Makeup Essentials

Hey Amanda,

First statement: Women still have to wear makeup. Not "women still think they are obligated to wear makeup" but, women are in reality perceived as more competent when wearing makeup as opposed to fresh faced. Poops.

Second statement: strong women have varied interests and priorities. You can be a feminist and like fashion. You can be a feminist and be crafty. You can be a feminist that refuse to wear dresses. You can be a feminist that hates to cook.

So my dirty secret, I like makeup. Like a lot. Like oh my heck I watch youtube tutorials for nail art.

whoa

 But I hate feeling like I have to wear makeup, so I often don't.  Like anyone else's hobby, I don't do makeup everyday. And to make a point I seldom wear makeup to worship, because looking my best includes the features I was born with. But makeup is also a way to show your personality, and subvert the ideals of beauty, and is a creative avenue and a lot of fun... of course, if you're into that sort of thing.

But whether you like makeup or not, unfortunately, every woman still needs to worry about it. So I figured I'd help a sister out with my hobby knowledge. If you ever want someone to do your makeup or nails, you know who to call. But since the vast majority of our readers don't live within driving distance, here's three tiers of makeup essentials:

I hate makeup, and I have an job interview

• bronze eyeshadow-- it's universally flattering and can be applied competently with the cheapo applicator that comes with the eyeshadow. Wet n' Wild is a cheap brand and has great quality. 
• eyelash curler--I know, but seriously--this makes the most difference
• mascara--whatever brand floats your boat. Avoid waterproof, it migrates around your eyes because of your natural skin oils and it's a pain in the tuckus to remove. 
• Blush-- optional, unless you're going to be under bright lights (like at an auditorium presentation) then you really ought to wear some. A peachy color tends to look the most natural.

I don't hate makeup, but I don't know what I'm doing

• makeup brushes make the most difference. Seriously, never upgrade your cosmetics before upgrading your applicators. It gives you the most bang for your buck. I suggest owning:
• A fluffy blush brush--ecotools is cheap and makes a great blush brush
• a flat eyeshadow brush--the ecotools set has one of these in it so yay!
• am "angled brow brush"- also in the ecotools set, of course, helps make your eyebrows more defined, but I mostly use this to line my eyes
• a small fluffy eyeshadow brush-- unfortunately these are really hard to find affordably. The ELF brand at Target has one, but it's pretty scratchy. But unless you're willing to spend more than a couple of dollars per brush, that's your only choice. The fluffy brush helps blend out the top of your eyeshadow color so you don't have a distinct line where the color starts and stops. 
• Please don't use bronzer to contour your face. I know you saw it in your favorite magazine. But it's not natural looking. Just don't contour. Or commit to finding a shade of eyeshadow that fits your skin tone--you're looking for a light grey toned brown, not the orange-y brown of a bronzer. Pick an eyeshadow only a few shades darker than your skin and apply it lightly with a brush with synthetic bristles so you don't pick up too much color. You're going  for the illusion of subtle shadows not corpse bride. 
• Foundation is over-rated. But if you must, Neutrogena makes a nice, affordable foundation. Try to mix some with your moisturizer for an even lighter application. 
• Oh yeah...moisturizer. With SPF. Every day. Not for vanity, because it's also great for not getting skin cancer. 

I have an Ulta Rewards Card. 

Free Gift With Purchase: the fastest way to part me from my cash--"But if I spend four more dollars, I can get a free eyeliner." See also, diabolical marketing strategies and Free Shipping with minimum purchase

• The best quality brands for your dollar:
• Revlon: lipsticks. Really Red is a gorgeous, "give Taylor Swift a run for it" red color.
• NYX: blushes, eyeshadow pencils, eyeshadows, and I've heard lipglosses
• ULTA: awesome cheek tints, nail polish, gel pencils, and neutral shimmer eyeshadows--they're color eyeshadows are lacking in pigmentation. Skip on their kits, they quality isn't the same as their stand alone products. And never pay full price--they often go on sale. 
• Rimmel: bronzer, mascaras
• Wet n' Wild: eyeshadows, bronzers
• Sinful Colors: nail polish
• Maybelline: mascaras, eyeshadow "tattoos"
• Covergirl: concealer.
• Loreal: HIP collection color eyeshadows  are nice. More expensive though...at that point I'd recommend buying your eyshadows from Makeup Geek instead. The Ben Nye pigment samples are as good as you can get for color payoff and they sell for $5. Not too shabby. 
• ELF: black gel eyeliner! and their angled eyeliner brush is also awesome. $1. Can't beat that.
• Brushes: Crown brush is a good step up from ecotools without being ridiculous. Louis Young is definitely in the ridiculous range...but that doesn't mean I haven't thought about buying some. At least you get free shipping from Nordstrom's....
• Of course, you don't really need me. I'm sure you've found your way to Makeup Geek and if you haven't I suggest going through their tutorial archives. Unfortunately, the girl who runs Makeup Geek has kind of neglected the blog portion of the website after launching her cosmetics brand. 
• ...also my super geeky, actually intellectual youtube makeup girl just took all of her videos down. Sad day. PixiWoo is alright. Goss Makeup Artist is also alright (although a little spendy with his product recommendations).  But no one is quite as cerebral about makeup artistry like Aushnakilops was... let me know in the comments if you're a closet makeup lover and have any recommendations for makeup blogs to watch/read.