I have a strange relationship with makeup. I grew up as a dancer, so wearing a full face of makeup is as natural to me as tap dancing in the kitchen -pretty natural. I live for thick black eyeliner, strip eyelashes and red lips. But off the stage… my makeup routine is pretty haphazard. I looooooove buying makeup, partly because the tiny packaging is irresistible to me, partly because with each purchase is the hope that this will be the purchase that makes you look like Cindy Crawford.
I have a few go-to looks that I can do basically with my eyes closed, but given that I work from home and take care of an 8-month old, there is very little reason for me to change out of my pajamas, let alone put on eyeshadow. While I can do a few looks really well (I did my own wedding makeup!) I am not good at experimenting outside of the box, i.e. with different colored eyeshadows, lipsticks, contouring etc. However, as an ‘influencer’, I receive boatloads of free makeup to try, and mostly it just sits in a pile unused.
The Challenge
That is until a few weeks ago, when I opened a beautiful Holiday eyeshadow palette from Bare Minerals (not sponsored folks!) and thought that maybe, just maybe, this was the palette that was made for me! I decided that through hell or highlighting, I was going to learn how to use this eyeshadow palette and actually do my makeup for a whole week to see how I feel.
I went in to this challenge thinking that because I would feel/look better all day, I would instagram-story my face more and talk to the camera more. I won’t let you wait until the end of the post to know that that never came true. However through over 10 days (12 in all!) of wearing makeup every day I actually found out a few more things about myself that I hadn’t expected, and I have a new found passion for wearing and experimenting with makeup on the regular!
Things To Note: My makeup routine before was Mascara, eyebrows (always), and every once in a while a little concealer on my blemishes and under eye. Basically, it’s so I can handle looking at myself in barre class, and still be able to carry and kiss my daughter without getting makeup all over her.
Almost all of my makeup is ‘clean’ and ‘non toxic’ from Juice Beauty. There are a few exceptions that I make for a few custom lip colors I like, a 12hr long lasting Sephora eyeliner that I love, and this Aurora Lights Eyeshadow palette from Bare Minerals (however it is still paraben and sulfate free!). Every day that I put on makeup I wore my favorite Juice Beauty Youth Cream Compact Foundation, and when I bronzed I added in their Bronzing Juice Boost.
7 Days of Makeup
I had no idea what I was doing, so I let my outfit dictate my makeup, and tried to match with similar colors and feel. On the day I started, this was no problem at all as my outfit was light pink, and I blended 2 shades of pink for a subtle daytime shimmer. I also used a dark brown to rim my top lid in lieu of eyeliner, because I was feeling ambitious. I added extra bronzer to my cheeks since we were going wine tasting, and I felt like a winter beach bunny.
On Monday I tried to match my outfit again, but made the poor choice of an aqua blue top. The subsequent black and blue eyeshadow combination that I attempted to match was less ‘sultry 80’s nostalgia’ and more ‘black eye’.
On Tuesday I chose to use my Sephora liner instead of eyeshadow, and I love the clean line it made. I reverted back to a light pink for the base of the lid (‘Stardust’- now I was keeping track), and added ‘Wavelength’, a warm, mid-tone brown to my crease up to my brow bone. Now I was cooking’ with gas! A nude lip and I was good to go!
On Wednesday I forced myself to try new colors, but I tried the same light/dark combination with ‘Presto’ and ‘Santorini’ which give a shimmery gold look. I again chose to add extra bronzer for a glow, and again, felt fantastic.
On Thursday I had an event with Juice Beauty, so I did a full face of makeup wearing their blush and dabbing on a bit of their ‘Blythe’ lip gloss for a subtle mauve color. I went a bit heavier with the eyeshadow this time, trying to match my silver dress with ‘Spotlight’ on my brow bone, ‘Delightful’ on my lid blending into ‘Santorini’ and ‘Galaxy’. Truthfully, I had no clue what I was doing and it was starting to look like a black eye again, but I saved the day with my trusty eyeliner and Juice Beauty Mascara and I think I looked presentable.
By Friday I was so sick of taking off eyeliner that I just left whatever bit was remaining on, and mixed ‘500 thread count’ and ‘Spotlight’ to brighten the puffy bags under my eyes.
On Saturday we had another outing with friends and a photo shoot for my plaid dress, so I again mixed my favorite colors for a unique blend of sparkle that I will never be able to recreate, topped with a NARS matte lip crayon in Sex Machine.
On Sunday I wanted a super subtle look, so I skipped the eyeliner and went for ‘Stardust’ all over the lid with Juice Beauty’s Ultra Natural Mascara. Whenever I want simple but perfect lip color, I wear my custom blend from Bite that I made at their lab in San Francisco, called ‘Marina Fog’. It’s is easily my most-worn, go to color because it’s my lips, but better.
I continued to wear makeup a lot over the following week, because I realized how easy it was to find 5 minutes to do, and I was having a great time playing with these colors! I never did the same combination twice, and I learned to play with different areas of the eye more, like the outer lid, the under eye, and the crease. I put Marina on the bed so that I could see her while I got ready, and those 5 extra minutes of self-care time I took to prep me for my day ended up giving me so much more confidence and weirdly, efficiency in the rest of my day. I felt like I was actually going to work instead of being a sewing recluse!
What I learned
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- Just because I put on what I think is ‘heavy’ makeup, doesn’t mean it looks heavy at all… these iPhone photos show how light it all really was!
- Don’t match your makeup to your clothing, full stop.
- I looked good in sweatpants (is this what it feels like to be a Kardashian?)
- Invest in some better makeup remover or wipes. Ideas, anyone?
- Putting on makeup is a creative expression just like dressing yourself every day. It doesn’t always go perfectly, but every day that you make an effort it gets a little easier!
- I wanted to go out more with my husband after his work day and see friends more often
- I miss putting on makeup every day for work. It’s such a classic way to prepare for your day and build up confidence, and sometimes without that step, you don’t feel ready to take on the day.
