9 Minute Makeup!

Ever since I was little I've been in love with makeup! I begged my mom to buy me makeup tutorial books and I spent hours studying them (pre-Pinterest days were rough ;) ). On Saturday mornings I'd get home from tennis practice and spend a good 45 minutes experimenting with different makeup looks before hopping in the shower and washing it all off. And I loved doing friends' makeup for high school dances too!

These days I keep my makeup fairly simple because A) that's more the style and B) NO. TIME. EVER. Like if it takes me longer than 15 minutes to get ready it ain't happening.

So I present... my 9 Minute Makeup Routine!

(I just typed 9 Minute Makeout Routine - that sounds interesting too! Maybe a later post? ;) )

Also I'll link all the makeup I use at the bottom.

So here I am bein all vulnerable for you, bare faced and all. My main goals with makeup are to tone down my red skin and bring out my eyes. 

Also pregnancy left me with these awesome dark spots around my face - chloasma! Hopefully they just fade on their own?

So I start with a fresh face and put on a thin layer of moisturizer with SPF (I like Trader Joe's!).

Foundation. 

There are a few areas I really believe are worth the extra money, and foundation is #1. A good foundation makes all the difference! I'm obsessed with Estee Lauder's Double Wear - I wear Ecru in the winter and Desert Beige in the summer.

A brush makes foundation go on much smoother than fingers! And I've used everything from Bobbi Brown to Mac to e.l.f. brushes, and honestly they kind of are the same. Save your dollaas!

I pour a tiny amount of foundation onto my brush (you can always add more later!), and then make 5 big spots on my face - see above. Then I make circles with my brush to evenly spread out the rest. Make sure to carry the foundation down to your neck a bit and to your ears!

Ta da! The longest step is done.

Concealer. 

Here's the second place I splurge. I'm currently loving MAC's ProLongWear concealer, but I've also had success with Dior's concealer and Bobbi Brown's tinted eye brightener. 

Again I squirt a tiiiiny bit onto my brush, lightly dab it under my eyes, onto zits/especially red zones, and on my eyelids. Then I make tiny light circles with the brush.

Concealer makes a BIG difference for this tired mama!

Bronzer.

Bronzer gets a bad rap - if used lightly I think it's awesome! Hello fake cheekbones! I just use a cheap NYC bronzer, and haven't had any problems with it being too orange.

I lightly swipe bronzer into the hollows of my cheeks up toward my ears, then across my hairline and around the bottom/underside of my jaw and neck. Ooh and down the sides of my nose! Hashtag big nose. 

Speaking of noses, don't mind my gross crusty nostrils. I was deathly sick two weeks ago when I shot this.

Eyebrows. 

So I've finally found my ideal eyebrow pencil! It's taken me years to find something I love. MAC's Brow Sculpt wax pencil is bomb. I'm using Taupe.

Lightly (lightly!!) make small strokes to fill in brows.

Eyeshadow.

My eyelids are already primed with the concealer, so I swipe a light shade under my eyebrows, and a darker shade across my lid. Nothing fancy. I used to use like 3 or 4 different eyeshadows for my crease, inner eyelid, etc etc. But these days I'm all about simple. 

I like to save a bit of money here and just use Sephora's eyeshadow. They're half the price of MAC's and work great. These are both shimmery, but I'm also a huge fan of using matte shadows on my lid. And with blue eyes I wear lots of copper/brown/taupe shades.

Lashes. 

So normally I don't have lash extensions - like I do here. These were a one time Groupon baby gift to myself! So typically I use a drugstore liquid liner, Wet n Wild actually makes a great $3 one! And then any drugstore mascara, currently I'm liking L'Oreal.

Lips!

I've recently rediscovered the importance of lip color! For a while there I just swiped on chapstick. But a 10 second lip color really can make your whole face look alive, and bonus it makes your teeth look whiter!

Here's another area I save - no one knows if you're wearing $20 MAC lipstick or $2 Wet n Wild lipgloss, as long as you pick non-tacky colors. 

And there we go!

Granted this post probably took twice as long to read as it does to actually apply my makeup. I promise it's quick! Just face, eyes, lips and done!

And an honorable mention goes to...

BB creams, blushes and highlighters. 

On days when I don't even have 9 minutes to do makeup, I brush a bit of this BB cream on my face and feel a teensy less red. Also there are a ton of beautiful blushes out there, but typically I'm just trying to stay away from adding more pigment to my face and I forgo it. Though I do occasionally dot a bit of this e.l.f. highlighter on the tops of my cheekbones and down my nose to add some glow. 

Now go snuggle your babies or head to work or run to Target feeling super hot!

SPF Face Moisturizer: Trader Joe's (here, but don't buy it from Amazon! Way cheaper in store.)

Foundation: Estee Lauder (here) 

Concealer: MAC (here)

Bronzer: NYC (here)

Brow Sculpt: MAC (here)

Eyeshadows: Sephora (here)

*Also love Bobbi Brown's Toast (here) and 

MAC's All That Glitters or Woodwinked (here)

Eyeliner: Wet n Wild (here) or Bobbi Brown (here)

Mascara: L'Oreal (here)

Lipgloss: Wet n Wild (here)

BB Cream: Covergirl (here)

Highlighter: e.l.f. (here)

Dress from Dwell & Slumber (here)