Suggestions for teen first make-up set?

[PermanentlyDizzy]

Dd has expressed an interest in trying out some make-up. Essentially, she has noticed a lot of the other girls her age (Y8) seem to wear quite a bit, even thought they are not supposed to.

We’ve had a chat and she says she doesn’t want to wear any in school like they do, but does want to start experimenting for when she meets her friends outside of school.

She doesn’t want to be fully ‘made up’ like a lot of the girls - she likes a natural/simple look, hates ‘done’ eyebrows etc, and has asked how I do mine. I have never been big on make-up, just a bit of concealer, mascara and tinted lip salve is my go to when I do wear it. I am not up with current brands/products, for example, I got really confused when they stopped selling tinted moisturiser and I had to work out whether I needed bb cream or something else to replace it. I also only buy cheap brands for myself. (My favourite items these days are actually from Wilko!) Plus of course, I am 50 and she’s 13, so the same products won’t suit her skin.

For reference, she’s not very conventional, has her own style, which I can best describe as a mix of hipster, punk and hippy. She’s not interested in fitting in and wearing what everyone else is, she just wants to develop her own style.

I thought it would be nice to get her a sort of starter set together for Christmas. Maybe a few bits for stocking fillers and then perhaps a nice make-up bag and ‘set’ for a main present.

So, any advice on where to start, brands, etc would be really appreciated.

TIA

Revolution have some lovely eyeshadow palettes for under a tenner. They are great eyeshadows and plenty to choose from.
They also have great highlighters ( half baked- I think they are called!?!). Had one a couple of years ago and it was fabulous- much better than some pricey ones I'd tried.
Packaging is also lovely.
For mascara I like Maybelline.

Thank you, I will take a look at the eyeshadows and mascara. I don’t think she will be bothered with highlighters, she is very insistent that she wants to keep things simple.

It’s daft really, you would think I would be more in my comfort zone buying for my teen dd, but I honestly find it easier for my two ds. I can remember being into make-up at her age, but that was a verrrry long time ago.

All the girls who were her age a couple of years ago wanted and got the James Charles X Morphe eyeshadow palette. She can experiment to her hearts content following YouTube videos.

She'll need a decent set of brushes and any black mascara will do.

Get her a 'Kylie' lip gloss as Boots will be stocking all her products and they will be flying off the shelves.

James Charles palette

I second revolution. The make up is cheap enough that if it's no good you haven't wasted loads of money, but it's pretty good quality. I use some revolution in with my more expensive stuff.

Whatever you do, make sure she gets some decent makeup remover (not wipes!) And a decent skin care regime along with it.

And yy to brushes and sponges to help apply.

It should be fun, so just go for a decent selection.

Revolution do great palettes but I think for Christmas the James Charles palette is a bit more special and she can be more artist with her looks. My DD spent hours creating all sorts of crazy eye looks at home.

Boots are selling it at a reduced rate. The original price was pretty much double when it first came out and impossible to get hold of that Christmas

As for concealer my DD likes Maybelline (the one with a spongy top) and the nice cheap one by Collection much loved on MN.

My DD has very pale skin so when she does wear foundation it's L'Oréal true match which comes in loads of shades.

She's 14 now so doesn't experiment like she used to and wears the bare minimum of make up out. But she knows her way around it and applies it like a pro to take full advantage of her features.

Superstar my DD 14 wouldn't touch anything from James Charles, he's a sex pest (to put it mildly) caught grooming many underage boys and I think he was banned from YouTube because of this.

I second Revolution and NYX are good quality and value. This Christmas I've bought DD a Real Techniques mixed brush set (when it was on offer.)

I would get her:

1. bb cream- Missha is the brand I used when I was in uni- www.stylevana.com/en_GB/missha-m-perfect-cover-bb-cream-rx-50ml.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&sonid=60683&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=10864619229&utm_term=108647484682&utm_content=60683&device=c&gclid=Cj0KCQjwwNWKBhDAARIsAJ8HkheSa5Flvjy2_CYf-VIa2yviiyemtb_q5Ak-Z1M7PsaenRicXVg4WNAaAolDEALw_wcB

This provides sun protection as most teens probably don't bother with SPF and it is also medium coverage so she wouldn't need foundation- i hate seeing sloughed on orange foundation on teens.

1. small travel size nars concealer from Space NK

1. Beauty Pie Subscription for £5- its like Costco for makeup and basically you can buy luxury quality makeup for Boots/Superdrug prices so she can afford to top up and experiment. They are good for colour makeup but I get my base makeup elsewhere though other people rate their tinted moisturizer

From Beauty Pie, you can get

1. Cream blush (very nice)
2. Long wear cream shadow stick (I have it in various colours and its easy to use)
3. Pen eyeliner (best eyeliner i have ever used)
4. Mascara (there is also a brown version for a more subtle look)
5. Brow pencil
6. lip colour balm stick

She shouldn't need anymore stuff for a simple look.

I personally started off with bb cream, cream eyeshadow and tinted lip balm. Now I am a makeup addict who goes the whole way with 15 different products but it still looks very natural and similar to my 'first makeup look'.

I'd get a "neutral" eyeshadow palette,mascara and lip gloss

Why not Wilkos? That way she can try things without breaking the bank. Their makeup is great.

I'd recommend taking her to a big store (John Lewis/Boots), have a look at the individual stands (I'd recommend Benefit/clinique, the former do a great range of colours for her style, the latter for skincare).

Most will happily do a skin analysis (Clinique are great at this), try some products, shades/colours, styles.

You don't have to commit to buy but it'll give your Dd a good idea of what she'd like to wear and ideas for a good personal skincare routine.

(I'll add Smashbox for alternative colour looks).

@R0llonspring

Superstar my DD 14 wouldn't touch anything from James Charles, he's a sex pest (to put it mildly) caught grooming many underage boys and I think he was banned from YouTube because of this.

I second Revolution and NYX are good quality and value. This Christmas I've bought DD a Real Techniques mixed brush set (when it was on offer.)

Oh ok not such a great choice then hence the price drop.

In that case revolution eye shadow palettes then. That's what I first bought DD and their range is always expanding

Yes, dd used to love those Morphe palettes but James Charles is definately not good anymore.

It's a bit pricey but I took dd to a free teen makeover at Bobbi Brown. They showed her what to do and I bought her the foundation (she is a dancer so used foundation for shows anyway), then she bought dupes of the lipsticks, eye shadows, blusher from Revolution and Kiko. There was no pressure at all to buy and they created a very natural look for her.

Glossier do sets and are a very teen loved brand with a very natural ethos. Kiko is a cheaper option.

I would buy her some stuff from Maybelline or L’Oréal. They certainly have the best drugstore mascara. Wouldn’t buy her foundation, perhaps some concealer. And maybe some lipgloss in a nude tint?
When I was that age I wore very modest makeup on my face but loved wearing nail polish in all types of colours. I personally like OPI and Essie a lot.

I see a pp mentioned Kiko, they have a very nice selection of nail polish too and often very good offers.

I'm not sure what kind of budget you're working with. It's spenny, but Glossier could be a really good shout. They're all about enhancing natural beauty - think dewy skin, natural blush. Their Play range has some fun eyeliners as well if she wants something more exciting. Glossier do nice kits too which might help to build a nice Christmas gift. I'm not on commission I promise - it's just what I'd love to get if I was a teenager now!

From what you've said about your DD, I wouldn't bother getting a huge palette. Stuff that she can put on easily with her fingers, smudge about, play with etc is the way to go. On the highstreet - Make up revolution or Nyx.

Seconding what PP said about making sure she's got stuff to take it off with as well!!!

I agree with what previous pp’s have said about Revolution.

However I did notice you mentioned that your daughter is aiming for a more natural, not fully “made up” look, and that she has quite unconventional hipster/punk/hippie vibe, wo thought it might be worth suggesting some smaller, natural type brand too:

First suggestion would be Ere Perez. They do some really lovely eyeshadow palettes as well as things like clear masacara,!eye pencils in lots of colours that smudge really well.The site I have linked to, Lovelula, also has a 10-15% discount on spend for the next little while and they always offer 10% back in points.

Other good places to look for natural make up are Naturisimo and Glow Organic Brighton. Both usually do discounts on first purchases if you sign up for a newsletter.

Naturisimo have this collection on offer that’s really good value and contains some good staple items. As it’s such good value you could supplement it with some other items you’ve chosen pretty easily. It’s also got some skincare stuff in it.

Glow Organic sell customisable magnetic palettes by a company called Zao in different sizes. They are a sort of zero waste idea. That way she can keep the palette for ages and just swap in new colours or replacements as she wants.

Might be an idea to include a cleanser or a makeup remover in the set too.

Goodness! I wasn’t expecting so many replies. Thank you for all the suggestions.

She definitely wants to go for a natural look, so I think a palette of lots of eye colours may be wasted. I have a small,natural eye colour palette from Nyx that I use for special occasions. I wondered if something like that might suit her.

She definitely doesn’t want foundation, she has already told me that, same with anything like eyebrow styling. I think, for now, she just wants the minimum, so she isn’t the only one not using any make-up at all.

@CatKittyCatCatKittyCatCat Good point. She’s very eco and environmentally aware and also a vegetarian, so it’s probably a good idea to take all that into consideration as well.

The Wilko own-brand products are cruelty free, get good reviews and I have found the ones I’ve tried to be decent, so I had considered just buying her a few of the basics like concealer and mascara from there as stocking fillers for now, perhaps spending a bit more once we have a better idea of what she prefers. I am conscious of not wanting to overwhelm her or spend a fortune on products she’ll never use.

It’s her birthday in January, so I could possibly do basic products, plus a nice make-up bag and brushes and make-up remover/skincare products for Christmas, then see how she goes before splashing out a bit more for her birthday.

I had to buy a young girl make up last Xmas. After looking around I actually found a good choice with good prices in our big sainsburys.

guide to zero waste plastic free make up [[https://moralfibres.co.uk/zero-waste-plastic-free-makeup/]]

Maybe an eyeliner as one of the basics? Can’t think of anything that’s more of a staple for anyone even a bit punk. There’s plenty of pencils that are low/zero waste.

@Mumdiva99, I can’t get to a Sainsbury’s unfortunately, but thank you for the suggestion.

@CatKittyCatCatKittyCatCat Thank you for the link.

Yes, I agree about the pencils. I’m assuming, when she gets more confident there will be quite a lot of liner involved! She has totally different skin, eye and hair colour to me. Takes after her dad. So she has a mix of green/blue eyes, warm skin tone and dark blonde hair with natural highlights, whereas I take after my Irish family with pale skin, brown eyes and very dark hair. So that makes it more difficult form me when picking colours for her. I think I’m making some progress now though. I’ve bookmarked a few suggestions from this thread and will try to see if I can subtly find out if I’m on the right track by chatting with her over the next few days.

Essence, sold in Wilko, is a German brand that has some excellent products. I would get your daughter a few bits by Essence and also Barry M. Both brands are vegan, and I haven't bought anything I didn't like from either brand.

Morphe is generally not worth the money as the quality is not consistent for the price. As a brand, it's not rated highly by many lovers of make up.