New make up - starting from scratch!

[TheCountessOlenska]

I am sick of my crap make-up. I used to be able to find good shades for fair skin in Maybelline and Rimmel but they seem to have gone more orange recently! Also I hear about things like primer and I'm !!

I have some birthday money to spend and am going to John Lewis tomorrow - I am a bit scared of approaching a make-up girl but I really need some advice.

Can anyone recommend a good brand to go to? I hear good things about Clarins?? (am really clueless)

Also - how much will I need to spend (thinking £50??)

I'm watching with interest as I'm clueless. I was in Debenhams the other day and they had a make up box of essentials which included primer. I think it was about £40 and they had boxes to suit different skin types.

ifi i lost all my makeup (i've done the leaving bags in taxis countless times, shocking how much it can cost to replace expensive makeup) i'd buy

laura mercier tinted moisturiser
louise young eye palette (only online)
a red lipstick (bobbi brown Red)
a neutral lipstick (laura mercier healthy lips)
non shimmer blush, say bobbi brown nectar

a mac 217 brush and an angled eyeliner brush

Giorgio Armani do amazing foundations/tinted moisturisers IME as well as lovely blushers and lip colours, all have lovely textures, but not sure if JL stock. Would also highly recommend Bobbi Brown and Laura Mercier if you're trying to find something natural for fair skin. Also, always insist on going outside to look at your skin with the foundation on before buying, the beauty hall lighting is deceiving and what looks good inside can look orange in daylight.

For £50, you might just be able to get: foundation or tinted moisturiser, blusher & mascara, from a brand like Clarins. Those 3 would be my bare minimum make up - I normally use a lot more than that.

Foundation is the hardest bit, and the one where it's (in my experience) definitely worth spending more. Try at least 3 different counters, and ask - if this turns out to be the wrong colour for me, can I bring it back & exchange.

My full make-up face is: concealer under eyes, foundation, powder - these 3 I will always buy from the premium counters, and I will always try in the store before buying (as your skin tone changes depending on the season, state of your skin etc). Then blusher, eye shadow, mascara, eye liner, lippy - if you're on a budget, these are the bits where you can go for Bourjois, Rimmel or similar.

I have just done a mental calculation of my everyday make up and it would cost me £250 to replace my make up bag from scratch, not including brushes... but obviously that's been bought bit by bit, not all at once. It's nearly all Bobbi Brown (bit of Clinique in there too).

What sort of skin do you have? Do you need a really full coverage foundation, or can you make do with tinted moisturiser?
If you go to a counter, let them sort you out (some are beyond shite though, run away asap if they try to sell you on Double Wear when you have perfect skin!)

Each brand does different things well, if you're looking for a good mascara, don't go to the Chanel counter! But if you're looking for foundation, they are ace (providing you don't need full coverage - in which case go to Estee Lauder!).

In fact, don't buy anything today! Go to EVERY counter, let them know you're replacing your whole make up bag and ask for some samples of everything going. Or what they'd recommend you take samples of.

I hope that helped a bit... But I realise it probably didn't :o

I have never used much from Clarins but my mum uses them and she looks good :)

I like Clinique, Estee Lauder, Bobbi Brown, Laura Mercier... tbh you shouldn't go too far wrong with any of the main counters. They should have something to suit most people.

£50 might be cutting it a bit fine, but it should get you a primer and foundation. Good undereye concealer and blusher are also essentials for me.

A good cheap brand is Nyx, some of whose colours etc are duplicates of Mac, Nars and other more expensive brands.
Cheap brands come into their own with things like eyeliner and mascara. I use their Doll Eye mascara and it never comes off and doesn't clump. Great stuff.

Go to Bobbi Brown counter in JL - very good and natural colours - also not scarily orange ladies.

Thank you all!

Think I will concentrate on getting a really good foundation for fair skin (and maybe a primer?) and a good blusher.

My skin is ok - I prefer it to look matt not shiny and my forehead can get a bit greasy by end of day.

My under eye area is not to bad so I think I could skip the concealer as well.

I would LOVE someone to show me how to make up my small eyes.

Good tip about trying and going outside in the daylight!

Clarins foundation is good. I'm abig fan of Instant Smooth.
Have just bought Dior Forever though which is very nice indeedy.

If you are at all interested in doing your eyes, I would recommend Urban Decay's Naked 2 palette. As the name suggests, there are two but I have the second. I LOVE it.

I recently realised that all my eye make up was in practically the same 3 shades of brown and wanted to branch out. The palette is expensive, but it works out about £3 per shadow and they are lovely. You can get so many different combinations, including lots and lots of nude looks. Ask the make up artists to do you up.

They only have UD in Debenhams and House of Fraser though.

Also, with the foundation you like, get them to do up your face then go and shop for another hour, otherwise you run the risk of buying something that by the time you get home looks like crap.

I have recently ditched my Clinique foundation due to the pale shades being discontinued.

I tired Clarins which was nice- in Ivory- but have now changed to Bobbi Brown shade Porcelain in the moisturising foundation- liquid /bottle. I really like it. It's thin, but you can build up with a couple of layers.

It's £29 and the concealer is around £17 and blusher the same. I also got one of the new shades of blusher in peach which is actually quite a pinky peach.

Clinique and Laura mercier do good powder blushers, but NARS is supposed to be best blusher of all.

Try foundation in the store on your face, then see how it is in daylight- BB will give you sample sachets as will Clarins.

Dior show non waterproof is a brilliant mascara. Ysl touché éclat is a great concealer and Estée Lauder do wonderful foundations.

Check out some of Lisa Eldridge's you tube videos - she knows what she is talking about!

Firstly I would get some good brushes etc can really recommend real techniques from boots currently on 3 for 2 I have the blusher brush, eye starter set and foundation set and this has made a massive difference to my makeup.

Now I wouldn't have given them a second glance if it wasn't for the tutorials from Sam and Nicola as they look a bit too cheap and aimed at the teen market but they beat my mac/bobbie brown brushes hands down and even with some of my cheaper makeup like eye shadows they have given them a whole new lease of life.

I'd also recommend bobbi brown for the basic face, like foundation but not the mascara as its expensive for what it is and to be honest they dry up after about a month.

check out pixiwoo on YouTube to see the brushes and loads of makeup tutorials as well.

This was me about a month ago!!

I chucked away almost everything as all my makeup was either really old or horrible and cheap. The only thing I kept was a couple of blushers and powders from Bourjous and my mascaras

Anyway I ended up walking into Debenams and buying YSL foundation and concealer because out of all the ones the one I picked was good and quite light not heavy. I also brought a few real technique brushes in Boots and like stylelostinlabour I can really recommend them as for the price they are really good. Then I got the Urban Decay Palatte from ebay, thats enough to get me started.

Good luck!

I'd really recommend Dior Nude for foundation. I have never worn foundation before but love it. Find primer makes a huge difference too. Like MAC prep and prime.

Pay more for foundation, mascara and blusher.

I love YSL foundation, its the one with a brush attached but i just squirt it out, the shade is great, never looks caked or thick, stays put.
Their cream blusher is amazing too.
Get Barbara Daily primer from Tesco £10, recommended on the groomed thread.
Chanel mascara is the best ive found, doesnt dry out or go claggy.

Buy cheap eyeshadows in lots of colours and have some fun.
Also invest in eyelash curlers, im 36 and had never used them until about a month ago (again groomed thread) they were £1.72 from Sainsbury and make such a difference

Also a vote for YSL brush foundation and also Estée Lauder foundations.

So totally copying someone else's approach but if I lost my makeup bag tomorrow I would buy:

Laura Mercier oil free foundation (which you can mix if you want a tinted moisturiser if course).
Laura Mercier secret camouflage or a Rimmel concealer (if I wanted to save cash).
Some sort of loose translucent powder to use sparingly - I'm using No.7 at the moment.
Touché éclat to cover hideous tired eyes and to use as a highlighter on cheeks etc.
Lancôme mascara of some description.
Benefit Magic Ink liquid eyeliner.
Lancôme juicy tube in Pamplemousse.
Some sort of eyeshadow set in nudes/browns - I've got a Clinique one at the moment.
A good set of brushes. Particularly eye brushes including a blender brush.

There are other bits I'd miss but this little lot would get me by!

Wow. It would cost me a lot!

No to touché éclat.
Also Laura mercier shit

I will not here Laura Mercier's name used in vain!

Or hear in fact.

I don't use foundation, but I can say Bourjois blusher and eyeshadows are lovely and last very well.
Boots no.7 have an amazing range of lipstick colours and are moisturising if you want a lipstick not a lipcrayon/gloss/pencil which seem to predominate at the moment.

No to Touche Eclat also.