Makeup for Beginner: WHAT TO BUY?

Aloha!
It's been too long, I miss writing something here so much.

When I'm starting to love makeup, I kinda confused about what to do first, what to buy, and what are the useful tools/things in makeup. Plus, I heard that question a lot when doing makeup to friends.
I know we all here have moisturizer, mascara, eyeliner, pressed powder/two way cake, and lipstick in our purse, right? Good! That's the base of every girl must-have. So what else I should buy?
Here we go!

BASE

1. FACE PRIMER & EYE PRIMER
Primer is the barrier between your foundation and your skin. It also makes foundation last longer and shine free. So this is so important. The best face primer brands are Smashbox and The Balm Porefessional. Yes they are pricey. But, the brands sell the products in travel size! I always looove travel and sample size! Beauty in a good deal huh!

*Best Drugstore face primer: Maybelline baby skin primer, Revlon Photoready Primer, NYX shine killer primer.
Eye Primer is another must-have.
For oily monolid eyes like me, this is holy grail product. Eye primer will hold the eye shadow/eye liner longer. Primer juga bisa membuat warna eyeshadow keluar lebih terang. The best is still Urban Decay primer potion. 

(Harga: travel size sekitar Rp180.000-an, dijual di Sephora, atau beli online di website favorite saya: twlcosmetics.com)
*Best Drugstore eye primer: NYX eyeshadow base in jar, ELF mineral eyeshadow primer.

Urban Decay eye Primer Potion, The POREfessional face primer.

Smashbox face primer, Maybelline baby skin face primer, Revlon Photoready face Primer, NYX shine killer , NYX Pore Filler face primer, ELF mineral eyeshadow primer.

 2. CONCEALER
Concealer covers the imperfections (birthmark, Vitiligo, eyebags, dark circle, acne scar)
If you have dark circle under eyes, go find a concealer 2 shade lighter than your skin tone. Bisa langsung diaplikasikan dengan jari manis. Suhu tubuh kita yang hangat membuat cream nya melts perfectly and blends well with our skin. 

My favorite is Coastal Scents Camo Quad concealer (Rp180.000an). It has 4 shades, jadi serbaguna untuk contouring hidung dan pipi juga.

*Best Drugstore Concealer: NYX concealer in jar, and the famous one: Maybelline age rewind. 

Maybelline age rewind, NYX concealer in jar, Revlon photoready concealer, Coastal Scents Camo Quad concealer.

3. FOUNDATION / BB Cream

Foundation functions as tone balancing for your face, ears, and neck, or even shoulder & hands. Makanya buat temen-temen yang masih suka beli foundation 3 shade lebih terang, please sadarlah. Hehe. Makeup fungsinya bukan sebagai topeng, tapi pemerata warna kulit.
My favorite still Revlon Colorstay. Affordable with good quality. It also buildable for high coverage acne scars. Pernah pake buat nonton konser, keringetan dari jam 11 pagi ampe jam 1 dini hari, dan foundation ini setia gak bergeser atau luntur. Keren! MAC studio fix & Makeup Forever HD masih kalah. (Harga: Rp150.000-an di counter Revlon)

Tip for finding the right shade on foundation: do not try that on your hand. Face and hand skins are different. So try the foundation on your jawline. Blend, if it dissapear nicely, then that's your shade!
BB Cream is another options for light everyday use. However I can not find any Korean BB Cream (which is said as the pioneer of BB Cream) in my shade. Korean BB Creams are way too fair for Indonesian skin.
Foundation/BB Cream are the number one thing that we should really considered when buying. Cari tau kandungannya, baca reviewnya, cari warna yang tepat, kemudian coba di kulit kalian dalam 3 minggu. Kalo gak jerawatan, dan pas, then it's a lifetime best friend!
Ohya, sebaiknya pilih foundation dengan SPF serendah mungkin. SPF membuat wajah lebih berminyak dan menimbulkan bercak putih di hasil fotografi. Gunakan SPF lotion terpisah sebelum foundation.
*Another best choice: MAC Studio Fix, Makeup Forever HD, The Body Shop BB Cream, Garnier BB Cream.

Revlon Colorstay

TOOLS

 1. BRUSHES

There are plenty variety of makeup brushes out there.

These are the brushes you will need for everyday simple look.You can find it on Centro/Matahari.

Tip: feel the brush hair. A good quality of brush should be smooth and strong.
Well, we all here have brow brush right? That's a must-have.
For beginner/self-makeup artist you only need these basic tools:

1. Foundation Brush or Sponge (Brush is easier for beginner to apply liquid foundation. Brush works the best for medium to high coverage. Best option for acne scars. One good brush can last YEARS, while Sponge harvest bacteria after the first use. However sponge gives a natural/airbrush skin. Jadi tentukan sendiri apa yang dibutuhkan untuk kulit dan keperluan sehari-hari kamu.)
2. Blush brush (for blush, pressed powder, and highlighter)
3. Flat Eyeshadow brush (for eyeshadow on eyelids)
4. Blending Eye brush (for blending eyeshadow into soft and nice colors)
5. Eyeliner brush (for eyeliner gel and also multi-function as to draw brows)
6. Angle Contour Brush (for nose and cheekbones contouring)

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

I spent money the most on foundation brush. For me owning a high value and quality foundation brush is so important. My one and only favorite is Real-Techniques in Expert Face Brush (Harga Rp.170.000-an di twlcosmetics.com). Another pricey brand is from Sigma.

*The best one is form Ecotools (4 brushes for Rp100.000-an di instagram @preorderbymimo). I recommend the set brushes, because it cheaper and complete. There are good options to at Centro/Sogo Department store, or drugstore such as Guardian. 

LEFT: Foundation Brushes & Sponges. RIGHT: Ecotools brush set.

Makeup brush wajib dibersihkan setiap seminggu sekali dengan baby shampo yang lembut atau cairan air hangat+cuka untuk menghilangkan bakteri, dibilas. Kemudian dikeringkan dengan meletakan pegangan handle brush lebih tinggi dari bulu kuas, agar tidak ada air yang tersisa. Sementara Sponge memerlukan sponge shampoo tersendiri.

 2. EYE SHADOW
The fun part! Just like the childhood time when coloring book, now our crayon is eyeshadow. No need to buy sophisticated eye shadow palette, yet. For our Indonesian skin, the basic eyeshadows are earth tone (any shades of brown, bronze, gold, champagne, black, and shimmering white). Those are enough for everyday or glam day look.

*Mine is from NYX look kit Nude on Nude. Perfect!  (Harga: 185.000-an di twlcosmetics.com)

NYX Nude on nude Natural Look Kit

The recommended beginner lesson on eyeshadow application in Youtube are these lovely channels: TheMakeupChair (she gave amazing clear steps for newbie), easyNeon, Michelle Phan.
For monolid Asian eyes: From Head to Toe, jungsaemmool, So Young's Beauty Room.
Go practice with them and see yourself in 5 months: an artist in the making!

3. LIPS

The best everyday lip shade for tanned Indonesian skin is peachy pink. Also, this kind of lipstick can be used as....BLUSH! Dab a little bit lipstick onto the cheeks with ring fingers (Ring finger is the weakest finger, so make sure to use them in EVERY application on makeup industry-lol. Jangan merangsang keriput dengan menekan kulit terlalu keras dengan jari lain). Then you will achieve natural blushing and glowy face.

Just make sure to find a shine/creamy finish lisptick so it can glow also on your cheeks. Matte lipstick or lip gloss won't work.
*My Favorite: Maybelline Iced caramel, Revlon colorbust peach & Wet n wild Carrot Gold.

THE SECRET

A MUST HAVE

Dark brown matte eyeshadow is the secret. What for?
1. Eyeshadow (from natural to dramatic smokey eye)
2. Natural looking brow
3. Contouring (shading hidung/pipi)
4. Eyeliner (soft ala Korean eye makeup)

I always love multi-function! Make sure it is matte (means no shimmer/pearl at all).
*I got mine from Nyx. (Harga Rp90.000 di counter Nyx).

NYX single eyeshadow in Dark Brown.

That's all from me. I see you again on next post.
Love,
From your friendly neighbor.

PS: Pictures taken from my own personal pictures and some from websites. I do not own them. Thank you.