How-to: Brush a taupe eyeshadow over your lids, stopping at the crease. Lightly dust a peach powder blush on the apples of your cheeks. Dab a bit of highlighter on the top of your cheekbones. Finish by swiping on a creamy lipstick in a shade that suits your complexion and mood.
What she thought:
I came to the office wearing only my BareMinerals Original SPF 15 Foundation, $25Estee Lauder Double Wear Mascara, $19.50 and VS Makeup Pro Brow FX Grooming Gel, $12 (all of which took me a minute to apply at home). I was quickly able to transform my colorless complexion to a much brighter, more "finished" look with the above products. This could be an everyday, go-to look for me as I always seem to get compliments when I wear a bold color on my lips. This look would also work on a variety of skin tones (not just fair chicks like me) -- peach blush is universally flattering as are many berry shades of lipstick. Only tweak I would recommend is choosing darker taupe shades of shadow if your skin tone is darker in order to get the same subtle effect.
How-to: Using your bold (try purple or blue) eye pencil, line only your lower lashlines and blend it with your finger to soften the line. Dust the apples of your cheeks with pink powder blush. Finish by coating lips with nude gloss.
What she thought:
This look was extremely easy to do. Just a quick application of my usual foundation (Clinique Even Better foundation in 03 Ivory, $24.50), concealer (it Cosmetics Bye Bye Under Eye concealer in Neutral Medium, $24) and mascara (CoverGirl Lashblastfusion mascara, $9.99), then a swipe of light blush, lip gloss and eyeliner. I probably wouldn't wear a liner this bright to work, but it's perfect for happy hour or a party. What's great is you can easily apply the eyeliner without having to re-do any of the makeup you're already wearing -- it won't mess up or change anything, just add an element of fun. And with a good pencil, it literally takes seconds to swipe on and smudge. I could easily do this in the bathroom or car after work. Plus, wearing the liner underneath your eyes creates a stronger statement, and is more unexpected than applying it to your upper lids.
How-to: To make your eyes pop, coat top and bottom lashes with blue mascara. Apply a rosy lipstick shade to your lips then use your finger to tap the lip color along your cheekbones for instant definition.
Next: See an editor put this look to the test
We gave celebrity makeup artist and beauty brand founder Napoleon Perdis a challenge: create six gorgeous makeup looks that can be done in four minutes or less. He accepted our challenge, which may not seem like a difficult one, but for a man who spends hours beautifying faces for magazine covers, music videos and the red carpet, it's no small feat. He created beautiful face charts of makeup looks, then Total Beauty editors tried and tested them (while the clock was ticking) in order to prove that they do, in fact, take less than four minutes (and are doable for non-makeup artist types). But before we reveal the looks to you -- and the products you'll need to recreate them, here are a few general makeup tips from Mr. Perdis:
Tip 1: "Not to prime is a crime," says Perdis. He recommends applying primer every day before your makeup to "promote smoother application and longer wear of your makeup," he says.
Tip 2: "Start your [makeup] regimen with at least one coat of mascara," says Perdis. He recommends this because it will instantly wake up your face and you'll often need less makeup to feel pulled-together. You should also finish your look with an additional few swipes.
Tip 3: "The secret to fast and easy makeup is to utilize multi-use products as much as possible," says Perdis. This will save you time and cash.
Tip 4: Don't get caught up in trying to figure out what colors you should wear and instead wear the colors you want to wear. If you wear them confidently you can wear any color.
Now onto the makeup looks -- ladies start your timers �
