As a beauty editor, you're often fielding offers to get your makeup done, as a way to "experience" whatever new makeup collection is launching. After several applications gone wrong—let's just say more than a few so-called "artists" wanted to display their <em>entire collections</em> on my face—I established a general rule of always going DIY. (Similar to <a href="http://beautyeditor.ca/2009/04/29/truer-words-were-never-spoken/" target="_blank">my no-free-haircuts or colours rule</a>, which I actually broke recently, but thankfully, with good results. More on that soon!)

Anyway, I've made a couple of exceptions with the makeup rule for some truly excellent artists that I thought I could learn something from. And I did:

Takeaway #1 was that I should always line my eyes in navy blue, instead of black. Why? It's less hard-looking but equally stunning, and I dare say adds a bit of <em>je ne sais quoi</em> to your look. (Black is so predictable, no?)

Point #2 that I picked up: use eyeshadow, not liner, for a longer-lasting application. One I'm liking right now is <a href="http://well.ca/beauty/products/loreal-paris-hip-metallic-duo_12578.html?related_product=12576?AFFID=BEAUTY" target="_blank">L’Oréal Paris's new HIP High Intensity Pigments Metallic Eyeshadow Duo in Magnetic</a>. The label doesn't say it's waterproof, but it might as well be: this didn't crease on me like 99% of all other eyeshadows. (The label DOES say it's metallic, but if it's there, it's verrrrry subtle.)

You should also know about tip #3: apply it with a damp, angled brush. I spritz mine with an Evian atomiser (because I'm obnoxious like that), but you could also just pass it under running tap water and then pat it dry with a tissue. Either way, the dampness makes it easier to apply and is supposed to make the colour deeper and longer-lasting, too.