Agony Al: Masc Makeup & Beginners Glam

Make it stand out

YOU ASKED: I’m a cis man and want to start wearing makeup. How?

Firstly, sincere congratulations on taking steps to be the version of yourself you want to be. We live in a world where femininity is frowned upon, and your average cishet man’s beauty routine is supermarket moisturiser, Lynx Africa and a crusty bar of soap that’s tasked with cleaning everything from anus to forehead, so to buck against that is brave. 

Makeup is such a tool of self-actualisation and expression, a way to make your identity visible in a way that transcends language. The best bit? It can easily be wiped off if you’re in a situation where looking anything but cishet can be dangerous. I’m excited for you to start ya makeup journey!

When you’re dipping your toe into the world of makeup for the first time, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. The internet is awash with tutorials and there’s a shit load of products on shelves that beauty influencers and sales assistants alike are paid to tell you that you need. My first piece of advice is to ask yourself why you wanna wear makeup. Are you looking to enhance typically masculine features, cover perceived imperfections or are you gonna give glam a go? All answers are valid, and whichever look you’re going for, I’ve got some beginner friendly looks that are minimal product, maximum impact. 

___STEADY_PAYWALL___

Look One: No Makeup Makeup

For this look you’ll need: a matte concealer and setting powder. You can also add blush and bronzer.

For a natural but polished look, I suggest keeping it simple; you’re going to need something to conceal the bits you want to hide, products to add dimension and play up your undoubtedly gorgey cheekbones and, if you’re not blessed with the brows of your dreams, a brow gel.

Start with skin prep; wash and moisturise as normal, then analyse which parts of your face need coverage, whether that’s a blemish, scar or blackhead. 

The key to making this natural is using a less is more approach. If you have brushes, take your tiniest one and concentrate concealer on any spots - you need the most amount of product in those areas - then diffuse with a fluffy brush or your fingers, making the edges as seamless as possible.

Here I’ve dotted Nars’ soft matte concealer on my blemishes

Natural under eye coverage is a bit more tricky, it can be easy to go overboard and, unless you’re a toddler, you do not have perfectly smooth eyebags that are uniform in colour. Look for the areas of your under eye that are most discolored and sunken, then using a fluffy brush or finger, work your concealer into that area only. The aim is to knock out any unnecessary  darkness and disguise any puffiness or hollows. 

Here I’ve used my concealer in the darkest areas of my face. I’ve used A LOT of product for illustrative purposes, but once blended, you should still look flawlessly fresh faced.

At this point in the makeup, you might feel good to go! 

Au nauturel… kinda.

However, if ya feeling a bit one dimensional and flat, break out your bronzer and/or blush. Placement depends on what effect you want. For a chiseled look opt for a cooler toned bronzer placed directly in the hollows of your cheeks and under your jawline; to appear sunkissed brush bronzer or blush over the high planes of your face. 

Here I’m using some cream blusher to add a youthful flush and add some dimension back into my face.

I added a lick of brow gel to lock my unruly caterpillars into place and done!

Look Two: ‘Masc’ Makeup

For this look, I built on top of the no makeup makeup look. You’ll need: a contour product, brow gel and the concealer and powder I used previously. 

Though it’s been marketed to us as a tool for women to enhance their femininity and fit a beauty standard, makeup can do whatever you want it to. For a more “masculine” look, you want to concentrate on bringing out your cheekbones and enhancing any facial hair. Begin by applying a cool toned bronzer or dedicated contouring product under your cheekbones, on either side of your nose and in a circle on your chin and forehead. MEn typically have a more pronounced brow ridge and chin, defined cheekbone and wider noses, so this contour placement will emphasise those “masculine” features. 

I’ve gone very heavy handed on my contour so you can really see placement, but less is definitely more.

When blending out, you can use fingers, a brush or a sponge. Makeup tutorials  usually show contour being blended upwards, but I recommend blending product down, to add bulk to the lower half of your face.

Brows are a huge part of transforming your face, so to appear more masculine you may want to bulk them up. Focus on adding volume without making the shape too precise by backbrushing a tinted brow gel through ‘em, waiting til the product feels set, then using the applicator to brush them into place. You want the inner hairs to point up or inwards, with the outer hairs pointing towards the side of your face. 

Eugene Levy has been real quiet since this picture of me with thicc eyebrows dropped.

This masculine makeup routine is a good base for other “male” makeup. Why not go all Maneskin and add some kohl around your eye and in your bottom waterline, then blend it out with ya fingers, a cotton bud or a brush. 

Zitti E Buonice!

Look Three: Beginners Glam

For this look, I’m showing an eye, cheek AND lip focussed look with multi use products: foundation, concealer, mascara, brow gel, blush and bronzer. 

If you want the world to know you’re wearing makeup, try adding a pop of interest like blusher, eyeshadow or a lip colour. For the sake of showing ya how to do these things, I’m gonna be wearing all three, but obviously adjust to your comfort and skill level. 

There are a sea of beginner’s makeup look tutorials online, but I wanted to do a look that’s a bit more modern and utilises one product for several things: summery, blushed skin with pastel pink eyes and a snogged, gradient lip. This seven product face is accessible to anybody with the will to do it, but can easily be amped up with your own favourite products or modified to more fit your personal style. 

I always start with my brows, brushing them down to look for sparse areas, filling in, and then brushing back up and into place, locking your work in with a brow gel. 

If the eyes are the nipples of the face, are brows the nipple tassels?

Next, buff foundation all over to get a clean canvas. When you’re doing more glam looks, a fuller coverage creates a blank canvas to showcase your makeup, rather than your skin. 

With a heavier coverage on the rest of the face, though, under eye bags can be more pronounced, so be sure to conceal them; you can even opt for a slightly lighter concealer to add lift. 

I’ve dotted a concealer slightly lighter than my foundation under my eyes, on my temples and on my chin to bring those areas forward and make them look brighter.

To bring shape back into my face, I’m applying a cream bronzer. Cream products blend like a dream, so are extremely beginner friendly, but if you don’t have them, powder bronzer, contour or even eyeshadow is absolutely fine. 

My placement in this look is more feminine, aiming to lift and add volume to the cheek

Blush is trending at the moment, and is my absolute favourite part of my makeup routine. In my opinion, blush is a great way to start wearing visible makeup, as its rise Tik Tok popularity sees men and women alike donning the product! A pop of colour on the cheeks adds maximum impact, with very little effort and looks good on everybody. 

I’ve taken a cream colour and added it on my cheeks and the bridge of my nose.

Eyeshadow is arguably the trickiest beauty skill to master. Picking colours to pair with your look, placement and blending can take ages to master. To keep it simple, in this look I’ve laid down concealer, before patting my bronzer into the crease of my eye socket and feathering out the edges into a v shape.

Next, I’ve tapped some blusher onto my lid for a soft wash of colour. Using the same products on the eyes and cheek helps prevent any colour clashing and makes for a gorgeous monochrome moment .Tres chic!

Matchy matchy looks are timeless and loved by makeup legends from Patrick Ta to Pat McGrath. 

As a makeup newbie, I struggled to perfect my lip line; the muscle memory to achieve a flawless, bold lip takes time to develop, so at the beginning of your makeup journey a symmetrical statement lip might be out of the question. For wow factor without faff, try a gradient lip. Popularised in Korea, this look is as impactful as it is easy. 

On lips covered with residual foundation, focus your blusher in the very centre, blending out and diffusing the edges with a brush or finger. To create even more depth, you can keep layering blush and even add bronzer. There’s no wrong way to do this - get it on, buff it out and pout! 

This lip looks intricate but only used one product and took 30 seconds. Magic!

Got a question? Email us at hello@polyesterzine.com with subject line AGONY AL, or DM Polyester Zine or Lipgloss Lezza.

XOXO, Agony Al