Beauty tips for Navratri

The festive season is upon us, Navratri officially marks the start of the festive season in India. Apart from the religious significance, the nine days festival is a perfect time to get your jewellery, makeup ,accessories and traditional outfits ready for Navratri .

It's that time of the year when the devotional energy, lively spirit and the wish to have maximum fun is at its peak, where boys and girls are seen gearing up for 'Dandiya Night' and Puja Pandals with a tremendous festive spirit. So here are some quick fixes for you to start gearing up for skin, hair makeup to look gorgeous and attractive even before the festival begins.

Skin: Cleanse the skin and apply a liquid moisturiser. For oily skin, apply an astringent lotion with cotton wool. Wait for a few minutes. Then, cover blemishes with a concealer, before applying foundation. If you wish to cover a pimple or spot, it should be done before applying foundation or powder. Using a thin brush, paint over the spot with a little concealer, or lighter shade of foundation. Then, apply a little powder. Dot foundation on the face and blend with a damp sponge or with finger tips. Don't forget the neck. Apply loose powder, or try compact powder to set the foundation. Use foundation with beige tones, rather than pink. I feel beige suits Indian skin colour better. If you have a very fair ivory skin, go for beige with a rosy tint.

If the complexion is fair, but pale (yellowish), avoid pink tones and go for beige or biscuit. Darker complexions look better with brownish beige. Go for the gold foundation for this special occasion. Dot the face with it and blend with a moist sponge, to give the skin a golden glow. When you apply make-up, remember not to smear too much or rub it. Blusher colours for the night need not match lip colour exactly, but it should be in the same colour tone. For fair skin, try pinks and reds. If you have a yellowish skin, avoid orange. For wheat complexions, colours like rose, coral, copper are flattering, while plum, wine, bronze may suit darker complexions.

Eyes: For eyes, apply lighter brown shadow on the upper eyelid and dark brown eye shadow in the crease, to add depth. Outline the eyes with dark eye pencil or eyeliner. For a smudged effect, a dark eye shadow also works well on the upper lid, close to the lashes. Extend it a little beyond the outer corner of the eyes, slightly upwards. Smudging can be done with a sponge tipped applicator. Eye liner or dark eye shadow may be applied on the lower lid and then smudged.

Actually, dramatic and heavy eye make-up, with the black eye-lined or winged eyed look has been the trend and is gaining in popularity. It will be ruling fashion trends. Go for dark eyeliner just under the lower lashes and on the upper lid close to the lashes. Coloured liner can also be used with black eyeliner, as it is becoming a trend.

Mascara: Roll-on mascara is easy to apply. While applying mascara on the upper lashes, look downwards. Apply it both above and below the upper lashes, for a thicker look. Apply on lower lashes too. Wait for a while and apply a second coat. Then brush out the lashes, with a small eyelash brush. To make lashes appear thicker, apply powder between two coats of mascara.

Lips: Gloss is popular for the lips. Use a lip liner the same colour as your lipstick. Apply lip gloss in the centre, after applying lipstick. A Bindi is an integral part of make-up for festivals. Look for a decorative bindi, to match the colour of your dress. A bindi, studded with small sparkling stones, combined with a bright colour would be most attractive.