Cosmetics - why don't they stay on my face?

[stormkeeper_lovedoris]

If you wear make-up, do you ever find that it does not actually last very long on your face?

I put on mascara, eyeshadow, blush, and lipstick in the morning, and I find that after not very long, the eyeshadow and the blush are MIA. I expect the lipstick to not last long because I'm always sipping water. But where do the blush and eyeshadow go? Do I sweat profusely or am I wearing not-good brands? I don't rub my eyes or touch my cheeks.

Comments

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Nope, you're not sweating or anything weird like that - it's just that makeup (particularly eye makeup, for reasons that I've never particularly figured out) fades pretty quickly, especially if you don't use foundation and/or powder along with it (powder for cream makeups, for the most part, if my understanding is right - because of my skin's annoying peach-fuzz, I can't use powder unless it's to set serious stage-grade makeup, because up close it highlights all the teensy little hairs. Not appealing).

The best thing to do if you want to avoid foundation (which I'm assuming since you didn't mention it) is to use a nice moisturizer before you put on your makeup. You might also try some of the cream eyeshadow blends, to see how they work, but honestly I've had more trouble with them than luck.

In short... don't worry, everybody who wears makeup has this problem. XD

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Oh, seconding the cream-blush that someone mentioned further up the page. I used to use it, but it turned out to be too much color for my skin and tended to look unnatural if I wasn't careful with it. It's very nice, though, especially in winter when you don't really want powder on your skin.

[sarahetc.livejournal.com]

You might like a cheek-stain (which can often double as lip stains) too, then. Many are formulated with alcohol, so they can be a bit drying if you already have some dryness, but there are gel formulations as well. Benefit and Tarte make two popular stains-- tarte has a bigger shade selection.

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

If something is a stain, then is it more of a cream than a powder? Is that what a stain is?

[sarahetc.livejournal.com]

A stain is usually pigment suspended in alcohol. You brush or smooth on the stain. The alcohol evaporates and leaves the pigment behind. On skin (lip or other), this means that there's no oil or emulsion to aid the transfer away from your skin, so it stays longer. Staying power is good, but drying is bad, so there sort of has to be a balance, especially on the lips, since they produce no oil of their own and the alcohol actually pulls moisture out. If I wear lipstain I but a balm or gloss over the top of it.

There are several different formulations. Many are liquid. Benetint is the consistency of water and comes in a bottle with an applicator brush like a bottle of nailpolish. I've also used a lipstain (what can be used for cheeks can be used for lips and vice versa) that was thin but not watery that came in a tube with a felt-tip applicator like a pen (Urban Decay, not recommended). The plus side to the watery stains is that you start with a very, very little and then build up coverage to the intensity you want. And a little goes a LONG way.

There are also gel formulas that are closer to a creme, but still very sheer. The pigmentation is there, but it's not as dense so that you can again get buildable coverage.

[stormkpr.livejournal.com]

In short... don't worry, everybody who wears makeup has this problem. XD

That does indeed make me feel better.

Perhaps I'll experiment a bit with powders or cream eyeshadows.