My 6 Biggest Beauty Mistakes (And How You Can Avoid Them)

Over the years, I’ve made some mistakes while learning how to do makeup and skincare effectively. Most of them were simple mistakes because I didn’t know better. Some were stubbornness.

However, just because I made these mistakes doesn’t mean you have to. Some of these are fairly common mistakes, but others are a bit more unique to me.

Pumping My Mascara Wand

I’d go so far as to say that not pumping your mascara wand is the minority, even now. I believe that it used to be good beauty advice, and only recently have people started to realize that it’s really bad for your mascara. It dries your product out, and it won’t last anywhere near as long.

Since stopping that, I’ve been able to make a tube of mascara last a lot longer. Which, of course, saves money. Plus, dry mascara doesn’t look very good when you put it on.

Read the rest of my biggest makeup mistakes on mugsandmakeupblog.com!

My Top 5 Favorite Highlighters

If you’re like me and want to glow from space, this is the article for you! Highlighter is my absolute favorite part of makeup at this point. Choosing my highlight is almost as hard as choosing my palette for the day.

These are my absolute favorite highlighters in my collection:

Wet N Wild MegaGlo highlighter

This is my all time favorite highlighter. I have it in a single and a 4-pan palette, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. I’ve never found a color that was a dud! They’re blinding and amazing, yet they’re extremely inexpensive. They run about $4 each, and around holidays they’ll put out a palette at $12 or so. If you love a blinding highlighter that you can get at Walmart, this is your best bet.

Soph x Makeup Revolution Highlighter Palette

Makeup Revolution is an under-appreciated gem. This palette has 8 shades, 3 pressed powder and 5 baked shades. There’s a shade for every skin tone in there, and honestly these are some of the most blinding highlights I’ve ever tried. They come in all sorts of undertones as well. You can mix them for even more tones.

Colourpop Super Shock Highlighter in Flexitarian

The inner corner highlight you never knew you needed. If you’re looking at a picture of me and wondering why my inner corners are so bright, it’s this highlighter! It’s also very inexpensive, and it has the unique buttery formula of the Super Shock eye shadows. If you want to put it on your face, I’d recommend tapping it on with your fingers because very few brushes work well with it. Only really stiff ones work here.

Makeup Revolution Rose Gold Glow Mini Chocolate Palette

And here we are again with Makeup Revolution. This mini palette has two highlighters: a champagne and a pink. Both look great, and both can be blended out or packed on as desired. They’re also super pigmented, extremely bright, and glowy without being unnecessarily glittery.

Too Faced Diamond Light Highlighter in Fancy Pink Diamond

This highlight is a new fav thanks to Boxycharm. I wasn’t sure about it at first, I’d heard mixed reviews. But it’s absolutely stunning! It’s a duochrome pink and blue/gold shimmer that just blinds you when it goes on. It’s easy to get the product out, despite it being packed tight. it doesn’t have a ton of kickback, and the packaging is amazing!

Is your favorite highlight on this list? Let me know what your favorite highlighter is in the comments below!

What Kind of Foundation is Best for You?

Choosing a foundation is one of the hardest parts of getting a flawless makeup routine. There are so many moving parts involved in choosing one, including your skin type, your preferred primers, and even the rest of your makeup! Many makeup websites will have this information, and Sephora will even sort their foundations on their website by these different factors.

Taking all of these things into account will help you find a foundation that works for you.

Skin Type

Skin type is the first and most important thing to consider when choosing your foundation. The most common types are dry, oily, normal, and combination. Dry and oily are fairly self explanatory, as is normal. Combination is a mixture of those. If you’re not sure what your skin type is, Tatcha has these two great methods to try to figure it out! I tend towards dryness, which impacts my foundation choices significantly. Matte or oil controlling foundations don’t usually work for me, and can make my skin look dry and flakey.

Skin Undertones

This impacts your choice of shade of your foundation. The three main undertones are cool, warm, and neutral. Warm undertones tend towards yellow, peachy, or golden. Cool ones are pink, red, or blueish. Neutral is a mix of those two. This cool guide from Stylecaster gives you several different tests to see what your undertones are (including the age old jewelry trick).

Other Skin Concerns

This is where you address concerns such as sensitive skin, dry patches, or acne. Often you handle most of those with skincare. However, you should keep an eye out for whether or not a foundation you’re interested in will cater to those issues. Many foundations are formulated with ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, retinoids, or salicylic acid to help with those.

Primers and Foundation Base

The type of primer you use will make a big difference in your foundation choices as well. Silicone based primers such as Maybelline Baby Skin, Benefit Porefessional, or CoverFX Blurring primer are best with silicone based foundations. Water based primers such as the Too Faced Hangover Primer, Smashbox Photofinish Primer Water, and Laura Mercier  Foundation Primer work best with water based foundations. If you try to mix the two, it can cause your foundation to separate and get cakey on your skin.

Foundation Formulas

So this is looking at things like mineral foundation vs stick foundation vs liquid foundation. This just depends on how your skin reacts. Often, stick foundations settle into fine lines and don’t perform as well on dry skin. Mineral foundations tend to work well on sensitive skin. Liquid foundations, particularly those without a mattefying effect, don’t work as well on oily skin. Now there are always exceptions, so be sure to research the foundation(s) that you’re interested in!

Foundation Finish

Lastly, you want to decide what kind of finish is your favorite. Some people really like their skin to look smooth and matte. Others love a fresh and dewy skin. That’s definitely personal preference above anything else, but again, some things you may have to use other products to achieve. With my dry skin, I can’t really use many mattefying foundations. So I use a mattefying powder instead. If you can’t use dewy foundations, then use a matte one and be generous with your favorite highlighter.

My current favorite foundations are the Makeup Revolution Conceal and Hydrate (moisturizing, medium-full coverage) and the Maybelline Superstay (full coverage, long wearing). What are your favorite foundations? Let me know in the comments!

Makeup Tips for Beginners

When you first start trying to work with makeup, it can seem daunting. There are so many products, so many techniques, and absolutely gorgeous eye looks on people who look like they’ve been doing makeup for decades. Where do you even start?

If you’re new at makeup, or if you’ve been doing it for a while and just want some ways to spice up your look, this post will help you out! I want to give you some options or suggestions of things to try to level up your makeup game.

Make Sure Your Foundation Works for Your Skin

It’s so important that you make sure that your foundation works for your skin type. I hated the way my skin looked for so long- and it was because I was using a very matte foundation on dry skin. Now, you can use a matte foundation on drier skin if you use the right one and prep your skin properly, but I was doing neither of those things.

If you have dry skin, a dewy or satiny foundation is better. A mattefying powder can give you a matte look without drying your skin out, just be frugal with it! If your skin is oily, a matte foundation tends to work better. If you want a dewy finish, find liquid highlighter or a glowy serum to mix in with your foundation.

Easy, Elegant Eyeshadow

One way to create a simple, yet elegant look is to use your face products as eyeshadows. Start with your bronzer and create some depth to your crease. Then take your highlighter or a single shimmery shadow to create a gorgeous, glam look that is tied together with the rest of your face makeup. If you’re feeling super extra, then work your blush shade in there!

Blend, Blend, and Blend Some More

Blending is SO important. It takes time to learn, but in many cases it’s better to overblend than under-blend. Two places it’s very important to blend are on the edges of your shadows and where the colors overlap. Particularly where colors overlap. Smooth transitions make all the difference!

If you’re having a hard time blending in general, look into some new brushes. If you’re having a hard time blending out the edges, find a shadow that’s a match for your skin color and use it to help smooth the edges of your shadow out!

Wear Mascara

Wearing mascara is a quick, easy way to make your eyes look larger and just in general brightens your face. The important thing is to find a mascara that works for you. And don’t feel like you have to try expensive ones to get a good mascara! Colourpop, L’Oreal, and Essence have some great ones.

Bright Lipstick Can Make You Look More Put Together

In a hurry? Just spot conceal anything you feel like you need to, maybe throw on a BB cream and some mascara, then finish it off with a bright, fun lipstick. It doesn’t have to be super out there, but a more noticeable color than just a nude lippie. You want to make your bright lipstick the focus of the face, which will instantly make you both look and feel more put together.

What are your best tips for new makeup users? Let me know in the comments!

How to Choose the Right Lipstick

If you’re new to lipstick, choosing something you like can be frustrating and difficult. This post is intended to be a general guideline for what to try if you don’t know what to try.

If you want to try something not on this list or outside of these general ideas, do it! I’m never one to get in the way of someone enjoying makeup to the fullest.

With that, let’s start figuring out what you like!

Choosing a Lipstick Finish

So first, a few definitions. Please note that there are definitely more finishes than these, but they tend to be fairly self explanatory (ex: glitter, hi-shine, frost, metallic, etc).

Many finishes also tend to be on a range. Here we’re focusing on the three most common categories.

Matte – No shine whatsoever. Tend to have high staying power and high pigment. These are great for if you’ve got places to be and you don’t need to be worrying about your lipstick!

Satin – Mid range in all ways. Some shine but not to the level of gloss. Staying power isn’t as good as matte lipsticks overall. However, these are amazing for everyday lipsticks, particularly if reapplying won’t mess with your groove.

Sheer – All shine all the time. These tend to have very light pigment, and are more intended for a gentle wash of color. If you’re nervous about experimenting with lipstick, this is a great place to start.

Usually, preferences on these depend on your preferred finish and how you want your lipstick to feel. You should take staying power into the account as well, though. Lipstick finish is a really unique thing that depends on the person, the day, and even the color! I have a range of finishes in my lipstick storage, so don’t feel like you have to pick one. Try different things and see what formulas you like.

Choosing a Lipstick Color

Obviously, colors are entirely a preference thing. These are guidelines for if you’re not sure where to start, not rules that you should feel trapped by! If you enjoy wearing it, you can wear it.

Your undertones also make a huge difference when choosing a color. Cool vs warm undertones are something you should definitely keep an eye out for.

Pinks

Pale/neutral pink shades are great for lighter skinned people who are looking for something subtle and easy to wear. Satin or even sheer shades of pink are great if you want it to look more natural. Bubblegum shades are gorgeous as well, particularly on darker skin tones where the vivid color will pop.

Reds

Literally everyone has a red that will look great on them. A bright cherry blue-red will flatter basically anyone. And if you’re not feeling that, try an orange-y red to set off dark, cool skin tones or a deep maroon/red-violet against very pale skin. Often, red lipstick is the first lipstick people buy because it adds an instant elegance to a look, which will lead them to purchase a lipstick even if they don’t usually like wearing lip colors.

Nudes

Nude lipsticks are sometimes hard to match. There are numerous tips and tricks out there for finding your perfect nude lip, but once you find it never let it go! Nudes obviously can range from very light peachy tones to dark mahoganies. Just because a shade isn’t technically “your” nude shade doesn’t mean that it’s not a shade that would look great on you.

Other Colors

Beyond that, experiment! I’ve got a bright purple lipstick that I enjoy wearing. Dark maroon-plum colors are great fall colors. As are caramel browns. Plums look beautiful in fall-winter.

Finding your favorite lipstick takes time and searching through many different ones. Subscription boxes are a great way to try new formulas because they often feature a lip product every month. You’ll be able to build your collection and try many different products.

Personally, my current favorite lipsticks are Colourpop Lux Lipstick in Belle(or anything from this line) and Huda Beauty Liquid Lipstick in Trophy Wife. What tips have been the most helpful in your lipstick selections? Let us know in the comments!

Foundation Application: Brush vs Sponge

Whether you should use a brush or a sponge for foundation application depends on your foundation and your skin. There are a lot of factors that can affect the way your foundation sits on your skin, including how you apply it! But foundation application is a fairly divisive issue here in the beauty community. I’ve gathered as many of the arguments that I can in order to help you decide what will work best for you.

Brush Application

The biggest argument I’ve seen against applying with a brush is that you end up with brush strokes in your foundation once it’s on your face. However, in many cases that depends both on your brush and your foundation.

Stiff, domed brushes work really well to buff in foundation. The Sephora PRO Mini Flawless Airbrush (#56.5) is a solid option, as is the Ecotools Buffing brush. Flat brushes also will work, but they don’t achieve quite as flawless of a finish as a buffing brush.

If you buff in your foundation with a brush, you’ll get more coverage than from a sponge. Brushes are also great for buffing in cream or stick foundations, which tend to be more difficult to blend in general.

Sponge Application

Applying with a damp sponge aims to help avoid having brush strokes in your foundation. This method also produces a more soft, airbrushed look. It doesn’t have quite as much coverage, and can use more product than a brush. However, some people just struggle to get brushes to work properly without streaking and prefer sponges for that reason.

Aside from the obvious beautyblender, there are some great sponges out there. Beauty Bakerie has some great ones, as does Ecotools. I’ve also heard great things about the elf sponge.

Sponges are very well suited to liquid foundations and other liquid products such as liquid blush and highlight. If your product is super creamy, you shouldn’t have any issues with using a sponge to blend it into your skin.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the choice between buffing in your foundation with a sponge or a brush really depends on what kind of sponge or brush you have, as well as the type of foundation. Try different things to make sure you’re getting your favorite coverage for your look!

What is your favorite method of foundation application? Let us know in the comments!

Yes Oh Yas March 2019 Reviews

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. I will earn a small commission if you purchase through those links at no extra cost to you. All of my links are for things I personally like and use regularly. Thanks for helping me out here at Mugs and Makeup!

I’m a huge fan of subscription boxes. It’s like a gift to yourself! Every month! I found this subscription box thanks to Instagram. Yes Oh Yas is a monthly box where you get 3-7 full sized products for $14.99. This month was my first box, and I’m actually quite impressed!

The products were good quality, full sized, and of brands that I’d never heard of but am so far impressed with. Check out what I got and see if Yes Oh Yas is something you’d be interested in!

Doucce Ultra Precision Eyeliner in 500

I didn’t realize until recently how difficult it can be to find a good eyeliner for my waterline and tightline that doesn’t bleed off or disappear within a couple of hours. This eyeliner is waterproof, super creamy, and very very black. It’s actually an amazing pencil liner and I’m impressed.

Moira Lush Matte Cream in Butter Cake

Let me start off by saying that I absolutely love this shade. It’s a gorgeous ‘your lips but better’ nude. The formula goes on the lips as a creamy, nourishing, whipped texture. Unfortunately, that’s where the awesomeness stops for this product. It has less staying power than any other matte lipstick that I’ve ever tried. It just comes right off. No staying power at all, really. I really wanted to like this, but it’s definitely not my favorite.

Mirabella Eye Crayon in Semisweet

This eye crayon is super pigmented! I don’t tend to use a lot of browns, but this color is definitely gorgeous. It’s matte and non greasy, but it glides on the lid with no issue. It’s smudgeable, which is super helpful. I can see it being useful for a smokey eye look. I haven’t seen any creasing either, which is super impressive. While you can smudge it, it also doesn’t end up melting off super easily. Overall, while I’m not sure how much use this shade will get, it’s definitely a cool product and I’m fairly impressed.

Bella Terra Mascara

This is a big no from me. This mascara smudged SO badly. It didn’t even last a full day. It’s not very dark, doesn’t hold any curl, doesn’t do much for length, and barely adds volume. It felt like I didn’t have any mascara on at all. I’m definitely not a fan, this was the one big no product from this box.

IBY Beauty Cheek to Cheek Blush Duo in Peachy

I’m actually pretty into this. The blushes are almost too pigmented, which can cause a problem if you don’t have a very light hand. But they blend beautifully (when you don’t have a horribly heavy hand) and they are gorgeous shades. I’m definitely a fan for sure. It’ll be interesting to see what else this brand comes out with!

So guys, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and sign up!!

Sign Up for Yes Oh Yas!

Drugstore Brands that Really Have it Together

Just because makeup is more expensive doesn’t mean it’s better! I’m always on the hunt for drugstore brands that bring great quality to the table for a good price. Personally, I try to keep a good mix of both kinds of products in my rotation.

I’ve found recently that to keep up with inexpensive indie brands that pop up (such as Colourpop and BH Cosmetics), drugstore brands have been really stepping up with quality and products offered. There are a few brands in particular that have been impressing me.

Wet N Wild

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Wet N Wild’s highlighters are at a level with any high end highlight you want to put it up against. Now I’ve gotten a couple of duds from this brand, but overall their makeup is very affordable but good quality. Their Photofocus foundation is a nice medium-full coverage. I personally haven’t had great results with the Liquid Catsuit lipsticks, but overall those are well loved.

NYX

Nyx is one of the more expensive brands on this list, but their products are also very high quality. One of my favorite items they sell is their loose glitter and glitter glue! They’re the only drugstore brand that I know of that sells them. Their Can’t Stop Won’t Stop foundation has great reviews, and their eyeshadow palettes are supposed to be really fantastic as well.

e.l.f Cosmetics

Now elf has really been putting effort into their products recently. They dropped a $5 Shape Tape dupe that I’m looking forward to trying, and they’ve been upping their quality significantly recently. Their brow pencil in Deep Brown is the perfect shade for my brows, and their lip scrub is the best! They’ve been creating tons of skincare that looks really legit as well.

Makeup Revolution

Now, Makeup Revolution isn’t technically a drugstore brand here in the US, but it is in the UK so I included it in this list because it’s definitely drugstore price. I’ve found some gorgeous products from them though! Currently, I have their Conceal and Define concealer, which is completely full coverage and makes my dark circles basically disappear. I also have the Emily Edit Wants palette and the Soph highlighter palette. Both are gorgeous, and both get constant use. My makeup wishlist is about 30% Makeup Revolution products!

What drugstore brands and products have been really impressing you lately? Let me know in the comments!

March 2019 Drugstore Makeup Haul

I wasn’t planning on having a haul for you this week, but I got some interesting drugstore makeup recently. I was tired of being stuck in the house so I went on to CVS to find some makeup! I found a couple of things that I was interested in trying.

elf HD Lifting Concealer in Fair

When I bought this, I definitely confused it with the 24 hr coverage concealer. I was hoping for that major coverage but didn’t get it. This concealer has an absolutely tiny doe foot applicator, making it almost impossible to apply under the eyes with any speed. It’s just a frustrating product to work with. It’s also quite dark for my skin, even with the lightest shade. On top of all of that, not having any coverage? Nah, this concealer wasn’t a great buy.

LA Girl HD Pro Conceal in Peacy Corrector

This surprised me with how good it is! I was originally concerned that this would be a dud product. Especially with the weird plastic bristled brush applicator. But it’s very pigmented and very opaque. My only issue is that it’s a little dark for me. But it does a great job on my dark circles so a lighter concealer will balance it out.

Wet n Wild ColorIcon Kohl Liner in Baby’s Got Black

Decent eyeliner, not fantastic. It’s very pigmented and smooth, which I love. But I really only use pencil liners in my water line and I need something that’s not going to smudge off within a couple of hours. This is very smudgy. It’s a fantastic deal, and if you use your eye pencils for other purposes it’s a great budget option. Just not for this particular usage.

Boxycharm February 2019

Hey guys, I’m back! It’s been quite a couple of weeks. I ended up taking last week off to just… chill. I was on vacation for a couple of weeks, which is why this is so late! I’m very excited to review everything for you, however.

This month’s Boxycharm was worth $121! It was a great box overall, with some products I was super excited to try.

Too Faced Better than Sex Mascara

This was a product I was very excited to try. This is considered to be one of the best mascaras on the market. However, I wasn’t terribly impressed. I’ll be fair here- I am extremely picky about mascara. This one does add beautiful length to my lashes. But I have some lashes that struggle to stay curled, and this did absolutely nothing for them. And it clumped a bit on my lower lashes in a way that I wasn’t a fan of. It’s not awful, but it really didn’t change my life.

Pretty Vulgar Shimmering Swan Highlighter in Glow Up

Pretty Vulgar is one of those amazing yet highly underrated brands. I liked this highlighter a lot, though it’s not as glowy and beaming as I like my highlight. Other than that, it’s beautiful. It goes on nicely and doesn’t show off a bunch of texture. If you prefer subtle, this is the highlight for you!

touch in Sol No POREblem Primer

So far, I’m loving this. The feel of it is amazing, not too silicone-y but not too moisturizer like either. It definitely made my makeup last! The pump is amazing, and the packaging is very lux feeling. My pores look significantly smaller with this primer alone, and my makeup looks flawless with it on! I was surprised to find that the lines I have on my forehead were blurred somewhat as well. It’s a great product, even given it’s price.

Farmacy Clean Bee Ultra-Gentle Cleanser

First off, I love that this feels ever so slightly moisturizing. not like it’s greasy, but like it doesn’t strip your face. It’s very gentle, and is perfect after my makeup removing balm. It smells very herby, but also somewhat like honey. I’m not particularly blown away by this, but I do enjoy using it and it hasn’t caused me, or my skin, any issues.

Trestique Prime + Glaze Lip Crayon in English Rose

My first reaction was to be frustrated because I felt like this should be more pigmented and closer to the packaging color. But as I wore it, I came to absolutely love it! It feels amazing on the lips, and the primer prepped my lips so well. English Rose is a gorgeous color as well. Such a gorgeous, soft pink! The packaging feels very sturdy and it’s kinda fun looking as well. The only thing I have against it is that it feels a bit sticky on the lips. That wouldn’t really even bother me if my hair didn’t get stuck in it! But I would absolutely get more shades of this.