Building a starter makeup kit

[Clarity]

I've decided that it is time for me to learn how to use makeup. I'm thinking about buying some makeup within the next couple of days and would like some advice on what to buy as well as an idea of about how much I can expect to spend. I think I have an idea of what all I will need. What I have come up with so far is: concealer, foundation, eye shadow, eye liner, mascara, blush, lipstick, and a makeup bag. Does this cover the bases pretty well or is there something important I'm forgetting? Also, what colors would work best for me? I have fair skin, brown hair and brown eyes. Is there a brand that you recommend? I don't think I'm going to buy anything expensive yet since I'm still learning how to apply makeup.  Lastly, about how much can I expect to spend for all of this? Is $20 a realistic price for getting what I need to get started?

[caitlin_adams]

Whilst fingers can do some brushes or some foam makeup wedges will help.

[Apples]

The past week I went to buy foundation and concealer, but... I think they got the wrong colors. They did the test on my forearm, which is nuclear white, and my face is slightly darker (the only place in my body the sun can reach. When applying the foundation, I have the sensation that I look too white now. It may pass, but the concealer is too bright. After that I've been blind buying two shades of the other things, hopping to find the correct ones.

In the end I got foundation, eye concealer, blemishes concealer, matte dust, a decent brush for foundation, and I'm waiting to receive an eyeshadows palette, eyelashes mascara and a cheap set of brushes. Still missing eyeliner and the most important thing: Make up remover. Oh, and enough privacy to test it.


BTW, base won't do a thing to hide my gigantic pores. Guess it's better to get a facial peeling first.

[Joann]

Try walmart or targets. they have some very inexpensive brands you can experiment with till you find what works then buy the good stuff. A good makeup mirror with good lighting wold also be good. You'll have to relay get close for long periods of time.

[Lyric]

Well, Yukiko, $20 is not going to get you very far with makeup. About all you'll be doing is playing around with things, as joann suggested. At some point you'll want to learn more about makeup application and put together a good shopping list of items you'll need. It won't be a short list-- or a cheap one.

There are tons of great makeup how-to videos on YouTube. If you look around the web, there's also a lot of detailed advice for beginning TG folks on makeup. You might start at this site's "Reference" section. Remember that if you have beard shadow, you need quite a bit of extra help in that area.

Department store makeup counter clerks are often very helpful with choosing the right shades for your skin type. Everyone has different skin and therefore must buy different makeup to look right with it.

~ Lyric ~

[Angel in the Snow]

Even if you're just buying drugstore stuff, makeup gets expensive pretty quickly. If money's an issue, just start out with some foundation, blush and mascara if you like. With those, you can learn a really nice basic look without feeling overwhelmed, and learn a nice basis for playing with other stuff. If you want to figure out what brands and products to buy to start with, makeupalley.com has tons of reviews on everything. Also, if you have an Ulta near by, they sell all kinds of drugstore type products, and the staff there would be helpful in helping you pick things out.

[Madison Leigh]

Even if you're just buying drugstore stuff, makeup gets expensive pretty quickly. If money's an issue, just start out with some foundation, blush and mascara if you like. With those, you can learn a really nice basic look without feeling overwhelmed, and learn a nice basis for playing with other stuff. If you want to figure out what brands and products to buy to start with, makeupalley.com has tons of reviews on everything. Also, if you have an Ulta near by, they sell all kinds of drugstore type products, and the staff there would be helpful in helping you pick things out.

It does get expensive quickly - I had never really paid attention to how much it was until I got interested in it myself.  That being said, the Wal-Mart and Target suggestion is a good one - especially if you watch for their clearances.  I've had better luck with Target on that, but you can find a lot of stuff really cheap.  It might not be brands or colors you want to go with long term, but it's good for learning techniques.  Additionally even if it's not on clearance, certain brands are significantly cheaper than others.  When I was "learning" (not that I'm still not, but I at least have a grasp of things now) I bought a lot of NYC stuff at Wal-Mart and a lot of ELF stuff at Target as even if it wasn't on clearance it was cheap - often times a dollar or less - so I didn't worry as much about "learning" with it.

Once I got more comfortable with my techniques I would try more expensive makeup - although frankly it wasn't always necessarily better.

Just my two cents.

Madison

[Apples]

Probably not as good as the brush I got for applying foundation, but for 10€, It should be enough for the first at home practices.

[Clarity]

I ended up buying my makeup yesterday. I had a friend's girlfriend along for advice. I started at Wal-Mart with some of the cheaper stuff for practice. I figure that any future makeup purchase will be made to replace stuff as I run out at which point I can start looking at buying better stuff. Now I just need to practice applying it.