Reasons for Makeup

Most women (and even quite a few men) have a period in their lives when they wear makeup, though there are often many different reasons for their doing so. Women most commonly wear makeup to make themselves look prettier or to fit into the media's idea of what is beautiful. Some try to stand out with bright colours and patterns, while others try to remain simple and look pleasant to others. I, personally, wear makeup when I feel that I need a confidence boost--I don't really care how others see me, but knowing that I put time into my appearance makes me feel better. Men who wear makeup, however, usually do so in order to demonstrate their differences from the rest of society and individuality. They may also do so when dressing as women for whatever reason, or (as is the case with women as well) on stage.

The Basics

A basic makeup palette should compliment your own skin tones. Find a foundation (and concealer, if necessary) that matches your skin perfectly. It's often hard to do this yourself, so I suggest going to a makeup counter at a mall or having a friend help you choose. When it comes to eyeliner, it's best to have both a brown and a black on hand, the darkness can depend on your skin tone and the type of makeup you plan to wear. For eyeshadow, find something that compliments either your skin or your eye colour. Basic brown four-colour palettes are available at most drugstores and booths in the mall and compliment almost every skin tone, though many stray away from this. I have very pink undertones in my skin, so I often find that a pink-purple-brown palette works well, though one with olive skin might find greens and yellows more fitting. As for matching your eyes, look at your own eyes and find specks of colour that don't necessarily dominate your iris but would look nice reflected. For example, if you have hazel eyes, greens, golds and browns will work well. Opposites work, as well. I have green eyes (though they often change colour) and purple eyeshadow really makes the green in them stand out. When wearing mascara, use the same colour as the eyeliner you used, and in general try to stick to dark browns unless your hair is very dark.

Lipstick often gets more difficult. I tend to stick to pinky-brown-ish colours and the ones that match my lips almost perfectly. When going for a basic makeup palette, this is often the best way to compliment your own skintones. As for blush, I honestly don't believe in buying blush unless it comes with a set. Your lipstick and blush should at least be in the same colour group, if not the same colour, so I usually just spread a thin layer of lipstick on my cheekbones for a natural-looking flush.

More Complex Makeup

Many people like to have a bolder more complex style of makeup to wear at night or to parties, or sometimes just because. In these situations, it's best to stick with your basic palette but to extremes--if you usually wear browns, get some very dark browns to include and create a smoky eye with that. For olive skin or hazel eyes, use deep yellow colours. Whatever you go for, make sure to stick with the colour family that will compliment your skin and eyes in order to steer clear from looking like a clown. In these situations, you have to choose what part of your face you want to stand out--most people try to focus on one feature and leave the rest fairly basic or light. Dark eyes with very light lipstick contrast each other well, as do very boldly coloured eyes with your 'basic' lipstick. If you want to go all-out, again, try out a few colours and make sure they match your skin tone. Different reds work on different people, as goes for all other colours of any makeup. When it comes to eyeliner, liquid usually leaves a bolder impression, especially if applied on top of a brightly-coloured eyeliner. When you're going for bolder looks, you are an artist and your face is your palette, so have fun!

Areas to Highlight

Many women, especially younger girls, fall into the trap of covering themselves with highlighting shimmer powder. Whether you use a shimmer powder or a highlighting creme, make sure to focus on specific areas: these are created so that they seem more lighted and reflective, so don't put it in an area that doesn't get hit by the light. The top of the forehead right near the hairline is one place, as is the upper cheekbone and right below the eyebrow. A less common area that defies the rule is the inside corner of the eye: I don't know what it is about this spot, but it looks great with light eyeshadow or shimmer powder in it.

Things to be Careful Of

I find that when applying a dark eyeshadow, oftentimes some of the pigment will fall off the brush and onto my cheek, leaving me with a dark purple smudged cheek when I try to wipe it off. In order to prevent this, hold a tissue under your eye while applying anything that you don't want to get all over your face. The other problem I come across most frequently is the little indent in the side of your upper nose, where glasses sit if you wear them. This one's a lot easier to handle than the cheek, which likely already has foundation, if not blush and highlight on it. Take a q-tip dipped in eyeliner to remove the makeup from that area and, if necessary, apply a tiny bit of foundation there to blend it with the rest of your skin. If you're lucky enough to wear glasses, though, this spot shouldn't be a problem at all.

Where and What to Buy

Personally, I'm a makeup snob. I'm a poor starving college student, but I love my Mac, Lancome, Chanel, Prescriptives, Elizabeth Arden, and all those more expensive brands. The advantage to these is that you can have them test the makeup out on you to see if you like it, and they often give you advice on what to pair the makeup you buy with--I once sat at a booth and got a free makeover from an employee who KNEW that I could not afford to buy the makeup there, but she told me all the colours to get--light pink eyeshadow, bright green eyeliner, things like that. The people at the booths in Macy's or wherever else has them are very helpful because, even if you don't buy the makeup then, they know you'll remember how helpful they were and go there later on.

If you don't have the budget to spend all your money on expensive makeup, things you can get at drugstores and Target/Wal-Mart/etc. can do just fine if you apply them right. I find that less expensive makeup doesn't tend to stay on as long, so getting a primer might be a good investment if you plan to wear your makeup all day, and keep some makeup in your purse in case you need to re-apply (this is especially important if you tend to have oily skin). Honestly, no matter what your budget, try to stay away from the $1 eyeshadow trays and things, they often just don't work at all. Many of the other brands at these stores, however, are branches of the brands you'll find at the mall and work for what you'll need them for--just remember to take a friend if you're shopping for concealer or anything that needs to match your skin tone.

If you're really lucky, you leave near a Sephora store or one similar, that specialises in all kinds of makeups and perfumes. Here, you can get professional advice, makeup, skin cleansers, or pretty much any other cosmetically related item, and since the store sells all different brands, they aren't inclined to sell you one specific brand if that is not the right type for you. If you're "cosmetically challenged," you might be able to find a makeup box that includes different eyeshadows, blush, shimmer powder and lip colours that all go together, and some even have diagrams of how to put them on--I know Hard Candy makes a Punk Palette and a Princess Palette as I described, and I'm sure many other companies do similar things.

Lastly...

Discounts are great! Some outlet malls have makeup outlets, where you can get name-brand makeup for half the price. My favourite piece of advice, though, told to me when I was about 9 by my aunt, is this: whenever you're shopping for makeup at the mall, find the booth with the free gift. It's usually around 30 dollars to get the gift, and the makeup included usually complements all skin tones and comes with moisturizers and brushes so you needn't buy them yourself. The packages are worth a great deal more than what they sell them for, so get them if you can!