Every occasion has its unwritten requirements that are sort of understood. If you were to do something outside of what is expected then this can be a faux pas that is hard to overcome. When it comes to a job interview, it is especially important to make sure that you are not going to make that same kind of mistake. It’s so important to make a good first impression so you don’t start out in a bad position. Your makeup is going to be one of the first things the interviewer notices so it’s important to get it right.

Unfortunately, the first impression is superficial and isn’t so much about who you are but what you look like. They feel, sometimes wrongly, that if you are putting yourself together in this way that it says a lot about you as a person and worker. To avoid any problems, we put together this article with the best makeup tips for an interview.

1. Don’t Blush

An interview can be a very stressful and anxiety-inducing event that causes even the calmest people to get flustered and sometimes blush when they’re nervous. To really ace an interview, you have to stay cool under pressure or at least appear that way. This means that your makeup should be able to conceal any blushes or even sweat so that you don’t look like you are feeling the heat.

The best makeup primer will help you apply the right amount of blush so that it can cover you when you do actually blush. However, try to go light on the blush and use something like a bronzer that will bring some color to your face without it looking like you are flushing.

If you tend to get really red when you blush then a bronzer may not work to conceal the redness. Instead, look for a blush that is more on the green side of the spectrum as it will cover up the redness and be far less noticeable.

2. Match Your Skin Tone

It would be ideal if you could simply go to a job interview without wearing any makeup at all. The problem is that it would come across as not caring about your appearance or that you are lazy and didn’t want to deal with applying makeup.

It doesn’t matter if neither of those thoughts is true, the point is that not wearing makeup would most certainly be a faux pas. The next best thing to do is to match the makeup with your skin tone so you have an almost “nude” look that appears to be very natural and not like you put on a lot of makeup.

This allows you to look like your makeup blends in and doesn’t stand out. You should match your blush with your skin tone so it doesn’t really look like you have any on at all. Also, try to avoid things like eyeshadow and bright or dark lipstick. Instead, use a nude lip gloss.

3. Go for a Soft Look

Mascara can clump if you’re not careful, especially if you are nervous and blinking a lot. This will make it stand out quite a bit. The same goes for false eyelashes since they just won’t look natural. You’ll certainly come across as overly made up.

The idea is to go for a soft look so use eyeliner that is very subtle and stops where your eye stops. Don’t go for anything that stands out like extending past your eye. Thin lines are best since they’ll give a very soft outline to your eyes without being noticeable.

Mineral powder is also a good idea since it goes on very soft and will actually conceal any sweating that may occur if you’re nervous. It can go on to your bare skin or over a foundation. If you follow the above advice to keep it natural and match your skin tone then this will help conceal any shine from your skin and still not look like you caked on the makeup.

4. Think Ahead

Preparing your skin ahead of time is a good way to make sure that you don’t have to put on much makeup. This means that you should be doing things like moisturizing your face and exfoliating.

When you start this process a few days ahead of time, then when you are applying your makeup it will go on more uniformly and even take on a different aspect altogether.