Morning After Make Up - How To Deal

We've all been there - traipsing in at 5:30 am from an epic night out or all night study session and promptly falling asleep without (insert incredulous gasp here) removingy our makeup. It's the morning after now and you wake up to lipstick or blush smeared across your pillow case, raccoon eyes and mascara goop pasting your eyelashes together. Of course you've slept in and now you only have twenty minutes to get ready.

Since most of your time will be spent in the shower, and you know you look like death farted in your face you basically have no idea where to even start. You can already feel that pimple forming on your left cheek and you've decided you're gonna brave wearing shades inside your office.

But, no need for the melodrama because there are pretty much five simple steps that you can execute in less than ten minutes to fool everyone into thinking that you're glowing and had the best nights' sleep and a whole hour to get made up.

Step 1

- Remove your makeup in the shower and moisturize there

No time to go through an entire makeup removal routine? No problem, jump in the shower and douse your face with warm water rubbing gently with white soap. Then before rinsing, take a little olive oil or coconut oil and rub it in then rinse off with warm water. Pat your face dry on your way out of the shower and use a damp cotton ball to clean up any runny mascara or eyeliner.

Step 2

- BB Cream /Tinted Moisturizer

Skip the heavy foundation today as this will only make your skin revolt. Reach for your BB cream and powder preferably ones that contain spf. If you don't own BB cream or a tinted moisturizer, mix one part moisturizer with your foundation and apply with your fingers then dust on your powder with a big fluffy brush.

Step 3

- The Eyes

Fill in your brows lightly with powder and brush them out, this will make you look more polished instantly. Take matte eyeshadow on an angled brush and rim your eyes as you would with eyeliner. This helps to seal any remaining eyeliner that hasn't come off and prevent smudging throughout the day, It is also more subtle than eyeliner so more appropriate for day time and a professional atmosphere. Take a gold eyeliner and smudge into your inner corners to make your eyes look whiter if they are red from lack of sleep.

Step 4

- Blush

Any golden hued or peach blush will immediately brighten your complexion and give your skin a healthy glow. Apply it to the apples of your cheek, along the bridge of your nose and on your chin to open up your face.

Step 5

- Concealer

A good concealer is your best friend the morning after. Apply it to your undereyes, underneath your brow bone and to the tops of your cheekbone to highlight your face and look more awake.

That's it!

Still have questions? Watch this space for a video I'll be posting next week on how to do your hair in less than five minutes.

Till later,

**Jane

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Baking Soda Beauty - At Home DIYs

Baking Soda is one of those products with so many hidden uses and benefits. Typically known as a household do-it-all, it is sometimes overlooked in many a beauty routine. A girlfriend of mine  was surprised when we were discussing what I've used it for over the past couple years so I thought I would share with you dolls some of the ways I use it in my beauty routine.

Anti-Acne Mask : I already have a post on this here. Baking Soda works as an alternative to those more expensive masks in the drug store and it also has the benefit of brightening the skin and killing bacteria. 

Teeth Whitening: Add baking soda to your toothpaste for a brighter smile, or make a paste with distilled hydrogen peroxide to get rid of stains on your teeth.

Clarifying shampoo: Add a teaspoon of this to your shampoo to get rid of residue and buildup and to get your hair squeaky clean. Or, if you use a lot of gel or pomade sprinkle a teaspoon onto your scalp and massage it in lightly as a scrub for your scalp then rinse out. As with anything applied to your scalp, avoid this if you have used any chemicals or have cut your scalp within 72 hours or it will burn.

Body Scrub: To keep your skin looking polished, get rid of bacteria that can cause acne, encourage cell turnover which helps with fading scars and dark marks, and to get rid of or prevent ingrown hairs use a body scrub. Mix baking soda with a little of your body wash and gently rub in with your palm. Let it sit for two minutes then rinse off with warm water.

Brush Cleaner : If you have sensitive skin, then its a good idea to use something that's a bit more organic than the typical brush cleaner. Baking soda can be a safe alternative. Dissolve a tablespoon in warm water and spray onto the brush and wipe out the product on a clean towel or a hand towel.

Whitening finger nails : If you wear dark colours on your nails you may notice that sometimes when you remove your nail polish, your fingernails are stained or yellowed. A quick way to get rid of this is to soak your nails in a bowl of warm water where you have dissolved baking soda for about five minutes after removing your nail polish.

Are you a fan of baking soda? Will you be trying any of these out soon? Leave me a comment and let me know.

Till later

**Jane

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