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Shopping 101

Beginner's Luck: Part Five

By Jessica Brandon, B.S.
(Bachelorette of Spending)

Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five | Part Six

Hello, darlings! I hope your summer has been as enjoyable as mine. I tell ya, kids, there's nothing like lovely day upon lovely day to give a body an excuse to get out of bed in the morning. If you can't bring yourself to have nothing but fun during this time of the year, then you might as well move to Tibet and become a hermit 'cause you're really nowhere, man.

Now that all the Fourth of July festivities have concluded, it's time to tear yourself away from the beach, the mountains, or even your chaise lounge and tune in to my fabulous fifth installment in my guide for shopping for beginners.

To recap, I've discussed taking your measurements, shopping for clothes, shoes, lingerie, handbags, jewelry, hosiery and makeup which is where I'll pick up the chat.

About that Face

Makeup is the paint you add to your face, your "canvas" to enhance it into a female one. Some of us are extraordinarily talented at it (Such as the beauties you see here on TGF) while others, like myself struggle along as best we can. What helps us achieve our goal of a feminine appearance are our colors.

The best way to find out what colors will suit you best is to go to a makeup counter in a major department store. For example, Prescriptives has their unique colorprinting system that I've mentioned in a past column where their salespeople can accurately gauge what color group you belong to and show you an extensive array of cosmetics for your group.

Whether you shop in your boy or girl guise, pick their brains, get all the tips and advice you can so you can buy the right makeup and apply it with confidence.

How Much and Which Tools

How much makeup to have? That depends on the amount of dressing you do. I've found you should have at a minimum, the following items: 1 foundation, 1 concealer (if needed), 1 powder, 1 mascara, 2 eyeliners, 2 lipliners, 3 blushers, 6 eyeshadows, 6 lipsticks.

From here, you can add as necessary, but if you only dress once or twice a month as I do, why stock more makeup than an Avon Lady? That's just wasting money. You should also have a good collection of brushes to apply your makeup with.

Department stores sell fine quality brushes that have durability and works wonders with cosmetics. A brush collection should consist of: powder brush, blusher brush, eyeshadow brush, eyeshadow sponge, eyeliner brush, brow & lash brush, eye countour brush, lipstick brush and sponges for applying foundation.

Next, we come to the topic of image consultants. If you don't feel confident enough in your ability to shop, you might want to employ the services of an image consultant who provides help to those sisters unable to shop for themselves. These people, or businesses can shop for you, shop with you, determine your colors, teach you how to put on makeup, some even provide photography services or lessons in deportment.

I've never used an image consultant (I.C.) myself, I'm proud to say that I've built Jessica Brandon from the ground up through trial, error, hard work and lots and lots of practice, learning from past mistakes to make myself better. But if you're a beginner and you have no idea what you want to look like, or how to achieve that vision if you do, than an I.C. might be the way to go.

However, it can be a very expensive proposition. Some consultants I've heard charge by the day, others by the hour, and that's usually not counting the added cost of clothing, shoes, wigs, makeup, etc. Why, I read once that a sister spent a whopping $9,000 on a five day spree with an I.C., $3,200 on clothes alone! And that girl said she had a great time! Obviously, that sister has more than enough disposable income to indulge in her passion, but that majority of us don't.

One complaint I've heard here and there about I.C.'s is that some of them aren't exactly top notch pros at the makeup table, and yet they still charge top dollar for their services. A rookie fresh out of the closet might not know the difference, and therefore take the I.C.'s lessons to heart, leading to years worth of cosmetic errors that would go unnoticed since this poor soul thinks she's doing it right because the I.C. said so. Does this mean that image consultants are bad? Not really. For the closeted, they provide help where no one else can. If you do contact one, ask about her credentials, how long she's been in business, her experience, even for references if available.

Is there a better way? Absolutely! Just by going to a support meeting where one can meet caring sisters who have 'been there, done that' and love to impart advice to anyone who asks for it. As for the image itself, that depends on the look you choose to portray to the world at large. You can be sleek, stylish, contemporary, sophisticated, urban, country, exotic, the list goes on and on.

The idea here is to choose an image you'll feel most comfortable with. In my opinion, you don't need to spend hundreds, perhaps thousands on an image consultant for that when you can, with a little study do that for free. Well, girls, that’s all for now. In Part Six, I'll move on to wigs and outerwear. As always, my mailbox is open for your comments, tips and opinions at . Until next month, shop not just with your heart, but with your head!

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