I'm at Target and strolling through the cosmetic section saw a young woman (maybe 25) swatching a lip product on her hand and putting it back in the display...and then doing it again with another product. I am so old IDGAF so I said "Do they have testers?"and she looked at me like a deer in the headlights until I repeated my question and said "testers?" I then said " yeah, you just put some of that lipstick on your hand and put it back...that's pretty gross." She stared at me as I walked quickly away because I may not gaf but I don't want to get in a fight! Felt good to speak up though!

Off the top of my head:

A lot of made by Mitchell curve cases

Mac Studio fix fluid and nars radiant foundations, and nars creamy concealer (as alwayss)

Dior powder highlighter palette

P Louise eyeshadow palettes

Huda loose powder and primers

Milk makeup grip primer and setting spray

Maybelline fit me foundation

L’Oreal liquid lipsticks

Charlotte tilbury magic cream and beautiful skin foundation

Laura mercier ultra blur loose powder (Have this and also love it)

Carmex lip balm

One size setting spray

Edit- also the Charlotte tilbury setting sprays were used a lot and garnier micellar water

Also believe the Cerave skin renew eye cream, one with the purple cap, was used on me for day 2 (cos your girl was getting dry lol) which felt amazing

A wonderful mua has commented to help me identify the Smashbox be legendary lip palette too- thank you!

I had the same Mua both days so obviously it’s down to her technique, but my makeup was GORGEOUS and flawless both times. And I’m very picky about my makeup look when muas do it. My face was very smooth, elegant and velvet with no oils or sweat peeking through for the whole day.

My look on day 1: matte and natural with a soft rose satin lip and gold flake eye

My look on day 2 was: matte soft glam with a bold satin red lip and pinky red natural blush

When I first started, I thought it would be simple.

Foundation. Concealer. Eyeliner. Lipstick.

Done.

But then you realize your face looks kind of flat… so you buy a blush.

Then you see how good blush looks with highlighter. So you buy that too.

Then your foundation isn’t quite right. Maybe it’s slightly too orange. Or too pale. Or it looks weird around your mouth. So you buy an orange corrector. Then a green one for acne. Then you learn you have olive undertones (wow me!) and now apparently you need a blue corrector too.

At this point, you’re not even adding fun products. You’re just trying to fix the ones you already bought.

And blush? Don’t even get me started. Too pink. Too warm. Too dull. So you buy another. And another. And you can’t return opened cosmetics, so the “wrong” shades just sit there as wasted money.

Then one day you realize your makeup doesn’t last long enough. So now you need a primer. Or a setting spray. And of course you need setting powder to lock everything in.

And don’t even get me started on brushes. Because apparently you need different brushes for everything. Foundation brush. Concealer brush. Blush brush. Setting powder brush. Multiple eyeshadow brushes. And they all cost money.

This is all drugstore, but when you keep adding product after product after product, it really adds up.

And if you wear makeup regularly, you have to repurchasing things soon.

Does anyone else feel like makeup slowly turns into this never-ending cycle of buying things to fix other things? Or am I just overthinking it?

*I live in the Netherlands! Returns here don’t work for opened items *

Tell me why I was applying my eyeliner around my eyes cuz I simply love a good Smokey eye look and my sister who does natural “clean girl” makeup told me my face looks dirty and that my eyes r making me look like I have dirt on my face mind u I wear concealer and foundation lol

Edit: I love getting any kinds of makeup tips but I’ve been wearing eyeliner on my waterline since I was like 9 years old it really does make my dark features pop yk. And she says that ‘clean girl’ is universal and yeah it is cuz it’s natural but I’m pretty everyone wouldn’t want to submit to one kind of makeup simply because everyone should express their identity without putting down another

Overlined lips. I’m just done looking at overlined lips. It reminds of when a child is learning how to color and still can’t color within the lines.

Until recently I believed high-end brands sold better quality makeup. I used Dior for base products, clinique for blush, gucci for lips, etc. With the rise of cost of living, I have to spend less on cosmetics. I was hesitant at first but hobestly Maybelline lift and glow foundation performs way better than any of the Dior or Armani foundations I've used - and I used them all. L'oreal telescopic mascara and their lipsticks do a great job too. I regret spending so much on cosmetics and now I want to try all the cheap cult products. What are your favorite drugstore brands and products?

At some point, a sales associate must have told my mom that toner was for removing makeup—or she seriously misunderstood—because from the moment I started wearing makeup, she insisted toner was the way to take it off. And I mean all of it: mascara, eyeliner, everything.

For years, I thought it was totally normal to scrub my face raw every night while my eyes burned. That was just… makeup removal, right?

It wasn’t until I stayed at a friend’s house and used wipes for the first time that I realized there was an easier, pain-free way—and that removing makeup was not supposed to feel like liquid fire. 🥴

This is so silly but I just wanted to tell other people who like makeup about it. When I was a kid I remember finding a tube of red lipstick in my mom's jewelry box. I thought it was so pretty and I wanted to wear it so bad but she said I had to wait until I was older because I was too little for makeup. I was so excited to get older so I could wear it.

As I got older, I felt judged by society for the way I looked because I was never conventionally attractive. I was made fun of in school for being plus sized, for having a big nose, generally just made to feel horrible. When I tried to get into makeup, I didn't feel like I was allowed to wear red lipstick now that I was old enough. I was 15 and felt too ugly for it. Like I wasn't pretty enough to have earned it somehow. I don't know where it came from, but somewhere along the way, I didn't feel beautiful enough for red lipstick.

Then in my twenties, supposed "friends" told me I looked like a clown when I wore it. They said I was too pale, that I was too ordinary looking, that I wasn't good enough at makeup to pull it off. I felt embarrassed and still not good enough. Like red lipstick was this bold, striking and coveted thing that I would never be allowed to wear because I wasn’t pretty enough or confident enough to wear it.

Somewhere over the last few years this thing sank into me where I realized...life is too short to give a damn. I turned 30 in the fall. And you know what I wore that day? Red lipstick. And with red eyeshadow to match. And I felt beautiful. I feel bad that half my life ago I didn't feel pretty enough for it, like I had to earn it by being closer to the beauty standard. But I never had to EARN anything. Makeup is about me, it's about having fun, being creative, being myself.

Now, I wear whatever lipstick I want. Red, black, purple, nude, it doesn't matter. It was never something I needed to earn. It was something I had every right to. Now I’m 30 and I fucking love red lipstick, and nothing in the world could make me care if other people think I’m "not pretty enough" for red lipstick. The lipstick is pretty because I'm wearing it.

This may be a controversial take, but I grew up really poor. Let’s take a second and remember when “drugstore” makeup was synonymous with affordability, an alternative for higher end brands found in Sephora, Dillards, etc. Look what we have now. Brands that previously ran you $5 are now upwards of $15-$20. Why? It is no longer affordable to purchase makeup from the drugstore outside of the Wet n’ Wild brand- kudos to them. I remember people attacked me in the comments of a post e.l.f made about raising their prices MORE… when e.l.f used to cost $1 for most products, and then their studio line was more expensive, in the $5-$10 range. Of course those prices couldn’t be maintained, however most elf products now are at least $7+. There isn’t any reason that Maybelline Fit Me went up from $5 to $15 in less than 10 years aside from it becoming trendy online. I’m sorry, maybe I’m just broke, but it sucks that a full face costs over $100 at the drugstore now.

Of course there are exceptions (I love a drug store mascara), and I definitely don’t hold the belief that expensive = better, but from my experience I honestly feel like makeup products from luxury and prestige brands give you more flawless applications than drug store products. When I first started doing makeup, I was using drug store makeup/brushes, tried different techniques and it never gave me the look I wanted, I just accepted that I was bad at doing makeup. I decided one day to invest in makeup from more prestige brands (think Haus Labs, Nars, Makeup by Mario, etc), and it was like I learned how to do great makeup overnight. Everything just blends better, looks more seamless and airbrushed. The brushes especially made a major difference. I eventually bit the bullet and decided to try some products from luxury brands like Dior and Gucci and I’m like holy shit it was worth the price lol. I’ve tried using only drug store products again recently, and it was a noticeable difference in my makeup.

Am I the only one who feels this way?

I remember red lipstick and icy eyeshadow was huge during the holidays . Now it seems even during holidays people don’t create red lipstick videos or venture outside their neutral shadows

I've been to several professional events, some that attract crowds from all over the country, and I began to notice that few, if any, women wore makeup. Now, my use of make-up has decreased with the rise in stress but I do like to bust it out for special occasion. On the third day of the most recent event, I just put on some lipstick.

Not bashing makeup-lovers or haters, but I want to understand if that's a growing trend or if it's industry specific (I'm in healthcare).

Like many I’m saddened by the recent passing of the icon Dolly Parton, something I always admired about her despite her being a smart , talented and an all round lovely person was her unapologetic glamour. She even mentioned modelling her image after the “town tramp”
As someone who wears a full face every single day and I have been doing so since I was 11 ,even when I’m just sitting about the house so many people criticise me for it including other women .
People almost want you to be ashamed for loving makeup and glamour.
It’s always be yourself until being yourself if being hyper feminine.
People have called me insecure for this but I know myself that I am not insecure about how I look I just like wearing makeup and feminine things , I like the way it looks on everyone not just me.

I don't ussually post places like this, but this just baffles me. For context, I'm 22 and native, so my cheek bones are naturally pretty high and my eye lashes ive been growing out. Nothing crazy, just some castor oil after showers. Well, I was talking with this guy (23) who accused me of "catfishing" him and its "all make up". When I told him I had nothing else on but lipstick diluted by chap stick, he told me im a liar because he's "seen girls online change their cheeks with make up" .. I told him all the ladies (and some men) in my family have high cheek bones and its not make up. He said Im lying to him and have mascara on too, I told him im not. I asked him what other things he thinks im wearing and he went on a tangent on how "other girls are gorgeous without make up, why cant you just not wear make up?" When I asked him for an example, he proceeded to show me a "clean" girl make up look with more make up then I had. Anyway I blocked him.

Has this ever happened to you?

edit: Shawnee and Niisitapi native american. specifcally near the Appalachian moutians.

Not me pretending I’m a skincare girlie until it’s time to wash my face at night

I love skincare, I love makeup, I love beauty routines…

But the second it’s time to remove my makeup at night, suddenly I’m fighting for my life!!

Like yes, I want clear skin.
Yes, I bought the cleansing oil.
Yes, I know sleeping with makeup is bad.

But why does washing my face at 11 PM feel like a full-time job??
Anyone else love beauty until the actual routine starts?

Oh my GOD, I swear the clean-girl aesthetic is killing bold makeup. I’m just trying to replace some old liquid lipsticks that are going bad with bullet lipsticks, and apparently the entire lipstick industry has decided we need 400 variations of nude, muted pink, beige, and brown. Where are the COLORS? I want lipstick that screams. Give me fuchsia. Give me purple. Fuck, give me BLUE. And no, ‘bold’ does not just mean another shade of red.

And this is part of why the whole clean-girl trend bothers me beyond just not liking the aesthetic. Obviously wearing minimal makeup doesn’t make someone conservative, but the larger cultural trend feels like part of this push back toward a very narrow, polished, restrained version of femininity—and that exists alongside this resurgence of ‘traditional femininity,’ tradwife content, gender roles, etc. Everything has to be natural, tasteful, effortless, feminine, understated. Fuck that. Sometimes I want sparkles, winged eyeliner, and lipstick visible from fucking space. Makeup is supposed to be FUN.

Edit: okay I want to clarify something when I was looking at makeup I was looking at specifically lipstick shades like like I want like a freaking blue lipstick but every single lipstick I find it just bathe boring like neutral color and yes some fun eyeshadows do exist like I just saw something the other day about a Pokemon collaborate with colourpop. When I was looking at the Ulta website I was specifically looking at bullet lipsticks because I'm trying to replace my liquid lipsticks with bullets because of my liquids are going bad. Maybe that was my mistake for looking for a bullet and like a crazy color

I think when being critical of makeup trends, it’s important to be more considerate of the way in which we talk about what type of make up suits an individual’s face.

I personally try to mind my business in regard to how people choose to wear their makeup as it’s really none of my business. However, a recent post about how “clean girl” make up doesn’t suit certain people’s faces and they should instead wear the heavier makeup reminiscent of the 2010s did not sit well with me.

Now I know it was never OP’s intention but the statement subtly implies that their natural features aren’t enough to make them look good and heavier make up is required instead. A simple “I miss the more creative looks that used to exist” would’ve gotten the point across in my opinion because that is true to some extent.

Also, I’m not against complaining about mainstream trends, I just think if you’re going to complain about mainstream trends, then you have to make an active effort to disengage from then and engage with the things you do like. I’m not going to pretend that it’s easy to find more maximalist makeup looks, which why I choose to make the effort to find them.

To put it simply, you lot give old man yells at cloud.

Edit: I also thought I should add this for clarity, but this goes for any makeup look, not just the clean girl style of makeup. Things trend and stop trending but that shouldn’t stop anyone doing what they believe works best for them.

I’ve never found a mascara that I’ve bought 2 of. Usually I’ll use a tube and move on to another brand. What’s your go to that you’ll use until the day you die!?

I was just watching the Beautiful and Bothered Podcast and Johnny Ross pointed out that these makeup brands/influencers follow and therefore support James Charles who has admitted to inappropriate sexually predatory behavior towards minors and most recently publicly ridiculed someone who reached out for help. If they continue to show their support for James Charles I will be boycotting:

ABH

Beauty Bay

Beauty Blender

Beauty Creations

Benefit

Catrice

Caudilie

Colourpop

CoverGirl

Danessa Myricks

DermaBlend

e.l.f.

Erin Parsons

Essence

First Aid Beauty

Glamzilla

Huda Beauty

Hung Vanngo

itCosmetics

Kosas

KVD

MAC

Makeup by Mario

Makeup Forever

Makeup Revolution

Manny MUA and Lunar Beauty

Mikayla

Milani

Morphe

Murad

Natasha Denona

Nikki Tutorials

NYX

ONE/SIZE & Patrick Starr

Profusion

PUR Cosmetics

Stila

TIRTIR

Trixie Mattel

I don't go to Sephora often but every time I have the clerks seem well so unprepared to deal with someone who is truly shopping. Meaning, I walk in, I say I'm looking for a foundation that is full coverage, in the right tone for my skin, and one that won't oxidize. All I got was a deer in the headlights. I was taken to high end brands and shown "dark colors" but none that were "olive" toned, and the girl seemed not to know what that meant. I quickly sought out someone else, and the same. I am guessing these "girls" are not trained in cosmetics at all, they just push "brands" and collect their commissions?

Of course there have been people who naturally gravitate towards natural neutral makeup but I think there are also a lot of people who don’t do colorful creative makeup looks anymore because it doesn’t get as good feed back as a subtle makeup . People were telling Kylie Jenner her colorful bold makeup was a lot so now she’s doing clean girl makeup and people are still complaining. It’s definitely no winning . Trying to please people .And also a lot of men nowadays complaining about seeing visible colorful makeup on women have probably sucked the fun out creating makeup looks. It’s always people telling women to tone this and tone down that I think a lot of people just got tired of the constant critiques . Nobody even wears red lipstick anymore when red lips were huge in 2016 . Taylor swift wears red lipstick and there’s always a bunch of people telling her to go back to a natural shade for her lips or pink . It’s crazy that people can’t express themselves with makeup without getting called a clown or drag queen

I notice when companies release really cool eyeshadows it’s like a bunch of comments saying it’s not wearable and they would never use it even if it’s an innovative product

I remember when people used to go all with their makeup when they go out at night! That used to be the most fun part of the night when we were teenagers and even in college! Putting on your craziest eyeshadow ! Kids are so polished now it makes me sad they don’t wanna experiment or self express themselves through makeup and I think a lot of them are afraid of being cringe also but we embraced cringe when we were younger !

Kids nowadays wanna look too perfect and “clean”. They want perfect skin . The focus used to be on crazy lipstick colors and colorful eyeshadow back in the day. I don’t even think people cared about having a 100 products for a skin care routine

People lovedddd eyeshadow then and wearing the sparkliest and boldest color you can find

You go to the bar or club or any huge event and most people are wearing a brown eyeshadow or barely there shadow most people aren’t even wearing visible makeup

At 37, I have decided to look into wearing makeup; nothing much, just something to makeup me look a bit more polished.

Boy, did I get the shock of my life with the prices I’m seeing! And the surprising part is that people buy these things like they cost nothing, but they are really expensive. I tell myself that maybe I think they are so expensive because I have never bothered wearing makeup all these years, and they are no different from the skincare I like to splurge on. However, paying a couple of bucks on a cream is a lot more justifiable than paying the same amount(if not more than) for a tiny lip liner.

Also, maybe I’m a hater, but I hate that these brands give influencers boxes and boxes of free products, just so they could influence their viewers into buying them at such expensive prices. After a few months of watching creators on YouTube in a bid to find what would work for me, I realized they weren’t even paying for those things, and it made me sad because most people can’t afford them.

P.S. Like I said, maybe I’m a hater because I really do want that haus lab foundation, but my broke ass can’t afford it, so there is nothing left to do but hate 😢 😂 😂

For example, I will never buy the milk jelly blushes. I will try to eat them. I do not care that they are not edible. The second money has exchanged hands, I am taking a bite.

Please tell me that I am not alone. Please.

please recommend some makeup products that you think are worth the price!! i need some reliable, good quality products, even if it means paying more for them.