September 05, 2014
Make Up Origins
So something that most people who know me know about me is that I LOVE makeup. In fact, if you looked at my bathroom you might think you were walking into a mini-sized version of Sephora. I’ve always loved makeup since I was a little kid but unfortunately for me no one ever taught me how to apply it. I had to teach myself. I didn’t think there were any tricks so I just slapped it on. No one ever told me bright blue cream shadow smeared around my entire eye made me look nuts, I thought I looked cool!
I WAS ABLE TO FIND BEAUTY GURUS WHO LOOKED LIKE ME AND LEARN FROM THEM
However though a series of random events I started working at a cosmetics store part-time (which was awesome, I got a 50% discount!) but I was expected to know how to do my own makeup well in order to sell the products. So, the blue smudge look wasn’t going to cut it. Instead of doing things the normal way and asking one of the other employees to give me some tips I took it upon myself to learn the way any good millennial learns things: from the internet.
It’s not as silly as it seem though. There are a TON of resources on the internet to help you learn how to do makeup and they actually are easy to find and use. I’m going to share my three favorite places on the internet to find the best makeup tips, tricks, and tutorials.
The first place I looked was Youtube. I like Youtube because you can watch a look come together step by step. It was easier for me to follow makeup tutorial videos than to look at a finished face and guess at what went into it. Some of my favorite videos are the celebrity makeup tutorials and there are tons of them. The best part for Youtube is that instead of trying to learn from face charts that look nothing like my face I was able to find beauty gurus who looked like me and learn from them. It might take some time but there are so many makeup channels on Youtube that if you take the time you can definitely find someone who has a similar skin and hair color, at minimum.
Here are some great channels to start with: goldiestarling, Tiarra Monet, iwanted2c1video, MissChievous
Another great place to find makeup advice and tutorials can be found in a somewhat unlikely spot. Reddit. There’s a few good makeup subreddits but my favorite is /r/makeupaddiction. Reddit is primarily text-based so people can post pictures of their make-up looks and ask for feedback or constructive criticism. People discuss their favorite products, most-hated products or even new products that haven’t come out yet. It’s like one big chat room for makeup lovers to talk about all things makeup-related. For example setting up a vanity (or “battle stations” as the purveyors of the subreddit call them) is one hot topic that often comes up on the reddit, as are eyebrows and how to properly shape them.
We’ll end the list with an old favorite: Pinterest. You can’t even browse the hair and beauty section’s first page without seeing a dozen makeup tips. That’s what Pinterest is best at when it comes to beauty. There are loads of pins that can help cut time off your makeup routine, help your makeup stay on longer, or even find more affordable versions of high end products. So if you’re already a makeup veteran and you’re looking to take your skills to the next level, Pinterest should be your social media of choice when it comes to makeup.
As always I’d love to hear about how you learned to do makeup! Did you have a friend in school or maybe your mom was a former beauty queen? Share your makeup origin stories in the comments!