Fourth of July Makeup + Outfit

Ahh, holidays -- a perfect opportunity to do some crazy makeup that you normally couldn't get away with on a normal day.

Fourth of July?  Cue the red, white, and blue makeup!  It's fun to sort of let loose with makeup looks like this, because to me it's essentially a costume.  I'd obviously never wear this type of eyeshadow just for kicks to run errands or grab coffee.  But when all you're doing is going to a barbecue and watching some fireworks with friends.. why not?!

I've seen some Fourth of July makeup looks that, to be frank, did not look appealing.  I'm sorry, but I don't want to walk around with a French flag on my eyelid.  And let's be real -- it's extremely hard to try to blend and mix red with blue in a cohesive way where you don't end up looking like a coloring book gone wrong.

So this is what I came up with:

I went with a gradient eyeshadow from white to dark blue, paired with a dramatic winged eyeliner and falsies.  I matched the same gradient pattern on the lower lid and smudged in some black liner on the waterline and lashline.  And, of course, took a matte red lipstick on an eyeliner brush and drew a little red star for some fun.  

No, I didn't incorporate red into the actual eyeshadow, but I didn't even want to.  You can still subtly create an "American"-themed makeup look without trying to draw stars and stripes onto your lid.  And I think it turned out very Fourth-of-July-chic, anyway.

It was a beautiful and sunny 80 degree day in Chicago, so I threw on a cropped top and cut off jean shorts -- one of the most 'Murican outfits there is -- and added a backwards denim baseball cap (which, perfectly, happened to have a red tag on it).  

I also decided to tie a red flannel around my waist at the last minute before heading out the door just in case the temperature dropped when the sun went down.  Plus it just added to the festive patriotic colors of my outfit.  And to be the most 'Murican as I could, I only wore my Birkenstocks all day.  Yes.  Even to the club at night.

Buuuuut not even kidding.  It was great!  I've never been so comfortable drinking pitchers and dancing to Lady Gaga ever in my life.  In Birkenstocks.

And that's where I should probably see myself out.  

Hope everyone had a great Fourth of July!

xojaybee