It’s Thursday; the lazy end of a long week, when we’re all thinking the same thing; ‘Can I pull off going out in my work clothes, or will I really need to go home and change?’
Let’s face it, all of us struggle with looking like hobos at work, while secretly wanting to look like presentable human beings, but none of us wants to put in that extra bit of effort that most girls seem to just ease through life with.
Here are some easy steps we’ve got for you, so that you can turn your daytime makeup (or no-makeup) look to a night-out look. It’s actually effortless, but will make you seem like you’ve got your life together, and also, like you’ve just spent 45 minutes on your makeup even though all it takes is 5 minutes. Win-win!
For starters, let’s all assume that we go to work with – if needed – perfectly filled in eyebrows, and a little bit of mascara. So, this is basically just how you can build on that to make yourself look like you’re going out.
Hide your exhaustion
Get any sort of matte creamy highlighter, and apply small dots of that under your eyes, above your cheekbones and on the inner corners of your eyes. That will instantly make you look refreshed.
Benefit’s Dandelion Shy Beam liquid highlighter and Bobbi Brown’s Retouching Wand work perfectly for this.
Boost your eyes
You have two options for this one, but you need to remember to apply a few layers of mascara!
Apply a neutral, but slightly shimmery, eye shadow all over your eyelids. If you want to take this one step further, then add a matte brown eye shadow along the crease of your eyelids and blend.
Benefit’s Big Beautiful Eyes eye shadow palette has all the colours you will need to create this look.
If you’re the kind of person who likes to avoid liquid eyeliner, use pencil eyeliner. Apply it along the upper lash line, and then smudge it out slightly to create an effortless smoky look.
You can use Maybelline’s Master Smoky eyeliner for this.
If you really want to go all out, then combine these two techniques together!
Accentuate your cheekbones
Don’t worry, we won’t ask you to go full-on contour. Just get your favourite matte bronzer and blend a little bit of that just underneath your cheekbones for a subtle shadow, and do the same along your jawline. If you feel a little pale, then add some blush to your cheeks as well.
NARS’ Blush/Bronzer Duo has both so you can save space.
or use Benefit’s Hoola Matte Bronzer alone
Make your lips POP!
The sky is the limit with lips! Depending on how intense you want your look to be or where you’re going, you can go as neutral or as dark as you like. You can go for a lip stain that’ll give a little tint to your pout or a neutral shade that’s darker than your natural lip colour. Alternatively, go all out and try red or burgundy! Just note that even the slightest colour on your lips goes a long way – don’t skip it!
We guarantee that these steps will become your simple go-to makeup routine, and no one will ever know that you came to the outing straight from the office! Effortless and easy! And remember, it is always good to find yourself palettes that have everything you need combined in one for extra practicality.
By: Nada Motawe
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