Hi Bloggers.
This post is dedicated to my friend, Kari & for those that think I am credible enough for providing them with makeup advice.
Firstly, she calls herself a 'makeup noob' but - she really isn't. What advise do I have for makeup noobies? Have FUN & EXPERIMENT!
Makeup is art. It's an expression of yourself. I can do an entire post on how Instagram has ruined many women's' lives. Makeup for the real girl is not comparable to that on Instagram. Sometimes, when I watch a tutorial on "How to do the "No makeup - makeup look" - I lose my mind. They use 32 products to achieve this look whereas it takes me 3. This means: everyone is different. Everyone has their own host of skin issues. There is no one size fits all advice. It is just about learning your facial features & then experimenting with products. There will be some failure but that is what return policies are for. Sephora is great about returns. On the bright side, you might find a holy grail!
Being an avid makeup user from at least the last 10 years, if not more - I can say one thing for sure: Take your time to test products. How one product looks or wears on me might look completely different on you. That is why a million variations in colours and styles exist today. EXPERIMENT! Makeup is for playing and having fun!
Who used to do the icy blue shadow with a blue top and thought that was cool? ME. Who has ever tried a burgundy lip liner with a nude lipstick without blending the two? ME! (PS: It looked like I wore Sharpie on my lips, lol). Who has caked their face so much that it looked as if it was dipped in a bag of flour? ME. Who has worn Kohl liner literally 2 miles away from their waterline? ME. And all of you guys tell me I am good at makeup? LOL. It took YEARS of mistakes and looking funny to get to where I am today (which isn't all that stellar, if you ask me!) But guess what? I had fun along the way. And looking back at those experiments cracks me up.
And now for some actual advise for beginners:-
Tip #1: Focus MORE on SKINCARE, LESS on MAKEUP.
Skincare ensures better results with makeup application than buying the most expensive primers or foundations on the market. I've used a wide array of foundations - Urban Decay Naked Skin, MUFE HD, Giorgio Armani, MAC Studio Fix, NARS Sheerglow etc. They all have different finishes. Some are matte, some are satin, and some are dewy.
Understanding our skin has the biggest part in determining which products to buy. Don't buy what others are buying - they might not work for you. Foundations are the #1 thing I get asked for in terms of advise.
If your skincare is consistent - your base will look great. However, this is different for those with actual skin concerns like cystic acne or rosacea.
Once you understand your skin - align your products with your skin type. For example, if you have oily skin - go for a matte foundation instead of a dewy foundation. A dewy foundation will only make you look more of a grease ball.
More than half the time I get complaints about products from friends - it turns out that they are using something that works against their skin. That is because we tend to follow cult favorites without determining whether they are meant for our skin type. Who doesn't purchase products by looking at YouTube tutorials? Guilty as charged! It's a lottery; sometimes, things work and sometimes, they don't. I've made some guilty YT purchases in the spur of the moment. But then, I have also gone back to return them at Sephora.
I have combination skin: normal with an oily forehead and nose (which we also call T-zone). I used to have really dry skin but over the years, my skincare has changed a lot of things. What I used to call dry skin was actually dehydrated skin. Water, my friends. Drink your water. I kept looking for products for uneven and dull skintone. Instead, eat more veggies and drink water. Change from within!
Tip #2: LESS is MORE.
Not for everyone. Before I get grilled - the meaning of 'less' or 'more' varies for everyone. For me, it means - I need to get the best results without using a million products. I try to buy products that are multipurpose. I like lip and cheek stains - because I can use them for 2 parts of my face. I like strobe creams because I use them as a moisturizer and highlighter. I like BB creams because I get coverage for hyperpigmentation without using foundation. I like peach based correctors because it brightens up my under eye in 30 seconds right before work. I like quick and easy. I like convenient and affordable. I like luxury products a lot as well - but I reserve them mostly for party-wear.
I have no more than 7 minutes for my makeup from Monday - Friday for work. I use the following:
- Vitamin C Serum & Moisturizer (Ole Henriksen Truth Serum & Farmacy Honey Drop Moisturizer)
- Corrector & Tinted Moisturizer (Bobbi Brown Medium to Dark Peach & Laura Mercier)
- Powder for T zone (MAC Studio Fix Powder in NC40)
- Lip Balm & Lipstick (GLAMGLOW Wet Lip Balm Treatment & any lipstick of choice)
- Kohl liner for waterline (optional) (Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Pencil)
- Mascara - A MUST FOR ME! (Urban Decay Perversion Mascara)
- Bronzer - for bringing some dimension to my face (optional) - MAC Skinfinish in Medium Dark
I always find that I look less cakey with using minimal products. I also find that the right tools (brushes, sponges etc.) will help you achieve the right look. I use my hands for a lot of things as well.
Tip #3: Base is everything.
I am a strong believer of perfecting the base and spending less time on eye makeup. But as I have been repeating - this is what MY preference is. A lot of people would spend more time enhancing their eyes. My eyes are not the prominent feature on my face. For me, it's my lips. I like to spend more time colour correcting, blurring my pores and getting my contour right instead of eye makeup. A quick wash of any colour on my eye lids works for me. I am quick with liner & mascara as well. My face needs work because I need colour correction underneath my eyes as well as around my mouth. I feel more confident with being minimal on the eye makeup as long as my face is chiseled.
Tip #4: Get SAMPLES!
Walk into Sephora & pester those employees to give you samples. They are there for a reason. There is NO shame in walking into the store not buying anything. I walk in strictly to grab samples at times. I wanted to try out the Giorgio Armani foundation as a sample before spending a crazy amount of $
I love the FARMACY Honey Drop Moisturizer (as mentioned above). Today, I walked into Sephora to get a sample of their Honey Mask. It's nearly $75 - how can I spend that type of money without finding out if it's worth it? Ladies - sampling is amazing. You can try luxury products at home and decide whether they're worth the splurge.
Tip #5: Seeing is believing.
Test out a product. Pretend you're a skincare/makeup specialist. For example, if you buy a foundation for the purpose of mattifying your face - ask yourself questions. What kind of claims did this product make? Did it wear fine for at least 8 hours? Did it even mattify? Or did it make your skin texture look worse? Sometimes, we use the wrong combination of products. For example, silicone primers don't sit well on my skin. They start looking like a hot mess. It's difficult to identify which product is causing the hot mess when you wear moisturizer, primer and foundation. You have to use one product alone and in combination with other products to judge its performance. Do you know what I mean? Sometimes, I test shadows for pigmentation with AND without primer. I test out foundations over just moisturizers and then over primers. I make a note of when I need a touch up throughout the day if a certain product is wearing off - especially lipsticks. I know this sounds like a tedious task - but it isn't. You will get used to it once you get in the habit.
I don't know if this was helpful, as it was very generic. But I would be happy to clarify anything I've written throughout the post. My dressing room is my sanctuary and makeup is therapy. I am always game for answering any questions - you guys already know that!
This post is dedicated to my friend, Kari & for those that think I am credible enough for providing them with makeup advice.
Firstly, she calls herself a 'makeup noob' but - she really isn't. What advise do I have for makeup noobies? Have FUN & EXPERIMENT!
Makeup is art. It's an expression of yourself. I can do an entire post on how Instagram has ruined many women's' lives. Makeup for the real girl is not comparable to that on Instagram. Sometimes, when I watch a tutorial on "How to do the "No makeup - makeup look" - I lose my mind. They use 32 products to achieve this look whereas it takes me 3. This means: everyone is different. Everyone has their own host of skin issues. There is no one size fits all advice. It is just about learning your facial features & then experimenting with products. There will be some failure but that is what return policies are for. Sephora is great about returns. On the bright side, you might find a holy grail!
Being an avid makeup user from at least the last 10 years, if not more - I can say one thing for sure: Take your time to test products. How one product looks or wears on me might look completely different on you. That is why a million variations in colours and styles exist today. EXPERIMENT! Makeup is for playing and having fun!
Who used to do the icy blue shadow with a blue top and thought that was cool? ME. Who has ever tried a burgundy lip liner with a nude lipstick without blending the two? ME! (PS: It looked like I wore Sharpie on my lips, lol). Who has caked their face so much that it looked as if it was dipped in a bag of flour? ME. Who has worn Kohl liner literally 2 miles away from their waterline? ME. And all of you guys tell me I am good at makeup? LOL. It took YEARS of mistakes and looking funny to get to where I am today (which isn't all that stellar, if you ask me!) But guess what? I had fun along the way. And looking back at those experiments cracks me up.
And now for some actual advise for beginners:-
Tip #1: Focus MORE on SKINCARE, LESS on MAKEUP.
Understanding our skin has the biggest part in determining which products to buy. Don't buy what others are buying - they might not work for you. Foundations are the #1 thing I get asked for in terms of advise.
If your skincare is consistent - your base will look great. However, this is different for those with actual skin concerns like cystic acne or rosacea.
Once you understand your skin - align your products with your skin type. For example, if you have oily skin - go for a matte foundation instead of a dewy foundation. A dewy foundation will only make you look more of a grease ball.
More than half the time I get complaints about products from friends - it turns out that they are using something that works against their skin. That is because we tend to follow cult favorites without determining whether they are meant for our skin type. Who doesn't purchase products by looking at YouTube tutorials? Guilty as charged! It's a lottery; sometimes, things work and sometimes, they don't. I've made some guilty YT purchases in the spur of the moment. But then, I have also gone back to return them at Sephora.
I have combination skin: normal with an oily forehead and nose (which we also call T-zone). I used to have really dry skin but over the years, my skincare has changed a lot of things. What I used to call dry skin was actually dehydrated skin. Water, my friends. Drink your water. I kept looking for products for uneven and dull skintone. Instead, eat more veggies and drink water. Change from within!
Tip #2: LESS is MORE.
Not for everyone. Before I get grilled - the meaning of 'less' or 'more' varies for everyone. For me, it means - I need to get the best results without using a million products. I try to buy products that are multipurpose. I like lip and cheek stains - because I can use them for 2 parts of my face. I like strobe creams because I use them as a moisturizer and highlighter. I like BB creams because I get coverage for hyperpigmentation without using foundation. I like peach based correctors because it brightens up my under eye in 30 seconds right before work. I like quick and easy. I like convenient and affordable. I like luxury products a lot as well - but I reserve them mostly for party-wear.
I have no more than 7 minutes for my makeup from Monday - Friday for work. I use the following:
- Vitamin C Serum & Moisturizer (Ole Henriksen Truth Serum & Farmacy Honey Drop Moisturizer)
- Corrector & Tinted Moisturizer (Bobbi Brown Medium to Dark Peach & Laura Mercier)
- Powder for T zone (MAC Studio Fix Powder in NC40)
- Lip Balm & Lipstick (GLAMGLOW Wet Lip Balm Treatment & any lipstick of choice)
- Kohl liner for waterline (optional) (Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Pencil)
- Mascara - A MUST FOR ME! (Urban Decay Perversion Mascara)
- Bronzer - for bringing some dimension to my face (optional) - MAC Skinfinish in Medium Dark
Tip #3: Base is everything.
I am a strong believer of perfecting the base and spending less time on eye makeup. But as I have been repeating - this is what MY preference is. A lot of people would spend more time enhancing their eyes. My eyes are not the prominent feature on my face. For me, it's my lips. I like to spend more time colour correcting, blurring my pores and getting my contour right instead of eye makeup. A quick wash of any colour on my eye lids works for me. I am quick with liner & mascara as well. My face needs work because I need colour correction underneath my eyes as well as around my mouth. I feel more confident with being minimal on the eye makeup as long as my face is chiseled.
Tip #4: Get SAMPLES!
Walk into Sephora & pester those employees to give you samples. They are there for a reason. There is NO shame in walking into the store not buying anything. I walk in strictly to grab samples at times. I wanted to try out the Giorgio Armani foundation as a sample before spending a crazy amount of $
I love the FARMACY Honey Drop Moisturizer (as mentioned above). Today, I walked into Sephora to get a sample of their Honey Mask. It's nearly $75 - how can I spend that type of money without finding out if it's worth it? Ladies - sampling is amazing. You can try luxury products at home and decide whether they're worth the splurge.
Tip #5: Seeing is believing.
Test out a product. Pretend you're a skincare/makeup specialist. For example, if you buy a foundation for the purpose of mattifying your face - ask yourself questions. What kind of claims did this product make? Did it wear fine for at least 8 hours? Did it even mattify? Or did it make your skin texture look worse? Sometimes, we use the wrong combination of products. For example, silicone primers don't sit well on my skin. They start looking like a hot mess. It's difficult to identify which product is causing the hot mess when you wear moisturizer, primer and foundation. You have to use one product alone and in combination with other products to judge its performance. Do you know what I mean? Sometimes, I test shadows for pigmentation with AND without primer. I test out foundations over just moisturizers and then over primers. I make a note of when I need a touch up throughout the day if a certain product is wearing off - especially lipsticks. I know this sounds like a tedious task - but it isn't. You will get used to it once you get in the habit.
I don't know if this was helpful, as it was very generic. But I would be happy to clarify anything I've written throughout the post. My dressing room is my sanctuary and makeup is therapy. I am always game for answering any questions - you guys already know that!
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