Minimum amount of makeup?
 

I hardly ever wear makeup. I find it uncomfortable, distracting, expensive, and time-consuming. Occasionally wearing the Burt's Bees lip gloss I got several months ago is still kind of a big deal to me. However, I'll be finishing grad school relatively soon and I want to look employable. I don't work in a particularly fashion-conscious field, but most of the women I've worked with seem to wear some sort of makeup (some of the men probably do too, but not at work...). What would you say is the least amount of makeup a person employed in a field similar to academic librarianship could get away with?

I would go for sheer powders (mineral) for eyes and maybe some mascara with your lipgloss. It will make your eyes pop.

I second mascara.

I like to put on a full face but it doesn't look like I have a full face on. I wear Bare Minerals, and it's a powder foundation, a darker powder meant to highlight and enrich the color of your skin, and a top layer that gets rid of glare. It just makes my face look more even and toned. I also have dark circles under my eyes, so I dab on this amazing stuff called Erase Paste by benefit.

For your eyes, what I like to do is wear mascara, a bit of liner, and then I use a light blush for my eyeshadow.

If you don't want to wear face makeup, you definitely don't have to, especially if you've got good skin. But you definitely need to wear some form of eye makeup to make your eyes pop and make you look awake and alert.

Oh, and it takes me like five minutes to put it all on, and Bare Minerals lasts a long time. Like, six months or more.

I rarely wear eye makeup. Usually like 5 times a year. About once every 2 weeks I will wear foundation if my skin is more red than usual or if TOM has caused a small breakout but thats it.

However, these past few weeks I have decided I wanted to start wearing natural looking eye makeup. For me this includes a brown eyeliner, since black is very harsh and to BAM for a nice day look for a red head. I than use a neutral eye shadow. Light browns or a faint lilac color. Almost everyone suggests wearing mascara, but I only do on special occasions. I feel pretty without makeup, so I never want to hide behind it. I do know that makeup is still (unfortunately) seen as some what of a necessity that women must wear in order to look "put together". Natural looking is key. Light eyeliner, light eyeshadow, and a tad of mascara if you want and that should be fine.

I would say a good natural looking concealer (I love the Bare Minerals Bisque) and eyeliner. Brown is good for blue eyes, navy for brown eyes, and plum for green eyes. Mascara gives you a lot of mileage, too, but I'm not a daily wearer - just never got in the habit.

If you decide to try foundation, I second Bare Minerals. It's great stuff, and you can go as sheer or as full coverage as you want.

If the lip gloss seems like a little too much to you, how about a tinted lip balm? Burt's Bees makes several nice shades, and so does Badger Balm.

I feel like I need some kind of foundation (and sometimes a concealer), eye brow pencil, mascara, one good eyeshadow to smudge in or a base to brighten (Too Faced makes one I LOVE), lip gloss, and some kind of perfume to look presentable and pulled together. The perfume is just for me, I doubt people standing next to me can smell it but *I* like it.

Carmindy from What Not To Wear has good advice on a five minute face. She has a book but you can probably google for the same info.

I like to watch Pixiewoo on youtube for ideas but they use five hundred thousand products for every little thing and I am WAY too lazy for that.

I wear Cover Girl lip stain, which you put on dry lips, then once it dries I put Burt's Bees mint flavored lipgloss over it. The other thing I wear consistantly {at least twice a week, LOL] is Cover's Girl Advanced Radiance Pressed powder, which I love! This is light 'barely there feeling' but actually covers well and is about $7 a compact, which lasts me between 4-6 months.

I wear Skin 79 BB cream (which is a tinted moisturizer that hides a lot of flaws and has SPF!), light mascara..I think it's Cover Girl naturals? In a green tube.
I also vouch for lipstain too!
Those 3 are my go-to when I need to rush around and have no time. They feel light, but look natural too.

Thanks, chicks! You all have been very helpful.

I think I'll try to get in the habit of wearing lip-stuff more regularly and work on getting the hang of eyeliner/mascara/eyeshadow, then branch out into face makeup if I can get comfortable with it.

All I ever wear is lip gloss, mascara, and a little bit of shadow. It works :). Mascara makes the biggest difference, though!

I'm another one in the mascara camp. I NEVER wear any kind of foundation - drives me crazy. Drove me crazy in highschool, drove me crazy in college. Quit trying by about 25.

I wear makeup <1/wk. Mascara and a neutral blush that I also brush over my lid/brow area. Not too pink, something that is really matched with my skin tone just a bit warmer.

When i go all out I add lipstick and eyeshadow.

I have a lot of skin allergies so makeup makes me insanely itchy and irritates my skin. Mostly I just wear mascara/eyeliner (those are by far the least irritating for me) with occasionally some cover-up for pimples and/or chapstick.

I've found that if I do my hair well and just wear mascara that's pretty much enough and DH isn't complaining. :lol:

If your skin is good, you can get away without wearing much makeup at all. Some face powder if you get shiny, bronzer if you want some glow, mascara, and tinted lip gloss are all you really need. It's a good idea to buy basics and figure out a day and evening look for your makeup. You can go to any good makeup counter at the mall and get a lady there help you with colors and application. It's customary to buy at least one thing from them for their effort, so look for a deal that will get you a 'gift with purchase' to stretch your makeup dollars.

I would go with a sheer all over face powder, lip gloss and mascara... and curl your eye lashes!

I like to wear natural-looking makeup to work, and my minimum is powder-based foundation, blush and mascara. They do such an incredible amount of good and take barely any time to put on.

My favorite powder for use by itself is LORAC's Porefection baked perfecting powder. It's miraculous.

I don't wear makeup very often, and I would have no qualms working in an academic library and continuing not to (I'm working on my MLIS right now).

I was really amazed, however, the first time I put on foundation (a pressed powder foundation from Clinique) how much different it made me feel. When I do wear makeup, my most basic look is corrector (just because I have terrible dark circles), foundation, mascara, and lip balm.

Level two adds eyeliner (my personal favorite makeup product, so no pressure if you don't like it) and either lipstick or eyeshadow. Level three is both lipstick and eyeshadow.

I have used Bare Minerals for a few years now. I love the fact that it has a natural sunscreen because its minerals and it always looks natural. I've never tried the Smokey Mountain minerals, they sound interesting. Might have to give them a try.

if you have nice skin ... i would do just mascara and lip gloss if your fancy ... wear some blush

Definitely mascara. If you don't want to wear foundation or you don't really need it, maybe a tinted moisturizer? I have never used a tinted moisturizer, but I have a friend who loves it.

I think this really depends on what your skin type/features are. For example, I have a very light olive complexion and dark eyes and eyebrows and long eyelashes. To accentuate this I use only a little black eyeliner just on the bottom lid. I also use a light lip gloss. No mascara unless I am going out at night. I am a minimalist too and I think it is very easy to overdo it. Figure out what makeup looks good for your complexion and stick with a very easy and manageable routine. Good luck!

I don't wear make up to a normal day of work. I work in a small office in a not so appearance conscious field (very much related to academic librarianship. I have an MLIS) and usually deal with people online or over the phone.

I will wear it for important meetings or evening events. I also wear glasses and make a point of choosing glasses that emphasize my skin tone and eyes well so I feel less like I need to wear make up because of my glasses.

The other reason I avoid make up is because I tend to touch my face. If I wore mascara, I'd be a raccoon by 11 am.

I think a lot of it depends on the environment you're in. Even in the academic library world, if your colleagues are all about clothes and make up, you may start wearing more make up.

I rarely wear makeup, even though I probably should (not a spring chicken!).

When I am "going out" or want to look professional, I wear:

- Tinted moisturizer
- Mascara
- Lipstain

It takes me a total of 3 minutes to put it all on. I prefer tinted moisturizer because it's lighter than foundation but still evens out my skin a bit, and it's easy to apply (just rub it on my face like any other moisturizer). I use Tarte brand, which I love.

I wear mascara, but it doesn't do much for me since my eyelashes are practically non-existent. I use waterproof, otherwise it smudges within a few minutes.

I like lipstain because it stays on! No need to reapply like lipstick, and I'm low maintenance.

I agree with what someone else said; it depends on your skin type/features. I have really stupidly sensitive skin so I'm not huge on going all out. Bare Minerals makes my face itch and burn. The necessities for me: eyeliner, mascara, lip color. I have small, squinty eyes with thin, short eyelashes. So I use the eyeliner to define my teeny eyes and make them appear larger. Mascara makes the eyelashes noticeable. All this eye attention goes toward making me look for feminine. And my lips are like the same color as my skin so I use the color to make them pop. :) I skip the foundation, blush, and shadow cause I have a mostly even skin tone and never break out so my skin usually looks great already.

My suggestion - go to a makeup counter at a nice department store, tell them what you told us, and ask for a trial run. They will try to sell you the products they put on you... ask them to write it down along with their info and the hours they work (so they can get commission when you come back), but say you want to wear it all day to make sure it does not irritate your skin and wears well before you buy it.

I never wore makeup and had much the same opinion as you. Then I tried Jane Iredale's mineral makeups. They are pricey, but a little goes a long way. Like others have said, I use a dusting of blush or bronzer on my cheeks and over my eyes. Sometimes I use powder foundation (just a dusting) to even my tone out. Maybe concealer if my eyes look tired and baggy.

For professional looks, less is more. You may have to visit several makeup counters before you find someone who understands that... so be ready to fend off sales pitches for products you might not like.

If lip-gloss is more of your speed, try lightly tinted lip glosses to start out with.

When I started, I got a little at a time. It helped me "transform" without having everyone around comment, "Oh, you never wear makeup - now you do - what's going on?"

One size does not fit all. This will take some trial and error to find a product that sits lightly on your skin and does not make you feel icky and stifled. I found it in Jane Iredale, but you might like something else. Try as much different stuff as you can before you decide.

i can't believe there are so many people here who "barely wear makeup". i find it extremely hard to leave the house if i don't! i use a sheer liquid and a mineral powder to cover up some of my red blotchiness and old acne marks. my hair is naturally red, but my eyebrows and eyelashes are naturally blonde and invisible. if i don't use mascara and an eyebrow pencil..it looks like i have no facial features. lastly, some blush so that i don't look like a corpse.

i envy you guys :)

I do not wear make up and never will even if a job required it, I wouldnt work there. Its my face I will do what I want with it. Anyways when I did wear makeup it was the bare min. and I wore mascara and cover up, on occasion Id wear light eye shadow and eyeliner.