Emma Carole May: October 2014

"Homemade" Halloween Costume - Leopard

So Halloween is one week away and I'm sure many of you will be going to costume parties, trick or treating or maybe just a movie night in with friends. Whatever your plans, to me the best part of Halloween is the excuse to go crazy with hair and makeup!

Many of you who are planning to go all out on Halloween will have had your costume picked out months in advance and will have all the body paint/makeup to go with it. But for those of you who want to dress up a bit but not go too extreme - this look is for you.

The makeup is the main part of this look and honestly it's pretty simple to achieve:

Step One: Foundation

Apply your foundation as normal to even out any redness and give you a base to work with. Conceal any spots or blemishes you wish to cover but don't worry about concealing under your eyes yet.

Step 2: Bronzer

Apply bronzer all around the edges of your face and also on the areas you will draw on your leopard spots - on the top of your cheek bones (just below your eyes) from the edge of your face up to about 1/3 along your eyes, in a triangle shape on your forehead from the top corners of your face to where your eyebrows begin on each side of your face, and along your jaw line up to align with the centre of your eyes.

If your also adding leopard spots to your body add bronzer to any part you will draw these spots onto.

I put bronzer down the sides of my neck to just above my collar bones and down the middle part of my arm that was visible through the cold-shoulder.

Step 3: Eyes

Apply golden eye shadow to 2/3 of your eyelid. Then apply dark brown eye shadow to your outer corner along your upper and lower lash lines and a cat eye flick to emphasize the look. Use a black liquid liner over the top use the eye shadow along your top lash line, bringing the line all the way into the inner corner of your eye and then line your water and tight line with a brown eyeliner pencil. Apply white eye shadow to your inner corner and along your brow bone. Also apply any brow products you like to use.

Step 4: Highlighter

Use a light concealer under your eyes bringing it down your cheeks in a triangle shape to lighten the skin. Then use highlighter in an almost upside down heart shape from the crease above your nostrils to the outer corners of your lips and fill this area in to show the muzzle.

Step 5: Lips & Nose

Use a black lipstick all over your lips, or if you don't have one you can use a black eyeliner. Then use a liquid liner up your cupids bow and around the bottom of your nose. Then dot the eye liner around your mouth to show the whisker marks.

Step 6: Spots

Use your liquid liner to draw C shapes where you applied your bronzer (Cheetahs have circle spots, leopards have C shape spots). Use the golden eye shadow you used on your eyelids in the centre of the spots.

Step 7: Hair

Curl your hair to add to the "wild" side of the look and if you don't have headband ears you can put parts of your hair into two small buns instead. Personally I preferred the look on me without but if you have thicker hair it may work for you and it can look so cute if you dare to rock that look!