Well, first things first. You find a good foundation that matches your skin. Revlon ColorStay is great, easy to find, and provides a high amount of coverage. MAC Studio Fix would be my second choice, but the colors are little hard to match for first timers due to the whacky color codes, so trial and error is needed. Estee Lauder has some great foundations too, but they are on the pricey side and not any better than MAC or Revlon IMHO. Next, most use some sort of powder to set the foundation, again I'd stick with the same brand as the foundation so matching isn't an issue. Also you'll need to pick between loose or pressed powder. Other than that, YouTube is your friend, and there are tons of how to videos, from some very experienced peeps.
Different companies have their own best products. I mainly stick to:
MAC: for eyeshadow, lipstick, and some powders/bronzers, brushes
Revlon: for foundation
Urban Decay: primers, eyeshadows, eyeliner
NYX: a little of everything as their prices are low and product quality is high
NARS: blush, bronzer
There's a whole bunch of prep stuff before makeup which most use like: primers, moisturizer, sunblock, etc. but I'll leave that for another post. I'll also add makeup is addicting and you can spend a bunch of money quick.
