@SouthJerseyChessMom No! Beauty blenders absorb excess product that you place on your skin. They give you this airbrushed look. They are the egg shaped blenders. Beauty blenders also press the product into the skin rather than smearing it all over the skin. Great for applying loose powder as well.
Are you ladies into all of this contouring and highlighting? I am not a fan of the new instagram cake face make up trend. It looks decent on camera, horrible in person. I don’t mind a little liquid highlight on the high points of my cheek to make the skin look radiant and dewy. Becca makes great highlighting products.
I have the IT CC foundation in light and fair. In the winter my skin is much lighter than the summer. Sometimes I blend the two. Ulta definitely takes back makeup that doesn’t work. I forget what, but I had to return something that didn’t work for me and it was no big deal to them at all.
Yep. Contouring is for celebrities who are getting their photographs taken. It doesn’t work for normal people in normal work and life settings. It just looks bizarre.
@CaliCash I’m in my early 50s and trying to adjust to this new wrinkled face with age spots! No to contouring or heavy make-up!
CaliCash, I’d never heard of beauty blenders so I looked it up. How do you keep them clean? Do you wash them every day and hope they dry by the next day? Do bacteria grow in them?
college_query, I did see your post on the Guerlain foundation, but I think that I need to stay away from foundations and stick to the lighter versions. Even the sunscreen I tried last week was too heavy!
I have now used the L’oreal tubing mascara for 3 straight days and it’s worked perfectly…and it does come off in tubes. I use Neutragena make up remover.
With my oily skin I’ve never been able to avoid smearing, but now I can.
And, I’m putting the castor oil on the eyelash line at night. We’ll see if that helps them grow.
What is the name of the L’oreal tubing mascara? Is it the one with two steps/ two ends? I’m curious to try it just to see how it comes off.
@NYMomof2 I just ordered a pack of blenders and then looked up how to clean them. Lots of suggestions. Some blenders come with a cleanser, but others are using baby shampoo, anti-bacterial hand soap, dish soap, etc.
I think I’ll use a mild antibacterial hand soap.
@CaliCash, I like the beauty blenders also. I was calling it a sponge but that’s what I use also. Do you blend with it dry or dampened?
@NYMomof2 Just clean them with soap and water. They actually work best when they are dampened. Beauty Blender has their own personal cleanser, it’s a little pricey for me though. I just use soap and water to clean them. Any cleanser water should work though.
@deb922 I always go dampened. Dampened with a bit of Mac Fix+ usually does the trick 
@mom2collegekids woohoo!
@psychmom This was the L’Oreal link posted earlier in the thread: http://www.amazon.com/LOreal-Paris-Double-Mascara-0-17-Fluid/dp/B001IAINFU
Retin A
Primers for face, eyes and lips help keep makeup on all day or night. RIght now I use Laura Mercier for the face, Urban Decay for eyes and MAC for lips.
Sulfate free shampoo - huge difference.
No, it’s really for photography, not for real life. The only time I’ve used contouring for real life was when I turned my 17 yo daughter into Maleficient. 
She looked amazing, and it was more like painting a face on her face rather than putting normal makeup on.
I’m not trying to change what I have (like making my nose narrower or my cheekbones more pronounced), which is what contouring/highlighting does, I’m just trying to have an even skin tone and look fresh and happy.
I agree that contouring seems more for professional use - photography or theater. I would really hesitate to do all those different shades on my face and then go out in daylight. Can’t imagine that I wouldn’t look like a clown.
I am just really into “minimal” right now - I want the least amount of make-up that I can get away with and still look good. Tinted moisturizer instead of foundation although I do still love mineral powders. I stay away from colored eye shadows and prefer an all over light bronzing powder to blush which I think looks too obvious. I do put a lipstick or gloss on my lips but I don’t overdo it. And of course I do my eyes - but only a muted shade of a gray liner on upper lids and mascara.
At night I definitely take things up a notch as the lights will be dimmer - use a brighter lipstick or gloss and do a dark line on my lower eyelids a la Kate Middleton.
I’ve been using Revlon Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream for about a year and a half. Fair in the winter, and Medium in the summer when I’ve had some sun.
It has a more matte finish than the IT CC Cream, which I’m finding to be a dewey finish.
The Revlon does a decent job of evening out skin tone, and looks natural.
I usually use a little Mineral Hygenics powder foundation or Bare Minerals Concealer to cover acne scars. The color match is not always great. I really struggle with concealers and blending and color matching.
Any recommendation for a drugstore brand lip stain? Something for a little color that doesn’t scream WEARING LIPSTICK while mowing the lawn. Lol
^^ I don’t know about a lip stain – I find them too drying, but for a drugstore brand moisturizing natural lipstick/balm I like Revlon Colorburst Lip Butter in Pink Truffle http://www.amazon.com/REVLON-Colorburst-Butter-Truffle-Ounce/dp/B006GQG9GQ (available at Target and drug stores) and Pixi Mattelustre Lipstick in Rose Naturelle from Target http://www.target.com/p/mattelustre-lipstick/-/A-17341392#prodSlot=_1_1
Midwest I love the Nivea Care and Color lip balm. It has a bit of color but not so much that you need a mirror to apply it
http://m.niveausa.com/products/detail/care-color-sheer-coral