Let me tell it to you straight: I’m not the biggest fan of pink makeup.
There were times in the past when I avoided a certain shade of blush or a lipstick simply because I felt the shade was too “pink” for me. For a long time, I shunned the hue out of my sight for fear of looking too girly. It turns out that I simply didn’t know how to apply the color on myself, as I learned it was more about the technique of application than the product itself.
To get an idea about what I’m talking about, scroll down for some inspiration on how to make pink look more sultry than sweet:
1. Claudia Barretto
2. Lily Collins
3. Elisse Joson
4. Janine Gutierrez
5. Kate Mara
For this look, the same deep rose shade is used on the eyes and the lips, while the cheeks are kept bare. While it is feminine to some degree, it is noticeably seductive as well.
Frequently Asked Questions
Technique matters more than the shade. The feature suggests pairing pink with contrast, such as smokey eyes, winged liner, full lashes, brown contouring or bronzer, and keeping the rest of the face understated. These additions shift pink from soft and girly toward a more mature, edgier finish.
Use a rosy red shade across the eyes in a smokey application, then tone down the rest of the face to balance the intensity. This approach is attributed to Claudia Barretto’s look, described as turning heads while keeping the overall makeup polished rather than overdone.
Pair peachy-rose with winged liner and full lashes. Peachy-rose is typically seen as a sweet shade, but the sharp liner and fuller lashes add contrast, which is how Lily Collins’ look is described as an edgier take on the color.
Dust dusty rose across the face and layer bronzer over it. Dusty rose is known for a feminine effect, but combining it with bronzer produces a warm, tanned finish, according to the description of Janine Gutierrez’s look. The bronzer keeps the soft color from reading too sweet.
Yes. Kate Mara’s look uses the same deep rose on both eyes and lips while leaving the cheeks bare. It is described as feminine to some degree but noticeably seductive, because the concentrated color on the eyes and lips carries the whole look.
