Ah, we are getting to the end of the year and to keep up, we are all going to have to learn to beat the morning rush.

The buzz is in the air and there are already frenzied movements all around. There’s barely enough time in the morning to get ready for the day without getting stuck in traffic, add getting your makeup done and you are running round in circles for the better part of an hour or more.

I’ve been having the same issues, you guys, so I did a little experiment and have come up with a quick and simple way to beat the morning blues and still get out of the house looking great and not late.

It does seem like a lot of steps, but compared to your current full face makeup routine, trust me, this is a piece of cake. All you should do is

  1. Create a routine ie. which product comes first? which product comes last? This helps you know what to reach for.
  2. Put them all together ie. Don’t leave your makeup everywhere. If you have a dressing table, arrange all the products for everyday wear on the exact same side, stack them according to application preferably.
  3. Partition your first & create a journey path on it. For me, I start with face, go to eyes, come back to face for blush & highlighter, then lis. Brows are usually the last cos I just run a spoolie through them.

My current morning rush routine for products & placements are:

  • Foundation – Zaron Healthy Glow liquid foundation or Black Opal True Color liquid foundation. They are both great for African skin and work well with our environment. That’s plus they have great coverage too.
  • Concealer – L.A. Girl pro concealer is great. I’ve recently started feeling a bit off with it so sometimes I apply the Black Opal total coverage concealing foundation over it for that ‘skin’ look & feel.
  • Powder – I got the L.A. Pride powder palette at the last Lagos Makeup Fair and it is da bomb. I use the 2 lightest shades mixed together, the darkest to contour my face and finishing powder as a base for my eyes (I’ve even used it once to highlight my face sef). To set the concealed areas, I always use a loose powder & currently loving the Black Opal loose powder. I apply this lightly with a powder puff.
  • Eyes – I extend my concealer and powder application to cover the darkness. Then a simple application of the darkest powder in the palette in my crease, Jordana black liner in my waterline & smoked out + LE Lancome mascara to finish up.
  • Cheeks – Darkest powder in the L.A. pride palette to contour and the BM|Pro 600 eye shadow (I’ve had since forever) on my cheeks.
  • Brows & Lips – Spoolie and vaseline/balm

Don’t be an absolute lazy bum like me. Go an itsy bitsy step further by fixing up your brows, applying a wash of eyeshadow and just a coloured lip liner on your lips will do for colour there. Watch the video below to see how I do it.

Credits: Barbara & 1923