And when I say “challenges,” I mean challenges as in makeup-level challenges, so these aren’t exactly life-altering obstacles (well…).
Oh, where do we even start?!
The first one — and it was a doozy — was growing out my brows.
Girl, you’d think that merely existing and going about your day as hair grows on your face would be easy, right? But sh*t was really hard! It took forever. It took roughly a year and a half to get them to their bushy, pre-plucked status (I plucked my brows to near oblivion by choice in the ’90s). It wasn’t until about five years ago that I decided to grow them out.
I remember having to be really creative with concealer and having to hide my tweezers so I wouldn’t pluck.
It was a hot mess for a while, but I did it! And I don’t regret it.
My second biggest makeup challenge was figuring out how to do eye makeup on — and I’m not fond of this word, but I’m going to use it because it’s what everyone seems to use — hooded eyes, also known as “not having a deep crease.”
I don’t have a deep crease, which presents its own set of challenges when doing eye makeup. For example, I find that I do better when I apply my crease color with my eyes open and while looking straight into a mirror so that I can see how high up to take the product, because I don’t have a naturally deep-set crease to guide me.
It took me a while to figure out this one and other workarounds.
My third biggest challenge was figuring out how to do under-eye concealer when you have very discernible fine lines. Like, I’ve seen so many YouTube tutorials by teenagers and people in their early 20s using tons of concealer (easier when you don’t have to contend with skin texture), and I used to be able to do that, but I can’t anymore.
After much trial and error, I came up with a system that involves doing thin layers and powdering — thin layers of concealer and sheer layers of powder — and it works for me.
Took a long while to get there, though…
Your turn. What are the three biggest makeup challenges you’ve ever faced? 🙂
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
I really struggle with the smile lines around my mouth. I have a great smile, but foundation (especially full-coverage foundation) really sinks into those lines. It really comes down to finding the right product, because even a massive amount of baking can’t deal with the lines on its own.
I struggle with concealer as I have very dry undereyes so I can only use liquidy concealers, I do not powder? and I apply very little. I cannot believe the amount of concealer I see people swiping on on youtube videos. It’s a weeks worth for me.
I think Chanel le correcteur which I’ve only recently been testing out may be one of the better ones. I also like Burberry sheer and cashmere concealers.
I welcome any concealer recs from fellow dry eyed ladies of a certain age!
My makeup challenges:
Chemo eyes – when you lose your eyelashes & brows – the “reptile” look. This happened 10 yrs ago, and they didn’t grow back 100 per cent. So I have to draw part of my eyebrows in, and use a light mascara ( I like IT Tightline)
Foundation – for over-60 skin with lines. I use light coverage, tinted mosisturizer stuff, but it still settles into the lines.
Eyeliner – I’ve found that with very fair, aging skin, it’s better to skip the bottom line completely for a less-harsh look. (Maybe just a light waterline)
Ok, here goes. My challenges as of now:
Eyeliner – I have never mastered the application of eyeliner, no matter what i do, it always looks like one big mess.
Foundation – As my skin has gotten drier, I have not been able to find one that works for me. I tend to use tinted moisturizer, mostly in summer, but still need to cover my redness.
Lipstick – even when using a liner, I can’t get lip color to stay on more than 2 hours. I don’t like long-wear because my lips are really dry.
There are probably more, but those are my main challenges.
#1 is probably finding foundations and/or face creams that either don’t have sunblock or only have physical sunblock (titanium dioxide, zinc oxide) and still look good. Since I’m allergic to chemical sunblocks, most BB and CC creams aren’t options for me.
#2 was overplucking my eyebrows before my senior photos! I had to figure out how to draw in my brows… what a challenge that was, lol. Thank goodness brow products are more of a thing these days! I was lost back then.
#3 is STILL a thing – I can’t tightline to save my life. I don’t know if I’m not doing it right or what, but it’s always such a challenge trying to fill in the space between my lashes! I’m gonna need to start watching more tutorials or something, lol.
Let’s see. Way back when I wanted to work at Mac, I figured I needed to be able to master certain things.
1- cat flick liner. Nope, still can’t get it. I don’t even bother.
2- false lashes. In my defense, lash glue really irritates my eyes (I might be allergic) so I couldn’t practice more because my eyes hurt!! Ha ha. But it was always so stressful and time consuming. I haven’t worn them in years.
3- my skin is changing. I had mega oily skin and powder foundation was perfect, but now, it’s too obvious and heavy. The solution? Liquid foundation? Err, no. Liquid foundation irritates my skin, so now I’m not really sure what to use… It’s still a current problem for me, especially with winter approaching.
Easy:
1. Foundation Matching. For anyone on either end of the spectrum (very fair to very dark), this is a sucky experience, especially when trying to find something in a formula that works for your skin type.
2. Eyeliners that don’t transfer. Although minimal, I’ve found Marc Jacobs’s work the best for me at this. They’re fairly expensive, but they work really well. For liquid, I’ve found Physician’s Formula works better than Kat Von D or Stila.
3. Red lipsticks that don’t give the Joker effect. NARS Audacious is the worst formula for me for this, but I’ve had good luck with Besame’s reds!
1. My lower lip doesn’t have have a defined edge. Growing up my mom told me I didn’t do my lipstick right, but in reality it looked weird no matter what simply because of the shape of my lip. It even confuses makeup artists. With BIG lips being in right now I just fill in lipstick to the outer edge and call it a day.
2. Whether or not to embrace the stray grays. I guess it’s not a makeup challenge, but it’s beauty related!
3. Hydration. I never seem to be properly hydrated which I know is so important for many reasons including helping my skin look it’s best.
#1 is definitely finding the right shade of foundation. It took me FOREVER to figure out I had neutral to warm undertones. I don’t know, it’s easy to see on other people but much more difficult to determine on yourself. I also got lots and lots of bad advice and awful matches from sales assistants, who often want to use the lightest shade on me, although I’m definitely not the fairest of them all… I mean, I still find it hard to pick the right shade. Sometimes I get a sample thinking “absolutely not my shade” and it turns out perfect…
#2 how to do eye makeup with a very deep crease. My eye shape is kind of the opposite of hooded eyes. A family of chipmunks could live in my crease and I could still blink with ease. Having such a deep crease means that I have giant eyelids, so you can see my entire look when my eyes are wide open. But it also means that my eyes can look too round and bubble-fish like, so I have to be careful not to overdo the crease and to go easy with shimmer in the center of the lid. I look best with a look that’s really elongated in the outer corner to counteract the protruding eyeball effect. It also took me forever to figure this out.
#3 this is embarrassing, but I absolutely suck at lining my lips. They’re not symmetrical – like most people – and I’m absolutely unable to correct the shape by lining. Again, there’s something about not seeing clearly when it’s myself (ref the foundation shade struggle). If I take a picture and look back I’ll be like “what was I thinking”, but when I look into the mirror, I just can’t figure out where I need to overdraw and where I don’t.
Oh, you know everything is a challenge for me, makeup wise. 🙂 I have to say that, in real life, I am very competitive and not a quitter. When it comes to makeup, however, I’m quick to be like “Oh, I don’t need…..
1. Eyeshadow. I’m getting older and my lids are getting droopier and even a solid color looks bad on me. So I almost never wear shadow.
2. Lip color. I’m not as bad with this one because I do try to find some flattering shades, particularly in the winter when the rest of me looks colorless.
3. Concealer. Don’t get me started. I’m just grateful that I don’t have a problem with under eye darkness.
But, probably the biggest that I’ve sort of conquered are: the right BB cream, a great (for me) mascara and the joys of non-budging eye makeup thanks to your NARS pro prime rec several years ago. 🙂
PS My actual biggest challenge is probably not buying everything you blog about since you make it look so great. I’m always repeating “you don’t need that… you won’t wear that… it won’t look the same on you”. You’re good for my willpower. HAHA!
1. Undereye concealer. Creasing, lines, making it last without using too much powder and looking older. I would be so INTERESTED in seeing a tutorial on how you do your technique!
2. Eyeliner. Live the look of gel or kohl liner but it smudges under my eyes no matter what. I have to stick to liquid eyeliner even though I think it looks harsher.
3. Foundation. Oh how do you get flawless looking skin without looking like you’re wearing makeup. Would also be interested in hearing about your technique in this.
P.S. you talked about the struggle of not picking and popping pimples in an earlier post. Wanted to recommend CosRX pimple patch (avail on amazon). Not only does it cover it so you can’t touch it, the patch heals your cystic pimples and draws the gunk out. Best discovery ever!
Most of my makeup challenges involve my eyes. I can not do a cat eye, I can not get eyeshadow right like i want to. I don’t use even use the eyeshadows i have bought and i have bought lots.
My last makeup challenge is highlight , its not like the other girl. i dont get that bam. wow… oh i love your highlight. ugh
Concealer , concealer , concealer. I have everyone they ever made. Really .
But C’eau de peau is probably the closest to getting it right . And it comes in several shades too.
The other is my brows . After my last hospital stay and my age I needed to get them microbladed.
It hurts a little but the way they look makes up for the pain.
And it totally cuts down on makeup time .
The third is eyeliner. I have not less than a 900 different ones and different shades.
I finally discovered Hour Glass. It’s a thin wind up pen that is remarekedly water proof.
1. Foundation and dry skin that can’t tolerate exfoliation is the bane of my existence. I’ve tried dozens of liquid foundations and they all emphasize my dryness. It drives me crazy and is so discouraging!
2. Concealer under my eyes. See #1. Ugh!
3. Eyeliner. I can’t draw on eyeliner to save my life even though I’d love to be able to!
When I thought initially about challenges, it was – meh? is there any at all?! Oooh… yes! Actually I’ll give you more than 3:
1) liquid eyeliner – no matter how I train on this, it’s always 50/50 chance to look ridiculous. Somehow lately I get those 50% of looking ridiculous;
2) fake lashes – for the left eye I’m +/- ok, but when I apply to the right eye, I feel that my arms does not grow out from the right place ?. I have a feeling that I try to apply fake lashes while looking in a distorted mirror and usually poke the eye with glued lashes.
3) Red lips. I really want to find my red shade. You know, wehen I speak “red lip”, I mean a-la Marilyn Monroe. When I go to the stores or at Makeup Artists I usually listen “for so fair skin the best red lip is a berry red” and that said they pull out medium dark pinky-mauve with a hint of red. Meh! My makeup stash is full with those, but I want the classic vibrant red!
4) The perfect foundation – I do have 6 bottles, i.e. 3 pairs of 2 shades. Pairs, because I mix up 2 shades to get my shade
I’m sick and tired of 6 bottles. I want the perfect foundation in 1 bottle.
5) Stop buying make up. I recently made a major cleaning in my stash and realized – I should be like a dragon with multiple heads to use up at least majority of products!
Maybe try viva glam 1. There’s a drop of brown in there but it’s still a very classic red. Not too clownish at all
I’d say marching foundation to my exact skin colour. I’m an olive… that tans and the gradually loses her tan. So it’s a bit of an adventure finding the right shade and have many useless foundations in my stash currently.
Then a thick eye flick. Can’t do that well on both eyes, unfortunately!
Spot concealing- whenever I blend the edges, the result is that spot peaking though again, even if I Powder!
#1 – Covering melasma
#2 – Dealing with acne scars
#3 – Dealing with oily skin on a warm climate country (36° Celcius).
I took Professional Makeup lessons so I could deal with those issues a little better. I still struggle with them, though.
1. I resisted eyeshadow primers for soooo long! I’ve tried UD & Tarte but they pale beside NYX’s waterproof primer. Not kidding: this primer kept my shadow & liner budge-proof through a 90° summer including a 3 hour stint in the bathroom coloring my hair. My eye makeup still looked fresh!
2. Using a brush to line my lips & apply lipcolor. I have a classic cupid’s bow & bullet lipsticks just don’t go where they need to go. I didn’t wear lipcolor at all for years because I was so frustrated & lip pencils just didn’t work either.
3. Not having a signature scent until recently. Like, last year. So many of the popular perfumes & fragrances smelled the same to me & smelled too sweet. I finally discovered Tocca’s Stella scent & I love it! Plus, it’s my niece’s name so she thinks that’s pretty awesome.
I’m in a big one right now. I’m trying not to dye my hair until the New Year! I already have an inch or so of roots. I’ve also noticed a lot of damage lately (hence the no-dye) and so my hair’s had a ton of flyaways/frizz. Trying to rehab hair is so annoying because all the stuff that makes it look better (flat ironing, blowdrying, etc.) make the damage worse!
My biggest challenge is finding the right under eye concealer. I’m looking for a light texture one that will help hide the puffiness or at least minimize it. The ones I’m using right now are the Sephora Gel Serum Concealer and the Maybelline Age Rewind. I am tempted to try the MAC Prep & Prime Highlighter but need to try it at the counter first, it’s pretty pricey compared to these other two options.
For me my major challenge are my hooded (40+) eyes. Over the years one eye seems to act more or less normal but the other one is a real challenge. I don’t exactly know or see what’s the difference, but contouring/defining a crease is really difficult. Whereas one eye is easy to define, the other one just won’t behave. I’m not sure whether this eye is more droopy, has more “hanging” browlid, but whatever I try, I always end up overblending this one’s crease, either making it to harsh/dark or melting all colours into one brown/greyish mess.
Any help or tips would be much appreciated.
My biggest makeup challenge right now is my uneven eyes 🙁 my right eye is severely hooded (you can not see my lid at all when I look straight forward) and my left has a partial monolid in the inner corners. So doing eye makeup has ALWAYS been a challenge for me!! Im lucky that I personally dont like winged liner on me, as my eyes already turn upward, because winged liner would be awful to try and do on these eyes of mine!
I don’t comment often but my biggest struggles right now 1 –
is growing out my brows. I did the thin brows in middle school and highschool 90/00’s. I tried it a few times the past couple years and just can’t stand how terrible it gets and end up plucking them back to their old shape. GAH. But I finally put the tweezers down about 4 months ago after my 31st bday and told myself just wait until next year and it’ll be magical… but the struggle is real ladies. Totally open to suggestions on this one! Please and thank you!
2nd – still figuring out how to blend eye looks, I just can’t do it! I have almond shaped eyes and a noticeable crease where you can see my lid so it sounds like it should be easy but every time i do it, it just doesn’t look right! I either don’t take it high enough adn don’t like the look or I take it too high and look like a sad clown hooker! So I cop out and usually just do one swash of color, or two if i’m feeling ballsy.
3rd – growing out my pixie cut. it’s getting there. the front and top layers are longer then the rest of my hair that up until about 3 months ago was shaved on the sides and the equivalent of a men’s bald fade (i rocked it though) and now i have flippy sides under my layers like little duck tails! and it’s annoying and getting to the point i don’t know how to style anymore and just need to deal with it cause I miss my updos and curling my hair now!