Makeup!

[ellie]

discuss anything about makeup here! favorite products, tips and tricks with applying, advice on finding what's right for you, face of the day... etc.

i'll start off with some lip products that i just got from sephora recently. i've never been a huge lip person since my lipstick always seems to come off and look awkward, plus my lips are a decent color naturally, but i have been trying to experiment a little more. i got some obsessive compulsive cosmetics lip tars that i've heard a lot of good things about, along with sephora's bundle of 6 different trial-size lip products for $25. the lip tars are a little much for me; i will have to try to work them in on casual office days where i don't need to be self-conscious about looking super professional. i am extremely pleased with the lip collection though. i like smaller sizes for lip products anyway since i can count the number of them i've finished on one hand and it's a very affordable way to try a few new things. the colors seem to be juuuust slightly outside of the neutral range so now i have several choices to work in some lip color for my daily "office" makeup routine.




oh and if you dislike makeup just go ahead and don't post here. we don't need to hear about how makeup is so "fake" and you prefer natural girls soooo much more, thanks.

 

[Zazie]

What if I am worried about using it because of safety?

I mean I am pretty sure there are some good options, pssibly expensive, if I am concerned about what's in the stuff, but I don't know much about make-up in general. It's real inditmidating for me, especially since I don't think I will have mocuh opportunity to wear it.

I could really use to get some foundation or whatever, even though it's not really my thing, because I have a lot stuff to cover on my face.

I really like lip stuff though. What's lip tar?

 

[ellie]

safety is definitely a valid concern. lime crime (which most of the makeup community already does not like though i have no experience with) just got in trouble with the FDA for an ingredient in one of their lipsticks. particularly if you are interested in indie makeup, you should definitely do your research before buying things and make sure it's reputable and doesn't contain bad ingredients.

if you don't know where to start period, i started by watching makeup tutorial videos on youtube. while you shouldn't take their word on products as gospel truth (many of them either get product for free in exchange for a review or they have far more disposable income than the average person), it is a great place to start for just learning about products, techniques to apply, etc.

then i would start looking at unbiased websites with reviews. makeupalley is my favorite but there are some others out there. this will help you see what other people actually buy and their reviews for it, so you can see if some people broke out with abc foundation, if xyz lotion has parabens in it (i never bought into the anti-paraben hype but some people do), and all kinds of other things. this can help you narrow down some brands of products that you may actually want to try.

once it comes time to actually buy stuff, many stores have very generous return policies, so i would look at those. this little infographic shows policies for a lot of the major makeup stores in the US, and it can save you a lot of headaches if you pick one where you can easily take stuff back. i can't count the number of times i have tried something that looked good in the store and i get it home and it just does not work for me.

and you don't need to buy into the hype that a lot of makeup newbies do and try about 10000 products first thing. if you just want something in the foundation range and you have never used makeup before, a tinted moisturizer is a good place to start, and i still wear just tinted moisturizer sometimes when i don't want to put on 10000 products. it will look more natural since it's not meant to cover as much as a foundation and if you're not used to wearing makeup it won't be as huge of a change. it also will look fine without any special tools (beautyblender, high quality brushes, etc) so you can kind of dip your toe in before investing in possibly expensive items.

then once you have your products selected, i would first apply it in the morning on a day you are not going anywhere. wash it off at night (i use the oil cleansing method, shower, and then a gentle toner and it seems to get all of it off) and see if your skin appears irritated. if it's something you're more worried about (particularly important with skincare products), you can do what's called a "patch test" and put a little bit of the product on somewhere inconspicuous for a few days and see if that spot breaks out.



so i guess that's an introduction to starting with makeup? most stuff is not unsafe as long as you buy from established brands, you just need to be careful about irritating your skin.




as for lip tars, they are basically liquid lip products that come in a tube that are very highly pigmented. you squeeze a little bit out onto a brush (the set i bought comes with one) and kind of paint it onto your lips. it can be a bit drying so i wouldn't say it's an everyday thing, but the color is very bold and lasts a lot longer than traditional lip products.

 

[Tiffany]

Ugh, I love Limecrime's makeup but their practices are just so shady. Now hearing this, when they're claiming to be something they're not? I'll have to find a Velvetine look a like. that's my go-to red matte liquid lipstick, and it smells like cake. oh well.

 

[Zazie]

Thanks for the limecrime warning, they are one of the few make-up makers I know due to the wide variety of colors. I like cool colored lipstick a bit more, though I am not sure how well it goes with darker skin.

 

[ellie]

Surprising that you guys have actually heard of it because tbh I had been mostly out of the makeup community for the past couple years and recently got back in, and I hadn't even heard of it until something happened with a security leak (? don't know the details) and now this thing with the FDA. It definitely reinforces the importance of doing your research on less established companies (and even more established ones too) rather than just falling for the hype.

My favorite red is mac's Russian Red. A lot of reds look really orangey on me but that one is definitely a true red and the formula is very nice. It lasts a decent amount of time too, especially if I seal with lipcote. I melted mine accidentally though (don't leave lipstick in your car) and I have been too lazy to get another


While the "rule" is darker skin usually works better with warmer colors and fairer skin with cooler colors that's not always true. I have very fair skin and some warm undertones look good on me and some cool undertones look horrible. It really depends on the specific product. As I said in th last post looking at reviews from people similar to you (makeup alley users fill in basic info including skin tone and you can filter for your needs) helps. For lip products swatching on your inner arm and holding it up to your face can give you an idea of how it will look. It won't be an exact match obviously since lips are more pigmented than the rest of our skin, but playing around with the testers at sephora can at least give you an idea of what might look good.



If you get more into makeup another good thing to do is to look out for gifts with purchase. Mid to Higher-Mid end makeup very rarely rarely goes on sale but you will often get freebies to go with the stuff you bought. They almost always have some sort of lip color in there (and an eyeshadow and mascara, I have never had to buy mid range mascara and they're all decent) so that's a low risk way to try some out too.

 

[Jb]

being a dude i don't really wear make up but when it's hot my eyelashes sometimes drop into my eye from sweat. so i got a mascara brush thing without the mascara to straighten them out when that happens.

 

[Zazie]

So I went shopping with a friend yesterday, and she helped me pick out some basic makeup to get started on. Got some creme stuff that apparently replaces needing to have a bunch of layers on my face, it covers up what my razor can't get really well. Got some eyeliner and mascara, realized I can't put it on in the mirror and am going to have to apply it blind. I don't think that will be too much a problem if since I prefer thicker eyeliner though. And I got some magenta lipstick, which worked really well.

It all blended into my face real well, to the point you couldn't really tell I was wearing any makeup at all unless you looked closely. EVen the lipstick because apparently it wa roughly the same color as my lips where already. It's good for the base, but I was kind of hoping for more flashy lips and eyes. And that it would feminize my face, which it didn't it just made me look the same but prettier.

Overall happy with the results though. I probably shouldn't have taken it off before going out because it was subtle enough where I probably could have rode the metro without worrying about getting my face bashed in.* I guess next week at an anime con will have to be my public debut.

*a bit of an large exaggeration there, but you never know.

 

[ellie]

a lot of makeup can definitely be subtle enough that you probably couldn't tell unless you knew the person was wearing it. my (male) supervisor at my last job started wearing concealer for acne scars and i didn't even know until he told me. it's becoming more socially acceptable even for men to wear small amounts of makeup so i highly doubt youd get your face bashed in for it.

as far as feminizing your face, depending on what you got, a lot of it is technique too. a little mascara with tightlining is pretty subtle and won't affect your overall appearance too much. thicker eyeliner with wings and several coats of mascara will. a darker lipstick and some blush will help make you more feminine too and those aren't too terribly hard to apply. e.l.f. has some really great cheap blushes that look good on a few skintones.

also why can't you put mascara/eyeliner on in the mirror? if it's because of glasses there are some great tutorials for putting on makeup with glasses on. i wouldn't recommend putting it on blind because it is very easy to poke yourself in the eye (i still do it occasionally, no glasses and a decade of nearly daily makeup application) and it hurts a lot plus ruins your eye makeup.

 

[Zazie]

also why can't you put mascara/eyeliner on in the mirror? if it's because of glasses there are some great tutorials for putting on makeup with glasses on. i wouldn't recommend putting it on blind because it is very easy to poke yourself in the eye (i still do it occasionally, no glasses and a decade of nearly daily makeup application) and it hurts a lot plus ruins your eye makeup.

It is partially because of the glasses, without them I have to get real close in, close enough where I don't have enough maneuvering room.

 

[ellie]

i would definitely look into tutorials specifically for glasses-wearers then. it's pretty difficult to try and do it blind even for experienced people. it probably won't look even and you may hurt yourself if you do it without looking.

 

[grey wing]

I have to give a shout out to my NYX finishing powder. It has been a godsend with my oily skin. Even with oil free, shine free makeup on, I would still have to blot my face a million times a day. This keeps a nice matte finish almost all day, and sets my other makeup. I use the translucent as I'm very fair, but darker tones might want to try one of the tinted versions.

 

[aloejazz]

I generally don't like how makeup feels on my face, but I really love Maybelline's tinted baby lips chapstick. It's enough color to help me look a bit more put together on days I could use a confidence boost. I also enjoy wearing nail polish! My favorite brand is Color Club, and while I can't wear the crazier shades (re: holographic) for work, I think they're so cool! Unfortunately, most of my polish collection is not work-appropriate for my office (blues, greens, glitters). I'm always amazed by the nail art people post online, but all I can do are the basic scotch tape designs.

 

[ellie]

i am "allowed" to wear whatever nail polish i want i guess since no one has ever said anything, but i just dont bother most of the time because they chip so fast.. i have been considering getting the gel but idk

 

[_Kiwi_]

I'm a pretty light wearer of makeup, but for when I do use it I swear by Rimmel's Lasting Finish foundation. It's one of the few I've found that doesn't feel thick and cakey, and it actually has shades that go with my practically translucent skin! Plus, it's not crazy expensive either which is a HUGE bonus.

I generally don't like how makeup feels on my face, but I really love Maybelline's tinted baby lips chapstick. It's enough color to help me look a bit more put together on days I could use a confidence boost.

I love Baby Lips! My school has super-strict restrictions on makeup so their tinted chapsticks are like a godsend. They don't technically count as makeup, so the teachers can't do anything about us using it.

 

[ellie]

I remember the days of not being allowed to wear makeup.. Always seemed really stupid and unnecessarily restrictive to me. That's good for you thwt tinted Chapstick doesn't count though, I think they did at my school so I didn't even get that.

 

[Pyroli]

I remember the days of not being allowed to wear makeup.. Always seemed really stupid and unnecessarily restrictive to me..

You guys have restrictions on makeup? That's so weird. I never would've thought that schools would restrict something like that, my high school never did.

I love makeup, although I have ultra sensitive skin so I always have to take that into account when buying new makeup. I prefer liquid makeups (like concealer and whatnot), but I also use a lot of powders. My brand of choice for the most part is Covergirl, because it's cheap and they have a whole sensitive skin line which is such a godsend. They actually colour the lids differently to differentiate them, green lids are sensitive skin and blue lids are normal. I also have a thing for lipliner over lipstick, I use lipliner on the entirety of my lips because it stays on so much longer and the colours are a little more vibrant. I can't remember what brand I've been buying but I have a bright red, a shade called vintage, and a hot pink one. I tend to wear vintage the most, as it just makes my lips slightly pinker than normal.

 

[SilverRayquaza]

In my opinion, a guy should love me for the way I actually look, not how well I can apply foundation.

I respect the opinions of all others though.

 

[Pipip]

Do not underestimate the power of false lashes! Pair them with a winged liner and my eyes look twice as big. Most eyelash wearers use Duo Eyelash Adhesive, however I recently bought DUP Eyelash Fixer (Japanese brand) and it's so much better. Easier to apply, stickier and generally lasts longer. I usually buy my falsies from Japan, as they are cheaper than most western brands and look great too. I would recommend Diamond Lash, Eyemazing and Dolly Wink (a little more on the expensive side)!

 

[Skylander Sylveon]

uhhhhhh being a guy i love to paint mah nails pink and try on different eyeshadows omaygawd ;D

LOL having awesome eyebrows they get messy (the equivalent of bed hair lmao) so i borrow my sister's eyebrow brush and straighten my eyebrows... she get's mad at me so i dont tell her.

my mum also puts some face powder on my nose, cause apparently people wait for my nose to turn green when im standing next to a crossing XD