Looking great can be a tough and tedious job! It can take hours to pick out the right tools and learn how to use them properly. Makeup artists take tons of classes and work to gain years of experience to perfect their trade. You can learn how to be your own makeup pro—in less time—by learning some tricks of the trade.
Does your face often end up looking like a 2-year-old was your makeup artist? Are you tired of spending your entire paycheck on beauty products that don’t work? Try these easy makeup hacks—and go from frustrated to fancy!
Check your makeup in different lighting.
Nothing looks worse than uneven makeup. Since makeup looks different in different lighting, be sure to check it in the car, in the bathroom, and outside.
If you don’t have time to run outside with your handheld mirror, of course, you could try this remarkably affordable lighted mirror. Its warm LED lighting mimics daylight and seven-times magnification will help you apply your makeup like a pro.
Get the smoky eye effect without all the work.
Dark eyes look great but achieving the look, flawlessly, is a challenge. Try this hack next time you’re going out.
Choose your favorite eyeliner, and draw a hashtag (or number sign) at an angle on the outer corner of your lid. Then smudge and blend it in with your other eyeshadow.
Use a white base coat instead of clear.
In order to make your nail polish color stand out a little more, use white polish instead of clear.
It brightens the color and still protects your nail from discoloration.
Get off glitter polish with ease.
Instead of using base coat, swipe a coat of white glue (like Elmer’s) on your nails. Next time you want to remove your glitter polish, you won’t need polish remover—it peels right off!
Sweep mascara toward your nose, not upwards.
Most women make the mistake of applying mascara in an upward fashion.
If you want thicker looking lashes and eyes that pop, angle your brush inward, not upward.
Use white eyeliner all over your lid to make eyeshadow stand out.
The color white helps colors on eyes pop, like it does on nails.
Apply white eyeliner all over your lid, then apply your eyeshadow on top of it.
Turn a regular pencil eyeliner into gel liner.
Want soft, smooth lines?
Place the tip of your eyeliner over a match or other flame for a second, wait 15 seconds for it to cool, then gently apply it.
Use t-shirts instead of towels to dry your hair.
If your hair seems to always be frizzy and look untamed—no matter how much product you try to weigh it down with—you might want to try drying it a different way!
Instead of using a towel to mop your hair up, wrap it in a soft, cotton t-shirt. It’ll keep your curls smooth and under control.
Even better, pick up a few of these ultra-wicking microfiber turban wraps. They pull moisture out of your hair for a frizz-free ‘do, and they free you to finish getting ready instead of laboring with the blow dryer. This pack of two even throws in a detangler comb for the final step.
Keep the mascara brush you love.
Love the mascara brush that you have, but don’t love the actual mascara? You can keep it! Just clean it with soap and warm water, then let it dry thoroughly.
It’ll be ready to use again with other tubes of mascara.
Apply glue to your fake lashes a better way.
Applying glue to your fake eyelashes can be somewhat of a nightmare, leaving you with glue everywhere and your lashes sticking to everything.
Try placing the glue on the edge of a bobby pin and use it to apply the glue quickly and easily to lashes.
Set lipstick with powder.
There’s no need to buy drying, “24-hour” lipsticks in order to try to get your lipstick to stay. Try it the old-fashioned way!
Apply your lipstick, then place a tissue over your lips. Dust translucent powder over the tissue on your lips and you’re ready to go!
Get the perfect pout.
Does your pout end up looking more pathetic than perfect? You can make it flawless with this easy tip.
Choose a lip liner in the same color as your lipstick and line your entire lips, ending in an “x” at the top. Fill in your lips with lipstick for the perfect shaped pout.
Make your foundation even smoother.
Do you find that your concealer ends up looking cakey and unnatural? Place a little on the back of your hand and mix it with a little of your favorite moisturizer. It’ll go on smoothly!
Keep your lipstick off your teeth.
Every woman hates lipstick on her teeth! Next time you’re heading out, clean off excess lipstick by putting your finger in your mouth, closing your lips around your finger, and gently pulling it out. The excess will get on your finger, not your teeth.
Conceal those under-eye circles perfectly.
Most women place concealer in dots, directly under the eye. This brightens up that small area but ends up making the rest of your face look “flat.”
Try applying it in a triangle shape starting the widest part at the base of your bottom eyelashes, then extending the tip to the bottom of your cheeks. This will hide redness, even out your skin tone, and brighten your whole face.
Use a spoon or credit card to get perfect wings.
Having trouble getting the perfect wing on your eye? Place the base of the spoon at an angle, against your eye and make a “cat eye” stroke.
Then press the rounded part of the spoon against your eyelid and wing your eyeliner stroke against the edge.
Use a spoon to keep mascara off of your face.
Have trouble keeping mascara off of your face when you apply it to your bottom lashes? Use a spoon to help! Hold the rounded part below and against your lower lids, and apply it. The excess will go on the spoon, not your lashes.
Curl your lashes with a heated eyelash curler.
Give your eyelashes even more va-va-voom by heating your eyelash curler before you use it. Use your hairdryer to heat it for a couple of seconds, let it cool…then curl. The heat will set the curl.
Create your own lip gloss out of broken eyeshadow.
Shattered eye shadow? Don’t throw it out! Make your own one-of-a-kind lip color in just a few easy steps.
Plump your lashes with face powder.
Plump lashes are in, baby! But most mascaras don’t do the job nearly as well as you’d like.
Try dusting a little translucent powder on your lashes in between mascara coats. Just be sure to use a little at a time so that it doesn’t get in your eyes.
Fix French manicures with a rubber band.
French manicures are beautiful and clean, problem is—they last about a day before you need to head back to the salon. Save time and money by doing your own touch-ups!
Place a rubber band at the base of the nail color tip and paint the tip. The rubber band ensures a perfect, flawless line.
Use dry shampoo at night.
As handy as dry shampoo is, it can leave your hair looking clumpy and feeling icky. Try spraying your hair before you go to bed. As you move around it’ll evenly distribute and you’ll wake up with clean and voluminous hair.
Use leave-in conditioner right after you shower.
Do leave in conditioners often leave your hair feeling weighed down? Can’t go without it? Try this hack!
Apply the conditioner as soon as you get out of the shower when your hair is sopping wet, then use that t-shirt we mentioned to dry your hair. The shirt will evenly distribute the conditioner and also mop up any extra.
If you took our advice and picked up those microfiber turban wraps, by the way, you could use that instead to save even more time.
Mix leave-in conditioner with gel for soft, supple hair.
Hate that crunchy, sticky feel of gel on your hair but still need the control and moisture? In your hand, mix your favorite leave-in conditioner with gel—it’ll leave your hair feeling soft and manageable.