How to Recreate Any Pinterest Makeup Look (and make it wearable)

I think Pinterest is a lot like Face book, or any type of social media, it can make you feel one of two things- envy and slight depression. Pinterest, being purely visual, is very far from reality, especially when it comes to makeup. All the pictures above, like many pins, have been manipulated in some way, so keep that in mind when you are perusing. I selected these images as examples of what I think is typically found on pinterest.

Part of the problem I have with Pinterest, as with most of these looks, is if you walked out of the house in the harsh daylight, you would look more like a drag queen than a put together glamour-puss. Also, the look would, most likely, be wearing you, which is never a good look for anyone.

If you are looking for inspiration, these looks can offer that, but don't ever feel like you have to follow things exactly as you see them. Focus on your own features, what you want to play up, and how to keep the look modern, balanced and easy-looking- even if it took you an hour to blend one eye shadow. Here are my top tips for breaking down any pinterest look and making it wearable:

1. Dark Matte/Red Lip Pins
These are usually retro-red lips, plum or dark purple accompanied by a winged eyeliner-a nod to the fifties era. For most, this look would take hours. I would skip the liquid liner flick and go for tons of mascara instead. Line your lower water line with a creamy nude pencil and blend some bronzer into your sockets and your done your eyes. For lips, apply the lipstick straight from the tube and smush your lips together, that will give you a rough guideline to follow. Then it's lip liner to even out and smooth the line. Try to pat the colour on in thin layers for a stained effect- it will last longer. Lastly, if you are not sure what blush to put on, just use a little lipstick as cream blush.

2. The Kim K. Contour Pin
We've all seen this one. Really in depth cream contouring should really be reserved for the red carpet and for people like celebrities whose photos are taken anytime they are in public. That being said, a little knowledge about contouring is a great tool to have in your arsenal. What you should glean from these pins is where the light and dark product is placed and why. Dark matte contour powder or bronzer is placed anywhere you want to recess an area, anywhere you already have contour on your face, you are just adding to that. So cheek bones are a given, and add temples and jawline and that makes three. If you sweep your bronzer in a "3" from temples to jaw, you will have "contoured" your face. Now for highlight, you literally want to bring attention to the middle of your face. So sweep a subtle highlight down the centre of your face and along the tops of your cheek bones. Voila you have the basics to highlight and contour.

3. The Crazy CGI Eye Shadow Pin/Diva Makeup Pin
This one is a doozy. These are almost always enhanced in some way, and always have false lashes. I don't like these pins, as the eye makeup is always featured, and people tend to struggle with the rest of the face makeup. I also lumped what I call the "diva" look in to this category, because this is the kind of makeup Mariah Carey would wear to the grocery store. In other words, this makeup is reserved for divas. The take-away from these pins is where the light and dark eye shadow is placed. If you want to replicate this look, keep the darker shadow on the outer portion of the eye, the lighter shadow on the inner corners. This will add definition to the eyes and brighten. A softer version of the diva makeup is the Megan Fox picture, which is up next.

4. The Celebrity Pin
 The main thing to keep in mind with the celebrity pin is these looks are done by professionals with years of experience. They usually take at least an hour and use high end products and tools. That being said, taking inspiration from these looks is still doable, but be realistic. Also, most celebrities have had some kind of plastic surgery, so be aware of that as well.

The best tip I can give you is that when you are looking for inspiration for makeup on pinterest, the best thing to look at is how the looks are put together, for instance, a bold lip is usually accompanied by a strong brow. Learning about why these looks work will help you with applying your own makeup. Also, be aware that even though most of these pins took a serious amount of time, practice and money, they are still retouched in some way.