Who's graduating in the next few months? Congratulations in advance! It's tough to get through university in one piece, so you better make that last hurrah count. Looking fabulous on the day you are honored for your accomplishments is a simple gift to yourself. Here's a tutorial on how best to go about it!

Now you need to consider a few things when doing your graduation makeup. It must be able to withstand the sweat and oil that will result from the humid hell that is March-April where the season begins to fully transition to summer. I remember my own graduation where we had to stand two hours outside the auditorium before the program started. Que horror! Expect the worse, so your makeup should be oil-resistant, water-resistant, and long-wearing.

I highly recommend the Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Even Finish Foundation for your base if you don't mind the price

...but the Revlon Colorstay Whipped Creme Makeup is a great alternative

Your look should also be as photogenic as possible. It should present the best version of your skin and enhance your features, which means that it has to be heavier and more complex than usual. Don't worry, I'll walk you through the hoops. ;) This tutorial can also be a handy for any special occasion or photoshoot since it's versatile.

Let's begin!

Perfect your skin. The most photogenic and long-lasting combination for this type of event is liquid foundation, spot concealer, and then translucent loose powder.

Hi Liz! Where I work, the company Christmas party has always been THE event of the year for us so most of us really go all out on the preparations. I already have a peg for what I'll be wearing that night and I was thinking of using your Irene Adler makeup look (but perhaps with a more neutral lip) to go with it.

Would it be possible for you to make a step-by-step guide on how to do it? Mucho thanks in advance! - Chenyl

Fun fact: Chenyl is one of the first few Project Vanity readers ever. She was there when no one has ever heard of this blog! So when she requests, you can bet I'm on it! It's been a while since I did a step-by-step like this because all told it takes me 5-6 hours to accomplish. But yes, for my favorite readers, the time is very well spent. ;)

Anyway Chenyl referenced an old look I did. It was a purplish wine smoky eye. I don't have the palette I used there anymore, so I thought I'd show off the new Etude House Mix & Mix Eyes PK001 Christmas Holic palette. It has these gorgeous metallic purples that I think fits the mood of the season! Lots of sparkles, shine, and general extravagance are what Christmas 2012 is about. Gold and red are defaults, but for once let's try out a dramatic purple eye. Here goes!

Step 1: Do your foundation (Clinique Pore Refining Solutions Foundation + Clinique Perfectly Real Foundation), eyebrows (Avon Perfect Eyebrow Pencil + MeMeMe Archangel), and then prime your lids with your favorite eyeshadow base (I used the Artdeco Base here). 

Step 2: Dampen the eyeshadow brush with water.

Scenario: It's a busy weekend and you're out with your friends during the day, maybe for coffee and a bit of shopping. Afterwards you plan to go to a romantic dinner with your special someone (kilig!). However, you don't want to fuss around with changing your makeup since you're in a hurry! What do you do? Simple! Wear a different lipstick and add lots of smudged eyeliner!

I'm going to show you a step-by-step tutorial on how I did these looks, but first I want to share my thoughts on the new Etude House Dear My Blooming Lips Talk Lipsticks (which I'm using here). They're pretty good and costs only P478 locally! The colors are vibrant and opaque, with a smoothing and moisturizing effect on the lips. 

They come in several in-demand shades like Breathless Pink (hot pink), Love Pink (baby pink), Worrisome Beige (nude), Excited Orange, Thrilling Red, and Bashful Coral. The packaging is a cute princess pink color with a metallic ribbon accent.

Pretty, yes? So! Here are two looks using these Etude House lippies, and a guide on how I did them. They're super simple and fun, promise.

Hi everyone! Please welcome Dionne Co, our guest blogger for the day. She blogs at Hello Beauty, so please do visit her and say hello! She's a true-blue makeup addict if I ever saw one. You'll love her tips, I'm sure.

Back in my high school, almost 99% of the students were Chinese. A lot of my classmates complained about not having double eyelids (we used to call it “ting sun” or “fold”) so you’d see some teenage girls walking around with scotch tape on their lids! It was pretty funny to look at but wishing for double lids was, is, and always will be a common occurrence among Oriental girls.

Although I don’t really have anything against surgery, it’s still pretty painful, expensive and risky. Not everyone’s willing to go under the knife. Today, I’m going to show you how to create that double lid effect with something inexpensive, safe and accessible – makeup!

The trick here is depth and dimension.

Read the complete step-by-step tutorial on how to create a double eyelid look after the jump! 

Here I am again with my Valentine's Day makeup suggestion! I feel that this look is flirty and light, just the thing to NOT scare off your date on Valentine's. I know we girls love smoky eyes and red lips, but there are guys who don't appreciate those kinds of looks. No matter. We should wear what we want if it makes us feel good! But for Valentine's day, perhaps it's better to tone it down a little in consideration of our dates.

So, I made a tutorial for this FOTD!

Step 1: Start with a well-primed and evened-out face. I suggest using a primer to prevent makeup meltdown, something like the L'Oreal Base Magique (face) and the Too Faced Shadow Insurance (eyes). For this look I used the Avon Ideal Shade Foundation + loose powder from the same line. I also used the MAC Studiofinish concealer

Step 2: Apply a champagne eyeshadow like MAC All That Glitters all over your lid.