Alright besties, today we’re gonna talk about something super important for anyone just getting into makeup: all those super confusing makeup terms! I know it can feel like you’re learning a whole new language when you first dive in!! You’ll hear words like “cut crease,” “baking,” or “buffing” and you’re like, ‘Hold up—what does that mean?!’ Don’t worry—you’re not alone. I got you!
Let’s make things a little less intimidating by breaking it all down, so next time someone says “strobing” or “contouring,” you’re like, “Pssh, I know exactly what that means.”
So grab your favorite lippie (pink gloss is my go-to) and let’s jump in!
Foundation Terms You Gotta Know
Foundation: Ok, this one is basic but still important. Foundation is the OG of any makeup look. It’s the skin-colored product you apply to your face to even everything out. Some make your skin matte (we’ll get into that in a sec), and others give you that dewy, glowing look.
Coverage: Coverage is all about how much your foundation can hide. There’s light (think Instagram “no makeup” vibes), medium (a little more coverage where you still see your skin), and full (think completely flawless photo-shoot glam).
Matte: If a foundation (or any makeup!) leaves your skin without any shine, it’s matte. Like all those powder-fresh faces you see everywhere. Kiss oily-looking skin goodbye.
Dewy: Opposite of matte! This leaves your skin glowy, luminous, and like you just drank 8 glasses of water—a whole hydrated queen.
“Matte is for badass boss vibes, while dewy’s all about looking angelic AF.”
Undertone: This one’s tricky if you’re new. Your skin tone is your surface color, but your undertone is the hint of color beneath your skin. Most people are either warm (yellow or peachy undertones), cool (pink or blue-ish undertones), or neutral (a mix of both).
Pro Tip: Swatch your foundation on your jawline to test the color— never your hand. It’s closer to your actual face shade!
What’s Up With Primers?
Primer: Think of primer as the superhero sidekick to foundation. It’s the stuff you slap on before foundation to help it last longer, look smoother, and keep any oil or dryness under control. There are hydrating primers for dry skin and mattifying primers for oily skin.
Pore-filling Primer: If you’ve got larger pores and want to blur them out, grab a pore-filling primer. It literally fills in your pores to give you a smooth canvas.
Color Correcting Primer: If you look at your face and see redness or dullness you wanna fix, color-correcting primers to the rescue. Green cancels red, purple cancels yellow, and peach brightens tired, dark spots. Yup, it’s like a color wheel for your face.
Contour, Bronzer, and Highlight – What’s What?
Contouring: Everybody talks about it thanks to people like Kim K, but what even is it?! Contouring uses darker makeup products to enhance your natural shadow points and make your face look sculpted or slimmer. Think cheekbones for days.
Bronzer: Ok, bronzer isn’t the same as contour even though some people think it is. Bronzer gives you a sun-kissed, warm look like you’ve just spent a weekend at the beach—without the sunburn part lol. You usually dust this stuff wherever the sun would spritz sunlight on you (tops of your cheeks, your nose, your forehead).
Highlighting: Contour’s partner in crime! Highlighting is all about catching the light on places you want to stand out. You hit up the tops of your cheekbones, under your brow bone, and down the bridge of your nose. It’s like a spotlight—on your face.
“Bronzing = warm-up, Contour = level-up, Highlighting = GLOW-up.”
Eye Makeup Terms On-The-Go
Alright, queens, no makeup glossary is complete without dishing the eye makeup dirt. Honestly, the eyes are one of the MOST important parts of your look, and there’s some lingo you need to know. So let’s break it up by category.
Types of Eyeshadow Looks
Cut Crease: You know those super-defined eyeshadow lines that look cut right in the crease of the eye? That’s a cut crease. It’s where your eyelid (the crease) is divided into two. Usually, a lighter shade is on the lid and a darker shade defines the line. It’s dramatic, bold, and honestly a showstopper.
Smokey Eye: Classic, sexy and sultry. The smokey eye drags darker eyeshadow shades (think black, brown, gray) along the outer corner of the eye and smudges them upward, making the eyes look bigger. Go for it if you’re feeling glam or found the perfect eyeliner.
Eyeshadow Techniques
Blending: A must! This is where you take multiple shades of eyeshadow (usually a light transition color, a medium shade, and a darker color) and blend, blend, BLEND. It’s all about getting rid of any harsh lines—all the colors should mix smoothly.
Transition Shade: This is the lightest color in your eyeshadow routine and is applied first, usually over the crease. It helps blend all the other shades together—the glue of your look.
Buffing: Another term for blending but usually refers to softer strokes for a more subtle look. You can “buff” any harsh edges of eyeshadow using a fluffy brush.
Your Ultimate Eyeliner and Brows Guide
Tightlining: Sounds scary but it’s super effective. Tightlining is when you apply eyeliner into the upper lash line to make your lashes look fuller. It’s like a sneaky way of getting definition to your eyes that’s almost invisible!
Waterline: The thin line of skin between your lower lashes and your eye itself. You can put eyeliner here for a more intense look. Pro tip: Go with white eyeliner for your waterline to make the eyes look bigger.
Winged Eyeliner: Pretty much what it sounds like. You draw eyeliner along your upper lash line, flicking it outward like a wing. Definitely a little trickier to nail at first, but once you get it right, it’s a forever fave.
Brow Gel/Pomade: Your best friend for getting that strong-looking brow that’s all over your IG feed. Gel will lightly hold your brows in place, while a pomade will sculpt them into any shape you want but more dramatically.
Lashes, Mascara, and More!
Mascara: Everyone’s favorite makeup magic wand. Mascara can make your lashes look longer, fuller, and more dramatic. There are different types: volumizing, lengthening, waterproof, and curling.
False Lashes (Falsies): These are fake lashes you glue on top of your natural lash line to give you boosted volume and length. Whether you want natural or drama is up to you. Some girls go subtle, some go all out with lashes longer than their patience (lol we’ve all been there).
Lash Curler: You use this tool before mascara to curl your lashes upwards and get that extra lift. Don’t be scared—it looks intense but works wonders.
Lip Terms You Can’t Miss
Liner (Lip Liner): This is like the bullet-proof barrier for your lips. You outline (or shade in) your lips with a pencil to make them look fuller and make your lipstick last longer. It’s the unsung hero of lipstick, tbh.
Matte Lipstick: Just like matte foundation, matte lipstick dries flat with no shine, which can make lips look smooth but less juicy (which some people are all about). Plus, it lasts forever.
Gloss: Do you want your lips looking juicy like freshly glazed doughnuts?? Like your lips can blind people from across the room? All you need is gloss. It’s shiny, hydrating, and is having a whole revival moment from back in the 90s.
Application techniques and General Terms
Baking: Nope, this doesn’t involve cakes. Baking in makeup means letting a bunch of loose setting powder sit on areas of your face (usually under the eyes and under contour lines) for several minutes. It “cooks” from the heat of your skin and leaves the makeup underneath super smooth, creaseless, and long-lasting. Think locked in.
Setting Spray: Like hairspray for your face. After all your makeup is done, give your face a few sprays, and it helps set everything in place. It can help keep you matte or glowy depending on the kind of setting spray you use.
Buffing Brush: A short, dense brush used for blending out foundation, bronzer, or blush. It’s all about giving you that airbrushed, flawless look. Plus, the circular buffing motions feel kinda relaxing.
Conclusion
There you have it! We just decoded some of the most important makeup terms that might be throwing you off. Hope you feel less stressed now, knowing different types of primers, shadow styles, and why baking has nothing to do with cookies.
Next time you’re watching your favorite beauty guru on YouTube and they start talking about their fave matte foundation or how they pulled off that winged liner, you’ll be totally clued in.
If you read through all of this, you’re now like 150% more confident walking into Sephora or Ulta without feeling like you’re in a makeup jargon tornado.
Catch you next time my beauty queens. Try something new and slay! 👑
