Building a Makeup Kit: Part 1

What exactly do you need if you are just starting to build a professional makeup kit? This week I am going to post a mini-series of posts that cover all the products needed to get you started.

Building a makeup kit is a huge investment and with the amount of products on the market it can be hard to know where to start. I know I made mistakes, which looking back was money down the drain due to impulse buys and bad choices.

All the suggestions I have made here are products I would invest in if I was starting over, taking into consideration value for money, quality and performance.

Skin Care and Prep Products
You want products that are going to work on a variety of clients that are unlikely to irritate the skin. Moisturisers should be easily and quickly absorbed.

Moisturiser – Embryolise £14.68
Toner – Body Shop Aloe Calming Toner £6.35
Tissue Off Cleanser/Eye Makeup Remover - Dermalogica UltraCalming Cleanser £17.30
Makeup Wipes – Sainsbury's Cosmetic Wipes £1.45
Vaseline – For prepping lips £1.15 at Boots
Moisturising Body Lotion - Vaseline Intensive Care Aloe Fresh £2.45

If you are doing bridal or any job that requires the makeup to last add a good primer such as Smashbox Photo Finish £26.75 to your kit.

Foundation
This is one area of your kit you do not what to skimp on and I would definitely advise you go for a pro brand over a drug store product so you can be sure that the base you chose will read well on camera.

It is also important to know that you don’t need to carry all the colours under the sun. A competent makeup artist should be able to mix the right shade for any client from a small selection of bases.

The foundation you use in your kit is quite a personal choice so you need to play around with as many brands as you can get your hands on to find out what is right for you.

I prefer working with liquids and find that MUFE performs really well for me. Here is a list of shades that would build an excellent starter kit for covering a wide range of skin tones.

Make Up For Ever HD £27.03 each – 110, 120, 140, 155, 170, 180
Make Up For Ever Face & Body £22 each – 02, 12, 26, 48

If you prefer cream bases the RCMA Sampler Palettes in Shinto $60 and KO $60 should cover everyone that sits in your chair and is a favourite of many artists.

Graftobian, Cinema Secrets, Face Atelier and Yaby are also popular brands amongst pros.

Concealer
You need a concealer of a consistency that you find easy to work with which blends nicely and gives good coverage for dark circles and blemishes. As with the foundation try out as many as you can to see what works for you.

The following shades should give you a good range of colours that can be mixed to get the shade you need.

MAC Select Cover-Up £10.77 - NW15, NC20, NW20, NW30, NW40, NW50

Setting Powder
Powder is essential for setting your makeup and counteracting shine. There is a whole array of powders on the market but a good translucent loose powder is all you need to get started.

Ben Nye's Neutral Set £4.99 is perfect for this.

All prices were correct at the time this was posted and do not include any pro discount that may be available to you.

If any other artists reading this have product suggestions please feel free to share them with us and leave a comment.

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