Beauty 101: A Beginner-Friendly Guide On How To Apply Makeup

A clean canvas is of utmost importance to ensure your makeup shines through. That’s why skin preparation plays a crucial part in your routine, making your makeup look absolutely flawless. Here’s a quick skin-prep guide to follow before you dive into layering on makeup.

Cleanser: A squeaky clean base is essential. Use a good cleanser to remove any impurities or dust, ensuring that your skincare absorbs perfectly.

Serum: Choose a serum based on your skin concerns—one that nourishes the skin and works actively against the issue.

Moisturiser: Lock everything in with a generous layer of moisturiser to help your makeup base set beautifully.

Sunscreen: This is often debated, but there’s only one right way—apply sunscreen before foundation or any other products.

After skin prep, your first step should be primer. Primer acts as a base for your foundation, helping your makeup last longer and look smooth. Whether you're going for full-coverage, heavy makeup or something more routine, this step will ensure your makeup looks flawless either way.

How to Apply: A little goes a long way, so squeeze out a small amount of primer and use your fingertips or a makeup sponge to apply it evenly to your face.

Whether you opt for a blurring foundation, matte foundation, liquid foundation, or a luminous foundation, choosing the right shade should be your top priority. Make sure to test your foundation on your jawline and neck in different lighting conditions. We recommend purchasing it in person rather than online for a more accurate match.

How to Apply: Choose your preferred tool—either a sponge or a makeup brush—and take a dollop of foundation. Start blending it outwards, covering both your face and neck. If using a sponge, dampen it slightly to ensure the foundation settles into every line and crevice, applying evenly.

Pro-Tip: Having a hard time finding brown skin-friendly shades? Check out the best brands for foundations that cater to Indian skin here. 

Using concealer before or after foundation is a matter of choice and preference, with no hard-and-fast rule. However, we recommend applying it after foundation, as this allows you to better identify where you want to brighten or conceal. MUAs and beauty experts often suggest using two shades: one similar to your skin tone and one much lighter. The former helps even out skin tone and cover blemishes, while the latter is used for highlighting.

How to Apply: Apply concealer under your eyes to cover dark circles, on the centre of your forehead, down the centre of your nose, and anywhere you wish to conceal or highlight.

Pro-Tip: Confused about which concealer to go for? Check out LBB's guide to the best concealers here. 

Here’s where the fun begins! Use a neutral eyeshadow palette and start applying it to add definition and edge to your look. This step can be as subtle or as bold as you like, so feel free to experiment. We also recommend brushing your eyebrows for added structure and coherence to your overall look.

How to Apply: Apply the colour to your crease and work it towards your lash line. Try not to extend it beyond the outer crease, and blend it seamlessly.

Eyeliner and mascara are small yet important additions to any makeup look. They provide a snatched, elevated finish and add a certain level of depth to your eyes. There are many eyeliner styles to choose from, such as cat-eye, upturned, and hooded. A generous coat of good mascara is also essential for achieving long, fluttering lashes—perfect for a stunning eye look.

How to Apply: Choose between liquid, pencil, or gel eyeliner, whichever you're most comfortable with. Decide on the type of wing you want and draw it on, then attempt to match the other eye (All the best!). Check out our guide on eyeliner 101 for different styles here. 

Pro-Tip: Find the best mascara to buy here.

Bronzer is meant to add warmth and dimension to your face. Its application can be a little tricky at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s an absolute game changer. For an everyday look, you can certainly skip it, but on those extra decked-up days, bronzer is perfect for adding radiance and a healthy glow to your face.

How to Apply: Apply it to the tops of your cheekbones, along the ridge of your nose, and near your forehead using a fluffy angled brush. Start with a small amount and add more as needed, but always begin with less to avoid overdoing it.

Pro-Tip: Hop on the new blonzers trend here. 

Blush is where the glowy, dewy, rosy side of your makeup comes to life. Powder, tint, and liquid blushes add vibrancy to your face and give you a youthful glow. Start with a small amount and build it up if needed.

How to Apply: You can use your fingers or a fluffy brush to apply your blush. Always start with less and build it up gradually.

Pro-Tip: Check out best blushes here. 

Finish off your look with lipstick and a good lip gloss that adds that nourishment and hydration to your lips. For winters, choose berry-toned colours that look absolutely great; find some inspiration here.

Pro-Tip:  Find the best lipstick brands here.

You don't want all of this hard work to fizzle out within a couple of hours, so you need to invest in a great setting spray, which you spritz generously after finishing your look. 

Pro-Tip: Check out the best setting spray to forget about your makeup all day long here.