How Many Makeup Mistakes Have I Made? Let Me Count the Ways.

I’ve been doing my own makeup for many years now. Like the old slogan goes “I’ve come a long way, baby.” When I first started out, I tried to keep up and do every single trend that I saw on YouTube, it was terrible in many ways. The harsh contour, the block/unibrow, a terrible version of a smokey eye. I could go on but I’m sure you get the point.

Below I’ll show you some of my worst transgressions and how to correct them. Trust me, I did this so you don’t have to.

Mistake #1- No Lip Liner.

I was the queen of wearing a bright lip with not a hint of lip liner. M-A-C Candy Yum-Yum was my favorite lip for the entire summer of 2012. Judge if you must, but I love that ridiculously loud pink shade. What I was not doing was lining my lips properly before slathering on this lipstick, how dreadful. Regardless of the lip color you wear, you need a lip liner to bring it together. Not only does liner assist with your lipstick not bleeding, it also helps shape and define your lips and can help the color last longer. With a bright shade such as Candy YumYum, a lip liner will help neutralize the shade to make it less glaring and more everyday wearable.

Mistake #2- The Overdrawn Brow.

Sigh, where should I begin? For starters, I have naturally thin brows. They have a good shape but they are not thick at all. When I began doing makeup seriously, the overdraw, square, extra concealer brow was all the rage. Oh yes, you definitely had to draw yourself a unibrow and then clean it up with globs of concealer to get them precise. It was an awful time in my life, LOL. Since I’ve been delivered, I know to enhance my natural brow by applying a light stroke with the brow pencil. Following my natural shape and with a light hand, using concealer to clean up under the brows serves me just fine. I’ve never understood the need to draw a unibrow to create two brows however, I know my brow lane and I stay in it.

Mistake #3- The Harsh Contour.

I’ve been genetically blessed with great cheekbones, thanks Mom. I also have a round face that while can use a contour every now and then, I’ve never needed to carve out a new shape. Oh, but I tried, boy did I ever. Not only did I overly contour in all the wrong places, but the color of the product I used was also about three shades too dark. I am not a cool toned gal, but for some reason, I used cool toned products to contour. I knew nothing about undertones at all. All I had to go on was a Youtube guru who was a shade darker than me and had a completely different undertone than I do. Big mistake, huge. When I started studying makeup, I learned that the art of contour is about subtility. Giving the illusion of a cheekbone, not a harsh line that is changing my nose or face shape. No more blending my contour until my arm feels like it’s going to fall off, subtle and soft is the way to go.

Mistake #4- Unblended Eyeshadow.

Just like I love a bright lip, I loved bright eyeshadow. I still do actually, except now, I know how to wear them. My mentor who trained me when I decided to pursue makeup full-time instructed me to master blending neutral shadows first. I was putting on a blue eyeshadow with no base and nothing neutral to blend it with. Think about it like painting over a wall with a bright color. You need to neutralize it first (a neutral or flesh colored shadow) before you add a bright shade. I was not doing this at all, but when I learned better, I did better. The difference was astounding.

As a beginner makeup enthusiast and artist, it can be easy to want to follow all of the trends, and there are so many. The classic techniques never go out of style. Reference the work of Sam Fine, Kevyn Aucoin, and the Mother, Pat McGrath. Their techniques haven’t changed over the years for a reason, they are classic. What makeup mistakes have you made? it’s ok, this is a safe space. Leave a comment and let me know I’m not alone in my blunders.

XOXO-Lydia Marie