SHAHNAZ HUSAIN of Shahnaz Husain Group has become a legend in her own lifetime. Winner of numerous national and international awards, Shahnaz Husain is both the pioneer and the undisputed Queen of herbal care, having set the standards that others aspire to.

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For your make-up, you should choose liquid foundations, instead of a creamy one. Dark skins can tend to look oily because of the way light reflects on the skin. That is why it is better to choose a water-based foundation. The foundation should not be lighter than your skin tone. Try to get one which is as close to your normal skin colour as possible. When you apply foundation and powder, your aim should be for a lighter coverage. Remember that dark skins show up layers of make-up much more than fair skins. Special attention should be paid to blending. Adding a drop of water to the foundation before you apply it, may also help. Mix them on the back of your hand and apply it on your skin. Check the effect in daylight. Use a light baby powder after the foundation. This helps to give the skin a sheen and is not too heavy. Avoid applying too much powder, specially around the eyes. Always dust off the excess powder.

For your blush, you should choose colours from coral, rose, deep orange. Avoid browns and peachy shades for blush-on. For very dark skin, try a dark rose pink colour for the day and shades of bronze, plum and wine for the night. Blend the blusher over the cheekbones, as it helps to brighten the skin tone. For special occasions at night, use a touch of gold. It can really look glamorous on dark skins. Apply it at the temples and under the outer corner of the eyebrows.

If you wish to use eyeshadow, avoid white or very light colours. A soft brown eyeshadow can be used in combination with a darker brick-brown. Apply the light brown on the upper eye lids. Use the dark brown in the crease of the eyelid to give depth to the eyes and carry it out slightly outwards. This should blend into the upper brow bone, proceeding from lighter brown in the inner corner to darker brown, going outwards.

If you would like more colour, you can use dark blue, wine or even purple eyeshadow to line the eyes, close to the eyelashes. If you would like more colour, line the eyelid with dark blue, dark grey, wine or even purple. Soften the lines with a sponge tipped applicator or damp brush. Use a kaajal pencil to outline the eyes. This can have a stunning effect on dark skins. Kaajal helps to accentuate the Indian look and dramatises the eyes. For the day, use brown or grey eyeliner or eye pencil to line the eyes. Mascara will darken and thicken the eyelashes and give the eyes a glamorous look.

Choosing the right colours is important for your lipstick too. Avoid pale colours and go for warmer tones, like copper, coral, bronze, dark red, wine, burgundy. For lipstick too, you can mix two colours to get the shades that suit your skin. For the night, you will need colours that are darker and more intense. If the colour is too light, use brown first and then the lighter colour. Bright red lipstick can be toned down with tinted lip gloss. At night, you should use darker and brighter colours. If you feel your lip has too much colour, use a tissue paper to blot it. Try to match the colours of make-up on your lips and nails. The blusher should also blend with the lip colour. For example, if you use orange lipstick, avoid using a pink toned blusher. It is also important to balance your make-up, so that the eyes or lips do not look more brilliant than one another. Tone down your entire make-up in colour and intensity, because it should not be more prominent than your features or your clothes. The whole effect should balance and blend.