I Ran Into Tammy Faye at the Mall

I’ve written about makeup before in my column, but it’s 2012 and this is my new ongoing series about the difficulties of passing. For those just tuning in we’re talking about what it takes to be a woman in this society of ours. Often times called “passing” but not to be confused with passing on to the other side or passing the bottle of booze.

The Artist D in 2012

This time I wanted to cover makeup techniques that work for you. We all know I’m a bit over the top when it comes to being Me. I know I can do my face to fit in. I rarely choose to fit in. So, let’s pretend you want to fit in — because you do — and let’s also pretend you would love to pass as a woman — because you are a woman.

Make sure you cover all the clichés. Everything you’ve ever heard almost anyone say about “makeup that is right for you” is sadly close to the truth. You’ve got to first find your color — your foundation. If you’ve ever browsed the makeup aisle of your local discount store you know that white is not white, black is not black and there are plenty of shades in between. The naked truth about your face is that even if you are from Venus you have a certain shade. Are you a darker white or a vampire white? How black is black and is it more like brown or the lavish golden tone that adorns some of us?

If it’s your first time you head to the drug store and get something cheap. Get a few cheap shades and start playing when you get home. Once you get the feel for your actual coloring you can upgrade to something that matters.

Even Pete Burns can pass!

The eyes can be a window to the soul as well as the red flag of passability! Remember, there is no need for swoopy rainbows arching up onto the brow bone and dark liner doing devious things. A light line around the eyes is quite enough for dark eyeliner. Try gray, copper and other colors too. There is a lot of difference when you change that eyeliner color! Then an accent color on your lids blended lighter and lighter outward does the trick.

Lips are exactly where one gets carried away. For some of us ladies the lips are where femininity wildly pours out! We think the bigger the better and therefore the more lipstick the better. Anyone remember the Heatherette video which demonstrated my point exactly? You don’t want to do that. The key is to use what lips you’ve got. Don’t stray outside the lines hoping to make your lips bigger. If you have thin lips then you’ve got thin lips! Dress them accordingly and make it a color that is natural. That would be reds and tans instead of blacks and blues.

If you ask me rouge or blush is a dangerous experiment. Are you the wicked queen in a Walt Disney flick? Never forget that makeup should only enhance your natural features and rarely does it have to stray outside of the unnatural. Blush should be applied lightly, carefully to the area in which you would normally have a pinkish cheek. This color should not be purple and it should not be a stripe which runs from your ear to near the corners of your mouth. I opt out when it comes to blush. I enjoy my pale complexion and have little desire to be blushing.

Bridgitte Nielsen

Don’t forget mascara. You’ll probably find that a little bit of mascara on what eyelashes you have is all that is needed. Just say no to false eyelashes when it comes to passing. False lashes are the devil to apply and leave you looking somewhere between airline stewardess and Rockette.

Top it all off with your very own beauty mark strategically placed and Ta Da, you’re one of the girls! If you’ve been paying attention you may have picked up on the theme of passing with your makeup. The photos throughout all demonstrate perfectly that you can look glamorously amazing while doing a very toned down blended look. I highly recommend being subtle when it comes to your daily feminine look. You can still be a glamor puss among the normals without standing out like a clown in a convent.

Michelle Visage

For those needing tips on brand, I still say the high end expensive brands with the million color pallets aren’t worth it unless you’re a supermodel. Much like building a house, your foundation may be your highest quality concern. For that I would suggest MAC or a similarly high end brand. My eye shadow is comprised of anything I can find anywhere. I have absolutely no qualms about bargain basement eye shadow. Eye liner is another issue entirely and the answer is always Rimmel. It’s a soft pencil with a heavy line on the first try. It gives me the thickness I deserve without the feeling of cutting my eye out with a hard pencil. My lips are all Cover Girl long lasting lipstick. That sh*t never comes off!

If you’re looking for one stop shop plus a really good price, I recommend ELF. Quality makeup in plain packaging from a company that gives a bit of a damn about the environment. They’ve always got sales and come highly recommended by all my fabulous friends.

For ease of application check me out two years ago in a vlog as I applied and chatted directly from me to you. The best thing you can do is look, learn and practice. You are learning the art of painting your face. That makes you an artist and an artist doesn’t turn into Salvador Dali over night. Even Salvador Dali had to try.

Tags: featured, makeup, passing

Category: All TGForum Posts, Style, Transgender How To