This post is an entry for 500 Posts Celebration Giveaway.
By Anks
I have never been a makeup person… I discovered eye makeup (read kajal and eye liner) in college. My mom takes the credit for this because all she ever uses is a compact / foundation, lipstick and bindi. That’s it. That’s her makeup. Her “collection” was a skin toned lippie in brown, a maroon, a red, a chocolate, couple of pinks and one grape. That’s all. She kept replacing the shades as and when the lippies expired. Never finished a tube! She’d use a red / pink lipstick as blush blend it by hand. (Even so, I loved watching her get ready… 🙂 )
And so you can imagine that everyday makeup for me meant a naked face. I’d wash, moisturize and be off. Kajal and liner were my special day items in college or during the early months of my job. My lips have a tendency to chap, so I used plain lip balms as a healer. That’s it! Then, I started wearing sheer, nude lippies to work. I’d swipe my mum’s pink one with a light hand on about half my lip and blend outward with a finger. That gave me a hint of colour and lasted 2-3 hours. The first lipstick I purchased for my own use was a nude brown by Avon and was a bit disastrous. It was sheer and glossy and didn’t show on my lips at all. That was a huge setback to my make up buying and experimentation. I lived off mom’s makeup for another three years! And then the inevitable happened! I got married 😛
I got a vanity case from my inlaws for my first karva chauth (which was during the courtship… sigh! What fantastic days…ok, back to makeup post) and in it I found foundation, compact, lippies, eyeliner, eyepencils, lipliners, blush, eyeshadow , bronzer and glitter highlighter! I had no clue what a bronzer was till then and looked at the highlighter and wondered if I’d ever use it… All of these were from the 9to5 range and for a newbie like me, these were good enough. During my trousseau shopping, mum took me out to but makeup. I said I have enough!!! She insisted I, get some more… saying you’ll have to dress up a lot as a new bride. So I went and picked another couple of lippes, lipglosses and lipliners. A little more of Lakme, Maybelline and Revlon. Did I mention nail paints? Not once during the post so far! Coz, I never considered nail paints as makeup. 🙂 Been painting my nails forever and kept buying them all the time… so nail paints are like soap to me… but yes, I did pick up about a dozen nail paints! I was all set with my haul, knowing these will last me a long long time…. I am still using some of these things btw, almost 2 years after marriage. (Note to self: check expiry!!!) But then, I got 3 makeup kits as part of my wedding gifts… one from friends – Revlon Whitening Collection, One from a Cousin – Revlon lipglosses, eye shadow palette and nailpaints and the third from hubby’s friend. This one is a massive 3 layered kit with 245 items including carry palettes, potted lipglosses, liquid lipglosses, eye shadows, blushers, bronzer and loads of lippies….!!!! This ULTA kit caught my fancy like nothing before and I began to read about make up application… My experiments with looks gave various results, from natural to ghastly! What inspired me also was the face during my wedding functions… I got my engagement and wedding makeup done at Ambika Pillai in Delhi and the results were unbelievable. I’d never ever imagined I could look like this. But the experiments were only during occasions…. Dinner dates with hubby, an evening out with friends, visiting someone or so on… my everyday wear was always a swipe of some neutral lippie, an occasional kajal or so… I quite enjoyed getting ready for occasions but was content with the everyday look.
Then began the next phase of my life… I discovered that I’m pregnant. Fighting with nausea in the first trimester resulted in loss of weight, inability to eat and fatigue that showed on my face. Add to that my changing body, clothes not fitting anymore and a daily struggle to look presentable at work while being comfortable. This is where I discovered the power of makeup. I invested in a pair of black maternity pants in January, very early on in my pregnancy. Which is a big big mistake! My body shape changed in such a way that the pants were lose fitting till about 7 months and suddenly uncomfortable thereafter! So any of you ladies planning to buy maternity wear, do not do so until your belly starts growing… you never know what shape it will do and maternity wear is expensive! Lose kurtas and lycra leggings were my best friends during this period, closely followed by long skirts and jersey tops. And then there was the power of makeup! I began makeup application as a means to hide the tiredness off my face. Brought out those special occasion glosses, the eyeliner and bought mascara, new kajal. Looking into the mirror, I tried to focus on the made up face rather than the swollen body. Somewhere along the line, beauty blogs became my regular haunts and I learnt loads. Everyday, I resist temptation to buy the awesome stuff I read about because I know that the focus for next few months will be on settling into motherhood. But when it’s the time for me to get back, I plan to use this knowledge and be back with a vengeance!
I am leaving you with a few of my attempts at makeup from my journey….
Look 1: Before Marriage… wearing a sheer skin toned lippie and swiped same on the lids as eyeshadow
Look 2: Pregnancy face! Lipbalm, blush and kajal
Look 3: Brown eyeshadow, blush and brick coloured lippie
Look 4: An experiment gone wrong… too much unblended blush!
And Finally, Look 5: The one that started it all… my Sagan makeup!
Image Source
Anks I do agree that makeup can really brighten up the dull face. I mean on the worst days, all you need is a nice lipstick, blush and a good mascara to look fresh and awake.
Completely loved the way you look on look 2. So fresh and happy. 🙂
Btw are you wearing kimono in look 3?
btw have you tried doing a winged eyeliner for your eyes?
I think it would look really good on you. 🙂
Thanks Rati…. I was sight seeing and photographing when the look2 was clicked…. i guess the happiness just showed on my face!
Nope, its not a Kimono but a Qipao (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheongsam), the traditional chinese dress…
No, i have never dared to try the winged eyeliner…. a little too dramatic for me, but i can try it for fun at home… :-))
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
You know Rati, I have been trying to buy this Qipao since ages, but never found it in Hyd….I had a satin red cloth and I wanted to make Qipao out of it, but then nobody I knew would tailor it out for me 🙁
Come to think of it, I have never seen a Qipao in the Indian markets too… am curious to know if they are available in certain high end boutiques….
jomo, this is a good reason to visit singapore / malaysia / thailand / china… you find them aplenty there…. :))
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
The post was such a lovely read Anks..And know what?? You look different in each and every photograph..but pretty.
Like Rati said, do try winged liners for the eyes..atleast slightly done up winged eye makeup will look beautiful on you.
Thanks Poornima…. you are right, there are no 2 pics of mine where i look the same. Talk about versatality! Lol…
Now I am tempted to try out the winged liner… experiment at home and show it to you guys before venturing out with the dramatic look!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
oh thats great…. :waiting:
🙂
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hi Anks, an interesting read, and I loved pic 2 too, you look lovely :),
Thank you Renuca… 🙂
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey Anks…..lovely post!!!
Yes makeup is a very powerful tool…can work wonders for you!!!
I totally loved you in Pic 2!!
True HD… its powerful indeed! I am just about realising what I can do with it…. somehow makes me feel sorry for all the wasted years 😛
Pic 2 is one of my fav pics too…
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Anks… You are beautiful… :-)) :-))
You look the best in Pic 2… Makeup notwithstanding… 🙂
Thank you Mrun… 🙂 all the IMBB girls are… 😉 i saw your engagement snaps, but picasa wudn’t let me comment on them…!
Now, I must tell the photographer of pic 2 that he has indeed done a good job!
Hey Anks. That was a useful post for me as even Im in the 7th month of pregnancy 🙂 Congrats!!! [BTW when is your due date?] As you said my belly started showing up just this month and got a new maternity jean this morning 🙂 Will also update my make up routine as ppl started saying Im looking dull these days 🙁
Woooow!!! So we have 2 good news in the waiting !!!! Gr8!!
:blush: :blush:
😀 😀 God Bless!!!
:-)) :-))
Thank you HD 🙂
Aarthi.. You don’t look dull 🙂
Thanks sweetie 🙂 🙂
Congrats Aarthi….! Am due on 1st Sep… not very long now!
Seventh month eh…how are you feeling? Do you guys have a godh bharai tradition? Seventh month is when its mostly done na…? You waited this long to get your maternity jeans… smart gal! If I were living in mumbai, i’d have spent my entire pregnancy in skirts and dresses…. but alas, in delhi, i don’t feel that comfortable wearing such clothes all the time… 🙁 What has been your primary wardrobe?
I know exactly what you mean by dullness showing up and ppl don’t refrain from commenting abt it all the time 🙁 I mean, what happened to the pregnancy glow we used to read / hear about?
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey anks, I was using almost all my denims,tops and salwars till my 5th month. But after that I felt like I might crush the baby (you know how the way elders threaten/warn us to wear really loose and clumsy clothes) so I had to give off my pretty clothes and I completely shifted to salwars, haram pants with tops and very rarely skirts. I lost interest in dressing by this month beginning so I didnt like investing in clothes now. But my hubby insisted in me buying this jean as it has been 2 months since I’ve worn them 🙁
And Sep 1st!!! My hubby’s bday!!! All the best 🙂 Mine is Nov 10 🙂
I feel nice to share all this with a person going thru the same phase 🙂 Dull factor.. Im hearing everyday and I spend some time for makeup these days expecting some one would say.. wow you look fresh and good today. But nah 🙁 Though Im energetic all day that has nothing to do with the way I look 🙁
According to ppl around I had that glow till my 6th month end but not any more. And we have something called ‘Sreemantham’ which will be in the 7th or 9th month and mine will be this month 22nd.
All the best Anks and Happy pregnancy..Enjoy it 🙂
Oh yes, i have had ppl advising me not to sit cross legged, coz the baby cen’t breathe… did you check with your doc abt this? I transitioned to loser clothing coz they felt more comfy…
Good thing your hubby took you shopping… preggo jeans is something you can wear even after delivery, till you regain your shape… 🙂 Oh you have a virgo hubby! they are supposed to be very caring husbands 😉
Its a good thing if you feel energetic… let the makeup take care of dullness… are you exercising?
Enjoy your Sreemantham… would you do a post about it?
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey Anks, nothing wrong about sitting cross legged….you both are such a stage of your pregnancies that now it does not matter at all …..the baby is all safe now, probably, you should start talking to your baby and listen to good music and see how the baby reacts………… :-))
I feel a bit silly sweet tlking to a baby i can’t see :s and well music… never noticed a pattern… but thats probably coz i keep playing some music or another thruout the day, baby is used to it 😉
what did u play for your baby?
No anks. I didn’t get any suggestions regarding sitting cross-legged !!! At one point of time (sooner)I have to go for completely loose clothes especially around my belly 🙂 I’ll send you my sreemantham pics soon 🙂
Looking forward to the pics! 🙂
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey.. Enjoyed reading the post.. Your 2nd pic is very natural and pretty
Thank you Priya… 🙂
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey that pregnancy glow thing is only just initial …I mean the first month or the second month…when the nausea sets in…..you lose all glow and your whole system feels tired….Hey, that means we have two double deckers amongst us….your post reminded me of my nauseaous pregnancy, cant believe its over and i have a baby now :-*. Hey do you people feel your baby kicking and moving inside the tummy…..I think Aarthi you would start the kicking soon….and Anks are you feeling breathless… 😛 😛 😛 ……All the best ladies and let us all know when the bundles of joy arrive……Hey, by the way, I was not allowed to buy new clothes for myself throughout the pregnancy, they consider is unlucky :-(( :-(( . BTW, Anks, if your due date is September first, you might deliver in the last week of August…..wow…I am rubbing my hands in excitement!!!!! 😀
Hey Jomol, I felt the kicking as early as when I was in my 5th month 🙂 I have noted down the date as well 😉 Btw Jomol and Anks I have a couple of questions for you.
I really wanted to knw how much weight did you gain through out ur pregnancy? My doc adviced me to gain max of 10 kgs and not more than tht 🙁 Ive already gained 7 🙁 How did you manage this weight gain and also the problem of stretch marks? Though I keep drinking heaps of water and keep my skin moisturized my friend says one can never avoid stretch marks during the pregnancy.. is it so?
I have already gained about 10… and supposedly you gain more in the last few weeks! Stretch marks are unavoidable! I kept slathering oil but still have them… 🙁 more so in my case because my belly grew abruptly in a week! spurts of growth will always cause stretch marks… but that is not something we can control na….
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
I know 🙁
Hey, Aarthi it is true that stretch marks are unavoidable….the only thing you probably can do is while watching TV or something apply coconut oil all over your tummy…if you have oily skin then you should stay away coz it leads to small boils. If you are feeling like scratching your tummy, apply Suthol all over your tummy. Weight gain, I gained only 2 kgs each month….a total of 10 kgs throughout my pregnancy. Its very difficult to lose the post-pregnancy weight, so go easy on ghee and butter…gain a weight of 2 kgs only per month.
I apply bio oil twice everyday and haven’t got any stretch marks till now but since just now my belly is showing up I think it’ll take time
🙁 Also I have a dry skin so even if I apply oil it feels good only 🙂 I am gaining 1 kg per month and mom says I’ll gain more in the last few months 🙁
hey, don’t worry about the weight gain too much… every body is different and reacts to pregnancy in different ways… there is no magic number that defines your weight gain… in fact, your weight gain depends on current bmi… are you registered on babycentre.in? they have some good reading material about various things… even stretch marks and weight gain!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey Aarthi, I mean 5th month baby kicking is quite subtle…by the 7th month, I thought I had a Karate kid inside my tummy doing saumersaults and everything….. 🙂
Ya Jomol I feel the same way.. carrying a Karate Kid 😉
Karate Kid 3!!!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
I never got the pregnancy glow jomo 🙁 How old is your baby now? Did you have a tough time eating? I did…
Baby has been kicking for a while now… and don’t even talk about the breathlessness!!! Uff… I was on a call the other day and i kept pausing and telling them i need to have water and get my breath back….!!!!
Unlucky? Oh… how did you manage with the existing wardrobe? I’d heard about not buying stuff for baby till birth, but even mum…! What about ladies who gain a lot of weight? :O
I hope that the baby does full term and then arrives…
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey, Anks, your baby has developed completely by the 9th month….it is just gaining weight, so don’t worry if it arrives any time from now…..it won’t be premature. My pregnnacy was quite tough Anks, I was breathless all the time and from the 3rd month of pregnancy towards the baby delivered, I was vomiting everyday. Hey, I bought clothes, but you know how moms are, my mom didn’t allow me to even touch them……. 🙁 . But, I could care less about the wardrobe when the only thing I worried about was vomiting and only vomiting……I had to take medicines to keep off the nausea…..and you know, my baby, came up towards my lungs and kicked upwards, that was horrible, I had to get up at an ungodly time and sit upright catching my breath!!! 🙂
🙂 yeah, but there are other reasons prompting me to pray that baby does full term….
gosh, you seem to have had a TOUGH time… i too am still vomiting but thank goodness not everyday… how did you manage to eat anything at all during your pregnancy? the day I vomit, i just can’t eat…
so how was it after the baby arrived? 🙂 does lightening strike you in true blue bollywood style or does it take time to sink in? Its been months of living thru a pregnancy, reading a bit, talking to friends, family and the doc… and yet, its like i can’t comprehend the enormity of whats about to happen… me, a mother? Oh, but i am still a kid!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Also Anks…I think you are really lucky to get makeup as wedding gifts….all we get is jewellery and sarees….,people should be more considerate and learn from Ank’s case….gift makeup for weddings :inlove:
Hee hee… its the younger generation…. friends and cousins can get away with things na…. the elders give us clothes and jeweler…. but Shringar forms a part of the gifts a bride gets from her inlaws… we have a ceremony called chunni in punju weddings where the mil and sil decks up the girl… so make up is gifted at that time too… i told my mum in law not to bother with make up at that time…. she then told me to go and buy whatever i wanted for my karva chauth… :))
incidentally, karva chauth is a big occasion to splurge on cosmetics in north india… you should start celebrating it too 😉
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Geeee… enjoying reading all this. :-)) :-))
🙂
i think i realized the power of makeup the day i was born 😛
it was nice to read this article anks
.-= Rima Kaur´s last blog ..Beneath The Smiles =-.
wow rima! thats what we call an early starter…. 😀
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
:rotfl:
Hi,
U have a nice blog. Whatever I want to say have been said by others already. so, I just want to ask whether u color ur hair and if yes, what color is it…no. 2 pic i like and also the shade of your hair.
Thank you… no, i have never coloured my hair, or treated it with any chemical…. i have virgin hair! 🙂
What you see in the pics is the play of sunlight on my natural hair which are brownish black…
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Lovely article anks. Very well written and a real pleasure to read 🙂 . At the risk of sounding repetitive, you look absolutely lovely in the 2nd pic.
And congrats to both you and Aarthi :rose: :rose:
Thanks Ame… i must compliment my colleague at work tomo…. he took this pic of mine….
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hi Anks,
Just read your post…:) every line of it was interesting and fun to ead…My guess is that most of us in IMBB will be able to relate to you. I think all our weddings have been a milestone in our lives. Ot made us dig out all our makeup stuff… 😀 What say girls!!!??
Hey Rajol, am glad you enjoyed reading this… 🙂 when they say marriage changes you, nobody ever talks about these things na? its all about having a companion, adjusting to new life blah blah…
who tells you that you’ll discover a love of beautiful clothes, shoes and makeup? I bought so many pairs during trousseau shopping and thereafter that hubby put a ban on buying shoes… 🙁 i still feel i haven’t done justice to all those beloved heels….
How long have you been married?
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Hey! Anks,
Very rightly said…They freek you out about the new life we are going to enter…but no one mentions about the lovely stuff that you get for yourselfand that too guilt free…
Been married for 5yrs now…but it seems much longer then that, as I knew my husband before that…know him for 10 yrs in all now…
We have a lovely daughter, who’s almost two…
How about you, how old is your angel… :-))
Wow… 10 years is a long time! 🙂 Whats your daughter’s name?
My angel is yet to arrive… waiting for the little bundle of joy…!!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Enjoyed reading your post and the comments too 😀 And yes u look great in the 2nd pic as well as the 5th. And Congrats!!!! :rose:
Thank you Vinitha… :))
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Congrats to all the lovely prego ladies on here!! Anks, awesome post! I can totally relate to it. I had my baby 8 (Ocean) months ago. Motherhood has made me rediscover makeup as well. When I had just gotten married, I used to use makeup routinely. I’ve loved makeup ever since I was a child.
But over the last few years since I moved to Bangalore, I degenerated into a no-makeup person since no one in my office used to wear any makeup. Since I didn’t want to be the odd one out, I mostly gave up on makeup. A lot of it could also be attributed to my breakout prone skin that would reject most face products. But after having the baby, my skin is suddenly so much more tolerant that I can safely pick up any good quality makeup product and not be afraid of my skin breaking out. I guess somewhere along the line, some hormones got balanced and brought me good skin. 🙂
This changed when I got pregnant. After spending so many many months (ok, 9+ months) not really looking my best, I decided that I was going to give myself a makeover once the baby arrived. At his 3 month b’day, I decided to give myself what I call my ‘hot mama makeover’. As a part of this makeover, I resolved to do 1 thing for myself (makeup shopping, mani, pedi, pampering etc.) every weekend. This continued for the next 3 months. So you can imagine how pampered I was feeling at the end of 3 months! Along this journey, I came across IMBB and have stuck around since then.
I’m now rebuilding my makeup collection, mainly based on IMBB reviews. I feel sad looking back at all those years I wasted not indulging my childhood passion – makeup. 🙁 But I guess, better late than never, isn’t it? God, this has become an embarrassingly long comment! Also, my comment comes when everyone has moved on to newer posts. 🙁
Sonal,
Never worry about how long your comments gets. I am glad we are able to pour our thoughts so well here. And every comment is valuable whether it comes on old post or new one. No matter what you think, I think Anks would love such a lovey comment from you. :-* :-*
I have also become wiser with my makeup shopping through IMBB. 🙂
True that Rati!
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.
Sonal, Tht was a lovely lovely comment….loved reading every bit of it 😀 :-*
Hey Sonal… you get the award for posting the longest comment on this post!!! 🙂 :star:
Its too bad that you gave up makeup looking at your colleagues in Bangalore, although I can relate to the awkwardness it’d create if you were nicely made up and everyone else showed up with a bare face. Even a simple lip colour, kajal and mascara would stand out in the sea of unmade faces…
I love the idea of a hot mama makeover…! I am totally going to do it… leaving the baby for short periods of time will prepare both me and baby for when i return back to work, not to mention the new goodies added to wardrobe 😀 “sone pe suhaga” idea!! Do post pics of your makeover haul…
.-= anks´s last blog ..Writing Vs Therapy =-.