colored lipstick for the thick one and a lighter color for the thin one, in order to create a balance between both.

Nose: For a more pointed nose, use a darker foundation stick for both sides of the nose and a lighter color for the bridge of the nose, which will create a dark shade around it. After using powder, smear the dark color thinly with a finger on both sides of the nose, then put some light powder on the bridge of the nose to form a more pointed image.

Acne and scars: Pimples and scars can be concealed by using foundation cover sticks before putting on your makeup.

Chubby cheeks: For leaner cheeks, apply a dark foundation under the cheekbones toward the jaws. After completing your makeup, the final step is to spread a dark blush-on with a brush under the same bones for dark shades, which will reduce the plump appearance.