Make up help/recommendations

[jeepgirl30]

I don't wear a lot of makeup and like a natural look but also like the smokey eyes look. I am 40. I am lucky to have good skin, nice complexion and everyone says I have no wrinkles.

I have always bought cheap drugstore makeup with the occassional clinique thrown in. I have found the clinique stuff to be much better quality. Recently i went to Sephora with a friend and bought an eyeshadow from Urban Decay. LOVE it! I want more, not the funky bright colors but the browns and greys are very nice.

A few years ago i found Smokey Mountain minerals and bought the mineral makeup. I like it okay but it is messy. I used to use Clinique pressed powder for foundation. But I don't really need foundation so much as an all over toner type, like a very light cover to shade imperfections. I have very clear skin but very fair.

I have makeup in my bag that is a good 5-7 years old. I am ready to pitch it all and start over (except for my new urban decay pot!)

Question I have is, where to start and what do i need! I don't want to spend an hour doing my face but would like some tips. I did a search on urban decay and found all these primers and potions and have no clue what they are or how to use them!

I don't want to spend hundreds but am thinking around 75-100 would be okay for me to cough up. I don't want to go to a make up counter unprepared. Last time I did that they made up my face with so much makeup i felt like I looked like a tramp. I want a glow and some shimmer but not where you need sunglasses.

 

[Christine]

If you have great skin and don't want to wear a lot of makeup, you don't need much.

I have used a makeup primer and it is a silicone based liquid that goes on your face and kind of creates a smooth, even palette for foundation to go over top. I don't care for the feel of it but I have very sensitive skin so that may be why. It will give you a more flawless look with your foundation.

If you want to stick with liquid foundation and, again, don't want heavy coverage, I would suggest a tinted moisturizer. Clinique is a great brand but if you like Sephora you can certainly stop in the store and the staff will help you find one.

MAC makeup is also very nice and they have so many different types. They are extremely helpful at the MAC counter. My DD has used their makeup for years, prefers it over mineral makeup, and to be honest, it looks a heck of a lot nicer on her than mineral makeup does.

I use Bare Minerals mainly due to sensitive skin. When I use liquid foundation, I always look a bit sallow and haggard. I'd like to change too. I have very dry skin. At 47 it is definitely starting to show some signs of age and I don't like the way the Bare Minerals is "settling" around my eyes.

 

[mandy200587]

I would say for sure a good mascara and eyeprimer. I love mine from Sephora, the primer will help keep the eyeshadow on throughout the day.

This is what I have: http://sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P225500&categoryId=C17360&shouldPaginate=true

 

[tlbwriter]

May I suggest a Bobbi Brown counter? They tend to focus on a more natural look. You could also go to Sephora, since they'll have access to many different brands. Again, tell them you want a natural, low fuss look.

Foundation - You may not need it. Mineral foundation is great for light coverage. What part do you find messy - applying it? I put a towel down on my bathroom counter to catch the mess.

Primers - You probably don't need a foundation primer, since you don't need much foundation. Urban Decay's eyeshadow primer is probably the best out there. Does your shadow wear off before you want it to? Then try their primer. The difference in the primers is simply the color. The original is a good basic.

Eyeshadow - UD makes a lot of my favorite shadows. I'd stay away from the glitter and stick to shimmery shades. Bobbi Brown is a good choice for neutrals.

Shimmer and glow - Do you mean blush, or all over? Since you're pale you want to be careful about adding a lot of color - it can look fake really easily. Many companies offer shimmery or "illuminating" face powders.

 

[Christine]

Shimmer and glow - Do you mean blush, or all over? Since you're pale you want to be careful about adding a lot of color - it can look fake really easily. Many companies offer shimmery or "illuminating" face powders.

Benefit Makeup also has High Beam and Moon Beam liquid illuminators that work well when you are not using foundation or using light liquid foundation. They don't work well at all with powdered foundation. You might like these as they give you a "dewy" look.

 

[LuvOrlando]

If you have a nice complexion and just want a little something to even things out I like Bare Escentuals. At most I will use a Q-tip and dab on a touch of foundation to little spots here & there that aren't perfect under the powder then put the powder on top. I just don't like anything liquid on 40 year old skin, it collects in the creases so that creases look like wrinkles especially around the eyes... not exactly something most women want to accentuate yet all my friends do it all the time... I keep my mouth shut. I don't think the liquid stuff looks wrinkly at first, I think it happens over time which is why they don't seem to realize it.

 

[lovetoscrap]

I love MAC! I was never much of a make up wearer mostly because I didn't know how to do it and every time I went to have someone show me it looked like I had been to a Sherwin Williams store!

But I liked the prices at MAC and had heard about the quality so I took DD there for some make up advice when she wanted to start wearing it and they did a fabulous job! She looked like a beautiful 13 year old when he was done, not a 13 trying to be 22. So I asked him to help me and told him I am a conservative no make up mom and he showed me quick, easy and flattering. And he showed us stuff that we can share to help with cost.

I did spend quite a bit on that first visit because I owned nothing-- no brushes, no basics, nothing. But since then I have spent very little on the things I need. I do get my mascara from the drug store because it has to be replaced more often and I found one I liked.

 

[rie'smom]

One of my favorite makeup brands- and I'm a makeup junkie- is Rimmel which is sold at WalMart. Their foundation is wonderful and foundation is the one area where you should splurge but with Rimmel you don't have to do that. if I have to go to a cocktail party, a ball, or some other dressy event, I wear Dermablend. It's heavier and gives more coverage. It also lasts longer. For everyday though Rimmel is great.

Much of the higher end makeup is made by the same companies that you find at drug stores and Wal Mart.

Owned by Esteé Lauder:
- Aveda
- Bobbi Brown
- Clinique
- Flirt
- Jane- Wal mart
- M.A.C.
- Origins
- Prescriptives
- Stila
- Tommy Hilfiger

Rimmel is owned by Coty which also owns:
-Baby Phat
- Balenciaga
- Calvin Klein
-Cerruti
- Chloé
- Chopard
- Davidoff
- Home Skin Lab
- Jennifer Lopez
- Jette Joop
- Jil Sander
- Joop!
- Karl Lagerfeld
- Kenneth Cole
- L.A.M.B. fragrance by Gwen Stefani
- La Voce by Renée Fleming
- Lancaster
- Marc Jacobs
- Nautica
- Nikos
-Phat Farm
-Sarah Jessica Parker
- Vera Wang
-Vivienne Westwood
The Coty Beauty brand portfolio also owns include Adidas, Astor, Celine Dion, Chupa Chups, David and Victoria Beckham, Esprit, Exclamation, Faith Hill, Halle Berry, Jovan, Kate Moss, Kylie Minogue, La Cross, Miss Sixty, Miss Sporty, N.Y.C. New York Color, Pierre Cardin, Playboy, Rimmel, Sally Hansen, Shania Twain, Stetson, Tim McGraw, and Tonino Lamborghini.

 

[DizBelle]

For foundation, I like the Smashbox Halo hydrating powder. It isn't loose, per se, but it comes in a compact with a grater on top. You twist a bit to grind of a bit of the pressed powder into loose powder then use a brush to brush it on.

It is a bit expensive but I really like the way it makes my skin look. The powder compact and a little buki brush is $59 at Sephora. But I had one that lasted me almost 2 years and I'm more than a year into my second one. It depends on how much you use. I use it 4-5 days a week (I usually use something else on the weekends mostly because I have other stuff and want to preserve my halo). So, with regular use, I would think you'd get a year out of it unless you go really heavy.

 

[gillep]

I was wearing pretty much no makeup except for special occasions because I have wonderful skin and didn't really need it until about 7 months ago when I splurged at sephora for some basics.

I love the more natural or lightly smokey look so I bought Too Faced Naked eye and I love this it has three different looks (day, classic, and fashion) each with 3 different colors (all in a pink/grey scheme) and each look comes with a card with easy/quick instructions to apply it right every time. Too Faced also has a Natural eye which is the same idea but with golds/browns.

For eye shadow prime I love the urban decay potion

For foundation I use skin perfekt gel in luminous, It is very light and makes my skin feel very soft although I think that it is only for someone who wants super light coverage

Dior Blackout is my favorite mascara


good luck and have fun

 

[arminnie]

If you have great skin and don't want to wear a lot of makeup, you don't need much.

That's true. I'm way older, but have fairly decent skin for my age. I need the foundation now to not have so washed out a look, but I don't have to spend much time on it.

I really recommend Sephora. They have so many different lines, and are great about which one works for you.

As far as smokey eyeshadows I LOVE the Tarte products. I also like their mascara and their cheek color sticks (very sheer). They often have a kit with several colors that is a good buy to try several colors.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

I'm also in my 40's very fair and on a day I don't put a face on I use Laura Gellar eye spackle just to even out the tone in my eyes &

http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P150726&categoryId=B70