What we've learnt from our teen makeup mistakes
Call it wisdom, a more generous budget or simply just practice making perfect – but generally speaking, by the time you reach your 20s, your make-up skills will have advanced by leaps and bounds. Although thanks to YouTube (and sites like beautyheaven), teens are now better at make-up than ever. Back in the day however (we swear it wasn’t that long ago), these were the make-up mistakes we made, creating a pretty big comparison between make-up in our teens to our 20s...
FOUNDATION
In your teens: Choosing a shade to match your skin tone was not a concept you were aware of. You were either stealing your mum’s, or too scared to ask for help and just picked the first one you saw. The result? Two types of school photos: ghostly pale and Oompa Loompa.
In your 20s: You always do a swatch test and if it’s going to cost you more than $30, you damn well ask for a sample and test that bad boy in all different lights to make sure it’s worth it. SPF is a bonus too – because wrinkles.
bh recommends:
- M.A.C Studio Waterweight SPF 30 Foundation
- Rimmel London Match Perfection Foundation SPF20
- Clarins Everlasting Foundation SPF15
- Arbonne Perfecting Liquid Foundation SPF 15
RELATED: Crimes against foundation
CONCEALER
In your teens: Sometimes when your breakouts were really bad, you just piled this on all over.
In your 20s: Most commonly used for covering the dark circles that trying to maintain a social life AND a full-time job inevitably brings.
bh recommends:
- jane iredale Circle/Delete Concealer
- Nutrimetics nc Liquid Cover Smoothing Concealer
- Almay Line Smoothing Under-Eye Concealer
- Chi Chi 3 in 1 Eye Concealer
RELATED: How to use colour correcting concealers
MASCARA
In your teens: The clumpier the formula, the better. Lashes should be chunky and completely covered in black – top and bottom. Der.
In your 20s: If it comes off easily in the shower – it’s a goodie.
RELATED: The one trick that will extend the life of your mascara
FALSE LASHES
In your teens: You can use regular glue to just stick these on, right?
In your 20s: Falsies are reserved for special occasions only. You know how to trim them perfectly for your eye shape and always use a quality glue like DUO® Strip Lash Adhesive. Remembering to take them off before bed is the hard part…
RELATED: Top tips for applying false lashes
EYELINER
In your teens: Making mistakes wasn’t an issue because smudging was totally in. You just drew a black circle all the way around your eye and blended it with your finger. The best look was always after you slept in it.
In your 20s: You know to spare an extra half hour if you want to attempt a winged look, but for an everyday look you keep it simple with a thin line across the top lid.
bh recommends:
- Maybelline New York Master Precise Liquid Eyeliner
- Estée Lauder Double Wear Zero-Smudge Liquid Eyeliner
- Eye of Horus Liquid Define
- Mode Liquid Eyeliner
LIPSTICK
In your teens: Or should we say lip gloss, lip balm or tint? Whatever you used, it was usually watermelon or strawberry flavoured and so addictive you’d apply it every five minutes.
In your 20s: The easiest way to dress up any make-up look, therefore you own about 100. Fifty of which are red.
Do you relate to any of the above? What’s your funniest beauty memory from when you were a teenager?
Have you tried any of the products mentioned above?
Review them now to earn points that you can swap for free beauty products in RewardsRoom.
64 Member Comments
Very much relate to this. I used to buy whatever foundation and not swatched it first among some of the other things.
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Definitely the lip gloss one hahaha. Loved my lipglosses!
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back when I started using makeup, I used to go for the bargain bins and giveaways - nevermind if it didnt really match my skin tone. Now, I'm a lot more picky of my makeup and do various tests before buying it. The younger me would have laughed at current me.
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My black eyeliner was way too heavy and you just used Revlon number 7 foundation because that was the sample colour in Cosmo.
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I turned 20 not long ago so teen makeup mistakes are fresh in my memory.
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Most young girls are so good at putting their makeup on these days, I was such a hack at the same age!
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to be fair they have youtube to learn from. we didn't have that advantage. magazines at best and it's easier to learn from a video than magazine!
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I had no concept that brands were different, and that just because I bought a foundation in the lightest shade, it still doesn't mean that it matches me at all!
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The lipstick/lipgloss is familiar..........
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This article perfectly reflects my life as a teen vs adult haha :D
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Hahahaha the article is brilliant. Unfortunately, I still see women in their twenties wear false lashes with so much mascara that they look like they have an abnormal growth. Not pretty!
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When I was in my teens, make up was strictly prohibited until I left school and began work. In those days, blue eye shadow and thick eye liner prevailed!
Thank goodness I had a sensible mother who sent me to one of the big department stores to enrol in one of their free lunch time make up classes.
Such a shame they are not still available.
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I actually didn't wear makeup in my teens. I did experiment with my mum's makeup stash but only for fun at home lol
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In my teens I had a thing for black eyeliner (only because it was the only one I had). In my twenties I didn't apply blush (only because I didn't know how to do it) and I looked so pale and flat in the face! Oh dear!
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Hahaha oh yikes, all of the above!
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Hahahahhaa! The eyeliner and lip balm were so me as a teenager!
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Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! So funny!!!!
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As a teen the only make-up product wore was eyeliner - that was the IT product to wear back in the eighties!
Blue eyeliner when I was an early teen and black eyeliner thereafter.
As a late teen I added foundation because I started to go out at night and had a full time job and I thought it looked nice - with my eyeliner of course!
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Brings back memories of me piling on orange, cakey, concealor all over my pimples as a 14 year old.
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The most makeup I wore when younger was Clearasil!!
Wow, look at those lashes!
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Haha! This is totally true, particularly the thing about the concealer!
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Hahaha I remember making these mistakes when I first started using make up, I was terrible at blending too, so my face would be orange and suddenly my neck would be white...
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