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What makeup technique do you think is over-hyped but not necessarily the best?
What makeup technique do you think is over-hyped but not necessarily the best? Why?
I think a lot of the rules in general or that you have to follow rules, period. Makeup should be fun, which should include breaking rules from time to time – and at the very least, bending them! It’s also important to realize that what might be a must-follow rule for one person may not work on all eye shapes, face shapes, or complexions.
Thanks to Kafka for today’s question! Do you have a question idea? Submit yours here.
Smoky eye; I don’t find it particularly flattering on all eye shapes, especially when one follows the exact style of another with a completely different eye shape. I’m also a fan of a more precise, “cleaner” style, as a smoky eye can just look careless, sloppy, & lazy if not done well.
ITA, but it cracks me up when I see the commercial for Almay with Kate Hudson saying “Everybody loves smoky eyes, but DOING them, well that’s a whole other story”…sure, if you have other people making you up every darn day! Smoky eyes are the easiest eye to do, IMO; on the other hand, I don’t do them with tons of dark shadow over the crease usually, so maybe that’s not considered a smoky eye. There are varying degrees of smokiness; maybe I just need to crack open a thesaurus every once in a while 🙂
I totally subscribe to Kevyn Aucoin’s philosophy. I get irritated with the “black eyeliner looks too harsh” crew or ” oh Lordy that dark eye shadow made me look GOTH” (dirty four letter word). Those that think dark hair on very light skin is just too “harsh”. Even if it were, I am not chasing a ” soft” look. If I manage to bite my tongue about your frost tipped grey blonde hair, you can bite yours about my blue black shade. I’ve found that what often pleased me most aesthetically on myself was not what I thought looked particularly nice on others. Personality plays such a huge role in discovering what suits one best. All that aside, I universally despise fake tans and the affects of baking in the sun. OH and doing things “ironically” has seen it’s last sunrise. Someone tell Urban Outfitters and their Navajo flask already.
I love the dark/light thing; of course, Siouxsie was my idol during my teens, and although I’ve totally tuned it down, my 11-year-old daughter still asks/says to me,”Mommy, you’re style is Goth, isn’t it?” I have pretty light skin and very dark reddish/brown hair and eyes, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to get a tan because I’m “too pale”. To me, pale skin, not a full-on tan, looks healthier; hello, people, ever heard of skin cancer??? I think super-light hair and a dusky tan is a recipe for looking older, personally. Just keep on doing what you’re doing Foxy lady!
Actually I personally find black eyeliner look way to harsh on my ultra fair skin and lighter hair. I look like my eye were drawn in and nothing else. lol I use as blackend liner shade a lot more that looks “black” on me.
I love dark hair with fair skin, we idolize Snow White what so Goth about her.
I agree with everything you said 100%
Amen. I’m naturally dark-haired with very pale skin, and I have no interest in lightening my hair or, god forbid, my eyebrows, just to suit this fancy for homogeneous beige. I happen to enjoy having a face full of contrasts – and giving it a few splashes of colour to highlight them all.
People always tell me to brush blush over apples of the cheeks, which gives me a chipmunk effect. I prefer a slow sweep with a fan brush for a softer, less Snow White Disney look.
For me, it’s foundation brushes. I prefer to use my fingers and a sponge.
I think people who spend forever doing makeup to look like they aren’t wearing any are ridiculous. It seems to be a popular thing where I live. So I break that rule all the time 😛
YES I am with you, I find this particularly obnoxious since most women I know who do this have an aversion to those who have pigment in their cosmetics. Like ” Hey that chick put on her make up with a shovel!” but they’ve spent 2 1/2 hours and 15 products to contour and otherwise pretend they aren’t wearing make up. There is an attitude that often attends that particular school of artifice.
Sadly, I think I’m one of the ones you hate. Because I have breakout issues, I am always trying to get the look of good, clear skin which, unfortunately, takes me forever. You try to precisely conceal the blemishes while not going too heavy on the foundation. When I look up, it’s 30 minutes later. When my skin is clearer, makeup is more fun and something I look forward to. When it’s not, I dread it because it’s more of a necessity to correct and conceal. Not fun and takes forever. To all the clear skin ladies, love it and appreciate it.
@Tam, I don’t *think* that’s what they’re referring to. It’s one thing to spend time “correcting” flaws, breakouts, etc, but it’s another thing entirely when women, just because they’re using “natural” colors, spend just as much time & product on their makeup (sometimes *more*), but make women who wear more obvious shades feel like they’re overdone.
i feel you, tam
don’t feel guilty, they weren’t talking about you. ugh, covering my imperfections takes me forever 🙁 and it always fades away fast so i gotta slap more on.
Like 80’s MU really doesn’t need a period of nostalgia, unlike other decades I don’t think it has anything attractive to offer. The newest EL print ads seem to reflect this excessive, gung ho, every part played up, Homer’s MU shotgun style approach.
Applying the blush on the apples of your cheeks while you are smiling. I have never ever done that, it really depends on the shape of your face.
Agree. Who smiles in the morning when one is half awake and putting on makeup?
I know what you mean, I tried the smiling apples thing once when I was first learning about blush and it looked terrible with my face shape.
I know! I could have, as well, put the blush on my nose or something, and it would have probably looked better, lol.
There should be no rules. Everyone owns their own face, you get to do with it what you choose 🙂
P.S. Those little ads dropping onto the page repeatedly one after another, make it difficult to read anything on the page.
I’m not sure what you mean by ads dropping on the page – could you screen shot? We don’t allow popups, popunders, etc.
The traditional smoky eye technique. It definitely doesn’t work on everyone and can be very heavy or unflattering on certain people especially in dark lighting e.g. in da club. I have to be very careful as I have round, protruding eyes and very dark circles, so there are more flattering eye looks I can do, rather than a smoky eye.
Agree. I have the monolid eyes and when these MUA work on my eyes, I end up with two black eyes look. Dont create a crease look when I have no crease, ok?
I agree with your sentiment about the smoky eye. It’s beautiful when done right, but there’s no universal technique for it. (I also have dark circles under my eyes, so I think part of why I don’t touch the look often is psychological – I spend so much time brightening up my eyes, why the heck would I want to add black shadow there? :P)
Maybe it’s because I have hooded eyes and have spent a lot of the past year unlearning my previous ideas of how to do eyeshadow…
I don’t really think there is such a thing as rules in makeup. I mean, there’s a certain amount of common sense that should go into cosmetics – goodness knows we’ve all met that person that makes us go, “HOW CAN HE/SHE THINK THAT LOOKS GOOD?” – but given there’s so much variety in face/eye/lip shape in the world, I find it silly to think there’s on set standard that everyone can follow.
Off the top of my head, there’s two rules in particular I tend to ignore –
Combining eyeliner/eyeshadow. Or more accurately, I won’t do both on the upper lash line. Unless the eye color is really toned down and won’t give me the right balance, I use one or the other. After all, I have so little room to work with on my lid, I don’t want eyeliner taking up half the space!
Lip brushes. A careful hand can apply a bold color straight out of the tube without too much trouble. I do use mine occasionally when I want a specific shape, but really I find it surprising how stress is placed on them being a necessity.
inner eye corner highlighting – a little bit can be ok, but often I find it’s overdone and distracting from otherwise nice looks.
The way people shape and fill in their eyebrows – the natural brow has been fashionable in the last few years but I really hope it’s a trend that’ll stay. Thin, arched, powdery-opaque eyebrows are soooo tacky.
Overhyped makeup brushes with the duo fibers. Think of Kevin Aucoin and how talented he was. He made use of his eyes and fingers and creativity. Wish he did makeup on me.
As much as I agree that there should be no “rules” in makeup, there are a few popular techniques that have grated on me for years.
First: use an undereye concealer lighter than your skintone.
Grrr….hate this one. It’s basic color theory: white highlights. Covering an imperfection with a shade lighter than your skin will make it stand out, period.
Second: water lining
While I’ll agree this has it’s place in certain looks, it’s a fact that it does optically close the eye in, making it appear smaller. It’s also a fact that it can spead infection and even cause clogged tear ducts that have to be surgically cleared. Ick.
warm vs. cool tones for anything but foundation. Makeup (for me) is about having fun and expressing yourself. If blue-purple duochrome eyeshadow is too cool for my warm skin then that’s just too bad cuz I am wearing it anyway. I know warm colors are supposed to really bring out the beauty of those with warm tones and visa versa, but in the end I just end up with a million gold eyeshadows and not a single one that I like. By golly, I look pretty gosh-darned good in most any color of eyeshadow if I apply it correctly so why am I buying into this idea that I’m limited in my choices?
I agree with this notion too. I think for most people it’s really not clear cut anyway whether they are warm or cool. I have a lot of yellow in my skin, but I look great in cool toned eyeshadow and blush and warm blushes sometimes look orange. Huh?
I have a friend with what many would say is “cool” skin, but she can rock a gold eye or coral lippie with no problems. I know it’s supposed to be helpful, but I often times find those categories to be more confusing than helpful.
Aye! I have a mix of undertones and so I hate when advice is given as if there is a clear-cut warm/cool dichotomy. Even worse, I hate when it is assumed that fair-skinned blue-eyed people like me should wear cool toned makeup. I see that all the time with red lipstick recommendations: I should wear a blue-based red or something, but those reds look terrible on me! I can wear some cool tones (especially when my hair is browner or auburn, though I usually have it copper-red), but not the very cool or pale tones I normally associate with blondes, and I think I look better in neutral-warm toned makeup.
I hated the stippling foundation technique, it takes forever and I like the finish of buffing much more! I also don’t understand how “using your fingers” is such a popular way to apply foundation, it looks so uneven, the coverage it provides is mediocre and your fingers get all grubby. (Opinions are based on my own experiences, I don’t mean to offend anyone.)
I’m amazed at all the “beauty experts” who recommend lining the “water line”, the inside membrane above the lower lashes, especially with black eyeliner! All this does is make eyes look smaller. I’ve done it recently with white and peach-colored liner; supposedly it “wakes up” your eyes. I;m not immune! FOr me, all it does is add an extra step that wears off quickly, AND it can cause infections. I can’t for the life of me see an upside to this technique.
I also steer clear of placing blush on the apples of my cheeks 😀 I have chubby apples with large pores just where my cheeks meet my nose, so any colour placed there is horrendous. My blush goes between my contour and cheek bone, looks far nicer.
I’m trying to think of others…would not be lining my bottom lash line one? I rarely do that. Or use mascara on my bottom lashes. I find it closes off my eyes too much.
Oh, and being told countless times by people that I need matte products because I have an oily T zone. I also have dry cheeks and I favour a slight glow – it’s easier to keep my t zone mattified than it is my cheeks hydrated and glowy.
Definitely the ‘blush on the apple of the cheeks’: I have really round cheeks and it just makes me look like a hamster. Also the ‘wash of colour’/one eyeshadow look: depending on your eye shape, it does nothing for you (like me). I need something in the crease/corner of the eye to add some depth.
The cut crease, depending on your eye shape, can be quite challenging to do properly: it’s not that it’s ‘over-hyped’ per se, just that it’s everywhere and more people attempt it with not-so-good-results (including me -.-)
Also all the ‘soft’ makeup/no makeup silliness: like someone said already, why would you spend the same amount of time as a really intense makeup to look like you have nothing on? At least go for shimmery neutrals!
The other rules about makeup and nails at weddings: ‘soft’, ‘neutral’, ‘french manicure’. PFFFFFT. Don’t sign me up!
I’ve yet to see eye gloss used in a way that didn’t make the model look grubby.
Also, blush on the apples of the cheek looks ridiculous on me and draws way too much attention to my nose.
Lash curling. I know some will gasp at this but I was so happy when I found the Shu Uemera lash curler. But honestly, it really makes so little (as in “no”) difference to how my lashes or eyes look that I just don’t bother.
For me, it’s contouring. I accept my face the way it is–and trying to contour just makes me feel more self conscious, like the products are going to run or show, or that I’m wearing too much makeup (I hate wearing a lot on my face!).
Light eyeshadow on lid, dark eyeshadow in crease – this combination is not flattering on my eye shape at all. It looks amazing on a lot of people, but I think eyeshadow placement is much more individualized than what seems to be the “standard.”
Completely agree. I convinced my friend to stop putting super dark colors in the crease, it made her eyes look droopy (which is fine, but it wasn’t a look she enjoyed). She was just doing it that way because it seemed like the standard application!
I think the stippling technique to apply creamy products is very overrated…
It takes a whole lot of practice to get it right and the result certainly isn’t always as ‘flawless’ as it should be. I’d rather use a Beauty Blender sponge and my fingers; works for me!
Really dark, thick, cat-eye liner for daytime with nothing else to soften it. It’s a nice idea in theory to thicken the look of lashes but a lot of the people just look like they’ve smeared black liner halfway up their lid.
CONCEALER. I learned how to apply my makeup “properly” when I was 13 in a modeling school (i know). They taught us aspiring teens that we have to slap on concealer on top of foundation. On me it was just too heavy and made me look cakey. Even to this day I can’t use concealer. If i need to hide an imperfection I just go a little heavier on my foundation or apply foundation on the spot with my fingers.
The idea that foundation always looks better when applied with a brush is a rule that I think is over hyped.
I’ve tried the 187 and Sephora’s 55 pro air brush and both take a lot of work to get to look good. I seem to get a lot of obvious brush strokes if I don’t spend forever buffing and it takes three to four times as much foundation to get the same coverage as I do with my fingers because it all seems to absorb up into the brush.
I love the real technique buffing brush for foundation application, powder and liquid
For me it would be lining the waterline. I used to do this a long time ago. Then when I stopped, I noticed my eyes looked a LOT bigger, and were generally less irritated. So I don’t think this is for everyone. As for tightlining, I won’t even go there :\
Inn eye highlight: If you already have a light look this can be distracting actually.
Applying blush to the apples of the checks: Can make the face look droopy or plump. >_<
Can't wear black on the waterline if you have small eyes: Rubbish!
For a wide wake look use white on the inner rim: I do like this look bur sometime using a nude liner or pale yellow for a more natural look.
Blue eyeshadow is sooo 80's: Rubbish again and I take that comment and pitch it. I kind of hate purple eyeshodow on me but but everyone seems to think it's the only shade to wear other then nudes this past decade instead.
Blend your foundation into you neck: again I don't want my clothes to have foundation stain on my white or dark shirts (or costumes). I should be able to blend out to just past my jaw line otherwise the foundation is really wrong for me.
That's all I can think off right now.
Oh and you have to fill in your eyebrows: I HATE the placement of my eyebrows why would i want to darken hem and bring more attention to a feature I hate. The low on my brow ridge like mans. >__<
I so agree on the ‘don’t wear black eyeliner on the waterline if you have small eyes’. So what if it makes my eyes look smaller? I’ll wear what I want!
For myself smiling when putting blush on the apples of the cheeks, lipliner outside the lip line, inner corner eyeshadow highlight, 3/E bronzer and curling eyelashes after applying mascara.
Make-up should be fun and exciting. ‘Rules’ can ruin that experiance. I like to experiment … If it works GREAT, if not I don’t attempt it again.
The “bold eyes – nude lips” or vice versa rule.If I do bold eyes I will put on a natural colored lipstick or a sublte one or MLBB but not that corpse beige I see. In fact I havent seen it flattering anyone. It looks awful to me.
If I wear a powerful red lipstick I will make up my eyes with some flattering and neutral shades (like gray etc) but not NUDE.
I completely agree with this! I don’t think smoky eyes and nude lips balance. It looks garish to me.
Heh, Fitrah and I had the exact same question. Good to know I’m not the only one who’s curious. 🙂 For me, I would say the rule about using brushes to always put on your foundation. Yes, it can be great and yes, it can give a smooth look but personally, I prefer using my fingers a lot of the time. I’ve found I have better control and can blend much better. But I do think it can depend on foundations. Some foundations — like NARS’ Sheer Glow — seem to require the heat of the fingers to warm up and blend into the skin properly. (It’s why they don’t offer a pump.) It just doesn’t work as well with brushes, imo.
I’m also not a fan of the rule that requires intense, smokey eyes to be paired with a nude lip. Depending on the colours and the occasion/time of day, I will pair dark eyes with a pale but bright pink, or with a soft, sheered out plum, red, etc. I actually think it looks *better* and more balanced that way, instead of having corpse lips and these starkly intense eyes.
I love my corpse look! Sheesh! *grin*
Oh dear, the “cut crease” or the lips so nude it looks like you are wearing concealer for lipstick!! OR OR the brows that are soooo sharp, so dark, so defined they look like they were done with a sharpie! And finally, packing loads of foundation on you face to where you end up looking like you are wearing a mask!! *ick*
Primers for everything. I really don’t understand why cosmetic companies make claims about the high performance of their products while at the same time telling you it’s necessary to use a primer on your face, lips, eyelids, and lashes in order for them to work properly. I admit I do use eyeshadow primer because my lids are oily but I could never feel comfortable with more than one layer of anything else on my face.
Yup. You pay so much money for this ~amazing~ product that will last hours upon hours, but wait! buy this other product that will further enhance the already outrageous staying power of our original product! Do it now! Go read the blogs and you will see that according to everyone on the internet, primer is always a must! UGHHH.
others have said it, but I’ll say it again: blusher on the apples of your cheeks. it can age you so horribly.
and the necessity of brushes. I used brushes for a lot of things, but if I’m in a rush or lazy, I have to problem applying all of my makeup sans brushes. it’s obviously a risky move sanitation-wise if you’re doing someone else’s makeup, but if it’s only me, it’s no big deal. my foundation blends a lot better if I use my fingers.
Tightlining/Waterlining. I think a lot of people find it necessary when they make the mistake of only looking at their makeup *really close up.* At arm’s distance, you can’t really tell what’s going on with someone’s eyeliner ((my makeup pro-tip for people is to stand back from the mirror to look!)) It makes your eyes look smaller. It wipes off more quickly.
Also? It’s SUPER bad for your eyes. What are these people thinking??
it looks hot
smokey eyes w/o it look weird on me
Using brushes for everything. When doing your own makeup, there are lots of places where using fingers can work just as well or better. I think I’ve only had one foundation ever where it was easier to apply with a brush versus my fingers.
Also, there are a lot of women out there who over pluck their brows. No brows or “sperm” brows aren’t really flattering on anyone, and it’s so prevalent, I’m actually afraid to get my brows done anywhere.
I’m so glad to see a lot of comments about brushes and how fingers can be just as good, if not better. *Especially* for foundations! I also agree with you on the eyebrows but, even if I didn’t, the whole mental image of “sperm” eyebrows would forever sway me. SPERM eyebrows…. Oh.My.God. ROFL!!
I can’t get sperm brows out of my head either! I almost ran to the mirror..LoL.. OMG do I have sperm brows?? LoL!!!!! What if I have sperm brows and I don’t even know it??? Is there a support group for me?? *dies laughing*
Amen. I prefer a brush for foundation, but I love blending shadows with fingertips, particularly across the browbone. I can produce a soft gradient effect with far more ease than with brushes.
I agree! Fingers > brushes.
Winged/cateye liner…but mostly because it just doesn’t work on me (hooded lids).
I agree, makeup should be fun. I think you should do whatever makes you happy and what you think looks best on you, without always having to follow the trends. When I was working at a cosmetics studio and doing makeovers, I was always amazed at how many women were afraid to try something new. It’s makeup and it will wash off if you don’t like it! I think makeup is fun to play with and I’ll try any look at least once.
Purple eyeshadow for green eyes – one that I encounter at makeup counters and at sephora.com regularly. My eyes lean so golden that even the more neutral purples are a strange, uncomfortable clash. Protip: Not all green eyes are cool-toned.
Matte eyeshadow for ‘mature’ women. Why? When so many companies – high-end, drugstore and indie – are producing complex and lovely shadows that don’t sparkle but glow? These shadows leave the eyes luminous – which does wonders for mature features.
Totally agree with you on the purple eyeshadow, I have the same problem!
I personally don’t feel you need so many products and steps to achieve a good, clean brow. That whole business about using concealer under the brow for a clean arch, in my opinion is unnecessary and often times too garish. For a graphic look once in awhile, sure. But if you’re telling me that I need to spend 10 minutes with multiple steps on my brows and 10 different tools and products, I’ll respectfully disagree. just give me a well-groomed brow, a nude/bine colored eyeshadow for the arch and brow powder and I’m set.
Oh and ditto on the apples of the cheeks and inner corner highlight. 🙂
The “guidelines” for your eyebrow shape, the thing with the nose. I do my brows however I think they look the best and I don’t give a damn about how they align to my nose.
exactly! another crock.. they are good guidelines for people who are a little less creative or nervous about getting far too wrong 🙂 But I overshoot the line at tearduct and nose all the time too!
ohh I agree with this one so much! Maybe it’s a good rough guide for people who are completely clueless, but it’s always touted as an essential formula to eyebrow shape and there is no one correct way to shape your brows, since they’re all different! I do not find that rule applicable to all brow/face shapes.
I agree.
I hate the “warm or cool” test to figure out what colors will look good on you. I feel like everyone is so different and there are so many subtle differences in skintone (not to mention hair/eye color, face structure, eye and lip shape, etc) that you can’t just have two lists of “appropriate” colors. I have what most would consider primarily warm skin, but I could *never* wear anything with a hint of orange or yellow-gold in it. Overly warm colors just make me look sallow.
I also think the rule that you HAVE to “smile to find your apples” when applying blush is silly. My cheekbones are very high and honestly if I smiled before applying blush, my blush would end up near my eyeballs. Not cute.
And also that older ladies can (should?) only wear matte eyeshadow. My grandmother is 70 years old and her face just completely brightens up when I put a glowy, shimmery eyeshadow on her.
I think the only “rule” that I DON’T feel is ridiculous is that you should match your foundation to your neck or chest to get the best shade. I remember up until a few years ago I would always match my foundation to my cheek/jawline and wonder why it never looked natural. Then I realized that my neck and chest were significantly lighter than my face, so I started swatching foundations near my collarbone instead…instant perfection.
I’m with you on your key points. Warm and cool is total crap..pick what you love! Matte eyeshadow is total crap too. I love shimmery eyeshadows for creating softness. Sometimes matte eyeshadows can look completely unforgiving too. Interesting point about your cheekbones.. LoL
I also agree about foundation. My face is completely different from my neck and chest. I used to look like suntanned Barbie from jawbone up and it looks ridiculous. Funny, nobody told me this, dammit! And this is one ‘rule’ I wish I had known. grumble grumble grumble.
Filling in eyebrows. I have very full thick dark brows and I’m constantly trying to beat them into submission with tweezers and scissors, they really don’t need to be any more full!
I really do not pay too much attention to over-hyped techniques. I believe that what may work for one person may not necessarily work for the next so there is always an element of trial and error with cosmetics. For example, something a basic as foundation application. There are a number of methods for applying and even different brushes, sponges and whatnot for the job. I believe each person needs to try for themselves and see what works best for them. There are far too many variables in products and even people to try to lock us into one method. But, hell yeah, I’m willing to try anything to add new possibilities to my arsenal.
It’s very interesting to read everyone’s comments!
For me too, the blush on the apples of the cheeks doesn’t work at all, as I have high cheekbones, my blush would end up touching the dark circles under my eyes…
Emphasizing the crease with a dark color is also something that doesn’t look good on everyone: I have protruding eyes, and I have to be careful not to make them look even more “bubbly”!
I think the whole cool/warm shades rule is also over-hyped. Foundation and concealer need to be matched to your skin, but then, just wear what looks good on you! I have warmish undertones, but I love to wear purple on my eyes, and I can make sheer fuschia work on my lips too.
I totally agree about wearing cool vs warm shades. I love a cool bright pink on yellow undertones!
Yeah, I also agree with you about wearing tones that specifically “flatter” your skin tone. I’ve seen all kinds of colors/color combos used on a range of skin tones for ad campaigns, and none of them have ever stood out to me as something that looks bad.
Yeah, the crease eyeshadow thing is not a very good “rule” imo, and I kinda dislike that it is so popular in beginners makeup tutorials/guides/etc. It also doesn’t help that some makeup palettes come with pre determined or suggested lid, crease, and browbone shades.
curling eyelashes – NOT
Second!
I hate beauty ‘rules’. Like if you’re over a certain age you can’t wear shimmery eyeshadow. Ridiculous! Life’s too short not to glitter every day. I hate being told what to do at the best of times, so I just take the bits of advice I agree with and forget the rest. Make up makes us look better, but it should also be fun. Do what makes you happy with your make up and you’ll look beautiful as your happiness will radiate out!
I personally find it funny for all those techniques to make eyes looking bigger.
very thick liner– most of the time, it only makes eyes looking odd but NOT that much bigger.
cat eyes to make eyes looking bigger or longer– I have no problem at all with cateyes liner. I wear it myslef sometimes and like it although I find it a bit dated nowaday.
but to me it really doesn’t look that great for eyes without much depth. very often it looks like the liners come out of nowhere or turn up oddly (hope that make sense. :P) especially when there is nothing at all at under eyeline..
white or nude liner at waterline — again, I do it from time to time too but everytime i see people doing it, I don’t feel it actually makes eyes looking much bigger but I can’t stop looking at that white line.
basically, do whatever you like as long as u feel good yourself.
but I believe trying too hard to change the way you look, the shape of your face features will make you look odd then good.
Blend foundation down the neck:
If my foundation matches my skin tone, why do I need to blend it down? If I got a little tanned or lighter skinned, I should be darkening or lightening the foundation or just using a diff shade. Also, I don’t want foundation on my clothes or jewelry (necklaces).
Match foundation to jawline:
I have been doing this for almost 2 yrs :/. My neck & chest are a shade lighter than my face so I finally discovered that I should be matching my foundation to those areas instead so I look like one color.
Water/tight lining:
I used to always line my waterline 6 yrs ago. I stopped b/c I got a stye on one of my eyes. Unless you’re somehow sanitizing your eyeliners or sharpening them after each use, you CAN get an infection. I didn’t know that when I was younger so I ended up having to throw away all of my eyeliners & mascaras at the time. Also, since I stopped, my eyes look bigger. I think it looks amazing on others but I’m not willing to risk infection again.
‘No makeup’ makeup look:
If I’m going to spend the same amt of time putting makeup on as usual, I want it to show up. Otherwise, I’d rather just skip the makeup altogether if that’s the look I’m going for. I love softer makeup sometimes but I’ve never been a fan of the ‘no makeup’ makeup look.
Conceal every blemish you have:
I have naturally rosy cheeks, despite being a warm-toned Asian, & A LOT of acne scarring. I like making my skin look more even but I’m not going to spend 5 mins just putting concealer all over my spots or using a full coverage foundation everyday. I personally think girls who show a little of their natural skin, spots & all, look more beautiful & less made-up.
I never undertsand the point of having “no makeup makeup” either.
why would someone wants to let people think they haven’t got any makeup on but spend all the time to do a makeup.
why not just go out without makeup or what is wrong with your face that you need to fake a “real” face ??? really strange
I also let my acne scars show through. I don’t have the time to tend to all of them as well I fin my makeup looks more natural when my skin shows through.
I feel the same way regarding the letting acne scars show through. I get hyperpigmentation spots and I prefer to let them show through a little bit. When you can’t see them, to me that means I have a “mask” on. I like to let the real me show through.
I agree, I never waste all that time doing tons of spot concealing for simple every day makeup.
Using a concealer that is lighter than your foundation for dark circles. This has never worked to “brighten” up my eyes or to cover the dark circles. Usually it just looks like I did a bad job of matching my makeup and makes it more obvious that I’m wearing it. I think it just doesn’t work for me because the area under my eyes is a little bit sunken, if that makes sense, and the lighter color emphasizes it.
I totally agree!! I hate that look, ala kim kardashian. It drives me nuts!
I hate that whole “makeup for brown eyes” thing (or whatever color eyes you have). I have dark red hair and brown eyes and I find that a lot of those brown eye kits or recommendations for brown eyes don’t usually look right on me. Also, as a redhead, the colors that redheads are told not to wear (pink, orange, red) are the colors that look best on me. I can wear bright orange lipstick (Mac Morange), but never gray or blue eyeshadow. So I never follow those sorts of rules.
I think redheads look gorgeous in pink and even more so if their red hair tends to the auburn side! Pfffttt to the silly rule that says otherwise.
Another rule I hate: dark, intense eye makeup only at night. Who said and why? The *only* time I think that rule should apply is at work *if* you work at a conservative place. Otherwise, and on your day off especially, if you want to rock smokey, dark eyes, then I think you should. I do, because I prefer intense or dark colours, and though I sometimes get looks… Pffffffftttt. They can go suck an egg. (And that includes my conservative older brother whose idea of a woman wearing “makeup” seems to consist of someone wearing solely mascara and, possibly, a nude lipstick.) Pffffffftttttt.
A thousand yes (yeses?) to this! I get looks when I go to work and/or out on my days off, but if I want a purple smokey eye then it’s at 8am or nothing, since I can’t go home during the day/on a whim to put on makeup that is for a more ‘appropriate’ time.
Also those wedding rules, even when you go as a guest: ‘neutrals’, ‘light-coloured nails’, ‘discreet’, ‘you want to complement the bride’. PFFFFFFFFT. What if I’m friends with the groom?!
You should totally favour makeup that your older brother will disapprove of, especially when you see him: nothing better than the kick you get when they’re lost for words, trying to be polite while saying you’re a harlot and invoking your mother. 😀 (I may be speaking from experience :P)
I’ve seen a lot of youtube gurus who profess that using a powder puff for powder is the best technique, but I personally don’t think so. When I tried it,my makeup wore off and I got oily because the powder was just resting on top of my skin. I actually use a big foundation brush, so I can be real precise with my powder and gently buff it in well. That makes it stay!
I also don’t think highlighting under the browbone is always a good idea. Sometimes it just looks kind of dated and over-done if the highlight is too white.
Using a concealer that is too light for your skintone.
The whole idea that your face having a certain quality means that you MUST have a certain makeup goal. Instead of calling a technique, say, “contouring for round faces”, I’d rather it be called “contouring to make your face seem more narrow”. Having a round face doesn’t mean I’m always in the mood to make it seem less round!
Also, subtle brow filling. I get doing wild and crazy effects, I get tweezing and filling to change the shape, but I’ve seen so many gurus who are sure that making their eyebrows the tiniest bit darker completely changes their face and it doesn’t.
I think a lot of makeup “rules” are influenced by other outside factors that really should be thrown out. For instance, the no-makeup makeup thing bothers me not because it is pointless, but because I feel like makeup is often only accepted by people when it isn’t too showy or too flashy. God forbid you look like you’re trying too hard with all that shimmery eyeshadow, people may think you want attention! Oh no!
Yet there is still a lot of societal pressure to look fresh, youthful, or at least put together (and all of this means you must cover your real face up, that is the message), so I don’t understand it when people say they prefer when women look natural. We’re supposed to make an effort but make it seem like we didn’t, apparently. What if my natural look is baggy undereyes and redness everywhere? Our natural looks often are complete with some feature that would be considered undesirable, so the mixed messages create a lot of confusion and clamoring in the beauty community with regard to what is a makeup necessity and what is not.
So maybe I didn’t quite answer the question, but reading all of the answers made me think about makeup in general. I think most people in the “beauty community” know their own faces and tastes enough that they don’t need to follow any rules other than their own, and if someone is just starting out, many of the rules mentioned can be good suggestions, but referring to things like “always put a dark shadow in the crease!”, or “if you don’t fill in your brows you’ll look unkempt!” as gospel is just misleading, and I don’t like it!
Tightlining
As mentioned couple of times, it actually makes your eyes smaller and it lowers your eyes!! Really wierd!
-Maybe it’s not a makeup technique but I hate people telling me to get a tan, it’s so rude besides I love my fair skin and I don’t care if wearing bright lipsticks or dark hair makes me more pale, since when white skin is “unhealthy” I’m sorry but spending hours under the sun or using a tan bed is NOT healthy at all… People obsessed with tan makes me sick.
-I do not trust on people who gives an advice like “smile to apply blush” I don’t know if this ever works for everyone, but I don’t know any single person who doesn’t look like a clown doing this.
-White eyeliner, It looks very fake, I think it’s better to use a nude eyeliner or one with a colour close to, not the same, as your skin tone, It could make your eyes look bigger, brighter, etc… depending on the shape of your eye.
-Too many layers of mascara.