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Most used makeup item(s)

Gigi

Veteran

If you don't have time (or the inclination!) to do an entire makeup application, what one or two items do you use to bring color to your face? If you're short on time and can only apply a couple of things, what do you reach for?

(I don't have any answers to this question myself, since I haven't worn makeup in years. But I am considering dipping my feet back in and am wondering what the best purchases would be to start with.)

General

66 replies

Latest reply was from kmom

Missey

Veteran

I always like a tinted moisturizer/CC/BB cream and mascara, if I can have a third item I would say a dab of cream blush.

deb

Veteran

Cream blush, mascara, and eyebrows.

Anonymous

A CC cream (Smashbox) eye liner and mascara are the minimum I wear

Mo

(website)

Veteran

Hide any spots (tinted moisturizer or foundation or concealer) and then mascara.
Extras would be a swipe of blush or lipgloss. Super rare is eyeshadow or liner.

shiny

Veteran

Hmm ... I'm more apt to tone down color, rather than add it, come to think of it. I tone down, then add mascara and lipstick. No blush. I never wear blush. Because I cover all the redness in my face with foundation, and even then, the redness will come through, so why add blush to compound things?

Mascara: is just to tint my lashes, without it, they are dark blonde. I don't really use mascara to make them thicker or longer because that just ends up looking weird on me. I just need to make them not disappear.

Helena

Veteran

I do a super-quick version of the Carmindy 5 minute face, which is basically tinted moisturizer, a quick dab of concealer in the darkest part of the undereye circles, a dab of highlighter on the brow bone, tear duct and cheek, eyeliner, mascara, blush and tinted lip balm. Funny enough, I timed myself this morning from shower to fully dressed including makeup and blowdry, and it took a grand total of 13 minutes

If I could only do two steps, I'd do mascara and some sort of natural lip color.

Fun question!

Greyscale

Veteran

Either eyeliner + mascara, or lips. My eyelashes are practically invisible, so I like to add natural looking brown mascara and liner to make them visible. It's rare for me to do both eyes and lips because no one around me wears makeup and I don't want to stand out too much.

anne

Veteran

If only one item:lipstick. My lips are practically colourless

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I think you can see from the responses, it's going to differ depending on what your features are and which ones are strong or you want to play up, etc. I have strong brows, so I don't need to play them up, for instance.

Linda

One item? Brow color. My brows have thinned out with age. Tinted moisturizer, cream blush, and mascara would be my close runners-up. I used to feel fine without makeup, but my coloring has all dimmed in recent years so i like to brighten things up.

MuseumGal

Veteran

The only makeup I wear on a daily basis is lipstick.

Anonymous

If I'm really, really in a hurry: (1) Benefit Georgia, which is a peachy face powder thingie that smoothes things out a little and gives me a slight glow, and can also work as blush if I apply it a bit more heavily (I think they discontinued that color recently, but I know Benefit has others that are similar), and (2) lipstick or lip gloss to add a little color and because it's the most fun makeup thing for me to wear.

I need to take lessons from Torontogirl in how to get ready quickly! I can literally spend 13 minutes just spacing out thinking about what to wear.

catgirl

Veteran

Lipstick. Then eyeliner. That is all I do except if I remember highlighter.

Anonymous

Tinted moisturizer first, then a bit of pencil to even out my eyebrows.

Gigi

Veteran

OK, you will all laugh, but:

What is CC and BB cream?

What is highlighter?

(I will hide myself in shame now.)

Diana

Veteran

Well, generally I'm too lazy to do anything. But if I do anything, it's mascara. That's because my eyes are by far the feature of my face that need the most help. They are small and shallow, and my lashes are short and not very noticeable on their own. (This is one of the reasons I wear bold specs too - they stand out where my eyes do not.)

deb

Veteran

CC cream is a marketing term coined in the wake of the marketing term Blemish Balm cream or Beauty Balm. Both BB creams and CC creams are tinted moisturizers containing sun protection. There is no scientific definition for either term, nor is there quantifiable basis for difference between BB creams and CC creams: differences between the two vary from brand to brand. "CC cream" is used by some brands to mean Color Control cream, or Color Correcting cream, and some brands claim to reduce the appearance of skin redness or sallowness or to improve uneven skin tone. BB (Blemish Balm) cream was originally formulated in Germany and has in recent years gained popularity in Asia, and is also gaining popularity Europe and North America.[1]

Coverage can vary greatly among the different brands,[2] and differences are more often than not minimal when compared to BB creams.[3][4] Some users apply them as primers rather than as a replacement for foundation. The first tinted moisturizer marketed as a CC cream appeared in 2010, the product of a Singapore-based brand Rachel K.[5][6] Popular brands of CC creams include Chanel, Loreal, Olay, Clinique and Rachel Kand Mary Kay Cosmetics. Helia-D

All about Highlighter - http://www.thefashionspot.com/.....ghlighter/

Aziraphale

Veteran

Every single day, I wear a small dab of face makeup under my nose and on my chin. I don't leave home without it.

Most days (unless I'm in a screaming rush, or if I'm slumming it) I also wear a cream blush (applied with a light hand), mascara, and lipstick. The lipstick colour varies, but the mascara is always plain black.

Maybe three or four days a week, I'll also wear undereye concealer.

Sometimes, if I'm feeling adventurous, I'll put a little charcoal liner on the outer third of my upper lids. If I'm feeling really adventurous, I might even wear pale shimmery eyeshadow. Mostly I might do this for an evening out.

I almost never do my eyebrows. I don't care that they're invisible. In fact I kind of like them that way. Once in a blue moon, for evenings, I darken them.

This is way more information than you need to help you dip your toes into makeup, of course. And I think makeup preferences vary with the woman. My face doesn't benefit much from darker eyebrows, for example, but blush makes my skin look so much better (I'm quite pale, with faded scattered freckles). Someone with naturally rosy cheeks won't need the blush. Someone who gets more sleep than I do probably doesn't need the undereye concealer, either.

SarahTheWhite

Veteran

This is an impossible question for me. Even in a hurry, I need at least 3 things. I must have either concealer or foundation (but preferably both) and eyeliner and mascara. If I have gone that far, then why not add a little cream blush and power? My skin is white, my hair is white, and my eyelashes are some bland shade of skin tone. I look like a ghost without eye makeup and my skin needs a little help wish blotches and blemishes... So heading out the door without makeup is a no-go for me. But take heart... As much as I can't live without my makeup, I still have no idea how to explain the whole BB/CC cream thing. People rave, but I don't know which is which or why... I look forward to hearing what the others have to say on that one!

minimalist

Veteran

Tinted moisturizer/sunscreen. Sometimes topped with a BB cream. I can see & feel the difference, but don't know technically how they differ.

Eyelash curler might not count as makeup, but makes a huge difference.

I dye my eyelashes darker brown and henna my brows (and the skin below them), so those are always "done" but that's not daily upkeep.

If I want to "put makeup on," then I use lip-tint, eyeliner and brown mascara.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Bare minimum: tinted moisturizer and mascara and something on my lips -- either a light gloss or lip balm. Even (especially) on vacation when I'll be out in the elements because my tinted moisturizer has sunscreen.

Adelfa

Veteran

If I absolutely have to leave the house with only two things on, it would be pressed powder and tinted lip balm.

Liz A.

Veteran

I look sleepy unless I use eyeliner. Second must have is brow pencil/powder, and I really just discovered that in the last year or so but it makes a huge difference. Third would be mascara.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Under eye concealer (for inherited circles) and eyebrow "fill in" since my brows are thin and quite light. Plus lip balm. That's the minimum.

On a regular day I would add: lipstick or lip gloss, black mascara, and a smudge of blue grey eye pencil at the lash line on top outer corner of lids.

This takes less than 5 minutes to do.

Eyeshadow only about twice a year on going-out nights. Blush occasionally, but it's not at all a necessity.

I never wear foundation and I have no idea what BB or CC creams are. Or anything else for that matter. I feel quite ignorant in a makeup department.

Gigi

Veteran

Deb, thanks for helping me out on the BB and CC creams and highlighter! It sounds like they're tinted moisturizers with some extra coverage or something. Hmm. I didn't even know tinted moisturizer existed until Angie's post the other day (can't even remember what the post was about...).

Amy K., I am pretty sensitive to chemicals and was wondering about using an eyelash curler instead of mascara. I got the idea to look up eyelash curlers after Angie's post today. I've never used one.

I'm surprised at the number of people who use cream blush as opposed to powder. Back when I stopped wearing makeup, the only place I'd seen cream blush was in the makeup kits for dramatic productions. Does cream blush have more staying power? Is that why people prefer it?

I'm learning lots from this thread! (And Suz, I'm glad I wasn't the only one ignorant about BB and CC creams...that makes me feel better.)

cciele

Veteran

eyeliner, BB cream + blush (have to use blush if I use the BB cream)

Lucy

Veteran

At a bare minimum I would wear a CC cream and a lip crayon (Clinique Chubby Stick). Most days I would add a swoop of powder, some blush, mascara and perhaps some concealer. It sounds like a lot but it takes less than five mins to apply the lot.
This is an interesting post - what people use really does vary quite a bit!

K. Period.

Veteran

First, always mascara (I have blonde lashes, so otherwise they would be invisible). Second, always foundation, but if I had to choose between the two, I'd probably pick mascara first, foundation second. I also always wear lipstick, but it is definitely third on my list. Fourth would be liner.

I like makeup and find applying it soothing and enjoyable, so wearing multiple items is never a drag for me.

E

Veteran

My bare minimum is my everyday face: powder blush (the same pink shade every day; I hope they still carry it for when I finally run out), eyebrow cream (I have blonde lashes, and mascara really defines my eyes, but I hate removing it, so strengthening my brows is my mascara substitute), a sparkly white eyeshadow in the inner corner of my eye (to distract from my genetic dark circles, because I'm not spending every day dabbing concealer over them), and a lipstick as I'm heading out the door (I have 2 mauve-y pink Revlon lip butters that I love, in fact I need to replace one, and I just bought another lip stick that's a bit darker for days when I want more drama). That takes me about 2 minutes.

I used to use a light powder foundation too, but lately I've finally found an acne med that works, and I've run out of the foundation, so now I don't even bother with that. I am noticing a bit more pronounced rosacea than before, though, and the meds have turned my very oily skin (best suited to powder foundations and without any need for extra moisturiser) into normal/a bit dry skin, so I might add a tinted moisturiser or BB cream to the routine (since I wear sunscreen anyway). But I'm always afraid to try new products in case they make me break out.

For special occasions or big photo events, I add liquid eyeliner (with a bit of matching eyeshadow smudged in) & mascara (sadly, my mascara got lost during the prep for my sister's wedding, so it's a good thing I don't wear it daily, as even drugstore make up is expensive these days!). If I had a light foundation, I'd add that as well. And that's all the makeup I own.

If you're not sure what you like, why not go to Sephora or a department store & try different types of make up to see what appeals to you?

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