Are you a shiny or a matte person? - YouLookFab Forum

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Are you a shiny or a matte person?

Aziraphale

Veteran

This may sound like a weird question, but the shiny people will know what I mean.

I am shiny. My face is always shiny, whether or not I put on cream. It is shiny even after being freshly washed, and it's worse halfway through the day when the natural skin oils have spread over it. In photographs, light invariably glints off my forehead and cheeks. Sunscreen, of course, does not improve matters. My hair is shiny too, even when it's a bit frizzy.

I was noticing this again this morning when I put on some lipstick I hadn't worn in a while. As soon as I had it on, I remembered why I never wear it: it has no shine whatsoever! Matte lips and shiny everything else DOES NOT WORK. While I adore the look of matte lips and powdered face on others (makes me think of old-style film stars), I can't do it. Anyone else have this problem?

General

46 replies

Latest reply was from Sara L.

DonnaF

Veteran

Shiny here. Maybe that's why I'm a magpie? I once got samples of matte mineral makeup. It looked TERRIBLE. I looked dead instead of sophisticated. I've given up on sophisticated.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Shiny. Even though my skin is as dry as can be, it still has some shine. And I never understood that thing about lipstick but you are totally right!! The one I wear most has shine! And the one I love the colour of but never wear is just too darn matte for me. If I put it on I need to add some kind of gloss to make it feel "me."

Aziraphale

Veteran

Donna -- yeah me too! I would love to do sophisticated, but my skin and hair won't let me. They both want me to be a bit disheveled-looking.

Some of us are born for polish; others are RATE, whether we like it or not.

Suz -- yes, even though my skin is drier than it ever has been, it's still shiny. I've no idea why. It's shiny even right after I wash all the oil off it!

Anonymous

I have matte, dry skin and prefer a "satin" finish on my lips. Shiny, glossy lips are too much on me.

Aziraphale

Veteran

smittie -- I bet you could get away with matte lips if you wanted to, though!

Suz -- one thing I do to "save" a matte lipstick is to put a layer of high-shine lipgloss over it. It changes the colour a bit, though.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Fun question, Elisabeth. I'm on your team.

TEAM SHINY FOREVER

I MUCH prefer the look of shiny skin. Shiny like an apple looks radiant and healthy to my eye.

LOVE shiny wardrobe items. I have the magpie gene.

LOVE shiny lips. Never matte. I wear stick gloss or gloss.

I LOVE shiny hair. I use product to make it shine EVERY day.

I LOVE gold, because it's shinier than silver.

I LOVE pearls because they shine.

I only wear Kyoto Pearl toenail polish because of the low contrast shine. I never wear matte toenail polish.

I LOVE Polish because I like everything to look pristine and shiny. I am the least RATE person I know.

I LOVE the way my hands look after kneading dough because they look all shiny.

I met Greg at age 17 (he was almost 19) and it was love at first sight because of his very shiny light blue eyes - that naughty glint did it for me.

I LOVE the sunshine too.

I LOVE SHINE.

Diana

Veteran

Hmm, I have dry skin but I think I'm still on the shiny side. My hair is definitely shiny!

Alexandra

(website)

Veteran

Shiny. My face is usually on the satin side of the shiny spectrum (as opposed to high-gloss) and I like my lipstick to match or be glossier. Definitely not matte. That looks dead on me.

Thank you for starting this thread. It has helped me realize why I prefer a smooth shiny finish on the jewelry I make. I had thought it was just an arbitrary preference, but now I'm thinking it's because this level of shine is mine naturally. Much like coloring - we look so much better wearing the colors that are natural for us.

Anonymous

Shiny I guess. I wouldn't describe myself as matte, and all my jewelry is shiny. If any of you think otherwise, please speak up! I'm really bad at analyzing myself.

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

Shiny - and I think I prefer it that way too. I agree with the matte lipstick thing. I much prefer a gloss.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Shiny seems to be winning here.

I think perhaps we could describe matte as "velvety" which would give it a much more lovely connotation. And I have indeed seen people who fall into that category. And it can be just as beautiful. Just different.

"Spring" seasons would have to be shiny. (Like Angie). I think for other all other seasons it could be mixed, with perhaps more autumns and deep winters and soft summers as "velvety" and light summers or true winters and summers as "shiny."

kerlyn

Veteran

Shiny for me! I used to hate it! But as I've gotten older and my skin has dried out a bit, I've started to appreciate the shine. I just try to keep my skin healthy and balanced now, but I actually will apply a bit of highlighter sometimes to emphasize that "glowy" look.

My hair is not shiny though, so I usually have to apply some product to achieve that.

Ginger

Veteran

Anyone matte?? My nose usually has some shine (unless I've just powered), and my forehead can be satiny (thanks for the word, smittie) but my cheeks pretty much never shine. Unless I've been mowing in the summer, of course. They're rosey, but not shiny. I just checked and nope. It's been 10 hours since I applied powder, no foundation.

Anonymous

Thanks Suz. I think "matte" does not have the best connotation and "velvety" is much better

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Those who have matte skin, and want to look shiny - you can achieve this. A little jojoba oil on your cheek bones goes a long way. No cleansing your face in the morning either.

Suz, you make a good point about "Springs". Anything else looks awfully unnatural on me. (Although looking unnatural is very much an accepted, fashionable and coveted look these days too).

Smittie, did you ever solve your water allergy problem?

Brooklyn

Veteran

I think I am matte. Or velvety. (Ah, velvet!) My skin is very dry and I pile on the moisturiser to try to achieve a dewy effect. But there is no natural shine. Or colour for that matter! But I still don't like matte lipsticks. I much prefer a satin or gloss.
Loved Angie's response.

Anonymous

@Angie-I did solve the water/skin allergy problem.
The issue was incredibly dry skin where regular moisturizer was not enough. Sunscreens exacerbate the problem because they're so drying.

I now use Eucerin original formula and Cerave for washing, both twice daily. (The same products you use.) Sunscreen daily. But I need a thick coating of moisturizer on before applying the sunscreen.

I'm pretty shiny in the morning and at night but it wears off!

Anonymous

maybe matte lipstick is 'out'?

Helena

Veteran

Interesting question and I like Suz' analysis ... I think I am more velvety, with perhaps a small touch of shine here or there. Funny as I finally broke down and got an in person color analysis done and was found to be a "velvety" soft summer (the deeper variety). So I think Suz might be on to something there!

tulle

Veteran

I'm matte, except on certain warm, humid Summer days when I can achieve a dewy look. From September to June, I'm very pale, velvety at best, dry at worst, and adding shine just makes me look ill.

When I saw the title of this post, I thought it was a wardrobe question. Interesting, because I'm definitely for matte/velvety clothing, too, with very small touches of shine. Super-shiny satins and patent leathers make me look, well--ill.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Smittie, that's GREAT, and quite the relief I bet. I actually have dry skin too, but it has normalized beautifully with the right care (which took YEARS to get right - my word). I use Caudalie skin care products now, which work really well. I moisturize heavily. I don't touch retinol and alpha hydroxy acids, which dry and have ruined my sensitive skin before. I don't cleanse in the morning, never go in the sun with a bare face, wear sunscreen daily no matter what, and use tinted moisturizer (no foundation). My skin LOVES humid weather. I need to move to Florida.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

I am naturally shiny for sure. I guess this explains why matte lips never quite work for me!

Karie

(website)

Veteran

Shiny all the way! I love a bit of shine and sparkle. In fact, I just bought a shiny new lipstick this afternoon and pulled a sparkly top out of the closet to wear tomorrow!

Anonymous

Shiny. My skin is less oily than it used to be but sun block makes it shiny. Any powder settles in lines and looks terrible. I try to keep my hair shiny and use Aquaphor under lipstick although in the past couple of years lip gloss has started looking ridiculous.

Anonymous

It took years for my oily skin to normalize. My makeup starts out matte but gets a little shiny after a few hours. It used to be an oil slick, though. I think the skin care products I use make a huge difference. I've learned to be gentle, as I've had some very bad reactions to Retin A and other problematic ingredients.

Gaylene

Veteran

Can I be satiny? My hair has always been glossy and I like a dewy lipgloss, but I can't quite embrace shiny or sparkly. If I was a paint, I'd be a satin or pearlized finish instead of a matte or high gloss.

Suzanne (ambergreen)

Veteran

I love sparkly items and metallics, but I prefer a matte look for my skin. For lip products I lean more toward semi-matte or cream rather than really shiny.

But skinwise I used to be super shiny (and hated it) until a few years ago when I changed my skin-care process to not be so drying. I saw that in trying to get rid of the oil, my skin just overproduced it to compensate. I had to blot and repowder several times a day. Summers were awful. Now I remove makeup and also "cleanse" with just extra-virgin olive oil and facecloth. MUCH better.

I use powder over a very light layer of foundation. I've tried leaving a little shine, but I just don't like the way it looks on me.

crazyone

Veteran

shiny! It also informs my preference to be in humid climates over dry ones. And I love shiny/sparkly clothing/shoes--my coworkers keep commenting on my shiny shoes

Anonymous

When it comes to clothes and shoes, I prefer satiny, not shiny, so I may be in between. I like polyester, for example, but not sparkles or bling.

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