if you were to do a makeup tutorial with me, it would most certainly be a tragedy.

Makeshift vanity.

#ibelieveinkenkaneki

I really do. I started Tokyo Ghoul after my friend Lain kept posting about it on twitter, and I read it voraciously. I love Tsukiyama, I really do, he's so utterly horrible and selfish and pathetic but somehow still incredibly amusing. And I love Kaneki. I love him, I love his slow development and spiral into the pits of hell from what was once an ordinary and uneventful human life.

If you don't know Tokyo Ghoul, it's a fantasy horror manga about a modern Tokyo where "ghouls"--human-like creatures who can only survive on human flesh--are rumored to live. Ken Kaneki is a young, quiet and ordinary college student who loves to read. After a freak accident he becomes involved in the ghoul underground of Tokyo and begins to learn what being a ghoul really means--the reality of having to live off of human life.

I recently stumbled across a photoset of all the digital Kaneki illustrations Sui Ishida has done, and one of them really stuck out to me. It's my phone background now, and I wanted to emulate the tired, worn-down look Kaneki has with makeup.

Illustration by Sui Ishida, author of Tokyo Ghoul.

I've been feeling tired lately myself, and when I get depressed and weary thinking about Kaneki and Tokyo Ghoul tends to help me feel better somehow. I think I just love him so much that empathizing with him and re-reading the story makes me feel some sort of catharsis.

And so, I began to photograph my own version of this tragedy.



First check: the tools.

Eyes. A selection of Blackbird's matte shadows, not all of which I used.

Face.

Powder.

Priming & lashes.

Odds & ends.

And lastly, the source of our inspiration.

First things first, we have to get our skin to edible perfection. Prep with moisturizer and let it sink in. Then for this, I'd use however you are comfortable applying your foundation. I used what is usually called the "Goss Method", so I applied my powder first in a nice thin layer, then I got myself ready with some miracle in a bottle:

Those liquid liner swatches are from like 3 days ago, I think they're Rimmel and L'oreal. Despite using oil as remover and showering, they are still competing to see who can tough it out.

Kaneki is also deathly pale in the illustration, so whether or not you want to try going paler with your foundation to get that "dead tired" look is up to you. For me, I am already quite tired enough, so I'm just going with my standard Mac Face & Body in N1. (Also my fav buffing brush pictured above is shedding like it's a housepet, I am so sad right now.)

Begin your Face Perfection steps however you like it. Just one thing: do not attempt to cover your dark circles. This is a tired look, so embrace your natural under-eye darkness. Once you are done with the foundation:

Flower concealer pen in ?? either shade 1 or 2. It's rly worn out.

Conceal! Just do the little spots you still want to cover, and remember not to bother your dark circles.

Yea that's legit. 

Next up: brows.

Are you ready to make some magic.

Yeah, that's what the hair cream is for. Not hair. Brows. Which I guess is technically hair, but it's on your face. We are also going to use Blackbird Cosmetics eyeshadow in Atlas. Or well, I am going to use it, because my hair is dark brown. You may use whatever shade matches you best.

Brow powder or pencil is best for this, because it will look more natural.

Countour game on point.

Kaneki's brows are usually covered by his bangs, but we can see here he does have them, and they definitely have some thickness to them. I'm gonna scruff my brows up a bit, and they might come out a bit thicker than his, but I'm not too miffed about that at the moment.

Start by squeezing out the tiniest bit of hair cream and dab it onto your brows so they're a little damp and sticky but not like, coated in a mountain of product. Comb them through with the spoolie to shape them.

Spoolie, UD's super-thin multitasker brush I got with my Naked 1 palette, which is perfect for this, and my de-bagged Atlas sample.

Then, we are going to pick up a teensy bit of Atlas and tap the brush against the jar lid a few times to avoid fallout. Gently apply the powder to your brows in small strokes.

What do you mean I had a costume change in this photo. I swear I didn't take this after I finished because I realized I lacked photos. I swear.

 You should be able to see an instant difference in darkness and volume. Continue along the brow in patchy parts where powder is needed. Once done, comb through and re-shape them with the spoolie again.

Smizing not on point. I shame myself.

And with that, ba-bam! Brows are now fantastic.

Brow magic.

Next up we are going to do eyes! The shadows and brushes I ended up using was this:

Real Techniques Shader brush, Ecotools liner/smudger brush, Ecotools travel size ??? brush.
Blackbird Cosmetics Dog Days, Beau and Ruca.

Before we get to the shadowy side of things, we obviously need to prime.

That was too much primer. Don't be me. Use less.

Prime the lids, and also the under lashline. That way the shadow will stick when we use it as a liner on the lower lid too!

You will need three shades for this. A light shade that is at least 2 shades darker than your skin, but natural-looking, a reddish-brown, and then a darker reddish color. They should be mattes as well! I am using Dog Days (matte medium neutral brown), Beau (reddish dark brown) and Ruca (a rusty slightly blackened red).

Then first up, take a small brush (I'm use the Real Techniques Shader) and get a bit of the lightest shade on it. Pat that shade into the inner third of the lid and the outer third. Leave the center bare, and try to "frame" the center. If you know what a "halo" eye is, that's a bit what we're going for. (If not searching instagram should bring up some ideas!)

Roughly the idea.

Then, once you have that in place, lightly pat the same shade along the outer third and inner third of the lower lashline too. Then, get a nice clean fluffy brush and lightly blend the upper lid until the harshness is gone. Light sweep the lower lashline too so the harshness of any lines soften.

The product so far. Not very noticeable yet!

Next up, get a smaller brush and the reddish-brown shadow. Dip the brush in and get the teeniest bit of it on. Apply it on the inside of the first sections. We are making the darker shadows go towards the center here.

Yeah you get the idea.

Make sure your placement of shadow also follows the curve of your eyeball, but not so much that you end up making an entire half-sphere with your shadow. Then, place the same reddish brown lightly on your bottom lashline, a bit tighter than the lighter shade, but not going over it all the way. You should still leave some of the lighter shade by itself on the outer edges.

Then, get your fluffy brush and blend everything up to soften.

Fluffy fluffy.

Lastly, get out your pencil brush and the darker red shade and begin by lining the outer third of the upper lashline, and then the inner third. Then, like we did with the previous shade, we are going to apply a thin curve of it along the previous shadow, still framing that lid center.

Grab more of it on your brush and line the lower lashline with it as well on the outer and inner thirds.

Always gotta do it with open mouth, right?

Then, get your handy-dandy blending brush and blend it all up nice and soft again in small strokes, and soften up the bottom lashline. Add mascara of your choice, I prefer one that's fairly natural looking for just a but of color.

And here's the finished eye!

A bit soft and natural but still weary.

Next up we're gonna go back to the face. Get a bit of luminizer and apply a tiny bit on your cheekbones and nose bridge. Kaneki is pale but he also has beautiful skin, no doubt due to his strict diet limits.

Lumi of choice.

I also added the very lightest dusting of matte peach blush on personal preference, it helps my cheekbones stand out without contouring.

All done.

Now add a nice swipe of matte-finish lip balm and you're ready for your erm...dream date with that beautiful girl at the local coffee shop. Just don't offer to walk her home, ok?

Close-up.

The Black Goat's Egg sure reads a lot like Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets...

Calmato.

I hope maybe you enjoyed this, or at the very least it gave you some ideas to chew on! (Just don't chew anyone literally...)

Product List: Pirkka Day Cream ● Mac Face and Body Foundation in N1 ● Ben Nye Banana Powder  ● Flower Concealer Pen in Shade 2 ● Revlon Skinlights in Bare ● Urban Decay Primer Potion ● Blackbird Cosmetics Matte Shadows in Dog Days, Beau, Ruca and Atlas ● L'oreal Everstyle Tousle Creme ● NARS Blush Palette in Killing Me Softly ● L'oreal Volume & Curl Mascara ● D&G Passion Eyes Mascara sample ● Urban Decay B6 Complexion Spray ● Lypsyl lip balm in Original