Honestly when I started this blog, it was based on entirely different purpose. But through turns of events I decided to make this blog personal. It's a medium between me and you, and hence I'd like to decorate it with minim commercial use whatsoever.
So! Without further ado, I'd like to introduce myself...
On second thought, maybe anonymous postings would be quite fun to do. No baggage during the writing and I could possibly write anything as I imagine myself on someone else's vantage point.
I am a girl nearing her 20s. That's all you need to know.
What am I going to post? Maybe about my life. Maybe about someone else's. But essentially, I'm going to write guides.
Envision it as something like Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide
Who doesn't love these bubbly trio?
So! Today's topic is about... *drum rolls*... MAKE UP! for beginners that is. Now, if your school was like mine, you were not allowed to wear make up in high school. So university year would kind of be like the first time you'd wear make up on daily basis (if you choose to do that of course).
I remember my first time trying to wear make up as a routine. It certainly gave me mixed feelings because I didn't want to go overboard and noticeable at all,especially since my friends haven't started on using make up on day to day basis, but at the same time I wanted to look different. People did give me comments or teased me like : 'Where are you going with that mascara?' 'why are you so dolled up? meeting your boyfriend? (when I only used lip gloss and eyeliner)'
But here's tip #1 : you've got to accept the fact that people will notice you are wearing make up. Brush off the teaser and be confident with your new look! Unless they give you constructive feedbacks (like how you should apply your eyeliner for the better), you shouldn't listen to those who give you apprehension on your decision to wear make up!
1) BB Cream
If you're anything like me, you would want your first times to be well informed and safe. I spent lots of time on the internet before actually getting the make up supplies and tried them on for the first time. Make up Gurus would show you how to wear concealer, foundation, etc. However, your mom might have told you that foundation aged your skin.
Hence, BB cream is the best choice for beginners. BB cream is promoted as an all-in-one facial cosmetic product to replace serum, moisturizer, primer, foundation and sunblock. It can be worn alone as a tinted moisturizer, over serum and moisturizer as a regular foundation, and under powder, depending on the desired amount of coverage.
Basically, it's a facial treatment disguised as 'foundation'. And there are many varieties out there with ranging prices of course.
Before I begin with samples and review of available bb cream, I'd like to give...
tip #2: If you don't like the feel of BB cream for whatever reason, you can opt this one out by replacing with suitable moisturizer or SPF cream for your skin. I cannot stress enough the importance of moisturizing cream. On a nutshell, without moisturizing cream, you'll have wrinkles before the age you're supposed to.
tip #3: find a tinted moisturizer that MATCHES your skin and by that I mean your UNDERTONE. There are basically two types of undertones: cool and warm. Here, I'm saving you time from googling it.
Gosh I didn't realise that this post is going to be a long one
So, my friend recommended Clinique BB Cream the other day. She said that the texture is smooth and it gives a radiant look. It may be pricey (about USD 37.00), but less is definitely more in the use. In fact, too much of application makes your skin appears darker! SO you can definitely save up for long time with this one! She recommended this because it didn't cause breakouts or any complications and true enough, her skin seemed matte yet soft! This is debatably the best BB cream out there (as the rest of internet beauty community would say)
By the way...
tip #4: you should always try any product on the back of your hand/ your face before purchasing it. Allow 48 hours of reaction and see if there's any complication. This is called SMART BUYING <3 No matter how great the product's review is, it may not work for you!
My sister, on the other hand prefers Garnier BB Cream, Garnier's (claimed) best product to this day. The plus point about this is that it is more tinted than clinique so it's good for covering blemishes such as freckles, etc. Plus it's oil free too
How about you, illustraits? I choose to settle on Maybelline BB cream. It's quite cheap, yes, but that's not the reason why I stick with it. I kind of like oily glossy look (personal preference okay) because it gives somehow an effortless glammorous look (different with oily dirty face look ofcourse!!). Yes, Maybelline's not oil free and I can attest to that. So it's entirely up to you and your skin type. Anywho, I love the tint colour and how it blends with my undertone. And the fact that it's cheap doesn't hurt (about USD 5). Plus I haven't had break outs so far with this product so I stick with it.
2) Eyebrow Pencil/Gel/Crayon/...
If you know the real me, you would know that I'm OBSESSED with perfect eyebrows. I'd point out to my girl friends how I:
a) wish I have a pair of eyebrows like that, or
b) wish I could pluck out that person's eyebrows.
My eyebrows are NOT perfect, obviously. I haven't had much exploration with them, but I always want to keep them trimmed (on some occasion that I might go 'yolo', I'll just ignore the growing strands that are out of place) but yeah, not trimming them can sometimes be obvious, and if you know your eyebrows do not have good shapes, do...
tip #5: Pluck your eyebrows, or shave them, but DONT overdo it!! Some people don't have the gift of being able to grow back their eyebrows hair and so overplucking CAN be permanent!
Here is the first video that helped me to pluck my eyebrows :)
By the way, if you're viewing my blog from computer/laptop, what do you think of my music playlist? :) Chantelle Truong is by far my most favorite cover singer on YouTube, so do check her music out!
Real talk: there are so many eyebrow tools out there, be it eyebrow pencil... gel... pen... powder... dipbrow?! It may be confusing and you don't know where to start. But for beginners, I recommend eyebrow pencils
- EYEBROW PENCILS
It's easy to use, it's like sketching! So any minor mistakes won't seem too obvious. My personal choice is Mischa Eyebrow pencils. It's a korean product but is surprisingly quite pricey. But the price-tag is compensated by its amazing anti-smudge color and I love how it has eyebrow brush at the other tip so it's good for on the go/ anti-fuss preparation
My sister uses Lancome and my friends use Benefit. I think you can just go to Sephora and try on which one suits you best. But generally, I want you to...
tip #6: Fill in your eyebrows with eyebrow pencil in hair-like strokes for much more natural look!
Oh yes, when choosing pencil color:
tip #7: pick a shade brighter color for your eyebrow fill-ins. You don't want to look like Sin-Chan like when I first started out .................
Nightmare.
However, there is a downside of eyebrow pencils: IF you have obvious bald areas, don't try to fill it in with eyebrow pencil. It will look lighter on skin and will be so obvious that you draw that out.
obvious bald areas on the left side. DONT use eyebrow pencil to draw it out! Try dipbrow instead
- Dip Brow - Anastasia Beverly Hills (USD 18.00)
Ah, the product that has gained lots of attention. People who master it look stunning, people who can't just choose to steer away from it
tip #8: Less is definitely better with this product!!! Use the suitable brush to apply this. And, feather your brows when using this (hair-like strokes). You can use it to outline your brows too, but don't make it too bold. Feather it. Outlining will give you clear clean edge of your eyebrows :)
HELLO DIPBROW <3 <3
- Brow gel
Brow gels help keep unruly brows in place. Clear brow gel is great for those of you who already have thick brows, but need extra taming. Tinted brow gel adds a hint of color to your brows while shaping them. Some brow gel is almost similar to the Dip Brow above
May I say before I end the eyebrows section, I think that girls of this generation pay much more attention to eyebrows, because really, it can change your whole look more than other areas on your face. So if you're intending to skip it as your first time because it seems too troublesome, it doesnt hurt to learn it along the way until you feel much more confident with it :)
tip #7: use concealer under your brow for a highlighting effect on your browbone. It gives you a lifting effect!
look at how immaculate it seems now :)
3) Eye Make Up
Now, for beginners who want to look natural, I recommend natural eye makeup ('duh) Perfect for going to school, etc. But if you want to experiment, feel free!
I recommend NAKED eyeshadow palette by Urban Decay (I don't personally have it, but my sister has all three series :((( ) Here's a sample of step-by-step look
Press on the picture for a zoomed in high quality picture :)
I personally uses Lancome eyeshadow Colour Design and I think it's good enough for long lasting effect, and the only downside is its lack of color ranges.
- Eyeliner
I do not recommend using eyeliner if you want to go really natural to school. But I know some of my seniors who do use them and they still look girl-next-door. I think that eyeliner pencil may be less bold than eyeliner pen (for the same reason as they eyebrow pencil).
Here's my favorite look that I've tried before. Simple yet Sweet
cat eyeliner
tip #8: inner eyelid NEEDS to be applied with eyeliner too! Yes it will be hard and you'll cry on the process. But practice makes perfect right??
4) Concealer
Ever woken up with a bump or blemish when you really don't need one? Dark Circles, wrinkles, whatever could be corrected with concealer. You might be thinking, I thought this is basic? I dont need concealer right? WRONG. Why do you put it as third? Isn't it concealer first before BB Cream/ foundation? MAYBE. But this is basic and we want to use BB Cream, so in that case: BB cream first before concealer
Some recommended products from Beauty Gurus:
Make up Forever Full Cover Concealer. It's Great to cover blemishes and it's oil free hence doesnt worsen your problem :) Plus it's really full coverage
Tarte Maracuja Creaseless Concealer - more hydrating, great for dry skin and undereye! Reduce wrinkles etc :)
Maybelline Fit Me Concealer - for beginners with high definition outlook <3
tip #9: If you have dry skin, you'd want moist liquid-y concealer!
tip #10: Find a concealer that is the same color as your SKIN TONE. and try to find one that is full coverage! because you don't want to use foundation right? But if you do it will be an entirely different story :)
tip #11: Dab the liquid concealer you have, don't pull it
tip #12: you may want to use a different concealer for you undereye. Pick a slightly lighter concealer than your skin tone. SLIGHTLY Lighter for UNDEREYE
5) Lip
I'd like to point out that the greatest mistake any girl could ever think of (dramatic much??!) is ignoring the use of LIPLINER this simple lipliner can make you look more put together and your lip looks FULLER.
THE POWER OF LIPLINER
tip #13: I recommend using a colour that is close to your favorite lipstick AND your lip at the same time. So it's in between the colour :)
I'm not a big fan of lip gloss, so I can't advice you in that area. I think that it's sticky and I personally don't like it when I wear lip gloss, especially the non-tinted one. It seems like I have eaten something oily and forgot to wipe my mouth.
I do love lipsticks! I think that the colour stays longer and it's more classy :) For basic beginners, I recommend: L'oreal Paris Color riche: Fairy Touch. It's pink yet natural :) Plus it has rogue colour for that matte look
Before I end this post, I'd like to invite you guys to like my Facebook Page at: www.facebook.com/illustraits and follow my Instagram: instagram.com/illustraits for blog updates! <3
ANDDD I'm hosting a free giveaway!! yeayyy :) :) :) I'll be shipping this newly purchased Benetint by Benefit to your doorstep free of charge/ shipping fee!! How exciting is that??
Realise I haven't done a category on blushes? It's because benetint is enough to give you that rose-tinted cheek and even lip stain to give you an all natural rosy look :)
All you have to do is go like my FB page/ follow my instagram (both at the same time will increase your chances of winning), thumbs up on this post, and comment about what do you think about my first post!!! The Lucky Winner will be announced by the end of March. Giveaway is only available for Southeast Asia residents for now, BUT fret not! I'll be hosting more giveaways so tune in my blog for more :) :)
