It’s 8.15am, you need to get in the car in the next 15 minutes, you haven’t got any makeup on, the children can’t find their book bags and you really want to have another cup of tea. Do you
a) ignore the children shouting for book bags because you know you put them out the night before and they haven’t moved from the front door since.
b) have said cup of tea and feel guilty because you’re meant to be a busy mum and a tea break is a luxury isn’t it?
c) throw on some makeup and avoid the question of ‘do you feel okay, you look peaky’ all day?
d) all of the above.
Well, the answer is d! At least, in my house it is, and if I can get 3 children and myself up washed, dressed, breakfasted and out the door, plus makeup and hair done, and in the space of an hour, anyone can.
Yes, part of it is organisation, it is down to laying out school clothes (or in the case of my toddler, clothes and nappies), it is laying out my own clothes, it is about having the breakfast table laid up, and it is about making sure homework is done and in book bags ready. But part of it is down to stopping and taking time for yourself. If you don’t, you’ll get to the school gates with stressed out children who could well be crying because you’ve screeched at them for not doing up their coats properly, or it could be that you arrive at work frazzled because you were trying to put lipstick on in the car and the person behind you beeped you because you didn’t see the lights turn green…
Oh, I’m stressed just reading it all.
But is it really possible to put your makeup on in only a few minutes? And are there products that can be doubled up?
As I was thinking of this article and beginning to investigate which products could be multipurpose, I began to jot down some ideas.
Unfortunately, someone else pipped me to the post!
Celebrity Makeup Artist, and This Morning Makeup Expert, Sarah Burrows demonstrated a 5 minute makeup look for a busy Mum on Tuesday’s This Morning show.
And you know what? Rather than saying the same thing as Sarah, she’s allowed me to use her example directly.
“Five minute make-up
- Dot a little concealer where needed – under eyes, around nose and to cover blemishes. Then blend into skin.
- Dab a little cream blush onto the apples of your cheeks and pat onto lips. A nice pink or coral work well.
- Using a firm rounded brush work your all-in -one foundation powder into skin using circular movements. Powders bases should blend into skin not just sit on the surface.
- Sweep a little bronzer over eye lid for soft shadow effect.
- Now push a deep brown eye shadow along the upper and lower lash line, then add lashings of mascara. This gives the illusion of smokey eyes without any fuss.
- Finish your look with a dusting of bronzer. Go for matte or semi matte during the day. brush over cheek bones, forehead and chest. “
And because I’d already done my research, I have added in my own personal recommendations of quick use products and multipurpose products plus how to use them!
Buildable Foundation- Jo Malone Finishing Fluid, similar to a tinted moisturiser, this is a colour adapting product and is actually good for your skin. Very much a smear-on-and-run product that gives a great finish.
Cheek and Lip Colour - choose your favourite lip shade and smear a little onto your cheeks, high on the apples to give a healthy I’ve-just-been-for-a-run-aren’t-I-fit look. Definitely look for Clinique almost lipstick in Black Honey, its a sheer smear colour that doesn’t need lining, and makes your cheeks look gorgeous.
Eyeshadow – we all know that bronzer makes a great eyeshadow, but what about eyeshadow used elsewhere? Got a duo eyeshadow that’s got a soft vanilla cream shade in it? Whisk some across the top of your cheek bones to elevate them, or perhaps you’ve got a duo with a soft caramel colour in it? You’ve already got some on your eyeshadow brush from where you’ve buffed it onto your eyelids, so why not use the excess somewhere else! Pop a little into the sockets of your cheeks to deepen them, and a tiny dab down the sides of your nose to slim it down. I find Estee Lauder and Clinique shadows are particularly good for this, though do watch for the shimmer if you’re slimming down a nose, you don’t want to over shine.
Lipstick - but not as you know it. No time to line and fill, and you’re a bit of a splodger if you don’t have a line to fill in? Put some on your finger tip and rub it into your lips, you’ll have a soft wash of colour that’s really just ‘your lips, but better’.
Jackie Tyson, makeup artist for X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent recommends Avon products for multipurpose quick makeup – ”
There are some great products available at the moment to create a full look from and it’s a really nifty ways of making your beauty budget go further. Avon Ultra Colour Rich Mega Impact Lipstick is a great product for pulling off this look with rich, creamy, impactful pigments. Use a neutral tone such as a Never So Nude and the secret’s all in the application. Use a lip brush to apply to the lips for stronger coverage and line with a slightly darker shade. Use the fingertips to blend a small amount on the cheekbones and the tip of the nose to give a healthy colour to the face. With a sponge-tipped eyeshadow applicator, load-up the colour and get blending across the lid and socket before applying a fine liquid eye line to complete the look. It’s a nice natural, daytime look anyone can pull-off!“
So there you go, 3 different experts in 3 different fields. The makeup artist who works on celebrities, but is a celebrity herself. The makeup artist who is a beauty writer, who works on regular women and is a busy working mum, and the makeup artist who works on some of the biggest TV shows in the UK.
Different makeup disciplines and experiences, but the same thought process for multipurpose quick makeup.
Sam Donald
