How to Start Wearing Makeup

Do you routinely not wear makeup? Have you always relied on a makeup artist to paint your face on special occasions? If you want to wear cosmetics, but don't know how or where to begin, start here. These steps each stand alone or can be combined, so you can take as much time as you want before wearing a full face of makeup.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Colored lip balm or lip stain
• Clear lip gloss
• Tinted moisturizer or mineral makeup
• Brow pencil or powder
• Waterproof eyeliner
• Cotton swab
• Eyelash curler
• Mascara
• Liquid-to-powder eyeshadow
• Bronzer or blush in your natural color
• Oversize fluffy makeup brush
• Makeup sponge

Make Up That Face

1. Switch from clear to colored lip balm. While avoiding the discomfort of parched lips, you get an idea of what it's like to wear lipstick. When you are ready to step it up, you can top off your lip balm with clear lip gloss. If you normally don't get dry lips, another option you can try is lip stain.

2. Replace your moisturizer with a tinted one for when you leave the house. Not only do you get softer skin, you also have the coverage of a light foundation. You can ease into different textures of foundation later. An alternative is to swirl on some mineral makeup instead of conventional foundation. It's easy: A light, even application is all it takes for you to glow, have a more even skin tone and benefit from coverage normally achieved with the use of concealer.

3. Begin the habit of maintaining your eyebrows. Once you clean up your brow shape, all you need is a brow pencil or powder in your most suitable shade to remedy sparseness. This small step will do wonders for brightening up your face even if you have no other makeup on.

4. Line your eyes. A quick, mistake-proof way to do this, even for a novice, is with a regular eye pencil. Smudge the liner onto your lash lines--top only or top and bottom--and repair any unevenness with a cotton swab. Your choices are a soft, smudged, smoky look or one that is more defined if you have a steady hand and would rather not use the cotton swab. You may prefer a waterproof eye pencil for longer wear.

5. Play up your eyes by curling your lashes and enhancing them with mascara. If you are a little drama shy, you can use clear mascara at first and shift to black, soft black or dark brown mascara later.

6. Try eyeshadow using a sheer liquid formula that dries as though it were powder. This is easy to apply with fingers and is goof-proof for the most part because of how lightweight it is. Apply from lash line to past the crease. Fade edges away. You may choose to attempt this in combination with Steps 4 & 5 so your eye makeup looks polished and not half done.

7. Give your complexion a sun-kissed glow with bronzer. You can apply some with a big, fluffy brush to your temples, cheekbones, chin and the tip of your nose. Blend excess color and hard edges away with a makeup sponge to create the illusion of a natural tan, as though you are fresh from a tropical vacation. You can also try working some cream blush the color of your own onto the apples of your cheeks instead. Use clean fingers, if you think it makes for easier management and blending than if you were to use a sponge.

Tips & Warnings

• Have fun and take it easy. It isn't your goal at this point to create professional looks so much as to simply enhance your natural beauty and learn firsthand how makeup works for you.

Who Can Help:

• Are you tired of cakey makeup? Try RawMinerals Free.

Resources

• Pictures that prove a little makeup can go a long way.