3 Ways to Add Edge to Your Look

I'm not going to lie, October is perhaps my favorite makeup month of all. With the overarching anticipation of Halloween veiling the whole month, it is the perfect time to go all out will full out smoky eyes, vampy lips, and just all around dark beauty. But whether you like a lot of edge or just a little, here are three ways that you can add some haunted glam into your routine all month,

Try a One- Shadow Smoky Look: Don't get me wrong I love a full-on four or five-eyeshadow smoky eye, starting with a light base shade and adding a myriad of grays and browns smudged onto the lid and crease and lashlines, but there is definitely a shortcut to this classic style. You can choose any medium or deep shade you want from taupe to black, or if you're feeling really funky, a bright or deep purple or green or orange or blue, whatever color you want. Work that shade in with a shadow brush first stamping it heavily on the lashline then gradually using what remains on the brush to diffuse the color upwards on to the lid and up to the crease, stopping just before you come to the browbone. Highlight the brow if you want, but I prefer it to remain unaccented for this look, leaving the impact to be all about that intense monochrome shadow and the natural vertical gradient you get from the color diffusing upward as you continue to sweep the brush along the planes of the eye, which is the basic principle behind any smoky look, just without as many shades and, thus, less time spent layering and blending,

Experiment with Deep or Bold Nailcolors: Nail polish is both a easy and somewhat noncommittal to play with colors that you are unsure of. They add something special to a look without being plastered on your face. It has been for me a kind of gateway to playing with edgier or off-the-wall colors that I don't always feel comfortable wearing in clothes or incorporating into a makeup look. I love acid greens on the nails for example, and that color is an unexpected twist for Fall as it is a color often reserved for Spring and Summer. But my very, very favorite kind of color for nails in this time is a rich black or blackened plum . OPI's classic Lincoln Park After Dark is an undying gem, and adds the perfect amount of dark, sophisticated modern elegance to anyone's style without going overboard.

Embrace the Absence of Cheek Color: No matter your coloring, using your own unaltered skintone as a blank base really allows bold accents on the lips and eyes to take centerstage. It is also a great way to let the unique beauty of your bare unfiltered skin claim the spotlight and make any more intense accents (if present) seem less "done" or overly complicated. Of course, add coverage products as you feel you need, but these will be in harmony with your skintone and won't clutter the effect with added color in the way blush and highlight and contour would. The effect of this very much gives a rock n roll chic to a makeup look, and it is this casual, undone appeal that I am truly here for this season and probably every.

Whether you'd call it unleashing your inner punk or putting your own devilish queen on her throne, taking a walk on the dark side is sometimes a little fun, especially in makeup. Happy experimenting, everyone, and Happy October.