If I was going to start wearing makeup on a regular basis, what would be my essential items?

[Porcupinepantaloons]

And what would you recommend on a limited budget?

I'm 34 and have recently seen some photos of me with my usual bare face and thought maybe it's time to start faking a youthful glow

I've never really bothered about make up unless it's for an occasion. I was very acne prone as a teen right through my 20s and lots of products made it worse. My face didn't used to look so worn out and rough.

So what should I have in my make up bag that is quick and easy and will make me look like me, but more alive!

Please assume I starting from scratch as very few things I own are less than 6mo! mostly over 2 years

'Phwooarr Paint' is it's actual name. Just checked.

Op, it might also be worth having a look at your skin care routine as well. Sometimes a small change there can make more difference than make up!

Check out the Caroline hirons blog or Sali Hughes webpage.

What's your total budget? Do you have an idea of the items you'd like to get?

There's another thread on here at the moment about No 7, great value and good quality. Their staff offer consultations.

NIOD Photography fluid is good. Does a bit more than a primer, bit less than foundation, adds a bit of a glow in real life and also makes photos look much better. Slightly luminous effect.

Get a good makeup remover. I don't know of one.

I don't wear makeup every day, I look way better when i do and apart from good foundation it's mostly cheap stuff. My downfall is the day after, I look rough. Putting on makeup takes 5 mins. taking it off is a pain and makes the whole thing counterproducive

Mascara
Tinted lip balm/sheer lipstick
Blush
Concealer
Translucent loose powder

Spend most on concealer. Amazing Cosmetics do the best one I've ever tried for blemishes and redness. Laura Mercier or Bobbi Brown for under eye concealer although the Amazing Cosmetics one will do under eyes of you don't have particularly dark circles.

If you have combination skin a translucent powder lightly applied over your t zone will set the concealer and reduce shine. Try to get one that looks white as they are the ones that are properly translucent and won't add any colour. Loose powder is less cakey.

Blush can be better at high end but to try it out you can get decent ones from high street shops. Bourjois do brilliant ones as does No17 (surprisingly good).

L'oreal and Maybelline do very good mascaras. Black. Don't bother with waterproof. I like ones with fibre brushes rather than the new silicone/plastic ones. Remember to squeeze off the excess before applying. A couple of thin coats is better than one thick one.

Rimmel and Revlon do the best lipsticks and balms or Chanel at the higher end.

Tools wise, a beauty blender and a small set of face brushes (I really like Real Techniques) plus an eyelash curler would be a good place to start. At least a big fluffy powder brush and a smaller blush brush.

7Days An oil balm cleanser is the easiest and quickest make up remover. You can whack it on all over including over eyes and use a hot flannel to take it off, then rinse. Takes about a minute.

wagglebees would you recommend an oil balm cleanser? A quick and easy way to remove make up is VIP! I'll never bother in the first place if removal is too much of a faff!

I use baby lotion to remove makeup and then wash with hot water and a cloth. I use baby shampoo to remove mascara. I have sensitive skin and prone to styes etc. the hove works just fine.

A good bb cream is normally enough to give a nice glow, I had a great one from aldi but they stopped doing it. You may have to experiment to find one that suits. Burts bees do a nice lip colour stick which feels nice but not super cheap.

Very interested in oil balm cleanser recommendations, I'd love to try it!

Is lily lolo better than bare minerals? Is it best to get the finishing powder as well as the foundation?

Petal, I've tried several oil based balm cleansers and they are all fine and do the job (boots botanics, Superdrug oil cleanser but i also used Eve Lom before, its £££).

Tbh, I find plain coconut oil to be better than any of them. I buy a big jar of organic virgin cold pressed etc coconut oil and it lasts for ages. Dissolves make up in a flash (apply to dry skin, remove with hot towel). I then follow this up with a cream cleanser and hot towel. I currently use Superdrug hot cloth cleanser, having switched from Liz Earle.

So, I've been mulling it over and think my shopping list looks like this...

Mineral foundation powder - I'll probably go back to lily lolo for that as its not too ££
Concealer - Rimmel
Mascara - maybelline - probably a new pink with the green lid one. Mine is ancient!
Blusher - bourjois

My skin care routine is going ok - I'm going to work on cutting down sugar - I binge when I'm tired.
I cleanse with lush ultrabland which I get on well with. Then I've just got an aldi q10 day cream and a night one which I need to start using again because my skin is drying out in the winter.

Can you see where I should tweak this? Again on a minimal budget!

So I just scrolled to the bottom of this thread to say I decided to start wearing make up a couple of years ago and went for lily Lolo stuff which is brilliant and looks really natural and lasts quite a while (in the pot and on your face) and noticed you are going for lily Lolo! I also use brown eyeliner (smash box), mascara (was Lancôme now maybelline to save money) and a long lasting boots lipstick with Revlon lip butter over the top. Quite a natural look but nice.

Look out for special offers on lily Lolo website

Thanks for the oil balm cleanser suggestion.

I did try the coconut oil before but it seemed to go off very quickly.