Let Your Inner Mermaid Shine! // Tips for an Everyday Mermaid Makeup Look

Can I let you in a little secret? Come a little closer, we can’t let everyone hear.

…

I’m a mermaid.

Okay, so if you’ve been reading my blog for awhile, or kept an eye on my Twitter account and have seen my frequent requests for a mermaid emoji, it probably comes as no surprise to you. In fact, if you’re a loooooong time reader of my blog (anyone out there?), you might even remember some posts about a mermaid convention.

Yep, that’s right! I said mermaid convention. I dug back into the archives and found some posts from the First Annual MerCon in Las Vegas that took place back in 2011. As soon as my mermaid bestie Heather and I heard about it we made plans to go! We stayed at a mermaid-themed casino and got to meet some fabulous mermaid authors and artists (including Catalina Garreton, whose work is still so much fun to follow all these years later!). The first day included panels with mermaid authors and a mermaid beauty pageant. On the second day Heather had an underwater mermaid photoshoot and we explored the Strip. (I giggled as I read this post, because 1) that taxi driver used to text me every holiday to wish me a happy or merry whatever the holiday was, 2) when people look for recommendations I still recommend picking up an expensive mocha at the Bellagio, because it is 👌🏼 (hopefully it’s still as good as it was back in the day!), and 3) the French restaurant we ate at wasn’t fancy, but it was delicious, and I still remember that meal. I wish I remembered the name of the restaurant!)

Unfortunately, that was the last year of the First Annual MerCon in Las Vegas, so the next year we attended the First Annual Mer-Palooza in Orlando. I didn’t post about that trip. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a rough trip physically and we weren’t impressed with the convention or the venue. (They had one or two more, but I don’t think Mer-Palooza is running anymore. Now the only convention that I’m aware of is MerMania in North Carolina, which I haven’t been to yet.)

All of this is to say that I have a background in mermaid life. And, back in the day, I used to show off my mermaid side on a daily basis with shells and starfish charms in my hair, and blue eye makeup. When we were at Mer-Palooza, we met Mish, who’s a Nigerian musician. He was there for another convention, so he and his manager got us into the convention the night he performed so that we could watch. When they found out we were there for a mermaid convention, Mish’s manager pointed to my eye makeup and said, “Oh, that explains your eye makeup.” Now that I’m writing this, I realize that sounds kind of rude, but it didn’t come off as rude at all. And even though the blue wasn’t just a “mermaid convention” makeup look, it was a mermaid inspired look.

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Earlier this year I heard a rumor that a mermaid emoji is supposed to come out this year. FI-NA-LLY! (Except I thought it was supposed to come out in June and it’s not here yet. 😢) In honor of the hope that I’ll finally have a mermaid emoji, I thought I’d break out my old eye shadows (because yes, I still have them), and share my everyday mermaid makeup look with all of you. Mermaid life is the best life!

I only used MAC eyeshadow back in the day. The colors I always reached for were Shimmermoss, Moon’s Reflection, and Moonflower. Unfortunately, it looks like they don’t have these shades anymore, but any blues and greenish blues will do. I linked a few that I would pick up in this post.

5 Tips for an Everyday Mermaid Makeup Look

1 // Play around with the shades you’ve chosen. I usually used two to three different shades of blues and greenish blues each day. I’d also swap where I placed them on my eyelids each day.

2 // Put a neutral shade in the crease to help with blending and ground the look. Wear whatever blending shade you usually put in your crease, use some of your bronzer, or use a shade like Soba from MAC.

3 // Finish off the look with eyeliner. I didn’t in these photos, because my eyes were so watery with allergies and this was the third makeup look we shot that day. I grabbed some eyeliner to put on, but wasn’t sure I’d be able to get my eyes to stop watering if I did. A black or dark brown will also help ground the blues a bit. I’ve never had much luck with MAC eyeliners, so I always reach for the Urban Decay 24/7 liners. Perversion is the one I’d go for with this. If you really want to add an extra oomph (and I’ve been known to do this), you can also add some blue eye liner to this look to really make it pop. I’d usually use a mix of black and blue.

If wearing blue eyeshadow is a little much for you, you can still show off your mermaid love by using blue and green liners and a natural eyeshadow look. You still have your ocean-inspired makeup, but you can tone it down a bit.

4 // Keep everything else on your face neutral. You want the emphasis to be on your eyes.

5 // Wear it with confidence! That’s my general rule of thumb when it comes to wearing makeup. I don’t wear makeup because I think it’ll make me beautiful; I wear it because I love the creativity that goes into putting it on, and I love expressing myself with it. So if you like the makeup you put on, wear it with confidence! It’ll stand out more if you’re uncomfortable with it, than if you obviously enjoy wearing it.

Do you want to go all out mermaid with a less wearable every day look?

(Of course, if you want to wear this in your day-to-day life, go right ahead! 👊🏼) Add a blue lipstick to go with it! I used Kat Von D’s Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in Echo.

These pictures were taken by my lovely friend Heather (not my mermaid bestie, another Heather) and she snapped these shots as I put the lipstick on.

 

A Bonus Tip

If you’d like to be a little more subtle, but still rock more blues and greens than just a liner, pair one of your mermaid colors with a neutral, like All That Glitters. It’ll give you a nice natural look with a mermaid flair! (It’s included in the list of products if you click the picture below.)

PS – If you’re wondering why I’m not looking at the camera in any of these, it’s because of my allergies. These were taken in June and not only are my eyes red, they just look tired. I’m so excited that fall is almost here and my allergies are pretty much gone!

So, tell me, how would you let your inner mermaid shine? 

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