สวัสดีค่ะทุกคน วันนี้เราอยากจะแนะนำเพื่อนคนนึงให้ทุกคนรู้จักค่ะ เธอเป็น blog friend เรามาได้ซักพักแล้ว และตอนนี้เธอก็มี blog รีวิวเครื่องสำอางของเธอเองแล้วด้วยชื่อ TheMakeupWriteup.com รีวิวของเธอส่วนมากจะเน้นไปที่ luxury makeup ค่ะ แต่เธอก็ใช้ของ drugstore ด้วยบางครั้ง มาค่ะทุกคน มา welcome Carolyn กัน! ♥ (อ้อ อันนี้เราขอไม่แปลนะคะ เพราะว่าไม่อยากให้ข้อความบิดเบือน)
Hi everyone! I’m Carolyn from The Makeup Writeup (www.themakeupwriteup.com) and I hail from sunny California! I’m excited to “meet” all of Jaa’s fellow readers. Hello Jaa is one of my favorite beauty blogs and I am honored to be introduced here today!
Q&As with Carolyn
1. What is your skin profile?
In one word: temperamental! My skin is quite a handful: it’s acne-prone, oily yet sometimes dehydrated, prone to hyperpigmentation/acne scars, and also very sensitive. Additionally, I have some fine lines on my forehead and will be turning 30 soon, so I’m always looking for anti-aging skincare that won’t exacerbate my oily, acne-prone, and sensitive skin. A tall order, I know!
My skin tone is medium and yellow-toned. My usual foundation matches are MAC NC30, NARS Punjab, NARS Alaska (in their tinted moisturizer), and Make Up For Ever in #120. Currently, though, I have a summer tan and fall in between MAC NC30-35.
2. When did you start wearing makeup and what was your very first makeup purchase?
In junior high, I purchased my first makeup product — the infamous Wet n’ Wild 666 Lip Liner in Brandywine, which every other girl at my school seemed to own as well! This was raved about in teen magazines as a color that would work across many skin tones, and the best part was it only cost one dollar.
3. What are your favorite skincare and makeup brands?
Chanel: I am a big fan of their Glossimer lip glosses (the most comfortable lip glosses I’ve ever owned), Rouge Coco Shine sheer lipsticks, blushes, and nail polishes.
NARS: I adore NARS foundation and tinted moisturizers. Their color range is fantastic. With so many brands, I’ve never been able to find my perfect foundation or tinted moisturizer match (many brands run too pink or neutral for me), but NARS changed that all for me! NARS also has beautiful, high-quality blushes.
Burberry: My typically dry lips love their Lip Mists and Lip Glow Balms.
Urban Decay: I have many of the 24/7 eyeliners and a few of their eyeshadow palettes. They come in gorgeous colors and finishes. Also, their Naked Skin Loose Powder is an everyday staple for me and it does a much better job at controlling oil than any other loose powder I’ve tried.
MAC: The extensive color range of their eyeshadows and lipsticks can’t be beat. MAC makes many of my favorite eyeshadows. Also, all my makeup brushes are from MAC. I think MAC is a great line that is also more affordable amongst other department store brands.
As for skincare, one brand that I like is Cerave, whose cleansers and moisturizers work well for my skin — they are supremely gentle on my sensitive skin, yet don’t make me oilier or cause pimples.
4. What would be on your desert island makeup list?
NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer
NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer or Clé de Peau for my dark under eye circles
Marc Jacobs Eyeliner (has the best staying power on my oily skin)
Blush
Chanel Glossimer lip gloss
5. Where do you normally shop for makeup and why?
Nordstrom and Sephora. Nordstrom has excellent customer service and a generous return policy with no time limit. Sephora also offers a good return policy, and carries brands that aren’t sold at Nordstrom such as Hourglass & Marc Jacobs. I also enjoy Sephora’s Beauty Insider Rewards program, which has allowed me to discover new products through their 100-point & 500-point perks.
6. What is your everyday makeup routine?
Tinted moisturizer (with bronzer mixed in), concealer for my dark under eye circles, blush (my face looks much more alive with blush on!), eyeliner, mascara, and eyebrow pencil to fill in my sparse eyebrows. As I’m often in a rush to get out the door for work, I usually don’t apply lip color until later in the day, and I don’t apply eyeshadow on the weekdays regularly.
7. If you could invent any makeup product/invention, what would it be and why?
Given that I have very oily skin, I’d love to invent a product that would allow my skin to stay almost completely oil-free and that would also lock in my makeup so it looked the same late at night as it does freshly applied in the morning. There are so many primers, mattifiers, and makeup finishing sprays on the market, but none of them that I’ve tried have been able to withstand my oily skin!
8. What is your #1 advice to people who just started wearing makeup?
Purchase from stores that offer good return policies — especially if you’re purchasing a new foundation (store lighting can be inaccurate, or a formula may not agree with your skin). Also, I find it really helpful to look up reviews of products prior to purchasing (on MakeupAlley.com or blogs) to see how the product has performed on others. Finally, I’d recommend getting color-matched at the MAC counter as people frequently reference their MAC foundation color (e.g., NC30, NW42) when making recommendations, so it’s helpful to know what your MAC shade is!
9. What made you decide to start a beauty blog?
I’ve written makeup reviews for more than 10 years on MakeupAlley.com and really enjoy being able to share my experiences with others. I love being able to tell others about a perfect “my lips but better” lipstick, a mascara that doesn’t smudge on oily skin, or conversely, warn others about a product that doesn’t live up to its marketing claims. I wanted to combine my passion for makeup/beauty and writing reviews and decided to start my own beauty blog. I love being able to help others, so I strive to write honest and thorough reviews that will help readers figure out if a product might be right for them. Through The Makeup Writeup, I can also share longer, more detailed reviews and build a community with my readers, which is something that I really enjoy and look forward to.
10. What would you like to see more in the beauty blog community?
Personally, I really appreciate beauty bloggers who have great interaction with their readers. I really respect bloggers who take the time to respond to each comment/question and converse with their readers. I want to build that community of my own on The Makeup Writeup and have an ongoing dialogue and conversation with my readers!
Jaa’s remarks
Carolyn is very passionate about makeup as you will see once you visit her blog. Her reviews are honest, very detailed, well-explained, and include quality product photos and swatches. I’m glad and honored that she agreed to write up this introduction post for hellojaa.com and I’d really like everyone to welcome her (with the biggest hug) to the beauty blog community. :)
I’m also thinking of doing an introduction post like this again in the future. It is so much fun to be able to share with you some of the blogs I love, especially when the person behind it is as passionate about makeup as I am. So, let me know if you would like to see more posts like this in the future! :)