[25f] what I know about "passing" makeup

[Sorry trans men but what follows is probably only helpful for women. I'm posting it in this sub instead of r/mtf because it directly addresses the theme of this sub.]

Hi there everyone :) I'm not sure if this advice is presumptuous, but I see a lot of posts from other women who seem to live with distress because they feel they don't pass, and it really eats at me, because you are all so beautiful and brave and perfect. So I thought I would share the little I have learned about makeup specifically as it pertains to using it to pass. Please do not take any of this as gospel, just a quick and dirty guide for anyone wondering where to start. Let me know if you would like to see some additions/edits/whatever!

First, a disclaimer: "passing" in no way determines your worth as a person. You are a beautiful goddess just the way you are and anyone who says otherwise can get lost. That being said, sometimes passing is a matter of personal safety, and other times you just want to feel pretty.

Also, as is often said here, passing in pictures =/= passing IRL. Sometimes girls who appear to pass in pictures don't in the world because their mannerisms, energy, voice or confidence come across too masculine. In the pictures below, I probably do not pass 100% to you, but I am gendered correctly every day despite being 6'2" and having a rectangular body shape. Anyway...

Here is a before picture and two after pictures. The first is with no makeup, the second picture is full "going-out" night-time makeup, and the third is "light" (lol) every-day makeup. My makeup is not great by any means but it is effective at helping me blend in with the cisgeneral public.

• Beard: Orange lipstick is great for hiding beard shadow. You can find it for a few bucks in any drug store. I just spread some over my upper lip "mustache area" and chin with my finger before anything else.

• Foundation: I use liquid foundation. It's the one thing I splurge on because I need it daily and need it to be reliable and good quality. MAC Matchmaker is the one I use. I dot it on with my finger then smooth it out with a brush.

• Contour: Holy shit this can go a long way. I use a dark powder foundation for contour and a white concealer for highlighting (because these are both pretty cheap and available in drug stores) but you can also get dedicated pallets that will serve this purpose. I always put contour on the sides and bottom of my nose to make it look smaller, and along my chin line, neck, and adam's apple especially to make those look smaller. I also put it around the frame of my face and in the hollows of my cheeks sometimes. Anywhere you put contour will be pushed to the background and draw less focus from the eye, so feel free to try it out on any places you'd like to de-emphasize.

• Highlight: Trans women often struggle with a pronounced brow-bone and the accompanying deep-set eyes. To counteract this, I put highlighter on the underside of my browbone, in the area next to the nose, where the brow-bone casts the largest shadow. Highlighter is the opposite of bronzer: it brings the area to the front and draws attention. By putting some under the brow-bone, it lightens the shadow and brings my browbone forward, flattening out that area of my face. This is most evident in the second picture, where the brow-bone shadow is almost gone.

• Eyeliner: I always use eyeliner on the outer part of the upper lash line. My eyes are smaller and closer together than most cis-women, so I leave the lower line nude usually, and almost always use a white eyeliner on the inside of my eyes to make them look bigger and farther apart. When going for heavier makeup, a little eyeliner on the outside of the lower lash creates a more piercing look.

• Lipstick: When going out, I'll use the wine color you see in picture 2 or a bright red MAC lipstick I love. On a daily basis (picture 3) I use a pink lipstick that matches my natural lip color to make my lips look fuller.

• Blush: It creates a rounder face shape and makes my cheeks fuller. These pictures are potatos, but the ONLY difference is a little blush in the second picture, and it definitely changes my entire face shape.

If this wasn't helpful, well, you are still a beautiful human being and I love you anyway!

EDIT: "Contour" for "bronzer"