Whether you’re a beauty newbie or a makeup maven, we all make mistakes from time to time. Fortunately, most of these makeup faux pas are easily avoided once we learn to identify them. So, let’s atone for our past makeup sins and start 2014 with a clean slate by following these six simple makeup commandments.
#1 Thou shalt not share makeup with friends
Go ahead and share your fears, tears and favourite dresses with your gal pals, but next time your bestie asks to borrow your lip gloss or slap on some of your mascara, think twice before saying yes. When you share makeup, you’re essentially trading germs and bacteria. This is particularly problematic when dealing with sensitive areas such as the eyes and lips. Dermatologists warn that this seemingly harmless practice can lead to a number of nasty infections and skin complaints, including cold sores, dermatitis and even the herpes virus. Yikes!
If you absolutely must share makeup, you can minimise your risks by investing in a few disposable mascara wands and some anti-bacterial spray to keep your products germ free.
#2 Thou shalt sport wear lipliner that’s darker than the lipstick
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Lipliner is vital to keep your lipstick from smudging and feathering throughout the day. However, the dreadful, dated combo of dark lipliner and light lipstick needs to be catapulted back to the eighties and early nineties where it belongs (unless, of course, you’re part of a drag act). Choose a lipliner that is no more than one shade darker or one shade lighter than your lipstick colour.
If you’re a girl with a lot of lipsticks in your stash, you can save yourself the trouble of trying to buy liners for all your lip colours by picking up an invisible lip liner.
#3 Thou shalt not sleep with the makeup on
Most of us know that this is a total no-no, but it can be so tempting to just fall into bed after a long night out. While occasionally skipping your cleansing routine won’t do any serious damage, regular offenders are putting their skin at risk of blocked pores, hyperpigmentation, cellular damage and even premature aging! Additionally, leaving all your makeup on overnight makes it difficult for your skin to get the oxygen it needs to repair itself while you sleep. This can cause dull, dry and damaged looking skin.
For those nights when you don’t have the energy to go through your regular skin care routine, use a makeup remover/cleansing wipe to remove your foundation and let your skin breathe.
#4 Thou shalt not overpluck your eyebrows
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The thinner your eyebrows, the older you’ll appear. That might sound great at fourteen or fifteen, but overplucking your eyebrows can eventually discourage the hairs from growing back and leave you looking old (or perpetually surprised!) before your time.
To avoid overplucking your eyebrows, get them shaped professionally in a salon at least once. This will give you a clear guide to follow when you take to grooming your own brows. You can also use brow stencils to help maintain a favourable shape. Keep in mind, though, thick eyebrows are back in vogue.
#5 Thou shalt not sport spidery lashes
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We all want the gorgeous big, black lashes we see in the mascara commercials. In our quest to achieve this impossible look, we can sometimes go overboard and apply so much product that our lashes become clumpy, spidery and stuck together. Not a good look.
To avoid looking like Twiggy on a bad day, remove any excess mascara from your mascara wand (just wipe it on a tissue) before using it on your lashes. And when you’re applying your mascara, be sure to start at the base of your lashes then zig-zag your way to the tips. This will help to separate your lashes as you go, preventing clumping.
#6 Thou shalt not reapply makeup in public
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There’s nothing wrong with powdering your nose or giving your lipstick a quick touch up on the run. However, most people surveyed (men and women) agree that performing your whole makeup routine at work or on the subway is just a little bit tacky. It’s difficult to say why this particular tradition is considered so distasteful, but, like getting dressed in the morning, some things are just meant to be done in private.
Now that we’re all a little more aware of these six major makeup sins, we can work on avoiding them and focus on putting our best faces forward in 2014. Good luck!
We want to hear your opinion: Is it bad etiquette to apply a whole face of makeup on public transport?