Picking out Makeup for your Tween or Teen

When our daughter started middle school it was like a switch flipped and she was instantly interested in wearing makeup. It’s a totally normal part of growing up and I remember first getting into makeup in middle school as well - nevertheless, it’s still so bittersweet watching them grow up so quick. I told her she could wear makeup as long as I helped pick it out because if it’s something she wants to wear all day and everyday it’s important to wear safe products. | This post is not sponsored and contains my personal opinion as well as affiliate links |

Disclaimer: This post contains my personal opinion based on what I’ve learned - please do your own research on the matter and choose what make up is right for your daughter.

In the past I’ve let our kids wear cheap drugstore-brand makeup for things like dance recitals and plays, after all it’s just for a short time a few times a year and the bold colors are important to show up on stage - I wasn’t really concerned about chemical exposure or anything. But now that my daughter wants to wear make up daily I think it’s important to pick products that are considered safer and don’t have chemicals or additives that could affect long-term health.

After reading around, I found EWG’s Skin Deep website, where you can look up products and see what they rate. EWG Verified or a low number implies that it’s safer, while a higher number means that it contains ingredients that are considered less-safe. It’s my understanding that these ratings are to be taken with a grain of salt, but it’s a great starting point when consciously trying to choose safer products.

The basics.

What we Chose for Makeup

For us, we wanted to choose natural-looking makeup that was very well ranked through EWG. After consulting the list and comparing prices we chose:

• Well People Expressionist Pro Mascara in Brown - this was ranked well on EWG and priced so much more affordably than most other brands. We chose the brown color over the black for a more natural look.
• Well People Supernatural Stick Multi-Use Blush in Peach - again, this was ranked well on EWG and priced so much more affordably than most other brands. We chose Peach because it complimented our daughter's skin tone the best. This product can also be used as a lip color as well so it does double-duty!
• Blending Brush - this brush was not certified or anything but I have this brush myself and love it! It feels great, helps blend cream blush perfectly, and you can't beat the price point!

I think this is the perfect starting point for natural looking, safer makeup for a tween or teen. I know we will build on this over time and eventually add concealer, eye shadow, etc but this is a great introduction to makeup and skincare. After all, makeup looks best on well taken care of skin and it’s important to remind your daughter to remove her makeup every night and go to bed with a clean face. Enjoy this milestone of growing up!

Side note: If your tween or teen wants to wear makeup, consider having them pay for it themselves instead of you buying it for them. They are growing up and having them pay for it is a great lesson in responsibility and being mindful on how much things cost.

Shop some of our Picks for Tweens + Teens:

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