Style by LisaP : Makeup

Thursday 19 November 2015

Makeup

How my obsession started

My makeup obsession started 3 years ago. I gifted a makeup tutorial to my daughter for Christmas and she came home looking amazing and with a few sheets of paper with notes of what she had learnt. I was intrigued.

Hayden, the fabulous makeup artist and my hairdresser, suggested that I watch a few tutorials on YouTube from the likes of Pixiwoo (Samantha and Nic Chapman who produce the Real Techniques brushes) and Lisa Eldridge (makeup artist to Kate Winslet, Jessica Biel and Keira Knightley) and from there my love of makeup grew.

Since then I've discovered a heap of others to follow, some from the UK, the US, New Zealand and of course, Australia.

What I learnt

I learnt how to prime, apply foundation correctly, to powder, to enhance my eyebrows, contour, highlight and get over my issue with lipstick (I have never been able to find lipstick that I liked and hence wore the same boring colour for years - it's still a work in progress).

My collection has grown - not to gigantic levels but I certainly have enough makeup to do me a lifetime. Just don't tell Mr P!!

Once upon a time I would wear the same foundation, the same eyeshadow, the same blush and lipstick every day. Not any more!

I learnt how important good skin preparation is to good makeup application and longevity. How vital sunscreen is and most importantly how to make the most of my features.

What I've failed at

I'm still hopeless at applying false lashes. I just get too stressed and shaky and it turns into a disaster. So I occasionally bring out the individual lashes if I'm feeling motivated and confident.

I also think I'm pretty ordinary at contouring.

My inspiration

I now find applying makeup an absolute joy as opposed to the chore it once was. Most mornings I will apply my makeup following tutorials I've saved on YouTube. I'm not at all creative and prefer to wear fairly safe styles. I have organised a number of tutorials based on my many eye palettes and will usually decide that this week it's the Urban Decay Naked 1 Palette or time for the LORAC Pro Palette.

My favourite YouTuber for makeup is Sharon Farrell from Sharon the Makeup Artist. She is a gorgeous Irish girl with the most intoxicating accent who recently moved to Sydney. We both have oily skin, are concerned about pores and have very fair skin. I can pretty much use the same brands and colours of makeup as she does and create a similar effect.

I also love EmilyNoel83 (Emily Eddington from the US), LeighAnnSays (from Texas), Shameless Fripperies (Karima McKimmie from Sydney), Rachael Jade Annear (also from Sydney), Goo Roo Beauty (Jodi from Perth) and Tango2+ (Mel from Queensland).

How I store my makeup

I found this terrific organiser below from Officeworks and it fits all of my brushes, eye pencils, eyebrow products, concealers and mascaras perfectly.

This makeup mirror was a very thoughtful present from my son last Christmas. I missed it so much when we travelled recently.

I have taken over the ensuite drawers with my stash of makeup (it has since outgrown the makeup case). I bought the drawer dividers from Howard's Storage World to keep everything separate and organised. The one thing that I do find difficult is culling products, so I'm trying to be ever so careful to only purchase when I'm absolutely sure it's perfect.

Where do I buy my products?

I buy most from Myer, David Jones, Priceline and Mecca Maxima. I bought a few bits and pieces from Milani Cosmetics and e.l.f. when were were in the US recently and I fell in love with CVS, Walgreens, Sephora and Ulta (my favourite). I might just start buying more of these drugstore brands online and now that Sephora Australia has an online store - watch out!!

My holy grail items

Benefit PoreFessional Primer and IT Cosmetics CC Cream (from Sephora)