FAN MAIL FRIDAYS: Tips from starting a blog to making your eyeliner last

Hi guys! Time again to answer some questions sent through email by two of my avid readers, Irene and Chandra.

A little change: From now on, I'm going to answer reader queries during Fridays because I've thought of a nice name for this blog segment: FAN MAIL FRIDAY. :D I love answering queries because I get to bring out the teacher in me whenever I answer fan mails. So please keep them coming. :)

Let's start with this very interesting email from Chandra:

Hi Ms. Martha,

I'm not a blogger yet. Somebody endorsed your blog to me. I’m just an ordinary average girl, my make ups are budgeted, and i have a child na rin. I’m just a plain housewife. I wanna know how to be a blogger. I get addicted from your blogs and i want to start up but I dont know how an average person like me doesn't have enough money to build a beautiful blog site like yours. Maybe you can suggest how to start. Thank you in advance.

P.S. thank you for being my inspiration to be a blogger soon. Thanks Ms.Martha. Sana maging inspirasyon din ako someday sa iba tulad mo. (I hope I’ll become an inspiration to others just like you)

Chandra

Hi Chandra!

Thank you for the nice words! I'm also happy to know that my blog has inspired you to start your own.

Starting a blog is pretty easy. Just go to a blog hosting site, sign up, and voila! in 5 minutes, you already have a blog. But of course, what I want you to do is to start and run a valuable blog- something that brings out the best in you, something that lets you express yourself without any inhibitions, and something that lets you share your passion with other people. Honestly, I see a lot of blogs nowadays that don't have value. It seems to me as if they just start a blog because it's an "IN" thing right now, and they come up with one because they think you're important if you're a blogger. These bloggers are quite active at the start, but they drop their blog somewhere along the way because they're just blogging for the sake of blogging--their heart is not truly into it.

So you wanna be a blogger? Before you sign up for a blog account, read these simple rules:

Click READ MORE and check out my answers!

1. FIND YOUR WHY

- Way back in college, my acting mentors would always tell me to find my character's "Superobjective". Meaning, I should find the WHY of my character: Why is my character like this? Why is she evil? Why is she poor/rich? According to them, once you have found your character's "WHY", you will gain full understanding of your character's situation, and you'll find meaning in all of your character's lines and actions. I've brought this theater practice with me in my everyday life, and it has been very useful to me, even in non- theatre situations.

Before I started this blog, I have asked myself first: "Why do I want to blog?" My answer? I just love makeup and I want somebody to talk to about it. Yup. It's as simple as that.

This is the basic step. Ask yourself why you want to start a blog. But your WHY doesn't necessarily have to be spiritual like "I want to change the world" or something like that. It could be as simple as "I've always wanted to write so I'm starting this blog", "I want to showcase my drawings", "I want to share my photographs", etc. So before you start, ask yourself WHY.

2. FIND YOUR WHAT

- Simply put, know what you love, and start writing about it. I feel like a broken record here, but I'm saying it again: Write about what you love and not what's popular. When you write about the things you love, you let your personality radiate through you. Also, your readers will feel if you're sincere about what you're writing.

3. KEEP YOUR BLOG CLEAN

- Honestly, web developers and graphic designers are quite costly. If you can't afford them right now, there are so many free blog layouts in the internet. Stick to no- fuss layouts so your blog will be pleasing to the eyes of your readers. Don't flood your blog with unnecessary banners and widgets. I had a lot before and I eliminated them one by one. Good thing I did.

4.YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE TONS OF MONEY IN ORDER TO START BLOG.

- A lot of my readers have a common misconception that starting a blog requires tons of money. In reality, having tons of money would be cool, but it's not the standard. Stick to your budget and just buy what you can afford and what you really need. And since you have a dependent, you should know how to allot the right budget for makeups. There are tons of affordable products in the market, and you can start with them. If you have spare money, maybe that's the time for you to buy mid- priced ones. But I'm telling you, blogging about your hobbies, whether it be fashion, food, travel, makeup, or sports, will require you to shell out money. It's part of maintaining a blog. If you want blog content, you may have to spend.

I made some financial mistakes while I was running this blog. There were some purchases I wish I didn't do, but I don't regret the experience. Come to think of it, If I didn't experience them, I wouldn't be telling you this valuable advice now. :)

Bottomline, BE REALISTIC. Know when to purchase, know what to purchase, and know when to stop purchasing.

5. BE YOURSELF

- If you act like yourself, your blog will be more interesting. Don't try too hard to write poetically if your writing style is fun and relaxed. Don't try too hard to become someone you're not. If you can't write in English, then write in Tagalog or whatever language you're fluent in.

6. CHECK YOUR GRAMMAR AND WORD SPELLINGS

- I cannot stress this enough. Well, I'm guilty of this sometimes because I don't like back reading. (Good thing I'm starting to do it now) Always remember, your thoughts should be clear and read-able.

But I'm not really strict when it comes to writing styles. I'm a vernacular writer. I write as I speak. I don't really follow the technical rules on writing. If I do, my posts don't sound like me. So my advice, just keep on writing, and write as if you're just telling a story. But please, be mindful of your grammar and word spellings.

7. READY.FIRE.AIM

- Perhaps this is the best advice I got from reading Jack Canfield's The Success Principles. This phrase tells you that you cannot over plan and over think things. If you do, you'll just end up stuck in the planning phase and before you know it, you have already lost your fire and enthusiasm. Don't wait for the RIGHT TIME because it will never come! When you decide that NOW is the time, then you've already found the RIGHT TIME.

Just keep these tips in mind before you start a blog. READY: Think of what you want to do, ponder on it, and gather useful advice and tips FIRE: Start right away. There's value in being one of the firsts. AIM: Make adjustments along the way.

8. KEEP YOUR BLOG HAPPY

- A happy blog is a nice blog to visit. Haters will always be there. If they pull you down, just carry on and don't mind them. If they get on your nerves, resolve your problems with them privately. Don't bash and curse people in your blog. It's not nice.

There you go! Feel free to ask more stuff. I also answered the same question sent in by one of my readers, Geline. Please CLICK HERE and check out my other answers. :)

Here's another one from Irene, who's apparently having troubles with her eyeliner:

Hi Martha,

I chanced upon your website while looking for references for the artdeco eye primer. Your blogs are really helpful! Thanks!

Like you I have very oily eyelids too so I really need an eye primer to keep y eyeshadow in place the whole day, especially since I don't really put on a lot of eyeshadow, i always want just a hint of color on my lids.

By the way, I really have problems looking for an eyeliner that won't smear when my lids get oily. I have chinita eyes, so it makes it even harder for the liner to stay in place. When it smears, it smears on both directions, up and down! I’ve tried Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner, Revlon Colorstay Liquid Liner, Kanebo Liquid Liner. All don’t work for me. And I’ve also tried dabbing on some powder on my lids to set but still with the same negative results. You were saying that some Revlon eyeliner works for you? Which is this?

Irene

Hi Irene!

Welcome to The Beauty Junkee! Hope to have you as one of my avid readers. :)

One of the best eyeliners I've tried was Revlon's Colorstay Automatic Eyeliner Pencil. It really stays put! I used to use this in my stage acting days because it can withstand sweat, oil, and tears! It's very affordable and effective, so please try it. I highly recommend it.

It is inevitable for girls with chinky eyes to get eyeliner smudges on their lids because their eye folds are so close to their lash lines. Here are some tips on how to make your eyeliner last, and how to prevent it from smudging:

HOW TO PREVENT YOUR EYELINER FROM SMUDGING (FOR CHINITAS)

1. CREATE A THICKER LINE

- Know the part where you usually get eyeliner smudges. In your next application, create a thicker line, preferably up to the part where you would usually get those smudges. So whenever your eyeliner starts to smudge, it wouldn't be noticeable anymore.

2. BUY WATERPROOF EYELINERS

- 'Nuff said

3. BUY AN EYE PRIMER

- For girls with oily lids like me, eye primers really come in handy. Prep your eyes with an eye primer before applying waterproof eyeliner. I highly recommend Laura Mercier's Eye Canvas because it dries to a matte finish.

4. EYELINER SEALANTS

- You may want to check out those eyeliner sealants. Eyeliner sealants yield an invisible barrier that locks your eyeliners in place. Kryolan and Cinema Secrets have this product. However, I don't really recommend this because it can sting eyes.

5. EYELINER-EYESHADOW SEALING TECHNIQUE

- I used to do this when I was doing theatre plays. I find that it makes waterproof eyeliners last forever. :D Here's how to do it:

TOOLS:

Waterproof eyeliner (cake, cream, liquid, gel)

Matte black eyeshadow

Eyeliner brush

Atomizer with clean water

PROCEDURE:

1. Apply waterproof eyeliner as close to your lash line as possible. Let it settle for a bit.

2. Take your eyeliner brush, and lightly mist it with water.

3. Tap the eyeliner brush on the black eyeshadow and start lining your lids. You may opt to apply more than one layer, but make sure that the first layer is thoroughly dry before applying another one.

There you go! Hope this helps! Will do a separate post for this technique. :)

Do you find my answers way too long? Please let me know!

Got a burning question about makeups, skin care products, beauty, dieting, and health tips, relationships, and whatever? Just send them to martha.stabarbara@yahoo.com and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. (Please, do not send me Math- related queries. :D)