What is/has been the best discovery for your makeovers etc?

[Anonymous]

I must be lazy with how i present:)
I wasusing iether padded bras or oversise ones idstuff with jocks seemed to do the ick with way i dressed.
Since going o hormones well i got my teen bbobs happening:))
I find kryolan stage brand TV make up works great a make up teacher put me ont oit:))
Padded pantieswel i looked at my fram at genetic females and figured i couldget by so just look for clothign that is flatterring for me and can create the fiigure if cut right:))

[Alice]

I’ve got quite a few. These 3 sort of correspond to your 3 points.

1. Instead of covering the beard, I remove it using an epilator. Laser or electrolysis would obviously be more permanent and hence better, but epilation is the best compromise I’ve found for my circumstances. Removing the hair removes the beard shadow entirely, allowing me to use less foundation. I have enough trouble with enlarged pores without trying to deal with beard shadow as well!

2. Displaying cleavage. Breast forms are important, but pulling the loose skin of the breasts to the middle to create some cleavage, then wearing deep v-neck tops and dresses to show it off draws attention away from the face. I even wrote a wikipedia article about it! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleavage_enhancement

3. Making the hips wide enough and bum big enough to balance the shoulder width and breast size respectively. Maybe I just have an unusually small bum, because padded pants just didn’t do it for me. I had to make my own padding because I needed to add far more than the padded panties gave me. I wrote a wikipedia article about that, too! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hip_and_buttock_padding
My preference is that the top and bottom sizes should be the same dress size.

Alice

[Anonymous]

There have been a few things that have really worked well for me with my makeup, they are a little dramatic and I dont think they would work walking down the street but I can get a fantastic (at least I think so lol) look for around the house glam lol and thats about all I do.

The first is shaping my brows, changed the look so so much.

Learning how to shade and highlight would be the next best thing, really helps soften my male features.

Also styling my wigs instead of just brushing them help me look and feel more feminine.

The only issue is the first point isnt the best for male mode, I skate on the very thin line of leaving the thick enough so they are not embarrassing but the are defiantly noticeable as female.

[Alice]

Quote:

The first is shaping my brows, changed the look so so much.

Absolutely. Bushy or full brows are hard to hide and shaping them can make an enormous difference. Even just trimming the hair short all over can make a big difference without looking unusual on a male.

I’m lucky in that I had pale brows to start with, so, over a few years, trimming, then shaping, then finally removing the entire outside half of my brows is not too obvious. I just look like a guy with pale, sparse eyebrows. With makeup, I just draw the outside half in a completely different place.

Quote:

The only issue is the first point isnt the best for male mode, I skate on the very thin line of leaving the thick enough so they are not embarrassing but the are defiantly noticeable as female.

It is possible to have a neat and tidy but reasonably full brow shape that looks fine as both male and female. A good beautician should be able to shape or wax them to that as long as you are up front and say that that’s what you’re aiming for.

Quote:

Learning how to shade and highlight would be the next best thing, really helps soften my male features.

Absolutely. I do quite a bit of contouring and highlighting and use makeup all the way down to the cleavage. The one feature that I don’t try to hide with contouring is the adams apple, which I’ve found is best left fully made up but with no shading as it can draw attention to it from some angles. The plain foundation will reduce its visibility a bit anyway.

Alice

[Anonymous]

As far as my face goes I always start off with moisturiser that I leave to soak in for 10 mins I find it helps for the make up to spread more evenly then I use kryolan D51 to cover up my eyebrow tan lines and down over my nose and the red bits that are to the edge of my lower nose.

Then a mix of Australis perfection brush on foundation (natural beige) with CoverGirl continuous wear 905. The CoverGirl is quite light so I can use just a bit to lighten it up to get the perfect blend each time. I apply everywhere even the forehead and over the eyebrow tan lines again, but only just a little under the chin. With a touch of mascara I’m done.
With HRT my facial skin has become so soft and the make-up just works and looks a whole lot better. Also that is with 18 months of figuring out the best way to use make up on my face lol!

[Anonymous]

After a couple of years fumbling around with makeup etc I decided to go for a complete makeover (thanks Celeste). The change was stunning and gave me a lot of confidence and made me realise that Helen was real and could be very attractive. I still try to emulate the makeover. To this day I haven’t managed to get there, but things are progressing.

[Anonymous]

A the risk of repeating other’s wisdom –
1. Use moisturiser. I have found this gives a much improved basis to put makeup on, and produces more even, better looking results.
2. Take time. I, like many others, am frequently very rushed for time in the whole need to get completely transformed and then revert to drab. Taking as much time as possible, being careful and adding more small amounts rather than using the ‘throw it on’ approach pays huge dividends.

[Anonymous]

So True Jan on taking time with makeup. As for moisturiser…where i live i am constantly sweating. My face being the wettest of all…and that all day every day, for the next 3 months at least. Not sure moisturiser is needed in my case.