Let's be honest with each other – how many of us have really used all of our makeup in the past 15 months? Although as much as I wouldn't try a smokey-eye at home and have nowhere to go with it, I do miss wearing makeup and getting ready to go out to the office or to university every day. I almost felt it was like a daily ritual for me – shower, skincare, makeup, hair, outfit check and out the door. Even though now that ritual has changed to shower, skincare, hair, leggings and lounger, I do keep a small selection of beauty products to play with every now and then.
Base
In the last year and a half no less than 7 people have asked me skincare routine questions, so bear with me while I just go into skincare for a minute. I start by double-cleansing after I shower, especially if this is post-workout – I use a cleanser with salicylic acid, and then follow it up with a moisturising gel cleanser. Next, I use a glycolic acid toner (you can find options for all budgets on my LTK page here), vitamin C serum, niacinamide to help with pores and skin texture, and hyaluronic acid and seal it up with moisturiser and SPF.
Makeup wise, if I want to look really glowy, I mix one pump of Glossier's Futuredew with my moisturiser and apply it all over my face. Since it's an oil serum hybrid, it sits pretty well on my skin. Next, I go in with my concealer around the inner and outer corners of my eyes, a little around my nose and to cover a little redness between my brows and once I've blended it out, I top it with a little Banana Powder from Rodial to even out my skin tone. We'll get to brows and eyes in a second but right before lipstick, I dust a little bit of highlighter all over the high points on my face so cheekbones, cupid's bow, the tip of my nose and a little around the edges of my forehead.
Eyes
I love, love, love warm-toned eyeshadows. My favourite right now is the Chanel Ombre Premiére powder eyeshadow in a soft brown or any shade from the Zoeva Cocoa Blend palette as a base colour. If I'm spending the day at home with no zoom calls, I like to play around with some metallic shades from the NARS Duo eyeshadow Isolde palette or if I'm going to be on video calls or taking photos for Instagram, I tightline my eyes with a black or brown eyeliner for that 'lived in' liner look. After curling my eyelashes, I spend anywhere between two and five minutes trying to decide what kind of mascara I want to go for today (as though I'm walking a red carpet straight after I turn away from my mirror) but I either pick the Charlotte Tilbury one or before I finished the entire tube, I would instantly pick up either the Victoria Beckham or the Glossier mascara for a more natural lash.
Lips
I have the worst habit of biting my lips. Not in a hot way, more in an anxious, I-can't-stop-thinking-about-this-issue way. I keep some form of chapstick or lip balm in every handbag, stationery pouch and usually have at least two on my desk because otherwise, I'd always forget to moisturise my lips. At the end of my nighttime skincare routine, I use a homemade lip scrub (lip balm and brown sugar mixed together) to get rid of any dead skin and slather on some more balm before I go to bed. In terms of makeup, during the summer I keep falling back to either Pillowtalk by Charlotte Tilbury, a matte pink from Chanel or Glossier's Gen G in Cake. In the winter though, is when I stick to my signature berry pink lipstick even if all I'm doing is going to the supermarket for more bread.
What does your beauty bag look like at the moment? Tell me on Instagram, I'm nosey, I love to know these things. You can shop all my beauty favourites on my LTK page or directly from my website if you're interested.
