Beauty basics for beginner?

[MaybeSamantha]

Hey! I’m shopping for someone who is new to makeup completely. What are your favorite (and budget friendly if you can) makeup items that I should get? 

thanks!

[kristenyhan]

Hi Samantha! I've always been into skincare, but I didn't start getting into makeup until pretty recently. The first makeup gift that I ever received was the Sephora Favorites Superstars Set. It's not in stock anymore, but it was a really great gift for me, someone who was just starting to get into makeup! It was a really good deal (it cost $48, but the value was $137), and it came with 3 full-size products and 6 mini products. 

It had almost every makeup product that a person just getting into makeup could ever want; it had a brow gel, a primer, a lip pencil, a lip balm, a setting spray, liquid eyeliner, an eyeshadow stick, a highlighter palette, and a mascara. These products weren't from low-quality no-name brands either - they were from mid-range to high-end makeup brands like Fenty Beauty and Laura Mercier! The only basic products that the set didn't have were foundation and concealer, which made sense, because everyone's skin tones are different, so everyone will need a different tone for those products. 

Like I said, Sephora doesn't offer that specific set anymore, but they have a set this year called the Sephora Favorites Makeup Musthaves Bestsellers Set, which is pretty similar. It comes with one less product than the set that I was gifted, but it has 4 full-size products as opposed to the 3 full-size products that last year's set offered. It also comes with a blush instead of a highlighter, which seems more reasonable, since most beginners will probably prefer blush, but I personally loved the highlighter that last year's set came with (it was Fenty Beauty highlighter, which is one of the best highlighters out there!). 

While I like things from Sephora Favorites, I would avoid anything from the Sephora Collection - it's Sephora's brand, and the products are definitely cheaper than products from mid-range to high-end beauty brands, but don't be fooled by the low prices - Sephora Collection's products are often low-quality and ineffective, and I don't even think that beauty beginners should use them. 

In conclusion, I think that it's best to buy mid-range products for beauty beginners - and with the Sephora Favorites sets, you can introduce them to said mid-range beauty brands for a great value! 

[quspork]

@MaybeSamantha I'd recommend checking out the Sephora Favorites sets. They offer a good variety of things to try.