Five Minute Flat Beauty

Borrowing from a previously written article of mine, here are some tips to help you look stunning in a snap when a high-maintenance morning is not an option.

Get Ready In Five Minutes Flat

To hide a blemish, put a bit of concealer on a cotton swab and dab it on the spot until it disappears. This eliminates the need for a brush and the messiness of having to use your finger.

When there’s no time for makeup, be sure define your eyebrows. Tweeze any stray hairs, fill in gaps with a pencil, and blend concealer beneath the arches and on either side of your eyes to perk up your face.

Apply a quick swoosh of loose powder over your face if you have oily skin to ban excess shine.

If you haven’t had the chance to exfoliate, saturate a washcloth in warm water and use it to buff the dead skin off your face. Rinse well, and use this technique on your lips, also. Don’t forget to moisturize and use lip balm afterward. (I love using Smith’s Rosebud Salve on my own lips)

To depuff tired eyes, freeze two spoons overnight, then rest them over your eyes for a few minutes in the morning. The chill of the metal will depuff your eyes in no time.

Add body to your hair by flipping your head upside down and spritzing aerosol spray at the roots. Lift your head, and massage roots with your fingers.

Always carry key makeup items in your bag for days when you need to rush right out the door. I usually carry an eyeliner, a blush, and lip gloss that I can just whip on in the car to look enough presentable.

DIY Antioxidant Sugar Scrub

Finally, that bag of table sugar in the cupboard is actually good for something! (I’m stealing some from my boyfriend’s bag). When you don’t have time for the spa but your want your body and legs as smooth and moisturized as can be, a DIY antioxidant sugar scrub is a perfect solution.

Mash about 8 strawberries to a pulp in a small bowl (remove the leaves first). Add to this a tablespoon of olive oil and a teaspoon of table sugar and mix until you’ve got a nice paste.

You can use this paste in shower or bath on your hands, feet, elbows, knees, legs, and anywhere else that needs smoothing. (Shave after). Rinse very well, gently pat your skin with a towel, then [optionally] smooth baby oil all over for sealed moisture.

You should now look and feel (and smell) amazing!

Steep vs. Cheap: High Shine Lip Gloss

Lip gloss – a girl can never have too much. I’ve counted, and I own over 50. It’s a sad story!

It becomes necessary to question which ones earn the top spot in our cosmetics stash.

My two favorite brands of lip gloss by far are Lancome Juicy Tubes and MAC Lipglass. They’re both high-shine and perfectly sticky making them stay put longer than most. But, not everyone wants to spend $15-20 on a tube of lip shine.

How can we get a high shine lip look without paying a high end price?

Revlon Super Lustrous lip gloss is an old favorite of mine turned new! It has a consistency like none other and contains tiny flecks of glimmer for a gorgeous shine. To the left is a picture of me wearing the hot pink Shine That Pink shade. It looks suspiciously similar to my other fall staple gloss, but when I run out of that one, I know which one I’ll buy. Who’s to tell the difference? I’ll never tell! (Except to you all, of course).

Steeper	Cheaper
MAC Lipglass $14	Revlon Super Lustrous $7