Planning on going out this Cinco de Mayo? Infuse some Latin inspiration into your look! If youwant to wear a classic look inspired by some Hispanic bombshells like Lily Estefan, Demi Lovato and Salma Hayek, sport a soft, smoky eye with a bold red lips to really make a statement. To really make the most of this style, find a matte, long-wear lipstick so you don’t have to re-apply often, and use a lip liner or brush to put it on so your lines are crisp and precise. If you opt to wear a strongly red shade, make sure that the dark eye shadows are applied lightly to your lids; however, if you are wearing a more neutral lip, play up the drama of your gaze with emoting, darker tints. It’s usually best to choose one feature (either lips or eyes) to focus on so that you don’t look overly “done up” and have your features competing with each other. A balanced look always looks better.

For a more playful, Cinco de Mayo look, use your cosmetics to exhibit the colors of the Mexican flag: red, green and white. While there are many ways you can do this, I chose to combine rouged lips with green eye shadow. To make sure that my look was bright but tasteful, I blended the green with gold and dark browns to downplay the hue’s intensity; to create a sexy, green smoky eye, you can always blend black into the crease. If the idea of displaying a green lid with red lips makes you uneasy, a tamer option is to have a neutral eye that is enhanced with emerald liquid or pencil eyeliner.

So, come May 5^th, celebrate this joyous holiday with delicious food, exciting dancing and a knockout look that perfectly coordinates with Cinco de Mayo.

– By Stephanie Kaczmarski. Stephanie is a Philadelphia-based makeup artist who loves to help individuals find the perfect look that makes them feel beautifully confident, whether it’s for their wedding day or an average day. For inquiries, email her at stephaniekaczmarski@gmail.com.

How to Make Your Lips Irrekissible

Valentine’s Day is the international day of love so it is natural that the lovers’ holiday is accompanied by roses, teddy bears, candy and of course great kisses. A day like this is sure to have you seeing red, hopefully the good kind; you know a box of heart shaped chocolates or your favorite brand of luscious lipstick. Whatever the case may be, you want to make sure your lips are at their best because you never know when someone might plant one on you. Get ready to pucker up this Valentine’s Day with these sure fire ways to guarantee ultra kissable lips.

Keep your lips hydrated

We all know by now that lipstick has the tendency of drying out our lips and mixed with kissing, this isn’t a match made in heaven. Don’t let your lipstick ruin Valentine’s Day having your Valentine asking for his chocolates back. To keep this from happening, make sure you’re using a lipstick that has a healthy dose of moisturizer in it to keep your lips hydrated all day long. No one likes faded lips, so try a lipstick with a guaranteed long lasting factor. Some great brands for this include Clinique, Sisley, Revlon, Almay and Mac.

If you’re not a fan of lipstick and just want a great luscious shine to your lips, invest in some long lasting lip gloss by Gerdon, LDM Paris, Clinique Long Lasting Glosswear or NYC City Proof Lip Gloss.

Pick the right shade for you

Be sure your lipstick is suitable for your skin tone. With the new innovations in today’s world, cosmetic companies are doing a great job in creating beauty products that cater to specific complexions to help the makeup buying process go a lot smoother. This is great news for women, especially for those doing some last minute beauty supplies shopping or just hate standing in the aisles for minutes on hand.

Makeup Tip: For fair skin, red lipstick tends to look flattering along with any other shade in the color family but, beware of darker shades. You don’t want to look like you’re getting ready for Halloween, on the same note, anything pastel can easily wash you out. If you are of a darker complexion, don’t be afraid to go for the red lipstick if that’s what you want, however, a subdued red color might be more flattering than a bright crimson.

Exfoliate and Moisturize those Puckers

For some, Valentine’s Day is like game day and any good player would know that you have to pre-game in advance if you want to reach the end zone. You need to make sure your lips are ready for a touchdown. Lip color can easily hide our not so kissable lips but it doesn’t mean that the problem isn’t there. To make your lips super kissable, exfoliate them regularly. This especially should be done the day before you’re expected to pucker up. Exfoliating can turn your dry lips into smooth, plump kissable lips. There are several ways to keep your lips exfoliated from applying a sugar scrub, to gently massaging them with a soft bristled toothbrush or even buying a lip exfoliate with micro-beads.

Kissable lips just don’t stop at the exfoliation process as soft doesn’t always mean healthy, so be sure to apply a moisturizer to your lips daily. This way, whether or not you’re doing a nude lip or a ruby red, your lips will be at their best.

Your Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to come to a screeching halt when that special someone leans in for a quick one thanks to un-kissable lips. With a little preparation before that big night, you can have your lips ready for a little one on one action in no time.

Cinco de Mayo Makeup