Essential Items For Your Make Up Bag

When putting together your make up collection, it’s easy to lose yourself in a world of sparkling lip glosses and shimmering eyeshadows – and completely forget the essentials of any home make up kit. Here’s a quick list of those boring, but essential, items:

- Cotton pads.

Inevitably, at some stage you’re going to apply make up and it’s going to go wrong. Keep a set of cotton pads handy in the same bag as your make up products to help make those unfortunate slips clean up easily.

- Eyelash curlers.

A mascara is only as good as the lashes it is going on to, so keep a set of eyelash curlers handy. Remember to apply a thin layer of mascara before using the curlers so you don’t damage your eyelashes.

- Vaseline

This small and affordable product can do anything, from smoothing out eyebrows to making lips appear glossy and healthy. Keep Vaseline in your make up bag so you have a go-to for any make up malfunctions, or just in case you want some extra shine.

- A pencil sharpener.

Eyebrow pencils and eyeliner always seem to run out at the least opportune moments, so get into the habit of keeping a size applicable sharpener with the products themselves. For total convenience, you can now buy liners and pencils that come fitted with a sharpener on the other end of the product.

- A pocket sized mirror.

It may seem obvious, but many women apply their make up in front of a bathroom mirror so don’t remember to keep a close up pocket mirror in their make up bags.

Where To Find Discontinued Cosmetics

Every girl has a product in their make up bag that they simply couldn’t live without. Maybe it’s the mascara that curls your eyelashes better than any lash curlers have ever managed, or the shade of lipstick that is the perfect match for your complexion; whatever it is, we all have our favourite, essential products. But what would you do if that product was suddenly discontinued?

The misfortune of discontinued cosmetics is something that hits thousands of women and girls each year, and it’s no exagerration to say it can be somewhat distressing. Make up and cosmetic brands have a high turnover of products, and unless something is consistently wildly successful, they could discontinue the product at any time. It’s a nightmare, especially if your favourite product is expensive and stocking up isn’t an option.

If your favourite product is discontinued and no longer available, don’t panic just yet – you do have options. First and foremost, call the manufacturer or distributor; they may have excess stock available for you to purchase. This won’t last forever of course, but it should give you the chance to stock up.

Your second stop for discontinued cosmetics should be an online auction site, such as eBay. Smaller sellers often have a lot of stock left to sell, and there are also specialists in discontinued cosmetics who have their own methods of obtaining the product.

Thirdly, contact any stores (online or physical) that you know sold the product when it was available. If they have unsold stock, they may sell it to you for cost price.

How To Make Cheap Make Up Work For You

Sometimes, a personal budget just won’t stretch far enough to buy premium brands of make up. In these circumstances, unless you’re willing to go make up free – and who is ever willing to go make up free?! – you’re going to have to look in to cheap make up.

First and foremost, the phrase ‘cheap make up’ does not exactly inspire confidence, does it? Such wording brings to mind the kind of make up that comes free with magazines; sticky lipsticks, bright pink blushers and mascara that glues eyelashes together rather than neatly separating them. However, despite the connotations, cheap make up can actually look good if used in the right way.

Applying make up is all about technique and learning what works for you. You may need to mix and match different palettes of cheap make up to find a shade of lipstick or eyeshadow that suits your colouring, but that’s part of the fun, and the creativity helps you put together something you really love.

To allow cheap make up to work for you, you need to have a good surface for the make up to work on. It’s essential that you prepare your face; that is, ensuring it’s clean and kept well moisturised, and if possible zit and pimple free. Use Vaseline at night to extend, separate and soften your eyelashes, as well as on your lips for maximum softness that lipstick will smooth on to.

When you’re sure your base is right, experiment with your cheap make up selections; blend, smooth and mix until you’ve got exactly what you want, and you’ll look fabulous without the price tag!

Three Beauty Uses for Vaseline

Vaseline (also known by its chemical properties name, petroleum jelly) is an essential item in any make up bag or purse, thanks to its wealth of uses. Here are three ways you can use Vaseline to enhance your complexion and appearance, without spending a fortune:

1. Eyelash Softener

Apply a light amount of Vaseline to your eyelashes every night before you go to bed, using a clean mascara wand if preferred. Leave on overnight (don’t apply so much that it comes off on to your pillow; just a light dusting will suffice). Over time, using Vaseline in this way will soften your eyelashes, as well as making them appear longer by separating the lashes apart. Mascara will sit on your lashes much better, giving an enhanced appearance.

2. Dry Skin Moisturiser

If you have serious problems with dry skin, you should probably use a medicated lotion (consult your doctor). However, if your suffer from the occasional weather-induced bout of dry skin, a thin layer of Vaseline is the quickest and most affordable remedy. Apply a plaster or band-aid over the top of the Vaseline for maximum healing.

3. Lip Balm and Softener

Rather than spending a fortune on expensive lip balms or lip salves, use Vaseline. The consistency is ideal for a protective layer if going out in the cold, or for healing if the damage has already been done. To this end, Vaseline produce a rose-tinted product which both heals and gives your lips a healthy pink glow, not unlike a lipstick would. There are also SPF Vaseline versions, ideal for holidays and sunny days.

Long Live Make Up: Longevity Make Up Explored

Due to the nature of make up – essentially, chemical compounds being applied to the skin and expected to stay there no matter the weather or situation of the wearer – it is somewhat inevitable that everyone has the occasional make up disaster. We’ve all taken a sip from a glass and left a ring of lipstick on the rim, or realised our carefully applied mascara is no longer on our eyelashes but instead sliding down our face. It’s not a crime to get it wrong sometimes.

However, there are products on the market that can help eliminate the chances of a make up disaster. Primer, for example, is ideal for those who go out in the rain or sweat frequently – it’s particularly useful if you wish to wear make up while exercising. A good primer, which is applied under foundation or concealer, should help keep facial make up in place.

Secondly, there are numerous products that claim to ‘last longer’ or ‘fix fast’ – particularly lipsticks, some of which work and some of which don’t. It’s worth experimenting with longevity make up if you struggle to keep make up in place throughout the day, but bear in mind that a mirror and a quick reapplication is usually your best guarantee for day-long make up.

And remember, in your quest for long-last make up, stay away from that famed old wives tale of using hairspray to fix make up on. First and foremost, it doesn’t work, and secondly it’s extremely bad for your skin. Use the right products, expect to have to reapply during the day and keep your skin content!

Three Essential Make Up Tips: Mascara

Mascara allows you to darken and extend your eyelashes to true movie starlet glamour, and forms the central piece of many women’s make up bags. Get the most from this essential bit of make up kit with these three essential mascara tips.

Tip One: Apply Mascara In A ‘Zig Zag’ Movement

Rather than simply sweeping your mascara brush from the roots of your eyelashes to the tip in one downward (or upward) motion, agitate the brush back and forth in a ‘zig zag’ motion. This motion helps reduce the likelihood of mascara clumps, as only the necessary amount of product is applied thanks to the short time the brush spends on the lashes. It may take a couple of goes to get this right, so practice before doing it for real.

Tip Two: Always Use A Clean Mascara Brush To Finish

If you want to avoid panda eyes – and let’s face it, who doesn’t? – then it’s important you remove all excess mascara from your lashes once the application is complete. One method of ensuring the amount used is appropriate is mentioned above, but it’s best to check after the application also. The best way to do this is to use a clean mascara brush, perhaps one previously used in a mascara that has been washed clean, to sweep over the eyelashes and collect any unnecessary product.

Tip Three: Emphasize The Corners of Your Eyes

For truly glamourous lashes without looking like you’re caked in mascara, just apply the product to the corners of your eyes. This opens your eyes out without making your lashes look thick with mascara.

The Trick To Applying False Eyelashes

False eyelashes are definitely appealing, for various reasons. Maybe you wish to wear them because your natural lashes are not as long and lushous as you would prefer, or perhaps you natural lashes are light in colour and thus virtually invisible to the naked eye. In particular when going on a night out, a set of false eyelashes will drastically change your look in a way that mascara alone just cannot achieve.

However, even experienced make up users may have concerns about applying and wearing false eyelashes. The main reason for this seems to be the issue of glue. Eyelashes are literally glued to the skin of the eyelids, and stay in place for up to 12 hours depending on the price of the lashes and the brand. Understandably, many women dislike the idea of putting glue anywhere near their eyes, especially when comedy images of people gluing their eyelids shut are so commonplace.

Thankfully, there’s no reason to miss out on the stunning trend of false eyelashes, because mastering their application is down to one simple tactic. When applying false eyelashes, always apply the glue direct from the tube on the eyelash rather than your eyelid. Then slide the eyelash in to place, and hold firmly on while the glue sets. Specific eyelash glue will only take a few moments to dry.

By applying the glue to the lash itself rather than your own skin, you can be more delicate with where the glue goes and ensure that night of gluing your eyelashes together does not happen to you. Good luck!