Makeup is supposed to enhance your appearance, but make one wrong move and that eyeliner or bronzer can quickly make you look worse instead of better. Top makeup artists Tayaba Jafri, of Laura Mercier, and Amy Zdunowski-Roeder, of FACE atelier, have offered BV some tips on how to avoid some common makeup sins.

Concealer, Unconcealed

BV: What is a common mistake some women make when applying concealer, and what are your tips to avoid the "raccoon effect" that some make a mistake doing when applying concealer around the eyes?

Zdunowski-Roeder: Rihanna is a naturally beautiful girl! As we can see in this picture, her concealer is not only applied around her whole eye, but too far down her cheek, which doesn't blend with her skin-toned foundation. Avoid this by dabbing the concealer on the inner corner under your eye and blending it downward to the recessed area under the eye. Blending is critical and the result will be a brighter more composed overall look.

Jafri: In this photo, the makeup on her face looks sheer, and her concealer area has a masque effect, not just because the color is too light, but there's also way too much. Concealer is the most over-used product in cosmetics. Usually the color chosen is too light. Truly, less is more when it comes to concealer. Its best to chose a concealer that is high in pigment so you use even less to cover and correct. I suggest that before applying concealer, try using a sheer brightener such as, Laura Mercier's Secret Brightener ($30, www.lauramercier.com).

BV: When it comes to eyeshadow is less more?

Zdunowski-Roeder: Fantasia has a smile that can light up the world, yet in this picture your eye is drawn to her dramatic eye shadow. Wearing too much can look extremely unnatural if not blended and balanced with other appropriate colors and tones. Having a good brush to blend your shadows with is important. Overall, eye shadow should complement your features, not over power them. A little bit will go a long way!

Jafri: Less is definitely more when there is such an array of color. However, in Fantasia's case the issue is more about placement and blending. For instance, if the darker tone began lower on her lid and was blended with the brighter tone, we wouldn't see where the colors begin and stop.

Lashed Out

BV: If a woman has lush falsies on her top lashes, should she dare go with a full set of lashes on the bottom, as well?

Zdunowski-Roeder: A natural beauty with a gorgeous voice, Letoya Luckett's makeup in this particular pic is overall quite beautiful, but our eyes are drawn to the lower lash line. For years, women have been striving for thick, dark, long luscious lashes by using mascara, eyelash curlers and falsies. The reason is eyelashes, whether real or not, enhance eye makeup by creating a finished, complete look. If a woman already has thick, natural top lashes, applying lashes to the bottom of the eye is not necessary, and may look unbalanced and un-natural. Less is more when it comes to lower lashes.

Jafri: The only time lashes look appropriate top and bottom is if you are doing theatre or if its Halloween. It's overwhelming.Epecially full sets. I'm an advocate of placing individuals as needed because they look 100% more natural. To lush up your lashes try, individual lashes by MAC Cosmetics ($13, www.maccosmetics.com). To condition lashes for smooth application, try Lash RX by FACE atelier ($22, www.faceatelier.com). It can also be worn alone during the day or night. To add volume to your lashes whether real or faux, try Paula's Choice, Great Big Lashes Mascara ($9.95, www.paulaschoice.com).

Double Trouble Foundation and Blush

BV: What is the key to selecting the right foundation color? And if one applies blush, is there a rule of thumb when selecting blush and applying with foundation?

Zdunowski-Roeder: Lil Kim's makeup has always sizzled as much as her music, but we can see in this pic, her neckline is especially visible with olive tones and her facial foundation is red-tone based, thus not matching. To avoid this, test foundation in natural light on your chin. Unfortunately, the reddish blush is helping to enhance this color, giving her face all-over reddish appearance.

Jafri: It looks like Lil Kim might have an illuminator all over her face giving her a shine that's making her foundation look even lighter, in this case I would like to have seen less. When matching foundation you have to look at the face neck and decolletage together to pick the perfect tone. Many people collect a lot of color on their bodies and end up having a foundation that might match the face but looks light against the body. The one thing that makes foundation look natural is primer. As far as blush tones go, choose a muted natural tone that's found in your skin to enhance and make the skin look healthy. When applying blush, brush right on the apple of the cheek instead of lower cheek sweeping up to temples.