I actually don't wear much makeup. Most days lately I'll wear 3 products: mascara, blush, and some eyebrow gel mayyyybe with some tinted lip balm. HOWEVER, I do love makeup, I watch a lot of tutorials, and I like to keep abreast of makeup trends and such.
Recently a friend of mine asked about a sort of makeup for beginners - she doesn't really wear much makeup herself and she was looking for tips on products to buy and how to apply. I have been saying for months that I'd put something together, so here it is!
So this post is for the non-makeup wearer or the person who doesn't want to spend a lot of time doing makeup. These are the essentials.
1. Brushes. In the old days eye makeup came with a little spongey applicator and blush came with a little brush. Nowadays you need to buy your own tools. And boy you can spend a lot of money on brushes! Personally, I invested in this Zoeva eye brush set for 74 euro and bought brushes for other parts of my face separately. However, Real Techniques brushes are readily available in most Irish chemists, and honestly they are very good. This is a good set for the eyes to start with. You don't want to go too cheap and make sure whatever you get is nice and soft.
For the face, I find that I mostly just use a blush brush and a powder brush, but it's good to have some others on hand, such as a brush for a little contour or in specific spots like under the eyes or for applying concealer. This set from Real Techniques should do the trick.
Here's a youtube video on brushes for beginners:
2. An eyelash curler. This is a must. It will instantly make your eyes look bigger and make you look more awake. I recently bought an expensive one and didn't think it was any better than the drugstore one I had before. This one from Tweezerman gets really good reviews. I will say that really cheap ones (like the ones in Penneys) will do in a pinch but I wouldn't buy one for regular use.
Now... onto the actual makeup!
3. Get a decent eye shadow palette. You don't have to spend a lot of money, but also don't just buy any old palette because there is huge variation of quality. If you're reading reviews of an eye shadow, you want to know that it's what the beauty gurus call 'pigmented.' In other words, you don't need to use much for the colour to show up. If you're someone who doesn't wear a lot of makeup and who wants to keep it simple, go for a neutral palette that has mostly matte shades. Something like NYX's Lid Lingerie Shadow Palette, which only costs a tenner. My go-to is an old Urban Decay Basics palette kind of like this one, which sells for 32 euro.
When it comes to application, you can keep it really simple! But, here's the thing...
4. Ya gotta prime! In this modern age, primers are a fantastic invention. For the eyes, there are loads of options and I've been known to use a frosted primer and call it a day! But usually primers aren't tinted or else they have only a hint of colour. I use a product from MAC called Pro Longwear Paint Pot in the shade 'Painterly'. It's a little on the pricey side at 22 euro, but it lasts forever. It's like a cream that just conceals the veins and discolouration in my eyelids. As I get older, my eyelids have become more uneven in tone, so I like to just even it all out with something thicker. But basically any old eye primer will do.
So, back to number 3 - there are obviously a million tutorials out there. Maybe more than a million? But for the basics you don't even need to watch them. My first advice is to use glittery, foiled, or shimmery shadows very, very sparingly, especially if you're a little older, and especially for daytime. If you've only got five minutes, really just one shade of shadow is all you need. Be sure to blend it out so there are no harsh lines at the edges.
I found this fantastic graphic for knowing where to put which shades where:
5. Mascara is really all you need. A few years ago, my friend Emma told me that Bobbi Brown had the best mascara. So I bought some. And she was right! But I wanted to see if I could find something even better and also a tubing mascara that worked just as well. What is tubing mascara, you ask? According to Beauty Haven, "Regular mascara coats pigment on your lashes, whereas tubing mascara contains flexible polymers that actually wrap themselves around each of your lashes, ensuring that each lash has 360-degree coverage." And let me tell you. Good tubing mascara does. not. smudge. If you're like me and you have oily eyelids and you find yourself having to wipe off mascara smudging throughout the day, then consider tubing mascara. I have tried at least 10 different mascaras that people have claimed to be tubing mascaras, and let me tell you people are wrong a lot of the time. However a couple of tubing mascaras that are the real deal are the No 7 Stay Perfect Mascara (in Boots) for 18 euro and the Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero Smudge Lengthening Mascara for 27 euro. These will give you a pretty natural look so if it's high drama you're after, stick with a non-tubing mascara.
But for regular mascaras, I've been to the moon and back and haven't found anything better than Bobbi Brown's Eye Opening Mascara for 29.50 euro. Other ones I tried were either really clumpy or else didn't give me the length I was after.
6. Don't forget your brows. If you're new to makeup, it can be a bit jarring the first time you put makeup on your eyebrows, especially if your eyebrows are light in colour or density. However, it can really make a big difference to your overall look and you don't have to go full BROW -- just a little bit of product can go a long way. I have extremely slim and light brows, so most days I use a brow gel to just make my eyebrows stand out a bit more. There are some great brow gels out there, but the two I currently use are NYX tinted brow mascara for 8 euro and Glossier Boy Brow for 15 euro, which is a little more sheer. When I have extra time, I'll fill them in properly with either a pencil or a brow powder. I switch up the brow pencils with inexpensive brands, and the powder is just a cheap one from Wet and Wild. But there are a gazillion different brow products from microbladers to different kind of pencils and gels, etc. Anastasia brow products have a great reputation.
7. The face: the options can be overwhelming! I consider makeup for the face completely optional. Firstly, because I was blessed with pretty decent skin, but also because I do not like the sensation of having makeup on my face. For one thing, I blow my nose a LOT so a fair bit of makeup inevitably comes off from my nose and around my nose, including around my mouth. I also don't like worrying about makeup coming off on my clothes, or settling into my wrinkles or wearing off unevenly. HOWEVER, for special events I will wear a full face and I definitely look more polished when I do.
Having said that, there are products that can give you a little polish without being old timey full coverage foundation. These are tinted moisturisers, BB creams (a little heavier than a tinted moisturiser), CC creams (the CC stands for Colour Correcting), and even DD creams, which is supposedly like a BB/CC cream combo. There are also tinted primers that some people use over a moisturiser. And some of the above offer different options like SPF and anti-oxidants. And all of the above are available in a wide range of price points from drugstore/chemists to luxury department store and speciality brands. It's best to read the reviews before taking the plunge, even for the cheaper products. I often like to wear Benefit's Porefessional, which basically sort of blurs your skin and makes it look slightly airbrushed. NYX makes a less expensive dupe also. You can't even feel them on your skin.
If the idea of foundation puts you off (sometimes I feel like I'm painting my skin when I put it on), I really love the face products from Bare Minerals. You put on a clear gel primer, and then two types of powders that convert to a creamy consistency when you brush them on. It's very 'buildable', meaning you can put just a touch on, or you can really pack it on for a lot of coverage. You can get a starter kit that gives you the primer and powers, plus a brush for 24 euro. Here's a tutorial:
You can't go wrong with a bit of blush on the apples of your cheeks -- there are of course bronzers and highlighters up the wazoo, but for the beginner I think we needn't even discuss them. Concealer is also maybe a topic for another day.
8. Attention to the lips will transform your face, but beware! I love the idea of lip colour. I'm always buying lovely lip products with the goal of being a person who wears lipstick. But the truth is, I can't stand the feeling and I am constantly rubbing it off when I blow my nose. So I usually throw on a tinted lip balm and call it a day.
If you want to try something more bold, be honest with yourself about what looks good on you and what actually will stay put. Sometimes we want to be someone who has those perfect matte red lips, but actually it ends up smudging and fading, or on our teeth, and then you look in the mirror an hour after application and it looks like the morning after. So my advice is to prime your lips, use a long-wearing product like a liquid lip with good reviews, and for the love of god use a lip liner if you want it to stay put! They come in clear now so you don't have to worry about hoochie mama lips. I really like the Beauty Youtuber Sharon Farrell, and she's got a good tutorial on how to apply lip colour:
I really like the tinted lip balms from Lush, which they tragically don't make anymore and Body Shop (surprisingly, I'm not into the Burt's Bees ones that are for sale literally everywhere). I'm on the hunt for a new one.
And lastly, if you really want to wear makeup but don't want to look like you're wearing makeup, give the Glossier products a go. Most of them are sheer and very subtle. I love their aesthetic and they've nice little starter sets.
Recently a friend of mine asked about a sort of makeup for beginners - she doesn't really wear much makeup herself and she was looking for tips on products to buy and how to apply. I have been saying for months that I'd put something together, so here it is!
So this post is for the non-makeup wearer or the person who doesn't want to spend a lot of time doing makeup. These are the essentials.
1. Brushes. In the old days eye makeup came with a little spongey applicator and blush came with a little brush. Nowadays you need to buy your own tools. And boy you can spend a lot of money on brushes! Personally, I invested in this Zoeva eye brush set for 74 euro and bought brushes for other parts of my face separately. However, Real Techniques brushes are readily available in most Irish chemists, and honestly they are very good. This is a good set for the eyes to start with. You don't want to go too cheap and make sure whatever you get is nice and soft.
For the face, I find that I mostly just use a blush brush and a powder brush, but it's good to have some others on hand, such as a brush for a little contour or in specific spots like under the eyes or for applying concealer. This set from Real Techniques should do the trick.Here's a youtube video on brushes for beginners:
2. An eyelash curler. This is a must. It will instantly make your eyes look bigger and make you look more awake. I recently bought an expensive one and didn't think it was any better than the drugstore one I had before. This one from Tweezerman gets really good reviews. I will say that really cheap ones (like the ones in Penneys) will do in a pinch but I wouldn't buy one for regular use.
Now... onto the actual makeup!
3. Get a decent eye shadow palette. You don't have to spend a lot of money, but also don't just buy any old palette because there is huge variation of quality. If you're reading reviews of an eye shadow, you want to know that it's what the beauty gurus call 'pigmented.' In other words, you don't need to use much for the colour to show up. If you're someone who doesn't wear a lot of makeup and who wants to keep it simple, go for a neutral palette that has mostly matte shades. Something like NYX's Lid Lingerie Shadow Palette, which only costs a tenner. My go-to is an old Urban Decay Basics palette kind of like this one, which sells for 32 euro.
When it comes to application, you can keep it really simple! But, here's the thing...
4. Ya gotta prime! In this modern age, primers are a fantastic invention. For the eyes, there are loads of options and I've been known to use a frosted primer and call it a day! But usually primers aren't tinted or else they have only a hint of colour. I use a product from MAC called Pro Longwear Paint Pot in the shade 'Painterly'. It's a little on the pricey side at 22 euro, but it lasts forever. It's like a cream that just conceals the veins and discolouration in my eyelids. As I get older, my eyelids have become more uneven in tone, so I like to just even it all out with something thicker. But basically any old eye primer will do.
So, back to number 3 - there are obviously a million tutorials out there. Maybe more than a million? But for the basics you don't even need to watch them. My first advice is to use glittery, foiled, or shimmery shadows very, very sparingly, especially if you're a little older, and especially for daytime. If you've only got five minutes, really just one shade of shadow is all you need. Be sure to blend it out so there are no harsh lines at the edges.
I found this fantastic graphic for knowing where to put which shades where:
5. Mascara is really all you need. A few years ago, my friend Emma told me that Bobbi Brown had the best mascara. So I bought some. And she was right! But I wanted to see if I could find something even better and also a tubing mascara that worked just as well. What is tubing mascara, you ask? According to Beauty Haven, "Regular mascara coats pigment on your lashes, whereas tubing mascara contains flexible polymers that actually wrap themselves around each of your lashes, ensuring that each lash has 360-degree coverage." And let me tell you. Good tubing mascara does. not. smudge. If you're like me and you have oily eyelids and you find yourself having to wipe off mascara smudging throughout the day, then consider tubing mascara. I have tried at least 10 different mascaras that people have claimed to be tubing mascaras, and let me tell you people are wrong a lot of the time. However a couple of tubing mascaras that are the real deal are the No 7 Stay Perfect Mascara (in Boots) for 18 euro and the Estee Lauder Double Wear Zero Smudge Lengthening Mascara for 27 euro. These will give you a pretty natural look so if it's high drama you're after, stick with a non-tubing mascara.
But for regular mascaras, I've been to the moon and back and haven't found anything better than Bobbi Brown's Eye Opening Mascara for 29.50 euro. Other ones I tried were either really clumpy or else didn't give me the length I was after.
6. Don't forget your brows. If you're new to makeup, it can be a bit jarring the first time you put makeup on your eyebrows, especially if your eyebrows are light in colour or density. However, it can really make a big difference to your overall look and you don't have to go full BROW -- just a little bit of product can go a long way. I have extremely slim and light brows, so most days I use a brow gel to just make my eyebrows stand out a bit more. There are some great brow gels out there, but the two I currently use are NYX tinted brow mascara for 8 euro and Glossier Boy Brow for 15 euro, which is a little more sheer. When I have extra time, I'll fill them in properly with either a pencil or a brow powder. I switch up the brow pencils with inexpensive brands, and the powder is just a cheap one from Wet and Wild. But there are a gazillion different brow products from microbladers to different kind of pencils and gels, etc. Anastasia brow products have a great reputation.
7. The face: the options can be overwhelming! I consider makeup for the face completely optional. Firstly, because I was blessed with pretty decent skin, but also because I do not like the sensation of having makeup on my face. For one thing, I blow my nose a LOT so a fair bit of makeup inevitably comes off from my nose and around my nose, including around my mouth. I also don't like worrying about makeup coming off on my clothes, or settling into my wrinkles or wearing off unevenly. HOWEVER, for special events I will wear a full face and I definitely look more polished when I do.
Having said that, there are products that can give you a little polish without being old timey full coverage foundation. These are tinted moisturisers, BB creams (a little heavier than a tinted moisturiser), CC creams (the CC stands for Colour Correcting), and even DD creams, which is supposedly like a BB/CC cream combo. There are also tinted primers that some people use over a moisturiser. And some of the above offer different options like SPF and anti-oxidants. And all of the above are available in a wide range of price points from drugstore/chemists to luxury department store and speciality brands. It's best to read the reviews before taking the plunge, even for the cheaper products. I often like to wear Benefit's Porefessional, which basically sort of blurs your skin and makes it look slightly airbrushed. NYX makes a less expensive dupe also. You can't even feel them on your skin.
If the idea of foundation puts you off (sometimes I feel like I'm painting my skin when I put it on), I really love the face products from Bare Minerals. You put on a clear gel primer, and then two types of powders that convert to a creamy consistency when you brush them on. It's very 'buildable', meaning you can put just a touch on, or you can really pack it on for a lot of coverage. You can get a starter kit that gives you the primer and powers, plus a brush for 24 euro. Here's a tutorial:
You can't go wrong with a bit of blush on the apples of your cheeks -- there are of course bronzers and highlighters up the wazoo, but for the beginner I think we needn't even discuss them. Concealer is also maybe a topic for another day.
8. Attention to the lips will transform your face, but beware! I love the idea of lip colour. I'm always buying lovely lip products with the goal of being a person who wears lipstick. But the truth is, I can't stand the feeling and I am constantly rubbing it off when I blow my nose. So I usually throw on a tinted lip balm and call it a day.
If you want to try something more bold, be honest with yourself about what looks good on you and what actually will stay put. Sometimes we want to be someone who has those perfect matte red lips, but actually it ends up smudging and fading, or on our teeth, and then you look in the mirror an hour after application and it looks like the morning after. So my advice is to prime your lips, use a long-wearing product like a liquid lip with good reviews, and for the love of god use a lip liner if you want it to stay put! They come in clear now so you don't have to worry about hoochie mama lips. I really like the Beauty Youtuber Sharon Farrell, and she's got a good tutorial on how to apply lip colour:
I really like the tinted lip balms from Lush, which they tragically don't make anymore and Body Shop (surprisingly, I'm not into the Burt's Bees ones that are for sale literally everywhere). I'm on the hunt for a new one.
And lastly, if you really want to wear makeup but don't want to look like you're wearing makeup, give the Glossier products a go. Most of them are sheer and very subtle. I love their aesthetic and they've nice little starter sets.
