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Temptalia Asks You - What beauty rules do you adhere to?

What beauty rules do you adhere to? We all know they “exist,” but whether we follow them all or even any… Rules from no bold eyes with bold lips to blue shadow should never be used.

I’m spacing today (blame it on lack of sleep), but I know I follow some rules (e.g. always wash your face before you go to bed) to a tee, and then others I ignore completely (e.g. you should only wear X colored shadows if you have Y colored eyes!).

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steen Avatar

I —
always wash my face before bed.
never pair bold eyes with bold lips.
never curl my lashes once I put mascara on.
try not to use a bunch of short strokes while putting mascara on.
blend blend blend my eyeshadow!

However, I break a few rules:
I —
rarely wear lip liner.
love wearing blue eyeshadow. (But tastefully done, not smeared all over my lids.)
gently pull on the corners of my eyes while lining. (Working on this one.)
don’t apply blush only to the apples of my cheeks.
never blot my lipstick. (I use a lip brush most times.)

Those are all I can think of for right now.

Kellie Avatar

I break all the rules..LOL

I use blushes as eyeshadow, eyeshadow as blush(matte of course)…i’ll set my lipstick with powder eyshadow, blush or countour powder to keep it from rubbing off every time i take a drink. I’ve been doing that since junior high school in the late 80’s LOL. most of my friends started doing that once they saw it worked.
Years later some make-up lines actually started doing setting powder for lips before the stay all day lip colors hit the market.

I should have gotten royalities on that trend:)

I didnt start a night regimen until i was about 25. I never broke out, i was very fortunate.

I didn’t even wear foundation until my mid 20’s when i started working in an environment that was horrible to my skin and i wore it as a barrier between my skin and the oily air around me.

I have to pop my eyes a bit even with a red lip or i look asleep and my eyes shrink . It’s a fine line between lightly popping out the eyes with a bold lip and drag queen look. so i’m very careful.

Critty Avatar

I always wash my face before bed. I usually match my blush and lip color in tone (warm or cool). I always powder and comb my brows.

I never limit my use of colors or anything creative like that. Those rules are just meant to be broken! I would crumble up and die without blue eyeshadow!

farzana Avatar

i never have dark eye make up and dark lips.Never in history did i do it and i never plan to either.The days i dont wear makeup i dont wash my face cuz somehow it seems like its clean to me.lol.

Amy Avatar

Rules I do follow:
*I always wash my face before going to bed.
*I never curl my eyelashes after mascara.
*I do not have bold eyes/lips at the same time.
*I do not wear bold eye colors unless I’m going out (ie, bright blues, greens or bright purples).

Rules I ignore:
*I usually wear a medium to full coverage foundation even though I’m young (redness to cover!).
*I always tug on my eyes when lining–scary to think what I’d look like if I didn’t!
*I always wear eyeliner, often black, during the day.
*I usually wear a full face during the day (ie, the whole face is done) even though most say you should downplay things for a daytime look.

Jessica Avatar

Hmmm…I ALWAYS curl my eyelashes after mascara. I find that a coat of mascara helps them to curl better and makes the curl last longer. Why is this bad?

Another horrible thing I do is bite my nails. I know it’s disgusting and it looks hideous, but I’ve been doing it since I was small, and I’ve never been able to kick the habit. Any suggestions? I’ve tried the bad tasting nail polish stuff, and it doesn’t work (at least, not for me). Right now I’ve been working on trying to make my nails look as decent as possible so I won’t want to bite them, and so far, this tactic has been working. But I’m open to suggestions from anyone!

That being said, I am one of those girls who almost always washes my face before bed. Even if I’m exhausted, I can’t stand laying in bed thinking about how my skin is probably suffocating. Plus, I had a lot of problems with acne when I was younger, and I don’t want to revisit the trauma of having bad skin again!

Christine Avatar

Hey Jessica! I’d like to know that answer too!

Also, for nail biting (which I can be guilty of), I found that the more time I spend making my nails look good, the better they are. Like going through the manicure process of filing, cuticle remover, hand lotions, then painting them with a base, polish, and top coat… well, after all that, they tend not to get bitten so much!

Sanayhs Avatar

When you have mascara on your lashes, it makes them less flexible and more fragile. Therefore, if you curl before mascara, it makes them much less susceptible to damage.

Kellie Avatar

To respond to JESSICA above.
NAIL BITING

Same issue here.

What saved me was getting my nails done at a salon. You can get them done for fairly cheap.

I did the accrylic overlay for the first few months. You can still have them short or medium length and natural looking with an overlay. There are several types, fibers, gels, accrylics. Whatever you like best.

can’t bite thru that stuff.

Then when you find you dont bite anymore you can go without overlay and just do your own home manicures.

that’s what broke my habit.
6 months of overlay with no biting eventually made my fingers stop going in my mouth during boredom, reading, and tv watching

Nora Avatar

Gel nails are supposedly much safer since it’s a coating over your natural nails that’s just hardened by UV light. Kind of like a hard-core nail polish in some ways. Acrylics and fibers use glue to adhere to your nailbed, so if something messes with your fake nail, then something’s really messing with your natural nail and can cause damage!

Sanayhs Avatar

Hygienic things like keeping my face and tools clean are important to me. “Rules” colour wise, though… I mock them! I do a lot of bold makeup and frequently use bright colours (while being careful it doesn’t look bad, mind you). I am simply not a girl born to wear neutrals! Though the “rules” may be something to work from for people who have no idea what they are doing, I believe that when properly executed, all things are possible. 😉

Sanayhs Avatar

My hair colour gets dyed weird colours, too. No one has seen it natural in six and a half years! My default “natural” colour is red, but I adore royal purple. The funny thing is? A lot of people don’t even notice when I have brightly unnatural hair! I’ve had my hair every colour of the rainbow except for yellow (and I won’t do solid black, because that would be boring!)

Briodmun Avatar

For myself I follow strictly to hygeinic rules, however makeup wise i dont follow any rules… if it looks good, then i’m wearing it dammit! Same with clothes etc :). I’ve always been a trendstarter lol.

victoria_m Avatar

Mascara makes lashes more brittle because they are firmer and more likely to break if you curl afterwards 🙂

I have a couple of blue shadows and love them, especially one really dark navy blue one I have from Urban Decay – forgot the name tho LOL!!! I always wash morning and night and use toner and moisturiser too.

Kellie Avatar

right on with the nail damage christine.

But i find short term, 2-6 months is fine and caused no damage to me nails.
they seemed a bit thinner when i had the overlay removed for good but Sally hansens nail strengthing products had them back to normal in a few weeks.

it totally cured me and my hand looked fab.
good luck jessica

Jessica Avatar

Thanks so much for the wonderful suggestions! I’ll definitely have to look into getting my nails done at a salon. Unfortunately, they’re so short right now that I don’t think they’d be able to get an overlay on top of them! So, I’m doing as Christine suggested – trying to take really good care of them so I’m not tempted to massacre them! So far, so good – but I’m still suffering from dry, raggedy cuticles and hangnails and it’s tempting to pick at them, but I just reach for my brush-on cuticle oil or Nivea Creme in the blue tin!

Hopefully they’ll start growing and THEN I can get them professionally done!

Kellie Avatar

Vitamins. especially B-complex will speed up the growing.

my friend swears by OTC pre-natal vitamins for her hair and nails.

You just need to make sure they are not higher than daily need for iron. most are not but some have extra iron.

they will grow like weeds. LOL

Sara Avatar

I LOVE my pre-natal vitamins!
(long story time)
Last semester my roommate and I rarely had time to eat and follow good routines, and when we did eat it was utter crap. My hair started falling out, which freaked me out because I love my hair and it’s always been thick and pretty…and then it was falling out. My doctor recommended I start taking some vitamins since my eating habits had gone to hell, and my mom (who is a nurse) told me to try the pre-natal vitamins. My hair grows at a seriously abnormal rate now rofl and it’s back to normal. My nails grow SO fast, which kinda sucks because now I need pedi’s more often!! rofl

Anyways, back to the topic at hand!

GOOD
-I DO follow a regimented skincare routine. I have had acne since 5th grade and only now in college did I start a GOOD routine. Now I break out wayyy less, even though I am more stressed lol
– I try to only play up one of my facial features at a time – eyes, cheeks, lips. I feel really clown-y if I do more than one, especially just for a normal day.

BAAAAD
– I always pull my eyelid to do eyeliner…it’s so shaky if I don’t.
– Sometimes I’ll apply eyeshadow with my fingers as well, if I’m in a rush or if I’m not getting the payoff I want…I’m so bad!

okay end to the longest comment ever.

Christine Avatar

Interesting! I definitely need to look into the whole pre-natal vitamins thing then.

Try sponge applicators for last minute application AND for additional color pay off (it wastes about as much shadow as using your fingers)! Just buy a cheap-o pack of them at the drugstore. Lasts you quite a bit!

Steph Avatar

I try to wash my face and remove all my makeup before I go to bed, but sometimes I get so tired and I just fall asleep.. And I also try not to wear bold lipsticks with brightly colored eyeshadows, or with a smokey eye. I know a lot of people can pull that off, but whenever I try to do it, it just doesn’t look good on me. Other than that, I don’t really have a lot of rules when it comes to make up 🙂

Christine Avatar

I told another reader this handy tip: keep a package of makeup remover wipes RIGHT by your bed so you can smear off all your makeup as you’re fading away.

I think with the bold lipstick/bold eyes, you can definitely rock it, but you have to feel confident and love it. I do think that sometimes it can look garish, though, and probably only appropriate for an occasion, lol.

Nell Avatar

I ALWAYS wear SPF 50 sunscreen, year round!

I always wash and moisturize my face at night (the only thing were I am really disciplined!).

I also emphasize either eyes or lips, but only because I´d look ridiculous otherwise, since I´m so pale.

Nell Avatar

At the moment it´s MAC Prep&Prime SPF 50, but in summer when there is more exposure I wear La Roche Posay Anthelios SPF 50+ cream daily. I´m a sun-phobe 😉

Nell Avatar

Mac has only zinc oxide as a sunscreen, whereas the anthelios has a variety of chemical and physical sunscreen ingredients including mexoryl XS which is deemed the most effective to date. It has just been approved by the FDA for use in the US (but only for SPF 15 products, strangely)

Carrie Avatar

Hmm, turns out I break a few rules!

I look wrong with bold lipstick and subtle eyes, so bold lips get a smokey eye (not crazy dark, but noticeable) for me.

I’ve got round, close-set eyes, so I’m “supposed” to only line the outer half of my eyelids to make them look farther apart, but I prefer lining them all the way around.

Also I HATE this rule: if you have brown eyes, purple is the most flattering shadow color. Not for me, thanks! It looks terrible with my skin and hair.

As far as ones I follow, I can’t think of any right now, but I’m sure I do!

claudia m. Avatar

Me too, i have undereye circles, so the whole range of purple/dark pink eyeshadows is off limits to me. It seriously emphasizes my dark circles…. looks like i’m dying.

Amy Avatar

OOh, I thought of another no-no that I do (probably the biggest no-no out there, actually!):

I occasionally go tanning. . . in a salon bed. . . for big occasions like weddings.

I used to do this several times a week during college (I worked at a salon) but now I only do it for special occasions.

I’m mastering the art of self-tanning now, but wouldn’t trust it for a huge occasion.

<> I know it’s SO SO bad but I look soooo good tanned for those big events.

Pia Avatar

my sister-in-law who’s a makeup artist convinced me to color coordinate my makeup with my outfit. No browns with pink outfit, blush should be peach tone if wearing earthy colors, etc. I never cared about that since I put on makeup before choosing my outfit. However, nowadays I heard her rule in my head when I’m picking outfit and make sure the color doesn’t clash with my makeup.

Patty Avatar

Good:
-Wash my face and moisturize EVERY morning/evening no matter how tried/sleepy I am.
-I clean my makeup brushes EVERY night (from morning application)
-I LOVE navy/blue eye shadow! (Flashtrack is my favorite!)
-I make sure when I’m at a MAC stand, I always ask them to sanitize any thing I want to test out, or I do it myself.

Bad:
– When I was younger, I was the queen of DARK LIP LINER. yuck!
-I have been guilty of doing the bold eyes + bold lips + bright blush. Talk about CLOWN.
– I rub my eyes too much. I heard it’s bad.

JackA Avatar

The rule I mostly adhere to is to use foundation that’s the same as your natural skin color-though I’ve been known to work with something lighter, but not Goth white or anything.

I also tend to coordinate colors around the tones in my eyes and with what I’m wearing, something I know some people totally ignore.

The big rule I’m really trying to follow is to keep my makeup clean and not to let others use things like my lipglosses or mascaras.

Christine Avatar

Isn’t it funny that the foundation rule makes a lot of sense, though? Sometimes it seems rules are there for a reason, ha.

Yeah, I don’t let anyone use my mascara or gloss either! Thank goodness, though, I don’t have many gal pals who love beauty so it isn’t an issue.

Stacey Avatar

I religiously clean my brushes… every day with brush cleaner, and wash them properly with baby shampoo once a week. I don’t do heavy eye and lip combos either.

The biggest rule I break is not wearing sunscreen. I use select tint, but that’s SPF 15 and prob wears off during the day. But I am on the hunt for a good face sunscreen!

Linda Avatar

1. Always wash your brushes!
2. Never pair Frost Lipsticks with Lustreglass! (Although that looks like the Chromeglasses on my lips, I ha te that look!)
3. Never wear true blue eye shadow. (My eye color is just no tmade for it!)
4. Use Photoshop if you can! LOL

Charlotte Avatar

I never ever ever put on makeup without proper skincare beforehand – cleanser, toner, eye cream, oil control lotion. I’ve been known to go to bed without properly washing my face when I’m really tired (but I always at least use cleansing wipes first).
I exfoliate regularly head to toe.
Most of the time I can’t be bothered to put on two coats of polish unless the color doesn’t show up. I just don’t have that much patience.
I usually go bold on everything -eyes, cheeks, lips. My face can pull it off pretty well. I’ve been told my face was made for color 😀 My face doesn’t look right if just the eyes are accentuated; I pretty much can’t wear light colored lipsticks or light non-sheer glosses because they make my (full!) lips vanish into my pale skin.
I almost never wear eyeliner on the upper lid, only on the waterline. It accentuates the shape of my eyes.
I’ve worn bright red and purple together ;P

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