Variations and combinations in makeup styles

July 9, 2017 9:43 AM

So I'm getting back into doing makeup after a few years. I'm a twenty something dark skinned woman who has lots of lipstick, eyeshadow and basic face things like concealer, blush, and bb cream. What I'm trying to figure out is what kind of makeup styles I can do. I know about stuff like smokey eye, blending and things like that. I lean towards doing basic looks, like yesterday I did a gold sparkle eyeshadow and warm pink lipstick.

I think of makeup styles like this: there's a)bold eye and bold lip,
b)neutral eye and bold lip, c) bold eye and neutral lip and d) neutral eye and neutral lip. Is this a binary way I can approach making looks? Or am I missing something?

posted by starlybri to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (7 answers total)

Well, contouring has come back in a huge way for people your age in recent years, so I'm not sure "eye vs. lip" would be seen as adequate to capture most of the styles anymore.

There are a TON of makeup theorists, if you will, on Youtube. I'd try looking at some of the most popular and seeing how that plays.
posted by praemunire at 9:50 AM on July 9, 2017

I tend to think in terms or everyday basic to very dramatic.

Basic would be a "no make-up makeup" look or tinted moisturizer, minimal coverage look. The other end of it would be an Instagram type look with very sculpted brows, and a bright glossy lip. Like do you want it to look like you really aren't wearing too much makeup or are you on the other side of the spectrum.
posted by mokeydraws at 9:54 AM on July 9, 2017

I don't think I'm interested in contouring, and I'm open to looks that are basic and dramatic. I kust need to know when either are appropriate. Like I don't think dramatic looks would be appropriate for day time.
posted by starlybri at 10:06 AM on July 9, 2017

Hmm not sure about the when either. Who are you watching on youtube? Some of my faves are Jackie Aina, Destiny Godley, colouredBeautiful, makeupD0ll. They do a range of looks and will give a general idea of what the look is for, from daytime to date night.
posted by mokeydraws at 10:43 AM on July 9, 2017

One place to poke around would be the subreddit (I know! but this one is pretty decent and full of people doing cool makeup looks and providing each other critiques and reviewing makeup) r/makeupaddiction.
posted by hepta at 10:48 AM on July 9, 2017

I think the general guidelines are lighter looks for daytime, more dramatic for night. But I see women with what I consider dramatic looks during the day all the time. The difference seems to be in how heavily contoured a look is, and how bright the overall colors are -- a lightly contoured base with a dramatic brow and bright lip but more neutral eyes (no bright shadows or liners) is really common in my city for daytime wear (out shopping, brunch, etc), though probably not workplace appropriate.

It comes down to lighting: heavy contour looks fine in dim light, but overdone in sunlight. Bright lips and eyes together can be cute, but are too garish for a day look.

nthing Youtube as a great way to dive in to this.
posted by ananci at 11:23 AM on July 9, 2017

There is a WOC-centric beauty subreddit as well - r/brownbeauty. I also like r/muacjdiscussion, though that is, well, more about discussion - MakeUpAddiction will have plenty of selfies and looks which might make more sense.

I like a neutral eye with a bright liner as a kind of in-between look.
posted by mippy at 12:09 PM on July 10, 2017