Girls in their 20s-- what make up is working for you right now?

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O.G.
Aug 13, 2011
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What's your HG foundation? skin type? What's the lipstick and concealer you just can't live without? Skin needs change as we age so I thought it would be nice to have a thread for all of us to be able to refer to if we need a recommendation!
 
I am 23, and have an oily t/zone and dry cheeks.
I am a firm believer in sheer/light foundation or tinted moisturizer at this age. We are young, and I think a fresh look will complement our skin. I don´t feel the need to cover up every little blemish, I love the fact that some girls have freckles, so don´t hide it!

I use tinted moisturizer, am still on the search for the perfect one and on top I use Bobbi Brown mineral powder foundation in Medium. It is buildable, I use a light hand and it keeps my face shine free. I use Dior Matte bronzer in nr4 to contour my face and like to use blushes like Diorblush Pink in Love, Chanel in Tweed Coral, etc.
I hate lipgloss, it reminds me to much of giggly 14 year olds, but am a huge lipstick fan! Esp. bright colours, cause it is feminine and still young. I always go by the rule of natural eyes and bright lips or the other way around, not both for day time.

My fave lipstick colour is red or reddish pink:
Chanel RA in Famous is gorgeous
Giorgio Armani in Brilliant nr 8
These 2 are my current faves!

If I want a lighter yet colourful lippie, I tend to go for Dior Addict Shine in nr. 545 Fire.
 
i'm 24.

i guess my skin is a combination. oily forehead, dry cheeks. i have super rosey cheeks.

i use neutrogena healthy skin make up in buff. makes all the difference in the world.
i use a discontinued max factor pan stick in nude ivory for my dark circles and my red cheeks.

i dont have alot of lipsticks yet as i'm just moving away from glosses and lacquer pots. but i love my burberry delicate rose.

when i dont have time for concealer and foundation i use aveeno tinted moisturizer and a sheer powder.
 
I'm 24 and my skin is currently normal.. isn't dry or oily.

My normal everyday routine after washing and moisturizing my face is:
-Prime with hard candy primer or anything else I have on hand.. this is just what I'm using now.
-Foundation: I love using MUFE Face and Body or Revlon Colorstay, I conceal dark circles with nyx concealer in a jar or amazing cosmetics concealer, I set everything with MAC MSFN natural
-Contour with either MAC Blunt or Guerlain Terracotta bronzer. I blush with anything I have on hand but lately I stick to mattes.
-Eyeshadow wise, I stick to neutrals but I experiment with color too.. I use black eyeliner in the waterline.. for my eye shape it's not harsh or too much. I also line the top of my lids with gel liner. I fill in my brows with brow powder every time I put on makeup.
-Lips.. I'm not a lipstick or lipgloss girl at all. I stick to tinted balms mostly.

I'm at the age where I like to look put together not Over the Top.. and keep the shimmer/glitter to one part of my face.. mostly the eyes. I'm also at the age where I'm realizing good skincare is important.
 
I'm 21 with pale, pink-ish combination skin, and my HG foundation has been the Max Factor Lasting Performance for a few years. It gives a great satin-y finish, and a tube lasts forever!
I tried more expensive foundations like Lancôme and Dior, but nothing works on me like this one. I often have issues with foundations being too yellow for my skin tone. The "Ivory Beige" is pale and with rosy undertones, and it's an exact match for my skin when I'm not tan.
I feel like such an advertisement now :lol: But I just can't rave enough about this!

If I'm shiney, I use a bit of MAC Blotting powder in "medium". The color selection is a bit strange (read: LIGHT), because I usually need the lightest shade in the collection, but the "light" of this powder is super white. Like Dita von Teese white, I guess.

I really like Lanôme Hypnose mascara during summers, but it leaks down your face really easily in the rain, so during fall and winter I use MaxFactor Masterpiece Max mascara, which I also like a lot.

For lips, I like the Body Shop Lip Care lipstick, which is something inbetween a lipstick and a lip balm I guess. It's not greasy or sticky at all, and it has a nice sheen to it.
 
I'm 23. I have an oily T-zone with my skin being dry everywhere else. I still get minor acne though which severely limits the kind of make up I can use (without me breaking out that is). Combine that with having sensitive skin & having yellow-undertoned skin, I rarely find anything that works well for me XD

Primer: Smashbox Photofinish Primer. It's fantastic. I can definitely tell the difference when I don't use this under my foundation (both in terms of longevity & smoothness).

Foundation: Usually I just use Bare Minerals Matte Powder Foundation (in Golden Medium). If I want a bit more coverage, I first use Make Up For Ever Face & Body Liquid Foundation then go over it with Bare Minerals. The MUFE F&B foundation is almost a watery-like consistency so it doesn't feel too heavy to use both =)

Blush: I've been using Shiseido Luminizing Satin Face Color in Tea Rose. I've only just started using blush in the past few months, so I don't really have a preference yet ^^; They all look the same to me. Haha.

Concealer: I don't really use concealer. When I want a little more coverage, I pat that spot over with the MUFE Foundation. What I've been doing lately though is using a MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre (matches my yellow undertoned skin perfectly) as a concealer. It also doubles as an eye primer so yay =D

Lipstick: Not a lipstick gal, but I love Dior Addict lipstick. I just wish it had a bit more color to it. My lips are pretty pigmented as it is, so most of the colors disappear on my lips.
 
I found the best change I made was when I started using AHA's to improve my skin texture/colour. Makeup automatically looks better on me now, and my skin has a more natural glow about it. I posted in another thread that I stick to very basic and gentle cleansers and moisurizers and put my money into "actives" (AHA's, retinols, sunscreen).

I use a light foundation, MUFE Face & Body. It works good for my oily skin as it has a gel-like texture. It is fairly light coverage so I use a bit of MAC studio finish around my nose and other areas that need more coverage.

I finish with a light dusting of powder and MAC mineralize skinfinish in medium-deep as a bronzer (it has a nice satin finish), and then a matte blush.

I do not use any shimmery bronzer or blush on my face as I am oily, and matte is much cleaner looking IMO. I use an eye primer and neutral shadows and a dark brown gel liner. I keep my brows particularly groomed and slightly bold.

My lips are very pigmented so I don't wear anything on them unless I am going out.
 
I have dry/ combination skin.
Primer: I don't use primer that often but I gotta love my Laura Mercier primer.
Foundation: I tried lots of different foundations. My favorite is Dior nude (I always come back for this one). But I also love Chanel prolumiere (need a setting powder), Estee Lauder double wear (lots of coverage), Clinique super balanced (flawless dewy look, love it), MAC face and body.
Concealer: Laura mercier or MAC. they are both great!
Blush: Illamasqua. Their color are bright, bold and very pigmented.
Lipstick: Tom Ford (excited -orange, unrequited- pink) and MAC angel or please me (nudie pink) .
 
I love reading what you other girls are using. I'm a bit of a skin freak and want it to look its best. I've always struggled to find the perfect everyday foundation but I recently bought Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua, and it might be what I'm looking for, both when it comes to finish and colour.

I think Bobby Browns shimmer bricks gives amazing glow and use them as a highlighter.
My daily blushes are Nars sex appeal or deep throat.

I use natural colours on my eyes. Normally era or platina from mac, and a deeper shadow in the crease. I also like to higihlight the inner corner of my eyes.

When I go out I tend to use heavier eye makeup, or a dark red lipstick.

I love being in my 20s makeup wise :smile: we can tryout so many different looks and get away with it ;)

Although I think the most important things are to live healthy and use good skin care products, so we can continue to look fresh, young and healthy also in our 30s, 40s etc
 
24. Normal-to-slightly combo in Summer, normal-to-dry rest of the year. Clog-prone, but not really acnegenic any more.

HG foundation is Bobbi Brown Skin. Most days I just use TM (Stila), concealer on any spots (LM Secret Camouflage), a bit of Touche Eclat under the eyes, and set powder (along with lipstick, blush, highlighter/bronzer, neutral eyeshadow, and brows). Right now, I'm using NYC Loose Translucent Pressed, and I think I prefer it to gasp, the MSFN I used for the better part of 2 years now.

Primer-wise, I use the KORRES Anti-Aging one - it's very hydrating, and it's 'cone free though cones don't really bother me. I also like the Hard Candy one in the white tube for everyday, as it's cheap but works. I use Dr. Brandt's Pores No More pore refiner every day on the nose & inner cheeks, and it's the best I've used for pores. On days where I need to look flawless, I'll use the Bioderma AR Anti-Rougeurs cream, followed by MUFE HD #5 Blue brightening primer, then foundation.

I'm all over the place with makeup, so I really don't have an HG eyeshadow, lipstick, or blush. There's a lot of every colour I really love, though extremely warm corals, brown nudes (lipstick wise) look terrible on me.

Mascara: recently rotating between Maybelline F&S, Revlon GrowLuscious, and Prestige My Biggest Lashes. I always tightline since I have very blonde lashes, and I use the LM Cakeliner in Black Ebony. In my brows, it's usually the Benefit Brow-Zings in Light.
 
I'm 22. I have oily skin but as I've gotten older it's calmed down a lot and now my only real oil zone is my chin. I'm super pale (and love it!!!) with pink undertones. I base my make up look after Brigitte Bardot, I like more of a sultry look and I ALWAYS wing my eyeliner! (one of my fav silly things lol) I also love big lashes. I use Benefit They're Real with Maybelline The Falsies on top (I have yet to find a mascara that does what a combo of 2 can!)

For foundation I use YSL Teint Resist (#3). Only foundation I ever used and probably the only one I will ever use unless they stop making it. It's made for oily skin types and is very resistant to getting wet. On the 4th of July I was out on a boat with my friend and her cousin and he hit the water really hard and we got DRENCHED with a wave but my make up was perfect! As long as you don't rub it, the foundation kind of absorbs water without messing up.

I don't use a primer, I just use a moisturizer under my foundation, concealer (still under since my setting powder doesn't like concealer) and then on top of everything I put Laura Mercier translucent setting powder all over my face but I put more on my chin and nose to keep the oil away. On top of that I put Lioele Blooming Shimmer Pearl Base just on my cheeks to give me extra glow, it's definitely one of my holy grail products

For cheeks, my only constant is my Mac Lush Light Bronze Careblend Pressed Powder. I don't bronze my face, I just contour my cheeks a bit with it. I have very high cheekbones and love highlighting them! My blush changes depending on the eye look I wear that day (it depends on my mood, my eyes might be neutral, or they might be purple or green etc) but I do prefer shimmery blushes to mattes. I look best in warm orange blushes and cool pink tones

For lipsticks it also depends on the eye look I do bc I'm a believer in focusing on one pop feature. If you do bold eyes, play down your lips. If you do bold lips, play down the eyes, etc. I prefer lipsticks to glosses but I will put glosses on top of lipsticks sometimes (I never really wear glosses alone). I like bold lips, so I tend to wear more colors than neutrals. My fav colors are blue reds (Chanel Rouge Coco in Cambon is my absolute perfect red), baby pinks, and fuschias. Some of my other fav shades are Mac Ahoy There, Chanel Rouge Coco Jersey Rose, NYX Doll, Mac Playtime, and YSL Volupte Sheer Candy in #6
 
im 25 and i have super oily skin.
i always prime with Cargo Blu-Ray mattifier.
lately, i've been using Clinique Superfit makeup which is now discontinued and MUFE micro powder to set.
Bobbi Brown cream blush
Urban Decay palette for eyes and some mascara to finish.

i was in chicago the past weekend and purchased a bunch of stuff which i LOVE and will definitely be switching over to.
Neutrogena healthy skin foundation (i wish it was available in canada)
Tarte smooth operator microfinish clay powder which i find is much better than the MUFE HD microfinish powder one for oil control.
Tarte clay blush
Milani liquid liner. i have the oiliest eyelids in the world and this is the BEST liquid liner i have ever come across. i can't believe it stays on ALL day. i wore it once while in chicago and ended up buying 2more to stock up since there's no Milani in Canada

for lips, it varies. i usually go for more sheer coverages in pinky-red, berry type colours. ive been using a lot of Revlon Lip butters lately...i'll put it on in the morning and never reapply during the day. i just end up slapping on lipbalms.
 
Milani liquid liner. i have the oiliest eyelids in the world and this is the BEST liquid liner i have ever come across. i can't believe it stays on ALL day. i wore it once while in chicago and ended up buying 2more to stock up since there's no Milani in Canada

Check out Sears & Loblaw's Superstore. I've been able to find Milani at both, but Sears has a better selection in Toronto :yes:
 
I'm 26 and have normal skin which sometimes gets a tad flaky in the winter, but nothing a bit of La Mer and exfoliating won't take care of.

Face wash - I use Jurlique and Natura Bisse but that's because I got it for free. I'd be ok using any drugstore brand.

Exfoliator - Natura Bisse Glyco Extreme. I only use this when I see that I'm getting flaky - which is about once a month during the winter months. Its seriously a miracle peel - I wash it away and my skin is baby smooth again! No redness or irritation. It only stings for a second when you apply it the first time.

Moisturizer - I use La Mer. I love the heavy cream feeling that makes my skin not only smooth, but soft and dewey. I don't really break out so it's not too heavy for me.

Sunscreen - Chanel UV Essentiel SPF 50. This year my new years resolution is to really go into sun protection mode and get rid of my freckles without having to resort to laser. I'm Asian - so I shouldn't really have freckles - but from years of going to the beach and playing outside in Australia, I'm noticeably getting more and more sun spots since my 20s...

Foundation - Usually nothing. On special days, I use Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua. It has spf 15 and is sheer enough that it doesn't look cakey. I don't need that much coverage yet. No concealer either.

Blush - Nars Deep Throat. I like it more than orgasm since it isn't sparkly and is pretty close to my natural cheek blush.

Lips - Nothing yet. My lips don't get chapped and are very pigmented. I actually don't know how to put on lipstick. Last time I did, my aunt said I looked like Ronald McDonald.

Eyes - Nars primer, Chanel Smokey Quad (just the dark silver on a normal day), Sephora waterproof eyeliner and DiorShow Mascara (can't live without DiorShow!)


Starting next week, I'm planning to start using Caudalie's Vinoperfect Complexion Correcting Radiance Serum to try and brighten up my skin too. I'll let you guys know how it goes.