Great makeup starts with no makeup.

Last night a friend (let's give her a ghetto alias: LaKeisha) comes round on her way home from DJs cause she wants to show me her new 'Face stuff'. When she calls me on the celly 5 mins earlier, I assume she's talking about makeup so naturally, I'm excited (and nervous 'cause this chick aint no Paris or Nicole...In fact I can't remember a time when I've seen her with makeup on). Anyway, Keish comes in and sits on the couch with her bag-o-goodies and to my amazement/surprise, the first thing she pulls out is an eye cream! (I'm surprised that firstly she knows what eye cream is and secondly that she's actually gone out with the intention of buying said eye cream). I now feel bad for underestimating her skillz and hope this post gives her the shouts she deserves.

She explains to me that since she can remember, her mum's been hammering home the importance of cleanser, moisturiser, eye cream, serum and all other matters of the face, the result being that LaKeisha has rocked the skin care boat for 10+ years and now has awesome skin. She reckons her mum never taught her about makeup (evident in Keisha's surprise that there can be a colour called 'Black Brown') and now she is needing advice on how to 'makefacelookgood'. It was a bittersweet moment for me as I firstly thought good on mum for teaching her these essentials, however I did feel a deep sense of melancholy to know this hottie knows nothing about makeup. One thing is for sure, she's learning in the right order- Skin first, makeup second.

Without knowing it, my friend has managed to comprehend something millions of young molls will never understand: Wearing no make up and taking care of your skin is the key. (Sound logical, yeah? Explain to me why no one under the age of 25 does it then!)

The gem of this situation is that because she has taken care of her skin really well for so long, all she has to do now is learn a few tricks about makeup and it will always look freakin' sweet- because her canvas is tip top. As long as she continues her regime of skin care, her makeup usage will be limited (for example no concealer as there is nothing to conceal!) so looking rad will cost less, save her time and give her one up on all the hideous freaks who never wash their face (and who instead pile on makeup everyday without ever washing it off).

Catch public transport for five minutes and you will see the grotesque creatures that insist on adding another dimension to their face with discounted makeup from Chemist warehouse. One thing they don't realise is, you cannot change 3D- If you have open pores, ten layers of foundation will not fill this in. (And no, Lilydale line, neither will bronzer). If you have fine lines, flaky skin, shine control issues or acne, get smart about skincare stat. These people need to stop wearing makeup for a consistent period of time, get facials, establish an effective routine of skincare with quality products and start eating fresh/chugging water. Beauty editors, models and celebrities everywhere will tell you 'Don't ever sleep with make up on'- not because you will look nasty when you wake up (you will), but because it ruins your skin. It's that simple.

Don't get me wrong, I am a huge fan of full face makeup a la Dita Von Teese and you will often see me fully made up on a Saturday night-Drag queen lashes and all. The difference is that in the week I will wear little to no make up and I will treat my skin really well so that when I do wear makeup, I'm applying it on a well maintained base. Yes, Dita rocks, but no-one can deny the Gwyneths of this world do look amazing (and so would I if I had a live in macro-biotic chef). One thing's faux show, the Lindsays are gross. Obviously Dina Lohan didn't teach Lindsay the lessons Keisha's mum did.

My opinion on makeup: It should not be used to cover up imperfections, it should be used to highlight great features. And, it will look a million times hotter if your skin is great underneath.

My opinion on skin: It is an organ, so treat it accordingly. If you have nice skin, you wont feel the need to wear makeup everywhere and when you do want to go all out, you wont need to layer it on red light district style.

Thugs and Kisses!