make-up novice needs guidance

[jemart]

I do not normally wear make-up, however I will turn 30 in a few months and have decided that perhaps now is the time to start.
Consider me clueless, what essential bits of make-up do I need to get for normal everyday wear?

I always have:

Estee Lauder foundation (mixed with Estee Lauder spotlight) and applied with foundation brush
Concealer
Powder
Blush
2 neutral eyeshadows (pale pinky/brown and slightly darker brown) blended. The lighter one goes all over the lid, the darker just at the outer corners
Another eyeshadow as a powder liner applied with a flat angled eyeshadow brush
Mascara
Lipstick/gloss

I definitely advise going to a counter (can you tell I went to estee lauder?!) where someone can show you exactly what to do and what you need. You can also pick up some good freebies if you pick the right place at the right time - my first eyeshadows, mascara and lipstick were freebie gifts!

Looking at that I seem to wear a lot but the bonus is I don't really need to add much for night-time wear.

I would say to you to buy.....
Good quality cream concealer
Light under eye concealer (YSL Touche Eclat or equivalent)
Foundation to suit your skin type
Pressed Powder
Blusher
Palette of neutral eyeshadows
Mascara
Black and brown eyeliner
Lipstick
Lip gloss

I am not saying that you would wear all that in one day, but it's handy to have it all in case you have a bad face day, or if you were going out in the evening.
I would spend money on the concealer, foundation, powder, blusher, eyeshadow, eyeliner and lipstick, and skimp on the under eye concealer (so a cheap version of the Touche Eclat), mascara, and lip gloss.
I'm a make up artist so if you need any other advice, give me a shout.

Agree with frakkin to go to a counter, but please be aware that these girls are not always that highly trained, and the lighting in department stores is so bad, it's really hard to tell there and then.
If I was you I would get them to apply the make-up, then ask if you can go away and have a think about it, and go and look at yourself in daylight.
(I also used to work on a counter before I trained professionally! )

What brands are good/ better quality?
How much should I be expecting to pay for each item on your list?

In an ideal world I'd say...
Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer £26
Estee Lauder/Laura Mercier/Bobbi Brown Foundation approx £25
Pressed Powder Bobbi Brown £22ish
Nars Blusher £18
Bobbi Brown Basics Eye Palette £30ish
MAC eyeliners £8
MAC lipstick £12
Body Shop Lightening Touch Concealer £10
Max Factor Masterpiece Mascara £9
Rimmel Sweet Jelly Gloss £4

Obviously some of those items might be a bit out of your budget but I'd say just shop around and try things on, ask if you can have items applied - the counter staff will love it as they are always being told to be busy!
I think it is worth spending a bit on something if it is going to make you look amazing, but be careful with companies like Benefit, as although they are nice products, I feel a lot of the cost goes on the packaging and marketing.
Good cheaper brands are Max Factor, Rimmel, Bourjois, Loreal and Maybelline.
Have fun!

Also, a nice bronzer can just give you that instant lift - Guerlain Terracotta bronzer is a good high end one, or Clinique, and budget I'd say the Body Shop Bronzer.
Hope that all helps and is not too confusing!

Bobbi Brown foundation is really really good (as is their concealer IMO). I hardly ever wear makeup but like the BB stuff and it isn't too frightening

okay thats two votes for Bobbi Brown, will give that a try.

Any others I absolutley should get hold of?
I don't want to bother with budget stuff for sake of cheapness, only if it is actually really good IYSWIM.

don't slap the foundation all over your face only put it where needed

eek! how do I know where its needed?

well basically you want your skin to look clear and even,so the job of the foundation is to cover redness and any imperfections
I mainly use it on my t-zone cos I have red areas there.

If you skin is good you can get away without foundation.

my skin is fairly good but rather pale and I have moles and freckles.

jemart - do you want to look groomed (full make up) or just fresh faced(better than without?). I've worked for a few cosmetic brands but as am "off duty" at the moment tend to stick to:
tinted moisturiser,
concealer (must for all mothers in my opinion!)
bronzer
mascara
lipgloss.

My personal favourites are Dior tinted moisturiser and mascara (love, love, love the Diorshow mascara), Guerlain bronzer and lipgloss and No 7 version of Touche Eclat (rumour has it they are identical?)

I am something of a late starter with make-up, never normally wear the stuff and find it all a bit daunting. So I'd say for the moment I'm just going for the "fresh faced, better than without" option.
I want a basic kit of essentials, good quality that is easy to apply (mainly because I lack the skill to do anything fiddly and am scared I may end up looking like a little kid that got hold of mummy's lipstick)

You shouldn't end up looking and more importantly feeling like the kid with mummy's lipstick if you start with a few basics. Once you've mastered these you can add eyeshadows, blushers etc for special occassions (nights out if you're still lucky enough to have them?!)

I'd also recommend a good quality moisturiser to use under the make up as this can really make a difference to the condition of your skin and how you look. There;s not much point in investing in good quality if you don't look after your skin.

Good luck!

you sound like me. i went to the bobbi brown counter of a dept store the other day and the lady was particularly helpful and unthreatening. i bought a lip stick, lip liner (she showed me how to do it - i was surprised what a difference it made), and tinted blusher thing, a bit like a massive lipstick. i also use a bit of concealer, mascara and eye shadow (benefit do lovely little boxes with instruction leaflets in them on how do do your eyes!).

Don't but anything without looking at it in daylight first, and remember sales assistants are all on commission.

Much better not to buy everything from one brand; your makeup bag may look tidy, but they all have different strengths.

Laura Mercier and Chanel are pretty good, though, if I had to narrow it down. Seriously consider mineral makeup.

Hi just coming back to this after having a look at what others are saying, and I think you would be best heading to a Bobbi Brown counter as LovelyDear said, for some reason they are always very nice and helpful, and don't push you into buying. Must be part of their mantra or something.
Also Boobi Brown herself is an advocate of quite natural make-up, so you are guranteed to just look like a fresher, better version of yourself. (I think if you went to somewhere like MAC you would be scared off make-up for life! )
Also agree with notperfectmum about getting a good moisturiser - try Dermalogica or Lancome.
Also Lancome good for mascara.
Your skin sounds fab, so to be honest I would skip foundation and just use a bit of pressed powder and blush or bronzer.
Oh, I almost forgot - invest in some good brushes as well as they make a massive difference to the application of your make-up.
MAC, Bobbi Brown and Estee Lauder do good ones, or you can get them from a stage make up shop.

Good brushes are vital. Mental note to self to expand collection...

Spend on the basics - you can get away with cheap eyeshadow, cheap mascara if you have good lashes and cheapish blusher but cheap foundation/powder/base always shows.

Whereabouts in the country are you? I really recommend Jay Minahan at the Estee Lauder counter, House of Fraser in Birmingham if you're near there!

Re: cheap eyeshadow and blusher - sometimes cheaper powders don't have a good pigment, which means that after scrubbing your brush in it for 10 minutes, you can hardly see it on your face! I would say it is much better to get slightly more pricey product with good pigment as you will not need to use as much and looks much nicer on the skin. Will therefore also last longer which is fine as powders don't go off.
NARS, Bobbi Brown and Chanel all have good pigment.

I'm in Exeter frAKKINPannikin, but we do have House of Fraser so I will be going in there and probably Debenhams as well.

What are the rules for mascara? should I get black or brown? does it matter which? I've also seen blue mascara, when might one wear this or is that just for teenagers?

I would stick to black mascara to be honest unless you are very fair.

Depends what colour your lashes are normally. I have both and wear brown for a more natural look but black to define more strongly. I also have green and purple which I just apply to the inside of the top lash when I'm feeling wicked. It can just give a cheeky pop of colour to otherwise muted make-up. Bear in mind I tend to go for the full "groomed" look though!

And when I say cheap I mean Bourjois (Chanel's diffusion line), some L'Oreal, Maybelline or Max Factor, not Superdrug own brand...

I shall stick with brown then.