Beginner Makeup Starter Kit for Black Women with 30 Affordable Products
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Sometimes it seems that doing your makeup requires a lot of skill, time, and money, but it doesn’t have to! You can still create a beautiful face with just basic beginner makeup products. This article is a beginner’s makeup kit guide for everyone just starting with makeup and not wanting to break the bank. Here are some questions you might have about makeup, followed by some great beginner products to use.
What makeup should I buy for a beginner?
Drugstores like CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, etc., usually have affordable, name-brand makeup that is good for beginners. They don’t always have the best foundation shade ranges, but it is a great place to start to find what works for you. The best things to start with are foundation, concealer, eyeliner, mascara, and highlight. You can create an amazing face of makeup with just these few products.
Where do you start makeup for beginners?
Start with the basics: Eyes, lips, and skin. For the eyes, you want a primer, eyeliner, and eyeshadow to begin with. The lips are the easiest part of doing makeup. There are so many liquid lipstick and lip gloss options, and it’s the easiest to apply. Low-cost lipglosses are also great for layering over lipsticks to give them a nice shine. Matte liquid lipsticks last the longest and will stay on for hours, so they are great if you’re looking for something to last all day.
What does a beginner makeup artist kit need?
A beginner makeup kit will need the basics: Primer, concealer, and foundation to start. You can add on everything else as you hone your skills better. Eyeliner and mascara are also great basics to have if you like to enhance your eyes.
How do you do a simple makeup look?
You can do a simple makeup look in a variety of ways. It all depends on how simple you want it to be. Looking on Youtube for beginner makeup tutorials is a great place to start. It is also a great place to find affordable products to start your journey with. Simply starting with eyeliner, mascara and lipstick can create an effortless look to start.
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Primer
To ‘prime’ or smooth the skin before the foundation is applied. It works as a base to make the rest of the makeup apply smoothly. Here are some of the best primers for beginners.
This primer is lightweight and will make your skin feel so baby smooth. It is a great addition to your beginner makeup kit as it will get your face nice and ready for the next steps. The best part is, it works for all skin types!
Foundation
Foundation smooths your skin and makes it look radiant before applying the rest of your makeup. You could even stop here at foundation if you wanted a simple, natural-looking makeup look or if you’re just slowly dipping your toes in. Here are some great foundations to add to your beginner makeup kit.
Not only does this foundation come in 40 shades, but it’s also a great foundation for beginners. Maybelline is a great brand in general because it can be found in most drugstores and is one of the more affordable makeup brands. This foundation minimizes your pores and absorbs oil for a matte finish.
If you’re not yet ready for a liquid foundation, or it’s not your thing, Maybelline makes a foundation stick that’s great for beginners! It also is great for multitasking and can be used as a concealer, contour, and highlight—a perfect option for those looking for affordable items to add to their makeup bag.
Powder
If you want a matte look to your makeup, using powder will help tremendously. It is similar to foundation, but it can also enhance it after applying foundation. Here are a few great powders to have in your kit.
This loose powder is great for setting your makeup in place. It also blends away tiny lines, wrinkles & blemishes to create a smooth face. It works for all skin tones but is recommended for normal skin types.
this powder works best for people with oily to normal skin. It is great for getting rid of shine and adding a matte finish to your makeup look. It comes with an applicator to make applying it much easier, which makes it great for beginners.
Concealer
This only goes on the part of your face to cover dark areas and brighten up your face. The best areas to add concealer are under your eyes and around your nose. It’s best for covering dark circles and scars. If you are looking to cover some dark spots on your skin, check out these great concealers.
This concealer is very affordable and comes in 31 shades. It also features a brush tip applicator for easy application and is great for concealing around the brows for a “fresh out of the salon” look. It provides complete, natural-looking coverage, evens out the skin tone, covers dark circles, and minimizes fine lines around the eyes.
This concealer is great for covering up dark spots and under-eye circles. It comes with a targeted applicator to define and focus on the areas you want to conceal. It’s also best to blend with your fingers after applying it to your face with the applicator.
Bronzer
Gives your skin a gorgeous glow as you’ve never seen. Bronzer is similar to highlight, but the difference is that bronzer gives you a beautiful sun-kissed look. Bronzer is for those of us who want the sun to bounce off our cheeks and blind everyone with our radiance.
This bronzer is infused with Murumuru butter to moisturize the skin and give it a gorgeous goddess glow! It also features ultra-refined pearl that smooth skin texture, brighten skin tone, and deliver a gorgeous bronze finish.
Contour
If you want to alter your nose or chin’s shape, this is what contour is good at. Its job is to make the bridge of your nose have a more narrow look or to ‘snatch’ your cheekbones and make them pop more. These contours are great at doing this.
This palette is great for beginners because it comes with handy tips and instructions on the best ways to use it. The three compartments are contour, sculpt, and highlight. Above each compartment are the instructions and best practices. You can also use the contour shade to fill in brows!
Besides that, you can use it to contour your nose and cheekbones. The sculpt compartment can be for eyeshadow and contouring as well. This palette’s versatility makes it a great tool for beginners looking for something simple and affordable.
Wet n Wild is a great drugstore brand for beginners. Their products are affordable and simple to use, including this palette. It comes with dual colors to define and highlight your best features. The benefits of this palette are the ability to build and blend a gorgeous look while using it.
Blush
The purpose of blush is to give your face the perfect rosy look that makes you look like you just came out of the cold, or you saw your crush, and you’re just “blushing”!
Blush is not for everyone, but for those who want to use it, we deserve to find the best ones for our skin, some that don’t make us look ashy or washed out. Here are some that we can count on to make us look good.
This blush is highly rated and a favorite of many makeup artists, and yes, they have shades that look amazing on dark skin! The color looks bright, but it looks flawless and natural once you add it to your face.
It’s also great for beginners because, as a cream blush, you can dab as much or as little as you like on your cheeks to create the look you want. PS, the shade Haze looks amazing on dark skin.
Another blush that is great for beginners is a stick blush! You can apply it very simply, and you can control how much or little you want to use. This stick blush is also versatile! You can use it on your lips as well as your cheeks.
If you decide you don’t care for it on your cheeks, you don’t have to toss it! Just add it to your lipstick collection. It’s a win/win. It has moisturizing ingredients such as avocado oil, orange peel wax, and shea butter.
Highlighter
If you want to shine every time you turn your head, you better make sure you have some highlighter in your bag! When you’re out on a beautiful sunny day, a highlight will brighten your looks and make you look so glam.
Here are some of the best ones:
This highlighter is very affordable, so it’s great for beginners who are just wanting to try things out. This formula is smooth and creates a shimmery look that’ll help you light up any room you walk into.
Brows
You don’t always have to go to the salon to get a perfectly sculpted brow. With these products, you can create them yourself right at home!
This is great for beginners because it is effortless to apply and is affordable. It’s straightforward to use and glides onto the hair and skin perfectly to create a natural-looking full brow.
Eyeshadows
This can be the most fun part, but it also can be the most intimidating.
It features neutral colors, which is great for a beginner because they look a lot more natural and easier to apply. Don’t let it fool you, though! A lot of amazing looks can be created with neutral colors, and this palette also features some shimmery colors for some added flair. They last long and are super pigmented.
Eyelashes
Lashes can seem so intimidating the first time you try them, but don’t be afraid! They can be easy to apply for beginners too! Just think of it this way: the experts had to start somewhere too.
These are great for beginners because they are corner lashes that go on the edge of your lashes to create a cat-eye effect. If you’re nervous or intimidated about putting on a full strip of lashes, this is a great place to begin to work your way up to a full lash strip.
Eyeliner
Eyeliner takes some time to get used to putting it on, but it can be effortless for a beginner to learn.
Liquid Liners are great for beginners because it’s much easier to create a precise line. It’s also easier and faster to wipe off if it doesn’t come out right the first time.
This liner comes with a pointed applicator to help you apply it easier and faster. It’s great for the days that you don’t have the time to apply traditional liner. This one is also very affordable, which is also great for people not looking to go broke when they start their makeup journey.
NYX is a great brand in general for beginners because they are affordable and make products that help beginners jump right in without worrying too much. This eyeliner isn’t liquid but also isn’t a typical pencil. It’s more like a cream liner that goes on smooth but dries matte.
Mascara
if you’re not a fan of lashes or have trouble applying them, mascara can still get you that gorgeous, full lash look that you want.
Lips are the easiest to apply (and the easiest to wipe off if you make a mistake and have to start over again!) Here are some of the best glosses and lipsticks to have in your beginner kit.
Lip Liner is great for beginners who have trouble applying lipstick or can’t seem to get their lipstick to last all day long. Lip liner not only lines the lips but also can help lipstick stay on longer without fading too fast. This liner is affordable and comes in very vibrant, pigmented colors. It’s also smudge-proof and doesn’t feather.
Lipstick is not at all difficult to apply, so it is great for beginners. Some lipsticks, however, tend to fade fast through all of the meals and talking that goes on during the day. You don’t have to spend your whole paycheck on high-end lipstick, though. There are very affordable ones that are long-lasting, like this one by Revlon. This one is a matte lipstick which means it’ll dry and stay on all day.
Setting Spray
Setting spray is something you need in your beginner kit if you want your makeup to last all day long.
This spray is great because it protects your makeup look for 16 hours. And the best part? You can spray it under your makeup as a primer and over your makeup to lock in your look and make sure it doesn’t budge! It keeps your makeup from creasing and fading.
This setting spray is perfect if you want your makeup to have a dewy, goddess finish. It’s infused with micro-pearls to give an illuminating and gorgeous look. Keep it in your bag and spray throughout the day to keep your dewy look always looking fresh.
Brushes & Tools
Using your fingers works fine, but no one really has time for that! Sometimes you’re in a crunch, and it’s just much faster to whip out a brush or a makeup sponge. Here are a few tools that are great for beginners.
This set is great for beginners because it comes in a set with one of every brush you will need to complete any makeup brush. Makeup brushes do not have to be expensive at all, and the more affordable ones can get the job done just as well. These brushes are also soft and won’t scratch your face and leave it feeling sore.
Makeup sponges can be used in place of makeup brushes or alongside them. These are also tools that do not have to break the bank, and you can find packs of multiples at most drugstores. This set is affordable and gets the job done well.
An eyelash curler is an amazing tool to have in your makeup bag. It gives the lashes a lift and makes them look more voluminous and thick. This eyelash curler by elf has a handle that you can grip easily and comfortably, which is wonderful for someone who is just starting on their makeup journey. It’s very affordable too.
Now that you have an arsenal of makeup and tools to use, your next step is to put that into action. Youtube has very many tutorials on how you can apply beginner makeup. This video, for example, features a straightforward yet effective tutorial on how to apply beginner makeup.
There are many more as well, so don’t feel like you’re alone or there’s no help for you. You’re not hopeless or alone. No one was born an expert, and they were once in your position, so don’t worry. You’ll get there. Just keep trying!
