Makeup Classes for Girls With Glasses

Posted in Beauty.

what makeup to wear with glasses

A few weeks ago I wrote a post about my everyday makeup and the products I use. Since then, I’ve had a few emails asking about makeup for spectacle wearers, and after seeing a fab post by Keiko Lynn entitled ‘Makeup Classes for Girls with Glasses’ I thought I’d share my thoughts on beauty for those of us who look at the world through a permanent window. And yes, I shamefully stole my title from Keiko. Hope she doesn’t mind (full creative credit goes to her on that one!).

wearing makeup with glasses

uk fashion and beauty blog
Benefit Porefessional primer, Estee Lauder Double Wear Light in 001, Benefit Boi-ing concealer in 1, Rimmel Hide the Blemish in Ivory, Mac Mineralize Skinfinish powder in Medium, Benefit Hervana powder, Benefit Hoola bronzer, Topshop Neon Rose cream blush, Urban Decay Naked 2 eyeshadow in Bootycall, Shavata brow pencil in Dusk, Benefit They’re Real mascara in Black, Revlon Just Bitten Kissable lip balm stain in Cherish. 

I’ve been wearing glasses since I was 11, and started wearing them full time around age 14, so I don’t really have any reference for how different it is to wear makeup with added face furniture. But I’ve had a long time to figure out what works, and what doesn’t, when your makeup has to content with a pair of glasses. So here are my tips for a natural, everyday look…

  • No matter how thin your frames or how much you pay for anti-glare lenses, glasses DO cover your eyes. They reflect the light, they get smudged, they put a barrier between you and everyone you look at. No amount of eye makeup will change that. So, I prefer to keep my eyes neutral and focus on other areas instead – sticking to a natural shadow (I love the Naked 2 palette) and defined lashes means I can ramp up my lip colour instead. 
  • Unless you’re going for the Deirdre-Barlow-circa-1992 look, your frames shouldn’t cover your eyebrows, and neatly-groomed brows will give you a more wide-eyed look. I have mine threaded and fill them in with a brow pencil, accentuating the arches. Comb through afterwards for a natural look.
  • Heavy frames like mine can be very hash against pale skin (again, like mine), so I use a peachy blush and a light bronzer to add colour and definition to my skin, helping it warm up against the thick black of my glasses. In the past I’ve had coloured frames which are much easier to wear than classic black… strangely enough!
  • Finally, a more practical tip – smudges and marks on my lenses are the bane of my life and I’m constantly borrowing my boyfriend’s t-shirt (while he’s wearing it!) to clean my specs. I avoid sticky lip products at ALL COSTS because hair+gloss+wind+glasses = an absolute nightmare to clean. Instead I like matte finishes, or coloured balms like this one from Revlon. 
I’m hoping to do a series of posts on makeup for long/short sighted ladies, covering a range of looks for different occasions. Let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like to see… something I’m toying with at the moment is whether to wear my glasses at my wedding and how that would work with makeup, so when I’ve cracked it I’ll let you know! And if you wear glasses, share your own makeup tips in the comments – I’d love to hear them.
PS – The only editing I’ve done on these photos is cropping and fixing the light. I wanted to show the makeup as true-to-life as possible!

31 Comments

Louise

Great Post x and I definitely agree with the smudge thing bane of myself especially in weather like this when my make up seems to get in every nook and cranny of my specs

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Marianne

Great post! I would love to hear your tips for short sighted make up as I’m very short sighted and my glasses make my eyes look tiny! Mainly I try to make sure I curl my lashes and play them up with black mascara, I tend to go for nude/pale eyeshadow and I like a bit of shimmer as that seems to brighten them up. I’m also engaged and I’m so unsure about whether or not to wear my glasses for my wedding. I’m not at the dress buying stage yet so I don’t know exactly what look I’ll be going for on the day, but you don’t see many brides with glasses on, do you? Yet I don’t feel that I look myself without them, as I’ve been wearing mine full time since I was about 9. Was considering maybe getting some white cat’s eyes ones but it might be a bit too silly, I don’t want to look back on my wedding pics in years to come and feel like I was in fancy dress! It’s a real dilemma for a specky four eyes like me!

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Jen

This is EXACTLY my dilemma! I don’t think my friends would even recognise me without my glasses, I look so different, and I don’t want to look weird on my wedding day! I’m going to look into more subtle frames though… maybe rimless or at least something more delicate. Will report back! 🙂

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janine

great post jen! my glasses are also a magnet for smudging/makeup/hairspray… clean them twice a day, minimum! so frustrating. really like your daytime look, how amazing are the revlon lip balm stains?

could you do a night-time makeup look too, perhaps? i really like your glasses-related/makeup posts 🙂

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Jen

Will definitely do a nighttime look – this is an area I need help with too so hopefully I’ll get some tips in the comments!

Loving the Revlon lip stains! I now have three! 🙂

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Kelly

Ah Jen you look absolutely beautiful on these pics, love the cheeks.
I change between glasses and contacts, and must admit with glasses I concentrate on lips and then with contacts I make more of my eyes.
x

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brokenangel

hey jen u ever thought of going for a rimless frame i no they that big fashion wise right now but viviane westwood has some great ones that mean you cAN wear whatever eye makeup you like…..aslong as it doesnt stick to the lense. For you wedding what about contacts then if you find you want to change during the day you can always take them out and redo ur makeup at the break between dinner and evening party.

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Tobeapoet

Think I need to start wearing glasses full-time too which will be a bit weird at 22 but y’know… out of interest where did you get your speccies from? I know little about specs except I hate mine and they hurt my eyes! xo

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Jen

Not weird at all! You’ll soon adjust. Mine are Ralph Lauren, got them from Vision Express for a very reasonable £99! Sadly the lenses were much more expensive… welcome to the world of spectacles! 😉

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Laila

I’ve been wearing mine full time for just over a year and I never changed my make up – eyes are still what I focus on using winged eyeliner and mascara. Though my eyes are small so I think it helps them stand out behind the glasses. I do actually think getting anti glare helped a lot though! I love wearing glasses now (aside from the smudges/ fingerprints and switching between glasses and sunglasses in summer) and I think my face looks boring without them now!

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EilidhPie

You look fab! I alway have to downplay my makeup if I can’t be bothered wearing my contacts – heavy eye makeup is a no no which really annoys me (I’m a maddie fan of my eyeliner <3) xo

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Jen

Thank you! I can’t really do heavy eye makeup either due to sensitive eyes… always end up rubbing it all off!

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Emsipop

I’d never really considered how glasses would affect your make up choices! This is such a great, useful post =) your make up looks lovely, and (not to sound too weird but) I’ve always admired your eyebrows.
xx

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LadyBugSays ...

Great advice, I tend to wear my contact lenses 90% of the time but occasionally need to wear glasses so appreciate the tips 🙂 Your eyebrows look fab by the way!

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Amy

I love your hair in those pictures Jen! Think I’ve found inspiration for my next haircut 🙂 also defo gonna buy one of those Revlon lip stains after your recommendations! X

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ScienceGeek

Awww you looks so pretty in those pictures! Great post, I often find the days I wear my glasses I tend to go make-up free. I do find it somewhat a struggle at times to apply make up without my full vision, I also hate the whole eyelashes on the lens situation when wearing mascara.
xx

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Summer

Great post! I’ve been wearing glasses for forever, but when I go out I always wear contacts, I’m so paranoid about my glasses breaking! But I really want a new pair that will suit me like yours suit you 🙂 x

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LilyLipstick

Great post. Your skin looks flawless!
I only wear glasses at work so stick to simple eye make-up during the week. Smudged glasses drive me crazy although because I’m not very used to wearing them I’m always accidentally touching the glass – aaah! x

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Gerri

Fantastic post, I’d really appreciate some tips for someone who is long-sighted as my glasses magnify my eyes. I’m in my mid-40s now and have just entered the world of varifocals, which although scary at first, have been absolutely brilliant and much less ageing than taking glasses on and off to read.

I have been a full-time glasses wearer for about 10 years now and everytime I think about taking them off for a special occasion (e.g. wedding) I think that I just look wrong without them. Therefore, if I were you, I’d wear them for your wedding and choose a pair that complements (or at least doesn’t distract from) your outfit. You could wear them in public for the first time at the wedding as an additional wow factor.

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Susannah Perez

Great post! I completely agree with you about the lipgloss dilemma – I only ever wear it when I’ve got contacts in! Also, you need to stop cleaning your glasses on your bf’s T-shirt as it can damage the lenses!! There’s some good tips for cleaning glasses on this page http://su.pr/192iIY

Susannah xx

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