Make-up is a powerful tool in a costumer's arsenal. You can create a whole costume around face makeup! When it comes to costumes there are (in my consideration) three kinds of makeup:
- Fashion Make-up
- Theatrical/Stage Make-up
- Costume Make-up
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| Fashionable at one point. |
Fashion make-up accents the natural shapes of your face to make it look its best according to a fashion/cultural aesthetic.
Theatrical or Stage make-up is a major exaggeration of facial features that can be seen from a distance with the bright lights of a stage.
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| All done with eye liner and eye shadow. |
Costume make-up is a mix of both. It looks good close-up or from a distance. It exaggerates if it needs to or accents where it can.
However, all make-up has this in common: using color to create an illusion with your facial features.
Health Note: There can be allergens in some make-up depending on what it is made out of. Be sure to either test on your skin beforehand or check the ingredients (if you know what your allergies are).
Types of makeup
If you didn't grow up wearing make-up every day or are simply not interested, here are some of the basic goops you should be familiar with:
Foundation/Base
A powder or liquid that is in the same color as your skin tone or close to it. Naturally, your face has variety in color, texture, and such. Foundation makes things the same color and texture, a sort of blank canvas from which to work from. (Or a foundation to build from.😉) If you are using body paint your "base color" is like foundation.
Blusher
Usually a powder in a warm color like red or brown used to highlight large parts of your face. You may have heard of "Rouge" or "Bronzer". These are types of blusher in specific colors. Since a foundation will make your face look very...doll-like. Blusher adds back some of the natural 'pink' color that suggests that you do indeed have blood in your veins. But bronzer or other colors can add false shadows or highlights.
Eye shadow
A cream or powder that adds a pigment on and around the eyelid. People get very fancy with the shapes, styles, and color combos when using eye shadow. These can be matte, metallic, glittery, glow-in-the-dark, UV activated, or many combinations of effects.
Eye Liner
A charcoal or ink-like pigment that outlines the upper and/or lower eyelid. It was called kohl back in ancient times. People get very fancy with this too as it can create illusions about your eye size and shape. Again, a very versatile make-up.
Lip Stick
A liquid or waxy substance in various colors meant to accent the color and shape of lips. It is often paired with lip liner which is kind of like eye liner...but for your mouth.
Makeup Application Tools
Those are the basic types of makeup, these are the ways you can put it on your face.
Brushes
Much like paint, brushes come in all sizes, shapes and textures for different types of makeup. Thin stiff brushes for fine details like eye liner. Large fluffy brushes apply blusher. Angled brushes may create fun shapes with your eye shadow. They work with both liquid and powder styled make-up.
Sponges
These also come in different shapes, sizes and textures. Many makeup kits may come with little spongey applicators. These have the benefit of working well with creams, powders, and liquids. Loose powder can be a little trickier with some sponge types.
Cotton
An economical set of applicators that have some of the benefits of brushes and sponges! Cotton puffs or Cotton balls can be made to be brush like or sponge like. Q-tips are more spongey though.
Where to Get Makeup
Those who are a little more involved than I am with make-up will often support a particular brand of make-up. But those same artists will also show you what you can do with lower priced make-up. Honestly, there is a difference in quality.
Drug-Store/Grocery Store
The most accessible place to get make-up is your local drug store/chemist/pharmacy/grocery store. They will carry a range of brands from economical to mid-high quality. Depending on the size of the store you can get a nice variety of colors and brands. Generally, these are good for starting out or for every-day kinds of make-up.
Party Store
Here is where you can find some of the low to mid-quality specialty make-up for Halloween costumes and such. These will often include special effects make-up but can also include things like eye liner or eye shadow.
Costume Shop
These are specialty shops for theatrical productions which should carry brand names for production level make-up. You may still find party application make-up which is meant for a night on the town or grease paint for the stage.
Make-up Store
Some brands of make-up have their own stores and in some cases there are specialty fashion make-up shops. You will still get a range of quality but it will likely start from mid-level to higher quality products. Depending on the store size you will get a wide variety of colors and options. Another bonus is often they hire staff that are familiar with make-up that can give you good advice for how to care for your face skin and how to pick make-up for yourself. (Often times you can also get sampler kits which I mean it can be worth it. I got one nearly 10 years ago that I STILL use.)
Internet
Of course you can get make-up online. You can learn about brands, find advice and all sorts of things. The only downside is that you don't know what the color truly looks like on your skin and you can't get any kind of real consultation. It's a good option for refills or finding non-traditional colors. (Had to find blue lipstick online back in the day.)
And that's what I have to say about getting started with make-up.
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