Makeup Report: How things turned out

Thank you to everyone who responded to my call for help and advice on the makeup issue. It was so wonderful to get so many responses, the only problem was that they were so diverse, it was hard to decide what to do. The frugal girl in me naturally wanted to spend as little as possible and head straight for the drugstore. But other parts of me thought Sephora or department stores would be a better bet, since the products would be less likely to irritate my skin and I could pick out the exact right shade.

So, my original plan was to head to Sephora to try out Bare Escentuals. But I ended up at CVS for my weekly shopping trip first, and they had a great deal on Maybelline products. Jazmin at Makeup Moxie had given their mineral foundation a great review. And although she had recommended a L'Oreal foundation for me, I tend to react badly to L'Oreal products so I decided to try the Maybelline foundation since it was right there. I also bought Great Lash mascara (waterproof formula), Superstay Lipcolor, and nail polish. Using some ECBs, I paid less than $20 out of pocket for all of this (and I got some ECBs back).

When I got home, I opened the foundation, dug out old Bobbi Brown makeup brush, and dusted on the powder. I've always preferred powder foundation, but still, I was surprised at how easy it was to apply. I used a light hand, and felt the foundation looked quite natural. The lipstick was a little drying, but I expected that in a long-lasting formula. (Some readers suggested a lip gloss instead, but I get annoyed at how quickly gloss comes off.) The mascara wasn't transforming, but it went on easily, stayed on, and came off at the end of the day with minimal effort.

Overall, I was extremely pleased with the Maybelline products.

Which isn't to say I wouldn't have preferred something more expensive. If I wore makeup regularly, I'd love to compare Maybelline Minerals to Bare Escentuals, for instance. But for my purposes, the Maybelline products were great. My expenses were minimal, and I got what I wanted.

Even better? I had a lot of fun. It turns out that when I'd tossed out all my old makeup, I'd saved almost all of the things that I could. I was pretty confident that I wouldn't have tossed my Bobbi Brown brush, so I wasn't surprised to find it easily. But I was surprised to find not one but three eyelash combs. They were parts of sets that came as gifts with purchase from department stores, back when I used department store skin care products. It was a reminder of how much fun I used to have experimenting with makeup, say, ten years ago.

I'm back to being barefaced again, because it's so easy and because Marc prefers me that way. But I have a feeling it won't be years before I wear makeup again this time.

Thanks again for helping me have so much fun with it!