As a beauty blogger, I must say that I didn’t start playing with makeup at a very young age. In fact, my venture into these cosmetic products started when I was around 20-21 years old. When I first started, like any other beginners, I wasn’t very good at it, especially perfecting that flawless winged eyeliner.

After getting the perfect wing, I went into the playful world of eyeshadows. Perhaps it’s because I have that artistic flair, I was pretty good at eyeshadow application for a beginner. I began to get a lot of requests for eyeshadow tutorials and hence, I decided to include a pictorial for a neutral everyday eye makeup at the end of this post!

Well, let’s look into the makeup products you need (in my opinion) if you are just starting out dolling yourself up!

To start off your makeup, you definitely have to prep your skin by applying a makeup primer! A primer makes your complexion smoother and more even, and it certainly helps your makeup lasts longer (Read my short interview with primers here). My recommendation to reduce redness on the skin is the Etude House Magic Any Cushion in Mint. It provides SPF34/PA++, thus you don’t have to apply a separate sunscreen. The mint shade also cancels out redness on your skin for an even makeup application later on.

After prepping your skin, it’s time to cover those blemishes and imperfections even more. For such a humid weather like Singapore’s, my personal choice would be the Laneige Pore Control BB Cushion. I’ve never been a BB cream lover because it breaks my sensitive skin out but this is perfect for my skin! It covers and hides my flaws with its medium coverage and controls the oil and shine rather well too! What’s more, it’s easy to apply and perfect to throw into your makeup pouch for touch-ups!

In such a hot and humid weather like Singapore’s, you definitely have to set your makeup with a powder. I’d recommend the Ettusais BB Mineral Compact, simply because it works to mattify your complexion and sets your makeup. Formulated with oil control properties, this is a useful product to combat the crazy summer weather!

For that radiant glow, don’t forget your blushers. You may skip this step if you are not into blushers. I do apply blushers whenever I put makeup so as to make my skin seem healthy and glowy. Just pat on a little colour on the apples of your cheeks (smile when you do that) and you are ready to show your face to the world. The Vecua Honey Honey Dew Cherry Cheeks in Fresh Cherry/Juicy Cherry does a great job (and smells heavenly) in giving you that healthy glow.

If you are starting out makeup, you probably only want to define your eyes and make them look more attractive, right? 😉 To do that, you just need neutral eyeshadows – browns and taupes. Head for the Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette if you are willing to invest in a high-quality power-packed eyeshadow palette. If not, the Wet N Wild Color Icon Palette (The Naked Truth) is a more affordable alternative (you can get it at www.luxola.com if you wish).

To further make your eyes stand out, you need a good eyeliner. With the Maybelline Lasting Drama Pen Gel Liner, you can expect a dark black colour payoff and longevity of the pigment on the eyes. It withstands the hot weather really well too and I have gone through countless of this. It might be a little hard to first work with this but if you get used to it, you are sure to love this one.

If you have Asian eyes like me, the Shu Uemura Eye Lash Curler is just the product for you! It fits the curvature of the eyes snugly, thus allowing maximum contact of the curler to the lashes. It curls like a dream as well and I cannot live without this curler! This is my 3rd curler already!

Complete your eye makeup with a touch of mascara! The Clio Salon De Cara Mascaras are perfect for lengthening and giving volume to your lashes. There are 3 variations to this product line so pick one that suits your needs! Full review here if you would like to learn more about it.

If you have dry and chapped lips like me, without a doubt, you need a good lip balm. My favourites are tinted lip balms because you can skip lipsticks if you want a natural lip colour. For a more affordable choice, check out the Etude House Lip Balms (Don’t Worry ones are discontinued and replaced with Kissful Lip Balms) and if you would like to indulge, the Burt’s Bees Lip Balms are great too!

For a special occasion, you probably would like to put on some lipsticks to brighten up your entire look. I would recommend lipsticks from MAC Cosmetics, especially their Sheen Supreme Lipsticks because they are very long-lasting and an alternative would be the Jumbo Lip Crayons from popular Korean brand 3 Concept Eyes a.k.a. 3CE for that ombre lip effect.

Of course, if you want to apply your makeup in a neater and more hygienic manner, makeup brushes are recommended. Check out 13rushes, a local makeup brushes company specialising in making functional yet cruelty-free brushes for your makeup needs! I personally own more than 10 from this line and I absolutely love it. Highly recommended if you are experimenting with brushes.

Well, this sums up the makeup essentials that I am recommending if you are venturing into makeup. Here’s a short pictorial for an everyday makeup look if you are clueless about eyeshadow application like most beginners do!

Hope you enjoyed this post! Tag me (#paradeoflovemakeup) if you recreated this neutral eyeshadow look! 🙂

Create yourself and be gorgeous! ♡

XOXO, Roanna.