Tips and Tricks For a Radiant, Dewy Complexion

Have you pored (no pun intended, really) over the magazines and online gossip rags, looking at the pictures of beautiful actresses, wishing you could have skin that seems to emanate a glow from within, and reflects the light just right so that it almost looks as though she has an aura about her?

Well, there are several tips and tricks you can use in your skin care regimen as well as your makeup application routine that can help you achieve this exact look without paying big bucks at the dermatologist for weekly facials, acid peels or microdermabrasion sessions and the like.

You will see that there are, as follows shortly, several ways you can use your makeup application techniques as well as the makeup you apply to your face itself as a tool to getting yourself one step closer to that coveted luminous, fresh look.

The first tip is to use a cleanser that preferably has Vitamin C or some other sort of exfoliating and brightening ingredient in it. Other examples of exfoliating or brightening ingredients would be perhaps pomegranate seed, grape seed, alpha lipoic acid, a light alpha hydroxy acid if you are not too sensitive to these fruit acids, or even salicylic acid, which is in fact an exfoliating as well as brightening agent.

Basically, when buying a cleanser for the face, look for one that proclaims it is non-drying, yet contains some of these examples of light exfoliating ingredients that also contain some sort of a mild acid for exfoliating, which also helps to polish and brighten the skin at the same time. If you start your "slate" off right, then it can make all the difference when you apply your other techniques to make your skin glow later on.

It's important not to get a cleanser that is too drying, or one that is filled with too many oils, because you want just the right balance to give you a glow, but not saturate your skin with too much surface oil so that your foundation seems to lay on top of the skin instead of blend into it as one.

Once you are done cleansing, thoroughly dry the face off by patting it gently with a towel. My next favorite thing to apply for maximum glow and that earthy, dewy natural look is a serum of some sort that also contains a gentle fruit acid, such as Vitamin C, hyaluronic acid, which is also firming, or any other fruit or exfoliating acid.

This does not have to be the main ingredient, but you can look for serums that specify they are "brightening" or "illuminating", as this usually indicates it has the right ingredients for the effect we're going for.

I apply a thin layer of serum to the whole face, let it dry, then apply my normal moisturizing lotion with SPF over that and let that completely sink in as well before the other steps come into play.

Next to come is your foundation. Be sure to choose a shade of foundation that is not too dark, nor too light. You should hold the bottle up to your face and even test it out if you're at a makeup counter where they allow you to test the colors right there to make sure that it suits your skin tone. I prefer the warmer shades, such as a warm ivory or bisque color rather than the shades with red undertones, which can lead to a ruddy look, or make a ruddy complexion look a bit more severe.

The fourth step in creating a luminous look is to either find an illuminating cream which is almost a sheer tint, or to mix a good moisturizer with fruit based acid or other illuminating ingredients, some may find even soy works for them, right with your foundation.

What I do is actually take my foundation, just a dot no bigger than the diameter of a dime, and put it on a sponge applicator makeup pad made especially for applying foundation, and then I add a couple of small squirts of my illuminating cream on top of it, and blend it all together in circular motions on my face until it is well blended into the hair line and along my jaw line as well.

If you're unsure of what type of illuminating cream to buy, there are a few good ones made by common drugstore brands, and also as I understand it, there are some new ones that can be purchased at major cosmetic retail outlets if you ask for help. Just refer to what you are looking for as a sheer tinted illuminating cream, and they should be able to direct you to one or a few choices. All an illuminating cream does is to reflect the light and bend it in such a way that your face actually looks like it is in a softer light all it's own.

Now that we've gone over the steps to getting a dewy complexion, let's talk about getting into maintenance mode to make sure your skin stays in the best shape to create the best surface to create this look all of the time. Start off by making sure you exfoliate your facial skin well at least once, if not twice a week. One good pointer I've heard for women who like to make their own concoction is to mix sugar with a few drops of fresh lemon juice to get a fresh glow for little money.

There are even many good home microdermabrasion kits out there that help to exfoliate for a fraction of the cost of professional in-office services. Also, you may want to try an at-home do it yourself acid peel. There are some great gentle ones out there now that can be applied weekly that helps slough off the surface skin cells to reveal new, and yes, more radiant and glowing skin just below those dull ones that are ready to be swept away.

If you follow a careful skin care regimen and also apply the makeup techniques discussed here, you are sure to keep people staring at your gorgeous skin and asking what you did to get it for years to come!