First off, here is a chart that shows different eye shapes so you can figure out which one belongs to you. Many of us gals have a few of each of these features to create our individual eye shape. The key is to identify which one is the most dominant for your face. Once you have done so, you can follow these easy tricks. When you understand the basics, you can really apply these rules and steps to achieve many looks with varying color combinations. Now… let’s fire up those smokey eyes ;)
Close Set Eyes
The general rule to deem your eyes as close set is if the distance between each inner corner of your eyes could fit the width of one eye. Most people err on the side of close set, but for extreme versions here are some key things to remember when applying a smokey eye.
– Next, apply a medium shade on the center of your lid blending outward to the corners of each eyes. From the same palette, we used a buff matte shade called Naked for this step.
– Now to really draw the attention to the outer edges of your eyes, (giving the illusion of a wider set eye,) place a deeper more dramatic shade on the outer corners of your eyes. On Nikki, we used a mocha shimmer called Hustle from the Naked palette.
– For liner on close set eyes, you will want to avoid starting it too close to inside corners. Instead, begin your liner on the top a little more than half way in, then blend out and slightly up to enhance the outsides of your eyes.
– Finish off with some mascara to top off this look.
Having deep set eyes means your eyes have a deeper crease. This also means that they’re a fab canvas for creating many different looks from playing up the crease to disguising it for a more subtle eye.
Deep Set Eyes
– Next, take a medium shadow to blend into the outer corner, slightly underneath and only a little bit into the crease. You want to make sure not to over-enhance the crease since it is already so prominent. I used the brown matte Buck from the Naked palette to achieve this.
– On the outer corners of both, on top and underneath your eyes, use a dark shadow. I used dark metallic Creep in the same palette for a smoldering, dramatic effect. Great for a night out!
– Line with a black pencil and use a liner brush to slightly smudge the liner into the black shadow for extra drama.
– Apply a thickening mascara to complete.
Almond eyes are exactly how they sound. They are probably the most sought-after shape and the one all of these tips and tricks are trying to turn other shapes into. That being said, we will want to give eyes with this shape more height to work with their naturally elongated shapes.
Almond-Shaped Eyes
– Start with a highlighting base, but be sure to avoid your brow bone. For Ashley, we used light, shimmery Nylon by MAC and applied it right to the center of her lids and into the inside corners of her eyes.
– Now, take a medium shadow and sweep it across your lid slightly into the crease and a little above. On Ashley, we used brown matte Buck from the Naked palette.
– Now to create the height, add a darker shadow along the base of the lash line and in the center of the lid. Bring it slightly up being sure not to completely cover the last shade. We used deep purple Blackberry by MAC on Ashley.
– Line along the lash line with a black pencil.
– Apply a thickening mascara to curled lashes to complete this look.
Downturned eyes can be intimidating to work with, but rest assured it is not impossible. In fact, look how amazing Alexis looks rocking her smudgy shadow! For downturned eyes, you will want to enhance the outer corners of your eyes, drawing attention and creating balance.
Downturned Eyes
– First, apply a light base to the entire lid as well as inner corners and brow bone. We used the highlight color from the Brows A-Go-Go Kit by Benefit.
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures