Last week it was fun to talk about skincare. Your responses were so interesting and I think we all enjoyed a peek into each others bathroom cabinets.
So to stay a bit sideways of the perfume topic once more, I’d like to take a peek into your make up bags today.
Do you wear makeup?
If yes, everyday or just on special occasions?
What are your favorite products?
My Answer:
I love makeup. I wear it every day. My surgeon commented on my flawless look on the way to the OR when I had my children (via C-Section). So it is a rare and usually not a great day when I am without it.
But makeup for me is about enhancement not transformation.
I am of the nude look/natural makeup school of thought, coloured eyeshadows and bright red lips are not for me.
My favorite product is definitely concealer – a good concealer is a life-saver (Clé de Peau is amazing!!!). Foundation and mascara are also important for me and I have never left the house in almost three decades without applying lipgloss.
In my handbag I carry a leather pouch holding concealer, powder, cream blush, lipgloss and of course a perfume decant, at all times.
I love luxury lines like Burberry, Edward Bess, Chanel and Dior, but my workhorse items often come from MAC.
Favorite products: Chanel Glossimer lipglosses, Dolce&Gabbana Powder Foundation, Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick, MAC lipsticks, Chanel Le Volume mascara, Paula’s Choice Resist Anti- Aging foundation, Clé de Peau Concealer.
Makeup was a big no-no when I grew up, my mother hasn’t worn a stitch of makeup in her life, so I think at least part of my use and enjoyment of it came out of rebelling against that prohibition.
What is your relationship with makeup?
Olfactoria's Travels 
Morning. Every day. I love make up as did my mother and my grandmother and now my daughter. It never fails to make me feel good, and if I feel bad then it makes me feel better.
Smashbox Photo Finish Primer. Bobbi Brown Eye brightener. The Armani concealer and foundation is my HG. MAC blushers. Ido mix foundations to get the colours I need over the year including Kevyn Aucoin and Urban Decay. Laura Mercier Powder. MAC Lipsticks and Chanel lipglosses. (Recently bought a Tom Ford Lipstick which was nowhere near as good. I really should have known better! Various mascaras. The new Lancôme at the moment with a Bobbi Brown one underneath. And yes, I wear full make up when making cookie dough. MAC eyeshadows, but I only use eyeshadow if I am not wearing red lipstick, Both together is too much. It all sounds like a lot but I apply and blend very carefully.
Well you asked! Big hug. xxxxx
It’s the same for me: makeup is a mood lifter!
Thanks for sharing your faves. You always look impeccable!
Good morning. I love make up, but I’m no expert. It’s mostly trial and error with me, since I’m not very handy with all the blending and contouring:). Howerver, For foundation, I like Jane Iredale, Eyeshadow: Dior, mascara:Jane Iredale and Estee Lauder, Blush: Armani, Lipstick: Sisley, Shiseido, MAC. Have a nice Monday.
A nice Monday to you too!
Trial and error in this case is fun though, isn’t it?
I love makeup and wear it most days. Every now and then I feel like my eye lashes and eyes need a break from mascara. The one thing I cannot live without is lipstick or lip balm of some sort. Even after all these years I’m still searching for a holy grail foundation. Maybe because I’m still searching for holy grail skincare to give me better skin. A SA recently gave me a sample of Cle de Peau Everything Mascara and I am now silently cursing her. It does everything I want from a mascara and it does not budge, smudge or flake even after 12 hours. Sigh. But of course it costs an arm and a leg.
Love my Cle de Peau concealer. Love eye shadows from Burberry and Rouge Bunny Rouge. Love lipsticks from Tom Ford, Burberry, NARS, Armani and Dior. I rarely if ever wear blush.
Another cdp concealer fan, yay!
It is too bad that an expensive mascara is “the one”, but if it works, it’s worth it (that is how I rationalize it at least 😉 ).
Usually I wear just mascara and lipstick or lipgloss (love the Dior glosses). My excuse is, that I can only afford one expensive hobby ;o) and that is fragrances. But to be honest, I don’t feel comfortable with make-up. On days, where I feel the need to wear make-up, I wear a tinted moisturizer by Sisley. My 13-year old daughter on the contrary knows more about make-up, concealers, brushes, blushes, highlighters and stuff, than I ever will!
Cheers
Safran
It’s all about comfort and if lipgloss and mascara is all you need, thas perfect.
After having worked as a makeup artist for almost 15 years, I am beginning to get a bit tired of makeup. No one else is reading this, right? 😉
I don’t wear makeup every single day. If I’m outdoors, I always l wear sunglasses and they practically cover most of my face.
I don’t wear a lot of makeup and, when I do, it doesn’t show. I like a red lipstick once in a while.
My favorite products include Sisley undereye concealer, By Terry Light Expert foundation, Chanel cake eyeliner and Guerlain Meteorites.
xoxoxo
Caro
I think my relationship with make up is just like yours! It was a big no no and my mum doesn’t wear any other than lipstick, only. Due to jobs I’ve been in, I’ve had to wear make up and I enjoy it too now for everyday. But I’m also like you, its about enhancing and not transforming. xx
Hi Sofia!
A little makeup can go so far in enhancing a face, it’s great you enjoy it now too.
With the passing time I need the help of some “enhancement” : the stick foundation by Tom Ford has been my HG for years now (easy to apply and looks completely natural), mascara (Fibre Wig by d.j.v.), eye-contour by Dolce & Gabbana (stay put the whole day). I love the creamy texture of the lipsticks by Tom Ford, but the shades are somewhat problematic for me. My second choice would be Burberry : awesome quality and wonderful wearable colours (both, lip and eye make-up).
I finish with a gossamer of loose powder by Chantecaille or Hourglass.
I always love to hear about your faves, and I’ve had great success with your recommendations. Tom Ford lipstick shades are ill-suited to me too, I agree that Burberry can do no wrong… 🙂
I would like to have a more intimate relationship with make up but as I am almost blind, I am cautious about applying creams and bright lipsticks in fear of looking like a circus clown! So how I get aroudn this is by having my eye lashes tinted to highlight my blue eyes So the look can last a couple of weeks and I use luscious lipsticks of soft colours and I am just learning how to apply an eyebrow pencil by feel. I even pluck my eyebrows by feel too! Where I really delight in make up is in the scent of my foundation cream Chanel, biensur!
Hi Maribel,
I’m jumping in here because I am also sight impaired. Getting your eye-lashes tinted is a brilliant idea. Have you thought of getting your eyebrows threaded as well? It’s brilliant. Doing eyebrow pencil by feel sounds pretty tricky. I’d recommend trying Gimme Brows by Benefit. You apply it with a mascara-type wand so you only have to brush it across your brows to add some definition and it’s very natural looking.
I manage to apply colour OK as long as I blend well but I think sticking to neutral colours to be on the safe side makes sense. If you wanted to try a brighter lip colour, tinted lip balms like Clinique’s Chubby Sticks are sheer so you can’t go far wrong.
BB creams and tinted moisturisers are hard to mess up too and mineral make-up might also work well as it’s a natural look and you buff it into the skin. Sounds like you’re very happy with your Chanel base though so that’s great.
Hugs from London!
Thanks for adding your experiences, Tara!
The Benefit brow tint sounds interesting…
I use the Benefit Gimme Brows. Bought it with Tara. It’s brilliant. Will buy again. All the Benefit Brow stuff is good.
Another fan here of Gimme Brows! That is one great product.
That settles it then!
Hi Maribel,
lash tinting sounds like a great solution. I am glad Tara chimed in as I know how well she uses makeup despite the sight impairment.
I wear make-up during work week, not so much on the weekends (unless I’m going out in the evening).
And I like both the nude and colorful look (I am an Aquarius after all). 😉
My favorite lines MAC, Bobbi Brown, Essence (a really cheap brand with the best mascara I eve had). And Asali got me hooked on Armani lipsticks and Suzanne on Lancome’s lipgloss.
Asali has found another victim, I’m going to take a long, close look at Armani this week. 🙂
Which one of the Essence mascara do you like? I wanted to buy one not long ago, but there were so many of them and I heard that they really are hit and miss…
I use Big volume, waterproof. And it’s rather easy to remove, just like a normal (non-waterproof mascara).
Just mascara and lipstick or gloss. But in my last job I often wore a BB cream and some blush. Now, three months on, I somehow can’t be bothered. It’s funny isn’t it? I must be happier. Well, I am happier, but I’m surprised that it should affect my attitude to makeup, because I like make up generally. It’s fun. I do still pay a lot of attention to clothes and, of course, perfume!
I’m glad you are happy, Annemarie! Probably you feel confident enough in your new job now to face it with minimal makeup only. 🙂
As Ines already mentioned: armani lipsticks, I love both Armani rouge and their sheers, which have amazing colour, while staying sheer, and great longevity for sheers. Also armani concealer and eyes to kill mascara. Then I use ysl le teint touche éclat, which is the only foundation that works on my dry skin without irritation it to flake further. Bobby brown eye liner. I do own a few of the Guerlain big palettes which have wonderful combinations for me and rouge automatic is another lipstick I love.
Fabulous stuff, Asali. I’ll definitely look into Armani. 🙂
You should, they have a magnificent line, blush, bronzer and the silk eyes to kill eyeshadows are wonderful too. And most of the Armani SAs I’ve come across have a good knowledge of makeup in general.
Good to know! Will take a peek this week in your honour! 🙂
I love makeup. I wear it every single day for the most part. The exception is those weekend days when I don’t plan on leaving the house. People tell me I don’t need makeup all the time but those exact same people are also quick to ask me if I’m tired or not feeling well on the days I try to get away with less makeup. So to avoid the concerned stares and questions it’s better to wear eyeliner and shadow and everything else. I spend more on foundations and concealers than any other product usually. My latest loves are from Urban Decay although Revlon Colorstay Whipped Foundation is one I have repurchased mutiple times. I did splurge on a Dior lip product called Fluide Stick which I love but usually I use Revlon or Tarte for lip colors. For eyes I try everything form drugstore to high end.
It’s the same with me, I look a bit sick if I don’t wear makeup, so I rather don’t wait for the concerned looks. 😉
I wear make up almost every day because I look unequivocably plain without it. Well, people remark on the fact that I look ‘ill’, but it amounts to the same thing. I am a big fan of Urban Decay’s original eyeshadow palette – great taupes and browns for those with autumn colouring. I love Max Factor’s Masterpiece mascara, Nars cream blusher (Penny Lane in particular) and Burberry lipsticks. I used Clarins Skin Illuminating foundation, but just on my nose and chin!
I’m sure you don’t look “unequivocally plain”, but I know what you mean. 🙂
Nars Penny Lane is great!
I am about to buy my second pan! Trust me, I look like a surprised woodland creature with no slap on. First thing add a bit of light quilting / etching to the look, hehe.
Surprised woodland creature? That is too cute! 😀
I used to love it, but have more or less stopped wearing it, and am really enjoying the liberating feeling of going bare faced. I keep a clutch of lipsticks and glosses (mostly glosses), and will check out some of the above suggestions for these, as they are fun and quick. But it was with a great sense of relief that I recently threw away a load of old make-up, and I’m not rushing out to buy any replacements for now.
Alice
I know the liberated feeling from vacations (where I try to do the barest minimum only).
Why did you decide to dispense with makeup altogether, Alice?
Well partly, as you say, from vacations – it was a feeling of freedom I wasn’t willing to give up. Also, some work friends/colleagues that I really respect have never worn it, and I always found that quite refreshing. And also, getting older I find I’m more keen on clothes, and have been doing a bit of a wardrobe re-vamb recently, focussing more on overall impression and style, so l suppose you could say I’ve been standing further away from the mirror!
What a great way to put it! Thanks, Alice.
I used to have a very full on make up routine, which was always lots of fun (I think sometimes getting ready is more fun for me than what I actually end up doing), but have adopted a much simpler look that only takes me about 10 minutes to get myself together. While I tend to try different products, two that have a solid place in my cosmetics arsenal are Jouer Moisture Tints – love both luminizing and matte – and By Terry Hyaluronic Blush in Peach Posch, which is an amazing product. I can always see a difference in my skin after I have used it. It is showing as a Limited Edition though which is a bit stressful!
Hey Birgit,
I wrote you a BIG post but it seems to have been eaten.
BEN NYE lip liners are harder, get sharper, last longer, give uber great definition and come in a killer range of colours. I use VINO.
SHU UEMURA do an eye shadow that I use on lips instead of lip gloss because its sticky gloopiness drives me barnyard. Shu Uemura me light beige 825 (metallic gold sand)
These are my two ultimate loves.
Portia xx
Sorry about the missing comment, Portia!
Thanks for sharing your faves. I’m still wondering about the meaning of barnyard in the context of lipgloss… 🙂
HA! Sends me completely crazy. That weird smacky, sticky, gloopy wet glue feeling that lip gloss gives is a totally creepy feeling for me.
It can’t be too bad because everyone else seems to love it but it sends my skin a-shiver.
Portia xx
Ah, I see, I am a bit slow this morning… 😉
I mostly wear makeup every day unless I’m staying in to work, or on holiday somewhere in the country or at the beach.
I find that city life makes me look a bit washed out, so makeup really helps brighten me up. It’s amazing how much less I need it once I’m somewhere with normal oxygen levels and the chance to be outdoors all the time, I look immediately healthier!
If you’re in your late 30s to 40s and have clear, cool toned colouring, fairly dark hair and green/blue eyes, read on! I’m really pernickety about colour/texture and take time to get it right.
I’ve tried loads of concealers (I have the kind of skin that gets little broken capillaries here and there) and honestly the best for me is by Rimmel, cheap but it has the right consistency. I’ve tried Chanel’s touche eclat etc but it doesn’t blend so well. Rimmel’s natural beige is also spot on for my skin colour.
My favourite lipstick and mascara are L’Oreal, again, they’re just the right consistency. I adore the L’Oreal Colour riche lipsticks, they have a lovely rose/violet scent (a bit Drole de Rose or Malle’s Lipstick Rose) retro in a nice way. Their lipsticks are my first choice for everyday as they’re moisturising and sheer. Also they do natural plums that work with my colouring, other ranges tend to be too violet tinged, or orange-tinged, and if you have cool toned rose/beige skin they look terrible.
Bourgois have the best eye shadow and blusher colours for me, the right soft but dense matte texture to lessen the appearance of wrinkles, and again, the right tones for cool skin tone and blue/green eyes. I’ve been wearing their eye shadows and blushers for about ten years or more.(mostly Cendre de Rose Brun for blusher). I nearly always use a plummy mauve or charcoal eye shadow and very deep indigo eye liner, or charcoal. Eye liners I use are by Mua, again cheap, but with the right texture – soft enough for good application but not greasy
But for parties I tend to wear lip liner, or Nars matte lip pencil, it has good lasting power, and I discovered that those colour-fast lip colours really dry out my lips and go a bit sludgy. I’d rather reapply than have sludgy dry lips
This all makes me appear somewhat vain, and I am, but as an artist it bothers me hugely when colours aren’t right!
I’m cool toned as well (although blonde), so I enjoyed your colour tips very much. I like L’Oreal lipsticks too although it drives me crazy that because of their softness they often break or at least touch against the inside of the tube as soon as you use them, the neat freak in me hates that! 😉
You definitely don’t appear vain, I asked after all! 🙂
Ah yes, I see from your photo that you have cool-toned skin (what they call cool summer these days!) so you’ll also look great in the light plum/pink tones and avoid the orange shades (which make me at least look like a mad clown!)
I agree the L’Oreals are a bit too soft, and they do get a bit messy, but I suffer from dry lips so the pros outweigh the cons!
Mad clown is exactly right! 🙂
I always wear light makeup, even on weekends. My HG foundation is Diorskin Nude BB Creme in color 002, which seems to work for me summer and winter (I don’t tan, though). My favorite natural lipstick is Bite Beauty in the shade Fig, a warm peachy pink. Mascara is a must and I’m currently enjoying a sample of Le Volume de Chanel. Although I don’t usually line my eyes, I sometimes wear eyeshadow, and my current favorite is Urban Decay Naked Basics 2 palette, a wonderful collection of creamy neutrals, mostly matte.
I looove the Urban Decay Naked Basics 2. Fantastic. Very pigmented. Soon to be found in Vienna. 😉
Yay!!!
Le Volume de Chanel is great, I didn’t want to fall for so expensive a mascara, but it is truly good.
Must take a look at the Dior BB, although usually almost all BB creams are too dark for me. 😦
I’m quite fair, and I wear 002. Perhaps 001 would work for you, but I hear it has a strong pink undertone.
Good to know, thanks. Will check it out today.
Discovered makeup way after 20. Now I’m lurning to apply blush😎. Love, and wear makeup on a daily basis, but always go “nude” on Sundays. Not even mascara. Foundation and blush from Youngblood, mascara from MAC, I love dropping eyeshadow and wearing a bright red lipstick instead- and it makes me look darn good 😎Favourite at the moment is from YSL. And always a perfume decant. Always. Monas Oud is IT at the moment. Andt this😎 is my favourite smiley, in case you hadn’t discovered. 😎
That is one cool smiley! 😉
Nude Sunday sounds quite relaxing…
I envy that you can wear red lipstick, I would love to now and again, but bright red is really impossible on me (Pennywise the Clown looks back out of the mirror then!)
Hi Birgit,
I love your story about being perfectly made-up to have your C-sections ! I would be curious to know what perfume you wore on the days of your sons’ births. I had a C-section a year ago almost to the day and did not wear any makeup, but could not forego perfume on the day of my son’s birth! L’ambre des Merveilles was my SOTD, and it will forever remind me of the most important day of my life! As far as makeup is concerned, this fair skinned girl recently splurged on a Tom Ford foundation stick, on your recommendation, and am loving it! Finally, something that matches my moonlit complexion! I am in my forties and have spent decades searching for such a thing! For lipstick, have you tried Napoleon Perdis? A bit spendy, but rich and beautifully pigmented. They are named after Greek goddesses. I think you might like Hera. Cheers from sunny Southern California…
Hello Bobbie,
What a great perfume to commemorate that day, I am a big fan of L’Ambre des Merveilles.
On the days of the births of my children I did not wear perfume, actually. I didn’t want to overwhelm their tiny noses and wanted them to get accostumed to “smell of Mommy”. Nowadays they get indunated with my perfume though whether they want to or not… 🙂
So happy you love the Tom Ford stick foundation, it is amazing indeed and the light colour selection is rare.
No Perdis cosmetics here, but I will look for them when in the US, thanks for the recommendaton.
I went to a Catholic school and wearing make-up was verboten. Anyhow, those days are long (long, long) gone. My routine these days is a primer (I switch around quite a bit…Benefit That Gal, Clinique SuperPrimer [the color-correcting pink tube], Smashbox Photo Finish Primer, Estee Lauder Matte Perfecting Primer), lightly-applied make-up base or BB Cream (I switch around too…Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream, Clinique Even Better, Estee Lauder Double-Wear All-Day Glow BB Cream), occasionally a blush (Benefit Fine One One). I don’t wear any eye make-up because it is too much trouble and I hate the oily stuff one has to use to remove mascara AND I hardly ever wear lipstick / lipgloss although I usually don’t leave the house without lip balm (ummm, I also switch around quite a bit but my cheap thrill of late is Carmex).
Ah yes, us catholic girls… totally into makeup now! 😉
I don’t wear make-up, and I have never learned to do so. I think it is for a combination of reasons, including laziness/force of habit and also not being used to how my face looks with make-up on…besides that fact that I don’t know where I would start! I am glad that I have plenty of resources for when I change my mind though 🙂
You save a lot of time in the mornings! 🙂
And yes, the internet is a great place to look for help if makeup is ever on your agenda. (Temptalia for example is a great beauty blog.)
I wear mascara and a bit of foundation on problem areas and usually a lip gloss when I leave the house. However in summer it’s just mascara. If I’m dressing up I put on some eyeliner and a bit of blush and lipstick / gloss and that’s it. I really like Guerlain lipgloss and Bobbi Brown lipstick but I just don’t think I’m a huge makeup person and probably will never be. I am going to look for a blush for winter though – maybe a Bobbi Brown / NARS or MAC.
Those three brands have great blushes, hope you find something you love.
Hi Birgit,
I love make up but it’s been hard to find my “style”. Concealer of course !!! phyto-cernes Sysley n°1, my HG foundation is Lingerie de Peau by Guerlain, blush “beige satiné” by Benefit, eye shadows by Chanel tissé Rivoli, mascara telescopic by l’Oreal or “they are real” by Benefit and on my lips: balm 8hours cream by Elizabeth Arden and the lipgloss “regulatur” which tints your lips in natural rose (the color of your lips) and make then shine but not too much. Sometimes, I wear a lipstick “cranberry veil” by Face. I’m right with you, I feel bad or sick without make up!!!
Thanks for sharing your favorties, Florence. Lingerie de Peau is such a great foundation indeed (unfortunately the lightest shade is still too dark for me except in summer).
I love makeup and we “go out” together everyday! Hahaha! 😉
I love Dior foundations, Burberry eye shadows, Guerlain bronzers, By Terry powders, Cle de Peau Concealer, Chanel Highlighters and Hourglass finishing powders, Tom Ford Lipsticks, Chanel Le Volume mascara, Tom Ford and Hakuhodo brushes, and everything in between…
🙂 xx
I suspected that, Annie… 😉
Thanks for sharing your favorites here. I really enjoy your blog and you are quite often tempting me with gorgeous products.
😀 😉 🙂
It’s always a pleasure to answer your questions!
And thank you so much for your lovely encouraging words, they really mean a lot! 🙂 xx
I’m like you Birgit, I rarely go out without makeup of some kind on. Occasionally at the weekend it might just be concealer and some mascara. But since I’m very pale, especially when tired, I usually rely on colour to make me look alive, in the form of eyeliner pencil and, above all, blusher. I also think for work that makeup helps me look like I’m taking my job seriously, it feels like it’s signalling ‘I made an effort’.
Most of my makeup is cheap – Rimmel, Max Factor – but I spend on foundation on the basis that if you’re spreading that much stuff on your face you need it to look & feel good. Luckily for my wallet I have no interest in make up as a hobby. That said, I do have a slight weakness for lip/cheek colour (all my lipsticks and blushers multitask) in different shades; at the moment I have about 8.
Eight lipsticks is still a manageable amount, so I don’t sense a budding addiction there. 😉
May I ask, what is your preferred foundation right now?
Thanks for the reassurance re. my lipstick (non) habit! My foundation for the past 7 years (!) has been Armani Luminous Silk Foundation. I’ve tested a few others, including the other Armani offerings, By Terry, Chantecaille, Dior, Chanel, but nothing matches up. It has a shade that works on me, doesn’t irritate me or break me out, looks and feels relatively natural and is wonderfully buildable. And I suppose it’s still quite good value compared to the big leagues. The only downside is that it does require occasional powdering during the day.
Another Armani fan… thanks for your take, I will surely take a look at their foundations as well.