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Makeup tips for brunettes to bring out your inner bombshell

Your Pinterest beauty board may be full to bursting, but there’s no guarantee that those flawless makeup tutorials are going to look good with the darker shades of your hair.

This is a common problem that most women face — what looks fab online or in magazines may look not-so-flattering when paired against your hair’s hue. For dark-haired beauties, the struggle is real: While women with dark hair, can often get away with deeper and more dramatic makeup colors, the trick lies in using shades that are complementary to your natural coloring to avoid looking overdone.

More:8 tips to color your hair at home without screwing it up

Sound complicated? We promise it’s not. We’ve consulted with some badass beauty experts, and they’re ready to break things down for the brown and black-haired bombshells in need of makeup advice:

Start with the skin tone

Think of your beautiful brunette hair as the backdrop and your unique skin tone as the canvas that you’ll paint. Ylenia Mazzei, a makeup artist in New York City, explains, “There so many various types of brunettes. From light, dark, medium and ash. The same applies to the color of skin — you want to make sure you have the correct foundation without it being too yellow or pinky/orange. Brunettes tend to be striking. So if the person’s skin color has a little yellow undertone to it, you can warm it up with the foundation and bring out an olive appeal. If the skin tone is truly fair, you want to stay exactly there and keep the skin tone consistent.”

And regardless of your skin tone, celebrity makeup artist Dana Hamel says that bronzer is extra flattering for any brunette. Hamel, who has worked on notable brunettes like Zooey Deschanel and Juliette Lewis, advises, “If you have a fair complexion, you can easily add a touch of glam to your look and brighten up your face by applying a bronzer that will instantly match with your dark hair. There are some wonderful cream bronzers available that you can use alone or add a pump to your foundation to create a beautiful, natural, sun-kissed glow to the skin. Powder bronzer gives a wonderful natural highlight to your cheekbones and adds a soft contour to the whole face.”

Let the eyes have it

If you play up one bewitching brunette feature, let it be this. “Brunettes are so fortunate because they are naturally blessed with darker eyebrows and lashes, which frame their eyes and allow them to wear a huge variety of eye colors, including neutral and flesh-toned makeup,” Hamel says. For women with naturally dark hair anywhere on the color spectrum, Hamel suggests soft pinks, mochas and warm brown eyeshadow shades as a sure bet.

She continues, “For something a little more dramatic, I love using various tones of purple — violet, lavender and burgundy shades wonderfully accentuate a brunette’s eyes, while dark gray, deep blue, green, gold tones and smoky shades will give eyes more depth. Using these colors, you can create gorgeous dramatic, smoky eyes, which is an excellent option for brunettes. In this case, however, make sure that you keep the rest of your makeup natural and soft.”

Marissa Waller, beauty expert and founder of BeauTeaBar.com, says, “Adding a copper or gold eyeshadow with a nude lip is the perfect everyday look for the classic brunette girl.” Hamel also adds that brunettes with blue eyes can take full advantage of warm eye shadows to create a natural, feminine look.

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