Unsolicited Advice: Enroll in YouTube Beauty School!

I am not a makeup artist, and I don't even play one on tv. I am simply a makeup enthusiast who also happens to be a performer, and because of that, I sometimes have to come up with looks for stage or screen. Now, to me, stage is easy. I sponge on my Ben Nye stage foundation, then pretty much just pile color on top of that until I'm confused for a hooker. If no one's asked how much you charge, yet, keep going till they do. Sure, there's a little more nuance to it than that, but that's the basic idea.

Screen keeps me totally bumfuzzled. You have to keep the makeup looking natural, but also have enough on to show up on camera and also avoid being washed out by lights. There's a very fine line. I'm getting better at walking it, though, thanks to a workshop given by a lovely makeup artist friend...and good ol' YouTube.

I kid you not, YouTube has been an absolute Godsend, but you have to be careful which "gurus" you go to. Not everyone who hosts a beauty channel actually knows what they're doing (I know! People posting useless videos on the Internet?! Color me shocked!), so I'll add a list at the end of some that I've grown to love. When you find talented people who communicate well, you can take inspiration from their videos, and also educate yourself on products and techniques. After all, what good is expensive makeup or fancy brushes if you don't know how to use them?

Anyhoo, back to screen makeup! This weekend, Fighting Owl Films is shooting a short, and I'm playing one of the lead characters: a stuck-up, snobby, gold digger (yes, my husband wrote it for me. Why do you ask?). The film's a silent, so the visuals are super-important--even more so than usual. To up the degree of difficulty, this will also be our first film shot in HD.

Last night, I conducted a practice run on makeup only (so forgive the hair and outfit), based upon and using a few techniques picked up from two YouTube tutorials. The final look is not a step-by-step result of either video. I don't even think I used a single recommended product. Rather, it's an amalgamation of ideas from these tutorials, mixed with tricks I've figured out on my own, and blended with character ideas from the director. I'm posting this simply to show how you can use Internet tutorials to your advantage, and I hope at least some of you have found this helpful.

Snobby enough? Oh, and check out the mini-duckface!
Shot with my cruddy cell phone, in my bathroom with the worst lighting in the world. Enjoy!

Products used:

• Tarte Clean Slate primer
• MAC Studio Sculpt in NW15, applied with Real Techniques buffing brush
• Benefit Boi-ing concealer in Light, applied with Real Techniques deluxe crease brush
• Rimmel Stay Matte pressed powder in Transparent, applied with Real Techniques buffing brush
• Urban Decay Primer Potion in Eden
• E.L.F. Brow Kit in Medium
• Urban Decay eyeshadows in Foxy, Bootycall, and Tease (Naked 2), applied with Real Techniques shadow brush
• Urban Decay eyeshadow in Blackout (Naked 2), applied as liner with Real Techniques accent brush
• Benefit Hoola bronzer, applied with Real Techniques contour brush
• Stila blush (Floral Palette, hot pink shade), applied with Real Techniques blush brush
• E.L.F. HD Powder, applied with Real Techniques powder brush
• Urban Decay False Lash mascara
• Ardell individual false lashes, Medium
• Duo lash glue
• NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream in Stockholm
• MAC Lip Pencil in Dervish
• Urban Decay Urbanglow Cream Highlight in Moonshine

Trusted YouTube "Gurus" (alphabetical order):
DivaMakeupQueen
emilynoel83
FleurDeForce
GlowMyWay
gossmakeupartist
pixiwoo