Makeup ideas/tips

[jstarfireb]

First let's preface this by saying that I am completely clueless when it comes to makeup! I don't normally wear any except on special occasions, but I have a bunch of department store stuff hanging around (just can't resist those free giveaways!). When I do wear makeup, it's usually warm colors and a natural look.

So...I'm doing my own makeup for my wedding in May, and I'd love to hear some ideas for colors and looks, as well as basic tips/tricks.

I am fair-skinned with medium brown hair and light olive green eyes. My hair will be the typical "mostly down in loose curls with a few curls pinned up in the back" look. (ETA: The hair in the canvas is just an inspiration style, not mine!)

A little about my wedding:
-date: 5/10/09
-outdoor ceremony and indoor reception in a farmhouse-style venue in Central PA
-wedding will have a simple, casual, free-spirited feel
-main color is sage green
-flowers are white calla lilies
-see my canvas below for more details

 

[White Orchid]

I would recommend keeping your make-up fairly neutral on your wedding day, especially since you don''t wear much now.

I would recommend going to the make-up counter in the mall and getting them to show you how to do a bridal application.

One word to the wise though, invest in a good waterproof mascara!!

 

[Deelight]

Date: 3/6/2009 8:49:37 PM
Author: White Orchid
I would recommend keeping your make-up fairly neutral on your wedding day, especially since you don't wear much now.


I would recommend going to the make-up counter in the mall and getting them to show you how to do a bridal application.


One word to the wise though, invest in a good waterproof mascara!!

Ditto, getting someone to show you how to apply it will help heaps

Also youtube vids help and lots of practice.


ETA Love your inspiration board .

 

[jstarfireb]

Thanks, ladies! I''ll give that a try. Any other suggestions?

Deelight, thanks! In case you''re wondering, about half of what''s on that board is "real" - the pictures in the dress are actually of me, the bridesmaid dresses are the ones my girls are actually wearing, and the ceremony/reception pics are from my actual venue. The cake, flowers, centerpiece, hair, shoes, and candles are just very similar to mine.

 

[AmberGretchen]

One additional suggestion - its very important to take pictures of yourself with the makeup on when you try it out yourself. Makeup in real life can look TOTALLY different than in a picture - in general, it should be heavier and more dramatic for pictures, probably to the point where you may look at it and not love it in real life. Very important to see how it photographs though, so I''d be sure to take lots of pics when you try it out.

Another thought is to try it out at the beginning of a long day and see how long it lasts. Sometimes makeup looks great when its first applied but has melted off by the time you are ready to call it a night. You don''t want to have melted makeup everywhere by the end of the wedding.

Finally, I''d recommend, if you have a Sephora nearby, doing a makeup trial there. Its free, and you''re not restricted to having them use just a single brand of makeup on you, which frees them up to choose the very best products for you, across different brands.

 

[Lorelei]

Foundation is very important to get a long lasting makeup look and for photographs. You don't have to wear a thick heavy mask of it but some foundation will help even out skintone, reduce shininess and stop you from looking washed out in photos. You could try mineral powder even, these can be natural looking and long lasting.

Warm toned shadows can bring out the green in your eyes, try golds, warm deep beiges and browns, even amethyst/ burgundy eyecolours can make green eyes pop. Experiment if you can to see which you like best.

 

[Smurfysmiles]

no matter how little or how much makeup you choose to use, i would say get a good foundation and eye primer. I had never used it before until I started trying to figure out how to do my own makeup for the wedding and once I used it it was great. Basically what it will do is make your makeup last longer throughout the day. I went to Ulta to get mine and they helped me find just the right one and also had a 60 day return policy where you could bring it back even opened and used, no questions asked.

As for bringing out the color of your eyes, I forget what it''s called but for my blue eyes there''s a brand that puts 3 colors of shadow together to emphasize the color of your eyes and also i have eyeliner and mascara specifically for my eye color as well and it really works well. I think it is maybelline or loreal but I really don''t know for sure.

 

[JulieN]

I'm thinking warm browns for the eyes and peachy blush.

Marcia Cross?

 

[jstarfireb]

Thanks to all who replied so far! I got a nice little ULTA gift set from FSIL for my shower. Right now I''m planning on wearing a lot more than I usually use...I have set aside some foundation, powder, eyeshadow (quad color), mascara (lash curling plus the good old eyelash curler), eyeliner, lipliner, lipstick, blush, and a brow pencil.

Julie, the brown shadow and peachy blush is actually quite close to the makeup I''m planning on using, and I think the look in that pic is what I''ll be going for (notwithstanding the fact that I''m nowhere near as good looking as Marcia Cross!).

Smurfy, I''ll have to look into that primer idea. I have oily skin and foundation tends to "melt" off of my face after a few hours, so a primer may be just what I need.

Lorelei, I just got a mineral foundation - good to know it''s a natural look!

AmberGretchen, I think there is either a Sephora or an Ulta nearby...will have to look into that. I also have a friend who has offered to give me a makeover and some tips/tricks!

 

[Lorelei]

Heres a good tip for you. Get a pale eyeshadow with a bit of shimmer to it, ivory, gold, palest peach, those type of colours. Carefully dab a little in the innermost corners of your eyes around the tearduct and blend into the corners and around the inner rims of the eyes - think of > are the inner corners of your eyes. This trick opens up the eyes.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I went to Sephora recently, picked up some Korres foundation and powder, and they are light as AIR which I love.

Anyways, other tips: use a matte finishing powder so your face doesn''t look oily in photos, avoid lip glosses/eye shadow that are too metallic or shimmery as it will look weird in the bright flash of the camera. If you don''t have very prominent eyebrows, you may want to invest in a brow pencil as well since the brows do a lot to define the lines of your face Also, if you''re wearing a veil, you also probably want to avoid lip glosses since your hair/veil will stick to your lips, lol. I also hear curling your eyelashes makes a big diff.

Ok, that''s all I have. Good luck!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

This tip is hard for me to get used to. In order for your makeup to be effective and carry-over into pictures, you need to be a little heavy-handed with it. Otherwise it'll look like you're not wearing any at all!

Ditto what AmberGretchen said. I hadn't read the whole thread...bad hudson bad.

 

[jstarfireb]

Thanks, Lorelei, Making, and Hudson! My eyebrow problem is actually the opposite...they''re bushy and mannish. I''m planning to get them waxed a few weeks before the wedding if I can get my act together. Also, the no lip gloss thing is good especially because my ceremony will be outdoors.

 

[Feralpenchant]

Date: 3/6/2009 6:55:32 PM
Author:jstarfireb
First let''s preface this by saying that I am completely clueless when it comes to makeup! I don''t normally wear any except on special occasions, but I have a bunch of department store stuff hanging around (just can''t resist those free giveaways!). When I do wear makeup, it''s usually warm colors and a natural look.


So...I''m doing my own makeup for my wedding in May, and I''d love to hear some ideas for colors and looks, as well as basic tips/tricks.


I am fair-skinned with medium brown hair and light olive green eyes. My hair will be the typical ''mostly down in loose curls with a few curls pinned up in the back'' look. (ETA: The hair in the canvas is just an inspiration style, not mine!)


A little about my wedding:

-date: 5/10/09

-outdoor ceremony and indoor reception in a farmhouse-style venue in Central PA

-wedding will have a simple, casual, free-spirited feel

-main color is sage green

-flowers are white calla lilies

-see my canvas below for more details

I think that a very beautiful look for a wedding is to keep makeup very simple. I think heavy or dark makeup takes away from the dress, and of course your natural beauty.

I always love the classy look of having almost no color on the lids, just a nude color with some shimmer if you like that, and maybe a little bit of brown in the outer area of the crease. If you don''t have high eyebrows sometimes doing a color lighter than your natural skin tone or even doing a white ish shimmer right under the brows gives you a lift and makes your eyes pop. Pair this with a simple line of liquid eyeliner on top and a coat of mascara. Pretty! Sadly I can''t pull that off myself, my eyes are too weird shaped.. They''re not long enough this way But I always envy people who can do it.

Another great look is to do a TINY line of pencil eyeliner and smudge it with a smudge brush to give a softer feel to it. Liquid eyeliner is very dramatic but also very elegant. The pencil eyeliner is much more subtle if you blend it the right way. Blend the FRESHLY smudged eyeliner into your preferred eyeshadow color and you''re done! Well, after mascara.


You can also get an eyeshadow brush (small) and take some brown eyeshadow and put it just under your bottom lashline. That''s what this girl is wearing. You don''t have to be so dramatic with it as this picture.. you can use less or more, whatever suits you. But it looks great with any eye color, and I use it and it really makes my eyes stand out.

If you''re thinking of going with the liquid eyeliner, Stila Smudge Pots (Sephora) are awesome. They take some getting used to to use them but they''re great. If you don''t use makeup much, be sure to practice in the mirror a bunch to get everything right. Sephora has great makeup tutorials too, you can pick up all kinds of tips wandering around that store.

And yes, WATERPROOF MASCARA!!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Since you''re near Penn too, there''s an Aveda beauty school on 40th and chestnut, and I THINK they do makeup lessons for 10 or 20$ I''m thinking of checking that out myself for some professional tips. I''ve been there before for hair cuts (16$!) that turned out just lovely, so I might go back

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 3/8/2009 11:16:45 PM
Author: jstarfireb
Thanks, Lorelei, Making, and Hudson! My eyebrow problem is actually the opposite...they''re bushy and mannish. I''m planning to get them waxed a few weeks before the wedding if I can get my act together. Also, the no lip gloss thing is good especially because my ceremony will be outdoors.

Try some lip stains J, gloss can be a PITA as you know with veils etc, a lipstain can give a really pretty and lasting look which is subtle. I like Clinique black honey, it looks almost purple black in the tube but goes on a really sheer and pretty " bitten lips" colour.

 

[AmberGretchen]

If you have oily skin, make sure you have a good foundation and carry a translucent powder or blotting sheets with you throughout the day.

I, too, have oily skin, and I have to be SUPER careful to make sure I don''t get shiny, especially for photographs - it can really look dreadful.

My current favorite foundation is Makeup For Ever HD Foundation - it gives the most amazing, natural, beautiful finish, and you can layer it to get either very sheer coverage or more complete coverage, depending on what you need. I also use their matching HD Microfinish Powder, and this combo is by far the best I''ve found for having a beautiful, natural finish, and holding back oil. If its really warm I sometimes need extra powder towards the end of the day and/or blotting papers. The foundation and powder are pricey, but totally worth it IMO.

 

[jstarfireb]

Thanks again! Making, I just might have to check out Aveda for those $16 haircuts if nothing else!

Lorelei, what makes lip stain different from lipstick? Is it just the consistency, i.e. it doesn't come in a stick?

I just was at Barnes and Noble and saw a makeup book on the bargain rack...it's "Ultimate Makeovers" by Robert Jones. It's really, really helpful! It includes tips for each facial shape, eye shape, skin tone, etc. I tried some of his suggestions (which mirror a lot of your suggestions...you gals know your stuff!), and I think it looked really nice. Feral, the eye tricks you were mentioning are EXACTLY the way they say to do eyes, and my eyes looked huge!. Problem is, I can't decide what type of face I have. I keep going back and forth between square and heart-shaped...because my jaw line is pretty square, but I have a long tapering chin, which leads me toward heart-shaped. I don't think I'm round, oval, long, or pear/triangle, though. Oh well!

ETA: AmberGretchen, I'm planning on bringing Clean & Clear blotting sheets for exactly that problem. They've been a life saver for me...sometimes I use them and they're so soaked in oil that you can see right through them! Gross!

 

[JulieN]

Lipsticks and glosses are wax-based.

Stains are not. So they don't rub off.

I use this http://www.makeupforever.com/conseils_03_00_en.html, the "Cheeks" and "Shadows" section to figure out a face type. Like, if you think you are between two, you can do your cheeks/shading according to one, and then try it again according to another face type. You should be able to decide which elements you agree with.

Also, I think it's hard to decide by looking in the mirror. Looking at photos is easier. Also, maybe try to decide whether your chin or your jawline is farther from the ideal oval.

So, like on the "Shadows," you say you have a square jawline and a long chin. I haven't seen a picture, but maybe: contour the cheeks like the chart says for square ("capré") but then contour the chin like in the "long" chart.