• Skip to content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Shop ModernMom
  • Become An Insider

ModernMom

The premiere destination for moms

  • Parenting
    • Pregnancy
    • Baby
    • Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • ModernMom Monday Videos
  • Cooking
  • Living Healthy
    • Breast Cancer
    • Health & Fitness
    • Body after Baby
    • Beauty
    • Relationships
    • Love
  • Lifestyle
    • Crafts
    • At Home
    • Education
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Decorate
    • Money
    • Brooke Burke
  • Celebrate
    • Holidays
      • Easter
      • Valentine’s Day
      • New Year’s
      • Christmas
      • Hanukah
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
    • Birthdays
    • Parties
  • Must Have
  • Contests
  • Entertainment

Talking About Makeup And Skin Care With My Pre-Teen Niece

October 9, 2013 by Karen Scott Leave a Comment

During the summer, I spent a week on the east coast for a visit with family. My niece Allison and I love to spend time together – you see, ever since she was five years old, she discovered that Auntie Karen was a makeup girl. A.K.A. girly girl! Every visit, Allison would ask me to apply makeup on her face (with the approval of her mother of course). We would play with a variety of colors and makeup brushes.

As I was applying the makeup, I would say, “always remember less is more, when it comes to the application” and I preached how she should never, ever randomly tweeze her own eyebrows!

Over the years, Allison has become a makeup pro in her own right. In fact, she even makes some of her own cosmetics. But like any 12-year-old, she still has questions and concerns. So we had a conversation about makeup, pre-teens and finding the right balance – how she can take care of her skin and still look age-appropriate. This is what we discussed:

Skin Care

An appropriate skin care routine for a pre-teen would be an easy 3-step routine. I recommend Cetaphil Cleanser 2x per day. Plus a light gentle astringent to close the pores and balance the skin. A good DIY is lemon juice diluted with a little water. A pre-teen is not too young to start applying a Vitamin E Hydrating Stick to the upper and lower eyelids. Also, a light moisturizer a couple of times per week is good and always apply sunscreen in the summer!

Tip: Ylang Ylang Essential Oil helps with breakouts. You can add to the lemon juice or apply directly to the blemish using a Q-tip to target the spot.

Eyebrows

I do start seeing girls to shape their eyebrows as young as 12 or 13, but I usually take the absolute minimal amount from their brow, keeping it as full and natural as possible. I tell them, “never tweeze your own eyebrows.” Instead of taking tweezers into their own hands, they should talk to their parents about going to a professional eyebrow stylist. I would suggest a professional brow shaping for your pre-teen once or twice a year.

Makeup

Allison says it takes her 12 minutes to complete her makeup look for school. She timed herself, practiced and consulted with me on colors and coverage to look soft, pretty and age appropriate.

Here is her palette: Under-eye concealer (flesh tone), a very natural cream base foundation, that she puts on a few areas of her face to even her skin. A trio eyeshadow palette with soft browns and taupe. Mascara (dark brown). Lip gloss (usually, a light pink shade). To add some fun to her look she changes her eye color to match her clothes.

Hair Care

The question came up about hot tools for the hair like curling irons and flat irons. Allison has beautiful, natural beachy waves.  I encourage her to embrace her natural hair. I advised her to use the curling irons or flat iron only once in a while for a change. It will hurt your hair, if used all the time. DO use a heat tamer spray to protect the hair. The most important thing is to keep the hair healthy and trim when necessary. I love to see her in a messy bun and one of her creative updos!

The remainder of our conversation revolved around her dreams about her future and how she was inspired by Talia Castellano, who once said “makeup is supposed to boost your confidence, not be your confidence.”

One day, Allison wants to own her own makeup studio in NYC. In the mean time, she works hard in school, dances and plays sports.

She hopes this article helps other pre-teens, that have some of the same concerns. She says, “be your own person and don’t be pressured by your peers.”

Allison, thank you for your time and I look forward to the day that you put makeup on my face!

Love you,
Auntie Karen

Comments

comments

Filed Under: Tweens and Teens, Uncategorized

About Karen Scott

Karen Scott is a Los Angeles makeup artist and eyebrow shaper extraordinaire. After working for both Estee Lauder and Chanel, she has created her own makeup line called Karen Scott Cosmetics. Her unique brow shaping technique has been called a natural mini-eye lift because of its anti-aging capabilities. Karens expertise ranges from makeup application to eyebrow shaping to lash tinting and she provides her clients with extensive advice about beauty, makeup, anti-aging techniques and how to fix over-plucked and tweezed brows. This beauty industry over-achiever is full of one-of-a-kind tips and tricks that she loves to share. Check out Karen's website KarenScottCosmetics.com

Reader Interactions

Primary Sidebar

Search

Tell a friend

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
ModernMom Boutique

ModernMom TV

Featured

Nursing Mothers Granted Tax Break

Great news! Nursing moms are getting a new tax break from … [Read More...] about Nursing Mothers Granted Tax Break

Must Have

STEM-related Toys to Include in Your Child’s Easter Basket This Year 

April has arrived which means it’s time to pull out the food … [Read More...] about STEM-related Toys to Include in Your Child’s Easter Basket This Year 

Did you know?

Signs of Water Breaking in Pregnancy

Signs of Water Breaking in Pregnancy

Use Frozen Bananas for Baking

How to Use Frozen Bananas for Baking

When Should You Give a Pacifier to a Baby

When Should You Give a Pacifier to a Baby?

How to Fix a Broken Slab of Marble

Symptoms of Pregnancy If HCG Injection Is Taken

What Can I Substitute for Butter When Making Frosting?

pregnant while not ovulating

Can I Get Pregnant While Not Ovulating?

Footer

  • About Us
  • Contact ModernMom
  • Advertise With Us
  • Press
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • Contributors

Copyright © 2023 Modern Mom. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction of any portion of this website only at the express permission of Mom, Inc.

The information provided on ModernMom is for educational use only. It should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.