Her makeup is bad... really bad...

[prsfynestmami]

Hey everyone. I need help.
I have this new friend.. and as we southerners say "bless her heart!"

We went clubbing last night. I went to pick her up, she was wearing a blood red "hoochie" top with some rhinestone detailing down the center (belly baring top), with a black miniskirt. She asked me to do her makeup... so I brought over a few shadows and my blush palette.
I did...
Electra on the lid and a little bit of carbon on the outer V. Simple but very cute with the colors of her outfit. Just as I went to grab my clear lipglass she grabbed this lipliner in dark burgundy and ran into the bathroom. I froze in shock. She lined her lips in a thick, dark, harsh line of this lipliner and came out of the bathroom. AHH! I almost screamed. I asked myself if she was going goth. She took a dirty plum lipstick lighter than the lipliner and smothered it on her lips.
You should've seen my face. I said, "are you gonna blend in the lipliner?" She cocked her head to the side as if she didn't understand what I said.
Then she told me she looked pale and that the eyeshadow was too dark for her tastes.

So here I go with a tissue and wipe it off of her lids.
Brace yourself - - she made a request.
She asked for bright purple eyeshadow. I said, "honey, i don't think purple shadow would look cute with that outfit." She told me she always wears purple, pink, or blue with red. I took a deep breath and put some nocturnelle and mancatcher on her lids.

As the night wore on her ghastly lipliner continued to smear outside of her lipline. It was killing me.
It was itching to take out a MAC makeup wipe, hold her down and wipe this mess off of her face.
Picture one of those chicks who lines her lips with dark brown lipliner (unblended) and no lipstick, with dark pencil-thin brows... thats pretty much her style.

At what point do you tell a friend - "DARLING, your makeup is a hot mess!!"
Some would say, "Let her do her face the way she wants it." But I can't stand it, she's a beautiful girl. I can't just stand there and not say anything. I am very open minded when it comes to trying color... but this just looks BAD.

Give me your thoughts on telling a friend the honest truth about her terrible makeup habits without hurting her feelings.

 

[Dark_Phoenix]

You need to tell her that not all make-up works on everyone.

Bright colors can make pale skin look garrish. Dark eyes look smokey and can make pale skin look more radiant. (*I'm assuming she's pale*)

You need to try and get her to be color matched at MAC or somewhere (and go with her!). Because there are a dozen shades of purple (bright, blue-violet, red-violent, lavender, etc..) and even more shades of blue!

Maybe you need to try finding her a color of something she uses often (like that mentioned lipliner) in something a little more... aesthetically pleasing.

 

[MsCuppyCakes]

Oh dear. This is a delicate situation. She's hiding her natural beauty under that "hot mess." I'm really surprised that she did that considering she asked you to make up her face, and your makeup skills are impeccable. Delicately tell her that she needs to update her makeup application, show her this makes your eyes look tiny while this brings out your eye color/shape. If I had you to apply/show me makeup tips I'd be paying you. Good luck. Keep us posted. Welcome back by the way.

 

[aeni]

More and more these days I'm telling people they're candidates for a complete makeover on What Not to Wear. The BBC version.

 

[lara]

If it concerns you that much, suggest having a girls day out and book makeovers at your favourite make-up counter. She may be more receptive to taking advice from a third party.

On the other hand, it's not your face. If she likes it, then it's not on your back to try and convert her to anything else. The chances of you coming across as a complete bitch rather than a well-meaning friend are strongly skewed towards the former, so bear that in mind whatever you do.

 

[prinzessin784]

lol I know it's horrible but this story was really funny! I could totally picture the look of horror on your face!

It's kind of sneaky but if you want to avoid coming off as the bad guy you could tell her you've heard people talking about how ugly her makeup is behind her back and you are concerned that she's making herself look bad/silly/slutty. Then to take away from the negativity you could suggest that you both go to a MAC counter and have a makeover together to get a professionals opinion. Then you'll be turning it into something fun and you'll get someone else to give her some suggestions other than looking like trash haha.

 

[prsfynestmami]

Thanks for the advice guys. It's not something that concerns me ALL that much but she is a beautiful girl. I asked her if she wanted to come over this week so I could try some looks on her (told her I needed some practice doing other people's faces) and she sounded excited. If she likes what I try on her then cool, if not then oh well - I tried. She admires my makeup all the time, but is a little afraid to try new things. That's something I struggled with when I started playing with makeup so I think it's just a matter of breaking her out of her shell.

 

[MsCuppyCakes]

Sounds like she wants to change. That's a great way to help her.

Quote:

Originally Posted by prsfynestmami Thanks for the advice guys. It's not something that concerns me ALL that much but she is a beautiful girl. I asked her if she wanted to come over this week so I could try some looks on her (told her I needed some practice doing other people's faces) and she sounded excited. If she likes what I try on her then cool, if not then oh well - I tried. She admires my makeup all the time, but is a little afraid to try new things. That's something I struggled with when I started playing with makeup so I think it's just a matter of breaking her out of her shell.

 

[medusalox]

I agree with what some of the others said: if she won't listen to you, take her to MAC and let a pro have at her

Good luck!

 

[saniyairshad]

Nicest way:
Hon ur mu is not looking good it makes u look way too pale and way too goth. honestly try this and after tonite tell me the difference. Tell her to start experimenting with other colors and see the diff. tell her there are certain colors to wear with certain colors. Like red and browns look good but red and pink...no!!! be honest she'd rather hear it from u than from a stranger right?

 

[kaliraksha]

I definitely have been where you are with friends and although sometimes I don’t think one of my gf’s makeup does justice to a them I try to have the benefit of the doubt that it’s probably what they have always known to do. I would seriously just book MAC makeover appointments and let her tell them what she likes and I bet they will find great ways to tie in what she loves with what looks good. Delicate situation indeed, I still can’t get one friend out of always wearing blue eyeshadow but at least now it looks great and she contours and steps away from one shade of blue eyeshadow!

 

[amoona]

Ok idk if I'm just REALLY close with my friends or what but we'll tell each other if we're lookin tore up. Keep in mind that there are some friends I will ignore because they run around looking a mess at all times haha.

I wont let my friends walk around with me if they look a mess haha I know it sounds really snobish but it's not. I dont want my friends being laughed at or looked at oddly. Girls are mean ya know and words/looks can hurt.

Using me as an example, I always ask my boyfriend how I look. My friends and cousins are always WAY too nice but my boyfriend is honest. I guess it just depends on the relationship you have with this girl.

 

[somethingsinful]

I know a girl like that but I hate her (we have the same friends so we see each other a lot ) so I never tell her that she looks like a fool

 

[Taj]

They need to be changed gradually, and some may change with proper guidance and tutorial. End of day, their choice of MU reflects their own taste/personality !

 

[prettysecrets]

Show her a picture of herself with her bad makeup on. If she doesn't think its bad still, theres no hope for her.

 

[COBI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Taj They need to be changed gradually, and some may change with proper guidance and tutorial. End of day, their choice of MU reflects their own taste/personality !

I agree. A lot of times is also a comfort zone we get in (whether it looks good or not.) For example, if she usually wears dark lined, unblended lips, then a toned down look would make her feel very uncomfortable and "naked".

The best trick to get someone out of this mode is to have other people (just random people in public) say how great it looks. This hard to do because it involves getting them outside with something new and out of their current comfort zone.

I know this has even happened to me with work attire. I feel so matronly when I wear business suits, but often get complimented at work, so it makes it much easier to feel comfortable in them even though they are not my style.

In the end, I know they are more appropriate in my position than my favored casual style. Same thing with makeup, I know I have to be more neutral and conservative in my role as a VP in banking. No matter how good my full-on color makeup may look, my boss (president of the bank) would not think so nor is the image that I would want to project there.

A few times out with strangers complimenting her on her gorgeous makeup will help her to retain an adopted style. A great place (I find) for this stroking is my not-so-local (2 hours away) MAC store. I find that the MAs always say something positive about my current makeup; of course, it could be that I'm just marvelous, but I believe it's part of good sales to stroke a little bit. I'm not saying they're lying, but simply finding something/anything in a "hot mess" that IS working and noting it.

And then building from there; your eyes would look great with this or this l/s would be fantastic on you, have you tried a nude lip, etc.

EDIT: I didn't realize how old this was either until I read CantAffordMac's edit.

 

[chocolategoddes]

i know EXACTLY how you feel! A couple years ago my friend decided it would be cool to wear... BLUE GLITTER AS BLUSH. I swear to god I almost threw up. I pretty blunt with my friends so I told her, " you look like a clown. Are you really going to walk around with blue cheeks?" She told me she thought she'd start a "trend" I don't see that trend coming in style anytime soon.

You seem like want to be nice to her but if you don't tell her how you really feel then you won't get the results you want. If you tell her that you think she's pretty but the harsh makeup is taking away from her beauty, I'm sure she'll stop. No girl wants to look ugly!

 

[CantAffordMAC]

I wouldn't have done her makeup the way she asked. She was probably going around all night telling people you did it for her lol.

I honestly don't know what to say. You tried telling her that the look wasn't working. I say bring her into MAC with you (explain the situation maybe to a MA) lol and maybe they can do something for her?

EDIT: Didn't realize how old this was.