A Few Beauty Tricks and Hacks I Can’t Live Without

Can’t get your eyeliner wing to look just right? Woke up with your face looking puffy?

Then you might find some of these a little helpful. I think that pretty much all of us have a few of our very own beauty tips and tricks we reach for all the time, and today I’m sharing a few of mine (and I totally want you to tell me about some of yours!).

If you can’t get your eyeliner wing to look right- it always comes out a bit too low or too high- try applying it AFTER your mascara. I love doing this, especially when I’m in a hurry and can’t take my time with my liner. I first line my upper lashes, then apply mascara and bring out my eyeliner. For me, doing this after my lashes are already curled and have a mascara on them, always helps me to get the shape and direction of my wing just right.

For a long-lasting curl, I like warming up my eyelash curler very slightly using a hair dryer. The key to doing this is to heat it up only very slightly- you don’t want your curler to be hot, just slightly warm- I always press the warmed curler on the back of my hand to make sure that it isn’t too warm. This helps the lash to hold the curl a lot better and when paired with a good lash-curling mascara the lashes will stay curled all day long.

When applying mascara on my lower lashes, I sometimes end up getting some product on the skin under my eyes. This why I always keep small index cards handy- putting them underneath my lower lashes helps me get a clean and flawless application with no need for clean up.

You’ve probably heard of using vaseline to make your perfume last longer– if you haven’t I highly recommend you try doing this next time you’re wearing perfume that isn’t very long lasting. Just rub some vaseline on your pulse points (like on your wrists, neck) the perfume will “hold on” to your skin longer.

Nail polish remover strips your nails of all moisture- my nails and cuticles always feel extremely dry after I remove my nail polish. What I love to do is mix my nail polish remover with olive oil (about 60% of nail polish remover and 40% of olive oil). Doing this creates a nourishing and softening remover that doesn’t leave my cuticles feeling awfully dry. I wouldn’t recommend painting your nails after using this method, as the nail will have a little oily residue and your nail polish won’t hold as well. I usually remove my nail polish using this mixture, and if I’m planning on painting my nails right away, I make sure to wash my hands very well.

Naturally, my skin is extremely oily and while it’s a little dry at the moment, because of my meds, I still need to share this trick with you- applying powder on your face BEFORE going in with your foundation. The key is to apply a very small amount of powder and to really buff it into your skin. It’s something I learned from Wayne Goss and I recently talked about it right here, too.

Another quick tip for making your foundation last all day and not get greasy, if your skin is on the oily side is to use a pore-refining primer (like Benefit’s PoreFessional) on top of your foundation. I use a very, very tiny amount, rub it between my fingers and gently press it onto all the places where my foundation gets oily like my forehead and around my nose and chin. If any of you know the struggle of having skin that’s both oily and dry, then you probably know that silicone-based primers can cling on to dry patches, making foundation application quite difficult. Applying the primer on top of the foundation in those oily places works a lot better for me- without drying my skin, while still keeping the oil under control.

When I need a very quick pick-me-up for my skin whenever I don’t get enough sleep or see my skin looking dull, I give it a quick ice-bath. I put ice cubes and water in a bowl or sink and submerge my face in it for a couple of seconds, then gently pat it dry with a washcloth. This is something that I always do before special occasions it increases the blood flow to the skin and makes my skin look fresh and revived. I swear by this, it does wonders for your face when it looks puffy, plus it actually feels very refreshing!

Do you guys have any tips or tricks of your own that you’d like to share?