Beauty Routine

I’ve never been one to obsess over my make up routine or setting a foundation. I always grabbed something random, hoped it matched my skin tone and did the simplest thing that seemed to work.

Then I grew up and actually started learning about skin care and matching tones and what looked good compared to what looked bad.

I also realized that I needed a makeup routine that wouldn’t take an hour to do each morning before leaving the house, but I knew I was looking for certain qualities. I needed a routine with products that wouldn’t clog my pores, that wouldn’t sweat or wipe completely away throughout the day, that was easy, and didn’t require a suitcase to cart around. So I took some essentials that I used already and took away everything else and started over.

I cleaned out everything else in my ‘makeup drawer’, finding things from 8th grade in the back corners. I was appalled.

So I went shopping. I started at Victoria’s Secret for some new bra/panty sets and perfumes, when I stumbled across a shelving unit full of VS makeup bags and wristlets. I found one that was the right size for me and I started with that.

So now I’ll delve into my process. I wash my face everyday with Proactiv+ and I do the 3 step process and afterward I give my face time to completely air dry. Then I start with Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse Airbrush finish liquid foundation. It’s super light and spreads easily and evenly.

I knew I wanted to acquire a sponge blender for the foundation but I wasn’t willing to shell out $20-30 for a sponge to spread my makeup. I asked around for some cheaper, yet good quality alternate recommendations of beauty blenders and I was unable to locate any locally. So then I stumbled upon a…mini blender on a stick (below, to the left), which was also by Maybelline at Wal-Mart for $5. It has a fantastic texture and is great for small areas and touch-ups, like blending around the eyes and hairline, the grooves of the nose, and also for concealing direct blemishes. But this beautiful, curvy pink blessing (below, right) is a severe Original Beauty Blender knock-off that I found at Target for $5. The top point is great and serves the same purpose as the mini Maybelline blender, the curves of the sponge make it much easier to grip, and the flat bottom of the sponge is peeerrffeecctttt for just blotting and smoothing open areas like the forehead or cheeks.

After applying the liquid foundation, I looove setting it with the matching shad of powder from the same Maybelline line. My shade is Porcelain Ivory. And the most phenomenal brush that I discovered is from Elf [a life/money saving brand]. The powder brush is heavenly.

Then I apply Carmex to my lips and massage it in so there isn’t any leftover residue and it leaves my lips thoroughly moisturized and soft.
Once I’m done with that, I move on to my blush and eyeshadow. My cheeks usually keep color naturally but every now and then they need some assistance so I use Naughty Nude blush from Revlon and I have no idea where I got this blush brush but I’ve had it for years and it works great.

Moving on, EYESHADOW. Now, I don’t have it in me to drop $60 on the Naked pallet, but I will spend $15 on the second runner up at Walmart or any other drugstore: La Palette 1 – Nude (also comes in La Palette 2 – Plum, very hard to acquire). I ADORE this palette. I love the ombre looks that you can achieve with it and even better, the brush that it comes with, is fantastic. It’s double-ended with a soft bristle, barely flared brush on one end and a small eyeshadow applicator on the other. It is life. Also, to apply any shadow underneath my bottom lashes at the edge of my lower eyelid, I use a short-bristled round brush by ECO Tools. It has a bamboo color and comes in a ‘starter pack’ of several other brushes at Wal-Mart, Target, etc.

The sassiness of my eyeliner directly correlates to the level of sleep I got the night before the morning that I’d be applying the eyeliner. I have both solid and liquid eyeliner. I have used only solid for years now but have recently gotten experimental and am well on my way to perfecting the winged eyeliner. My solid eyeliner is super reliable and easy to get off but does not smudge easily or just wipe off during the day; it is RIMMEL London Exaggerate waterproof eye definer. It comes with a sharpener and a smudging tip built into the end of the product. My liquid eyeliner is RIMMEL London Glam’Eyes Professional Liquid Liner. It is super smooth and easy to work with. It dries quickly but not so quickly that you can’t adjust a mistake that you’ve made.

To give the products around my eyes time to set up and/or dry, I move to my lips. Depending on the day, I choose one of two options: pretty pink lips or a more natural reddish brown tint. For the pretty pink lips, I apply a stroke of Revlon Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain in the shade ‘sweetheart valentine’ to each lip and I use my finger to massage it out over the area of each lip. Let me be extremely clear: A LITTLE OF THIS STUFF GOES A LONG WAY. That being said, it lasts almost 24 hours. Then I use RIMMEL London Exaggerate full color lip liner in ‘you’re all mine (shade 101)’ to lightly line my lips and I finish things off by filling things in with Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in ‘Pink Cloud (shade 801) and then I use my finger to lightly smudge/blend the liner into the color if needed in certain spots.

For the darker shade, I use LA LACQUE by Loreal Paris. It can almost be described as a thick lipstick balm. I’m unsure of the shade But it’s amazing.

FINALLY, the laaaaassstttt step! [I don’t use a setting spray…..yet, anyway]

Mascara! I love this part. It does SO MUCH for the eyes! So much pop and allure! I adore using NON WATERPROOF Covergirl Full Lash Bloom mascara. It leaves your lashes soft and flexible while still coating them perfectly. I say non waterproof because I’ve found that the waterproof version of this mascara can get very clumpy very quickly.