Here's some advice for application, application materials (with and without a tight budget), and wear.
~ Always watch out for your eyes. I can't stress this enough. You'll have to be putting stuff right around them to get the look right, and believe me, if you get any in your eyes, it will hurt, and depending on the type, it may be hard to get out again. You don't want to damage your eyes just to do your Cats makeup, so be careful when lining your eyes - if you have trouble keeping your hand ssteady, put your elbow down on a table and steady your hand with your free hand, or move the lines a little farther away from your eyes.
~ My personal experience is that nothing can make your nose run like putting makeup around it and realizing that you couldn't blow it if you needed to. Hopefully this won't happen to you. If you find it does, leave that for near last, and blow your nose before you put it on. If you have allergies or a cold, this is definitely a good idea. And if you do have a runny nose - and I know this sounds gross, but it works - you can take a tissue and wad up the end a bit and kind of stick it into your nose a little to blot it when your nose runs. Just do that when you're alone - you don't want to be showing that to everyone! It will keep your makeup intact, though. It all depends on how badly you want to keep from redoing it!
~ Along similar lines is nothing makes my lips more chapped than knowing I can't put chapstick on them after I've got the makeup on. For this reason and that you probably don't want to be swallowing the stuff by accident, I leave the mouth for last.
~ If you do have trouble with dry skin or lips after using your makeup, try using cream instead of liquid, if you have been. Liquid seems to dry out my skin more while it's on. Also, be sure that when you're removing it, use cold cream to get all but the last little bit off before you use soap - the more times you wash with soap, the drier you will probably be. Get some lotion, preferably some that is for your face and is non pore-clogging, you don't want to cause more problems than you're fixing.
~ Brushes and sponges will be your main tools of application. If you're using greasy makeup, I wouldn't use a brush, since you might never get the stuff out of it again. If you have money to spend, go buy some brushes to use just for makeup (not for paint), and some disposable cosmetic sponges. For sanitary reasons, it's advised to throw out the sponges after you use them. Certainly don't use a sponge you used on yourself on someone else as well. However, if you can't afford all those sponges, wash them out really well (that's with soap - preferably antibacterial - and not just water) after use and make sure they're dry before putting them away. If you're on a budget, for detail work, instead of the brushes, you could use Q-tips. I used them with my first face, and they work okay. If you need thin lines, pull the cotton off the ends and use the end of the bare stick. Brushes are much better though, I wouldn't use Q-tips again unless I had to.
~ All my patterns are shown as you will see yourself in the mirror. If they are asymmetrical, I've flipped it already. Put it on so the image in the mirror matches the image I have displayed.
~ If you're wearing cream or grease, don't forget to set it with powder or it will come off easily (talc baby powder seems to work okay, but I haven't tried real powder to compare). Many cakes are self setting, so they don't need anything. I've read that's what the cast uses (Aquacolor), but I haven't verified that. (Update: I have tried Aquacolors, and I now assume that's not what any cast uses, because of its extreme water solubility. They'd sweat it right off. I've since heard they use greasepaint.)
~ Wash your face before you put on the makeup so that it will stay. It won't stick if you have dirt or grease on your face.
~ For removal, use cold cream or other remover for any set makeup. Eye makeup remover is more gentle if you have sensitive skin.
~ To set: I use talc baby powder. I have used a piece of sweatshirt fabric that I'd use fuzzy side out to do the powdering. I'd rub it in the powder, then press it gently into the makeup. When I was done with the whole area I needed powdered, I'd lightly brush a clean section of the cloth over my face to get rid of excess. Now that I have a brush, I use it a similar way - dip the brush in the powder, press it lightly to the makeup, when everything's powdered, brush off the excess. I set layer by layer (white base, powder, yellow/orange sections, powder, black detail, powder). When I'm done with the whole face, I use a damp tissue (patting lightly) to remove excess powder from wherever I still see powder.