i remember when i first started this blog almost four years ago, my signature pose involved me sheepishly looking away from the camera. my friends would all tease me and imitate me by awkwardly posing and hiding their faces. it’s true, starting this blog was about sharing my outfit photos, not my face. people would sometimes leave comments asking me to smile or look into the camera, but if you haven’t figured it out, i’m not exactly a ham for the camera. to quote one of my favorite films, “i have no illusions about my looks. i think my face is funny.” and unfortunately for me, this is not a movie, and i’m no audrey hepburn. my bangs are usually crooked from my last home haircut, i rarely pluck my eyebrows, and my makeup application is far from perfect. this is not to say that i’m wallowing in a pit of self-hatred, it’s just to say that i don’t exactly consider myself to be a seasoned beauty expert.
be that as it may, i’ve still had my share of fun at the makeup counter, and over the years, i’ve cultivated a pretty solid routine when it comes to my signature look. this coming from a girl who never even wore makeup until her mid-twenties and who recently googled “what the hell is bb cream?” but if you were ever curious about how i paint my face, then here it is:
what’s in my makeup bag by calivintage
above are the items i use almost every day, give or take a step or two, depending on how much time i have in the morning.1. make up for ever hd foundation (i’ve found this to be one of the few brands that carries a light to medium olive toned foundation for my skin), 2. urban decay 24/7 waterproof liquid eyeliner in perversion, 3. tarte cheek stain in natural beauty, 4. stila eyeshadow in kitten, 5. beautyblender sponges, 6. lipstick, 7. smashbox photo set finishing powder, 8. mac brushes (including a lip brush, which is super crucial), 9. tarte maracuja creaseless concealer, 10. diorshow black out waterproof mascara, 11. smashbox bronze lights, 12. j.crew leather dopp kit.
the only thing i usually swap out is my lip color, so i’ve listed my favorites below:
favorite lipstick by calivintage
1. ysl rouge pur couture in le rouge, 2. mac russian red, 3. nars heat wave, 4. make up for ever in rouge artist intense in satin bright orange, 5. nars schiap, 6. ysl rouge pur couture in le fuchsia.
i also wear a couple of other shades not listed including ysl fard a levres rouge pur in rosy coral and radiant cosmetics moisturizing lipstick in peony. and if you’re looking for the best drug store lipstick, then i recommend revlon matte lipstick.
34 comments
Great post! I love seeing what beauty products other bloggers use. I’ve been fighting with myself about whether or not to buy the beauty blender – all the reviews seems to say it’s worth it. I use the makeup forever HD foundation as well so maybe I should? Anyway I love your style, both makeup and clothes!!
the beautyblender is definitely expensive, but before i used them, i would just use those little disposable sponges. so for me, it’s just less waste. and the shape is a lot easier for me to apply makeup, so i recommend it!
You are so stunning! I know this was about makeup, but you had me praising your gorgeousness!
love the recs! i also have a pale olive skin tone and it is just so darn hard to match sometimes. i’m running out to sephora after work and trying out that foundation and most likely some of those lip colors because i just can’t help myself. thank you for sharing and for what it’s worth, i think you look just perfect in all of your pics!
yes! i find it to be such a hard color to match! i also have a friend who works at sephora who told me that they have this really cool color matching system at the stores. i didn’t even know they had that, but apparently you can ask an employee and they will match your skin and give you a list of foundations that will work for you. definitely worth a try!!
ah! that sounds fantastic! i’m headed over there now and will be sure to ask them for that – thanks!
I know you may not think it yourself, but you have one of the prettiest faces in blogging. I love it and your make-up always looks beautifully done. It’s great to see what you use, I love the YSL lipsticks. x
oh my goodness, thank you so much! that is such a sweet compliment. you really made my day. :) :) :)
Well I think you photograph really well – your look really complements the clothes you wear – go Cali!
Oh, Erin, I would never say that your face looks funny. You are so beautiful. I hope you believe that now!
xo Jennifer
I know this is not what you were getting at but I think you are so beautiful, you have a lovely radiance and an amazing figure! Such a beaut!
haha, thanks! i really wasn’t fishing for compliments, but i appreciate it all the same! you are so sweet!
Loved this post, Erin! I’m not a huge make-up person, and have had the same routine for years, but have recently wanted to try and change things up. I’m most stumped by lipstick, so i really appreciate seeing the different shades you prefer!
girl, you would look so good in a really bold lip color!
I’m bookmarking this for future reference because I find it super hard to find foundation/concealer to match my skin. I think I’ve got a sort of pale olive skin (well, neutral yellow) but all the pale things are either too pale, too pink or too orange. Also, love the lipstick shades, I’ll try the Rimmel suggestion, sounds good.
oh hosh posh, your gorgeous!! i’m constantly telling my daughter how i find that the “text book” pretty girl i don’t find so pretty. i find that unique looking women are the ones i tend to find beautiful, i think mostly because they have a different look. wether it be bushy eye brows or a gap between the teeth, if they own it, it’s beauty!
Eeeep I love this post! I have to say you seem to have gotten the hang of eyeliner – the shape always looks so perfect! Do you have any advice for wearing bold lip colors? Wwhenever I wear bright lipstick, it doesn’t want to stay put and bleeds!
i don’t use any sort of primer for my lips, but i do wear foundation and i apply it over the outer edges of my lips. it sort of just happens when i’m blending it on. i think that helps to keep it in place during the day. i don’t use lipliner, but i know that also helps because it usually has a more waxy formula that stays in place better!
Thank you! ♡
So, for starters, we use almost all the same makeup. Swear by that liner, and almost all those exact shades of lipstick (I will be trying the others). We have the same skin tone, so that’s no surprise. But about the looking away and not being a ham, oh and your face looking funny… I completely get that. My face is funny looking too, and that is what makes us (yes us, because I’m being extra confident at the moment) beautiful. We have a unique look, and that is what I think beauty really is.
I love this post. One of your best!
this comment! you are so wonderful and i completely agree with you. and your words make me feel that much more confident!!
Erin, you were born beautiful with or without makeup! I like the choices very much!
I always think your make-up looks flawless! I think having a blog and having your face at enormous dimensions on the internet kind of encourages make-up use! I don’t think I even owned lipstick two years ago and now…
you are so right! makeup always reads better on camera. i can definitely attribute some of my lipstick purchases to the amount of photos i take.
I don’t know much about make-up at all. I used to have my God-mother just send things to me since she worked for Mary Kay and got a lot of free things. . .but when she died a year and a half ago (ovarian cancer) my best friend took over to advise me in the make-up area and brought me to a place and taught me. haha. I am still learning and love learning from posts like this one too!!!
It all looks so lovely on you.
Were not all perfect when it comes to our make up, except there rare few, lol. It’s okay we’re all still learning. xNel
p.s.I love your lipstick choices, are amazing and versatile colors.
I think your makeup always looks great and to be perfectly honest, I googled bb cream as well a few months ago when I saw it on Keiko’s blog haha
You’re supposed to pluck your eyebrows? haha im jk, but I HAVENT DONE IT IN YEARS…well at least 18months…You have a great face!
hahaha, yeah, i mean, i go through phases where i let them grow and then like 2 weeks when i suddenly think they’re supposed to be all glamorous and shaped and i get them threaded. and then all of that awkward time in-between when they’re just growing back out…
pristine eyeliner ;) work it girl!
I think you have a beautiful face! I’ve always thought in addition to great style, you are lovely and your makeup is as well.
Love your look from your hairstyle to your makeup! You can never go wrong with cat eyeliner and red lips in my opinion!
http://dollarfoolishclosetwise.blogspot.ca
HI! I´m new to the blog and I´m smitten (both with the blog but also….) with the yellow dress you´re flaunting in this post! I LOVE it! Any chance you can tell me more?? Puh-Lease?!
ah, thank you! the dress is from darling uk, but it’s from several seasons ago now! wish it was still available!