Everyone has their own beauty routine: refined processes, silly faces and favorite makeup brands. With different skin tones, face shapes, eye colors, eyebrow shapes, and more, everyone approaches their makeup routine differently. Because of this, a couple Literally, Darling ladies decided to mix things up by switching makeup routines for three days.
Kelly and Allie took on the challenge, sharing their everyday routines and selecting products of their own to use that closely matched the other’s routine.
Kelly: 23 years old, fair, combination skin
Favorite feature: blue eyes
Can’t live without: Neutrogena sensitive skin moisturizer, Covergirl dark brown eyeliner, Burt’s Bees tinted lip balm
Kelly on an average work day
Night routine:
Shower, comb hair, add Moroccan oil, air-dry
I do a double cleanse while in the shower to remove all makeup and apply moisturizer and eye cream after drying off. Once a week, I exfoliate (usually Wednesdays) before using toner, and moisturizer and eye cream.
- First, wash face, use cleanser, (toner, if needed), then face lotion. While that’s drying, brush teeth.
- Brush hair (I usually just leave it down, no products or straightening/curling. If I’m having a REALLY bad hair day, I’ll do a braid of some sort).
- Make Up Routine: (using natural lighting)
- Maybelline BB cream foundation, rub in thoroughly
- Eyebrows (European Wax Center eyebrow brush, then fill in with pencil)
- Black eyeliner, lightly on lid and then a half line on lower eyelid
- Light eyeshadow, if any. If I look especially tired, I’ll put some in the corner of my eyes (near my nose) because I read somewhere it makes you look more awake.
- Light brush of mascara
- Lip balm (a little color-tint)
Kelly’s make-up station
Allie: 24 years old, fair, sensitive and dry skin
Favorite feature: Also my eyes! (They are hazel though.)
Can’t live without: my Young Living Satin Mint facial scrub, Almay brown-black eyeliner, Covergirl 456 concealer stick.
Allie on the average work day
Night routine:
- Wash hair, condition every couple of days, air dry hair.
- Wash face with Young Living Orange Blossom cleanser. Twice a week exfoliate with Young Living Satin Mint facial scrub.
- Take off any excess makeup with an Ulta charcoal makeup cloth
- Put on Root Pretty Fresh Lavender moisturizer
Morning Routine:
- First, I put my contacts in and plug in my straightener
- I start with Concealer stick under my eyes. I also cover up any zits on my chin or forehead with it
- If it’s an extra zitty day, I cover up zits with BareMinerals blemish therapy.
- Put a light layer of BareMinerals matte foundation powder on.
- Little bit of Tarte blush on my cheeks
- Top it all with Bareminerals mineral veil
- Eyes: Start with NYX high definition eyeshadow base.
- For work days, put on a neutral eye shadow.
- Black-brown eyeliner on my top lash line and midway on bottom.
- Curl my eyelashes and put mascara on my top and bottom lashes.
- Fix any eye liner that is messed up. Sometimes I add more concealer under my eyes if needed or touch up with a Q-tip.
- Put on some lip balm, usually no tint, but sometimes I remember to use my tinted one.
- Brush and straighten hair. Don’t use any product typically.
Allie’s daily products
Allie: I’m excited to give this challenge a shot. Worst case it has to be easier than when we swapped exercise routines. I like the idea of a quicker, more low-maintenance routine. I had everything Kelly uses besides BB cream, so that was a plus for my wallet. I’m a little worried about needing to do my eyebrows because I suck at it, and they needed to be waxed like, a month and a half ago. I never do my eyebrows, even though one is blonde and the other is brown, because I don’t have the energy to try and make them match, so this will be interesting. I’m also a little skeptical of using BB cream all over, since in the past I haven’t been a fan of BB cream. Maybe I’ll be surprised, though! I’m interested to see if washing my face in the morning really makes a big difference on my skincare! I’ve heard “experts” say you should wash it morning and night, but I’ve always just done it at night and called it good.
Kelly: I’m excited to start the challenge. I’ve never been very adventurous with makeup, mostly because of a lack of interest and know-how. I’ve always kept my makeup routine very light, as I’m not a morning person and I don’t want to spend an hour contouring before I commute to work. I also have sensitive skin, which has adjusted to my cleansing, moisturizing routine. One of my biggest concerns during this challenge is that the change in routine and adding more makeup to my face will cause breakouts. I already had a lot of Allie’s products at home, although different brands. However, I did go out and buy a St. Ives green tea scrub, a drugstore brand of Allie’s, and the makeup wipe removers.
The Challenge
Day 1: Saturday
Allie: I’m liking how little time it takes to get ready; I was done with my hair and makeup in less than five minutes! I never wash my face in the mornings since I always do it at night, but it was nice to feel extra clean before I started, so I may make this a habit. I used a toner since I never remember to do that, and we’ll see what that does for my skin.
First impressions: I kind of hate that this makeup routine centers around BB cream. I have never been a fan of BB cream or liquid foundation; I can’t stand the way it feels on my face, and it has terrible coverage for dark circles under eyes and zits, which I try to cover up every day. So I’m not loving that. I’m also way too pale to not wear blush, so that’s going to be an adjustment these next few days. My eyebrows were as hard to match as I thought they’d be, but I figured it out. Like I mentioned, I desperately need to get them waxed, so I do not feel like my eyebrow game is strong today. I kind of feel like the top half of my face is too made up and the bottom half looks like a ghost, so I’m glad it’s a weekend and I’m not going anywhere. I should have blow-dried my hair last night instead of air drying it, because it’s a hot mess without styling, but I don’t like styling my hair, so I like that I don’t have to today!
Allie on day one!
Kelly: This routine will take me a little more time in the mornings, so I’m glad we started on a weekend, when I’m in no hurry to go anywhere! The routine didn’t end up taking me that much longer than my own, although I added a little time as I Googled the best way to put concealer under your eyes, etc. I don’t have any breakouts right now, so I skipped putting concealer anywhere else. The matte foundation was an adjustment and I feel like I may have put it on too heavy, so I’ll cut back tomorrow and do a little more research. The blush I had in my stash is a cream that you rub in and I actually really liked adding it—I may keep it in my daily routine! Allie’s eye routine was similar to my own, but I added curling my eyelashes (I have really thick eyelashes, so this took more time than anticipated).
First impressions: It made me a little nervous to not use a cleanser on my face when I first woke up in the morning and to jump straight into moisturizer. After putting on foundation, blush, and a setting powder, my face felt heavy and, since it’s been 90+ degrees here, it felt like it might melt off my face if I was outside too long. I’ll have to see if not using cleanser in the morning and then adding heavy make-up causes any breakouts later this week. While I like the look of curled eyelashes, with mine being so thick, plus eyeliner and mascara, it was definitely more of a made-up look than I’m used to. I did like adding the hair straightening to my routine, although it took a little while since I have so much hair. However, I may feel differently about it during the week, when I’m trying to rush out the door.
Kelly on day one!
Day 2: Sunday
Allie: I will say that while I felt very negative about how I looked right after I got ready yesterday, I felt better about it as the day went on and I got more used to it. Once I got out into better lighting, I didn’t feel as pale, and my eyebrows didn’t look as out of place once I got used to them. My skin did feel very dried out after the BB cream, so I am still not a huge fan of that, but I did enjoy that it stayed put all day. I can see why a lot of people love it. I also love that Kelly’s routine includes adding Moroccan oil to her hair at night. I totally forgot about this amazing argan/hemp oil hair product I have from a subscription box but stashed away when I moved, so I hunted it down last night and my hair is loving it today!
I still feel like I’m overly made-up when I do my eyebrows, but that’s always going to be a thing for me. My hair still looks unkempt without straightening, but since it’s a lazy day anyway, I just threw a hat on and called it good. I’m feeling much better today than yesterday about this!
Kelly: I was much faster getting ready today than yesterday! Also, the makeup wipes worked out great and were a much more efficient solution than using cleanser, which was fine when it was essentially just removing BB cream, but most likely wouldn’t hold up to foundation, blush, powder, etc. While it is still slightly longer than my usual routine, when I didn’t have to check over Allie’s steps or Google instructions, it cut down my time. I’m loving the green tea scrub, which makes my face feel fresh and clean at night and it made me less nervous about just using moisturizer in the mornings. I went lighter on the foundation and powder today, along with the mascara. I think that my minimal routine calls for a little more mascara, etc since there isn’t much else going on, but when I added more makeup to my routine, I went with the less is more quantity approach, which worked out a lot better for me!
Since my morning consisted of working out, I had to shower in the morning before starting the makeup routine, which threw things off a little with the hairstyling. I elected to blow dry it, then straighten, which turned out well but took a larger amount of time than I’d like.
Additions to Kelly’s make-up bag: concealer, matte foundation, lip balm
Day 3: Monday
Allie: Not going to lie, I was thrilled about having a quick routine ahead of me today because I was heavy on the snooze this morning and needed to get out the door quickly. Still not loving how not-covered my under-eye dark circles are with this BB cream, but I didn’t feel too pale without blush today, so that’s an improvement. I was a little worried about my hot mess hair for work today, but I don’t think anyone noticed. I’m also officially sold on washing my face and moisturizing in the mornings, too–it actually does make a difference!
Kelly: I did some pre-planning and arranged to have the dogs taken out by my husband so I’d have the optimal amount of time in the morning to get ready. I did have more noticeable dark circles today because of the early hour, so I was loving the addition of the under eye concealer. Lately, I’ve been loving cruelty-free concealers like these which seem to be more gentle on my skin than other options. It admittedly took more time than my usual routine, but I spent the day admiring my hair and how much better it looked when it was straightened. I did feel a little more professional and put-together throughout the day with more attention paid to my makeup. However, without the BB cream, it felt like the matte foundation and powder wore off towards the end of the day. Unfortunately, I did see a little breakout starting.
Final thoughts:
Allie: I am glad I did this challenge and I actually found it pretty fun to switch things up a bit. I still can’t stand BB cream, so I won’t be adding that to my routine any time soon. I probably won’t start doing my eyebrows every day, either. But this challenge taught me that I can pare down my routine and still feel good about myself. It also showed me that I really enjoy putting on the makeup I typically wear, and don’t just do it out of habit or because I feel like I need to. I’m excited to be able to wear blush and my Bareminerals stuff again. I also missed curling my eyelashes. One huge plus: I learned that my face appreciates when I wash and moisturize it in the mornings, so I’ll definitely be changing that about my routine.I also remembered to start using an old favorite hair product too, so that’s an added bonus!
Kelly:
I’m 100 % glad that I did this challenge. I’ve always stuck in my minimal makeup comfort zone and this pushed me to actually put some effort into my makeup routine. I fell in love with Allie’s St. Ives green tea scrub recommendation (warning: it does go on your face green)! It made my skin feel much better and cleaner. My favorite part of the routine was adding in the hair straightening in the mornings and the feeling of being more put together and professional. As a young professional, I’ve always strove to encourage my co workers to take me seriously (my baby face makes me look younger than my already young age). Moving forward, I’m going to incorporate the green tea scrub into my cleansing routine and return to cleansing and moisturizing every morning to avoid breakouts. I’m also going to return to my BB cream, but I did like adding blush, which made my pale face look a little more awake. Overall, I think this challenge really allowed me to improve my daily makeup game and I’d be willing to step up, even if I have to get up a little earlier in the morning.
Would you give the Makeup Challenge a try? Let us know by tweeting @LitDarling!
