7 Things Every Makeup Artist Wants You to Know

Legendary makeup artist Trish McEvoy isn't one to keep secrets. To celebrate the launch of her new book, The Makeup of a Confident Woman, she shared some of the things she wishes all women knew—even if it means they might end up buying fewer of her products because they look so damn good.

You need one that has a light and tilts upwards so you can lift your chin while looking down into the mirror; it's the best position for doing your eye makeup, says McEvoy. She uses the one from Simple Human.

2. Prep with a peel pad, *not* a face mask.

Face masks may be having a moment, but McEvoy gives models her beta hydroxy acid pads to use the night before big photo shoots. The acid "exfoliates by gently dissolving the dead cells on skin's surface," she says. Your complexion gets softer, skincare absorbs more effectively, and, ultimately, makeup goes on more smoothly for better results.

3. Put your eye makeup on first.

With eye makeup, you're bound to have shadow fallout or liner and mascara mishaps. "When you clean that up, you remove face makeup and have to try to patch it up, which takes time and may not even work," McEvoy explains. Easy fix: Do your face makeup *after* your eyes.

4. If your makeup brushes are shedding, it might be user error.

When washing your brushes, only wash the bristles, and don't get the handle or feral (the metal clamp that holds the bristles) wet. When water gets in there, it softens the glue over time, and eventually your brush will lose bristles, McEvoy warns. Also: "Nothing replaces soap and water for thorough makeup-brush cleaning."

5. When you're tired, don't try and cover it up.

It's tempting to hide behind concealer, full-coverage foundation, super-pigmented shadows, and lip colors when you're exhausted. Don't, says McEvoy: It'll just make you look more tired. Pick transparent formulas, like a BB cream, sheer cream blush, and lip gloss.

6. You're applying your highlighter wrong.

Conventional wisdom (and YouTube videos) would have you believe luminizers work best on brow bones and the tops of cheekbones. But no matter who's in her chair, McEvoy likes to apply and blend Instant Eye Lift (it's like a non-shimmery highlighting cream combined with a sheer brightening concealer) in an upside-down isosceles triangle under both eyes. "I call it the Triangle of Light; it brightens the middle of the face, giving it a fuller and younger appearance, and it still highlights the cheekbone area, too."

7. #NoMakeup sometimes means…makeup.

McEvoy is happy for celebrities like Alicia Keys and Alessia Cara, who are proud to go barefaced in photos. But don't worry if your un-made-up face doesn't measure up to the ones you see on Instagram: Many of those women believe—and publicize—the fact that they're not wearing makeup, when "they're actually in skincare products with coverage, like beauty balms."

Pick up McEvoy's book, available now, for more priceless advice.

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