If you’re anything like me, you like to simplify things. I prefer the easy, painless route rather than the time consuming, headache-inducing one. I have discovered a few beauty hacks over my years that have made life immensely easier. Today I will share a few with you!
1. The headband hair trick
I will forever be envious of girls who can wake up, shower, pull their hair back, and go to class. If I did that, I would have so many fly-aways you would think I was about to take flight. I’m not sure why this happens to (seemingly) only me, but fear not, I have discovered the most life changing hack out there: sleeping with a headband on. I’m talking a heavy duty headband that covers at least three inches of your hair from your forehead back. Once you’re out of the shower and your hair is brushed, throw on a headband (I prefer lululemon style), and when you wake up, you will be amazed by how flat your baby hairs are. If you’re thinking “Ew, you don’t shower when you wake up?” fair enough, put it on for at least 20 minutes and I guarantee it will tame them long enough for your first class to let out.
2. Bye-bye to eye bags
As you may already know, it’s hard to hide the fact that you just pulled an all-nighter when your accessory to class is under-eye bags rather than an actual bag. Most people throw on some foundation, but I was seeking a less “cakey” look. I’ve dabbled with different products, and I think I’ve found the perfect recipe to eliminating dark circles in the most natural looking way. Using Mac’s “Prep and Prime”, I draw an upside down triangle under both of my eyes. I blend them using a beauty blender brush. The last and final step is applying the color “banana” from Anastasia Beverly Hills powder contour kit using my Dior fluid brush on top of the primed under eye area. In less than five minutes, you’ve gone from sleep deprived to well-rested!
3. The cheap alternative to a standard mani/pedi
Being in college, money is not my friend. I have a strict budget that I stick to so that I won’t be living at home when I graduate, but that doesn’t mean I can't still afford for myself the luxuries I often enjoy at home. One thing I could not give up when going away to school was getting my nails done. Nothing makes me feel more complete then soaking my feet in hot water, having cut cuticles, and the smell of lavender lotion as someone massages me. As we all know, mani/pedis are quite costly. What was my way around this, you may ask? Polish change. If you’ve never heard of this, don’t feel stupid, I hadn’t either until I went to college. You pay almost half the price of a mani/pedi and leave with (almost) the same result. Who cares if they don’t painfully rip off your cuticles? Is that 30 second massage really worth it? With a polish change, your nails are filed and painted for $7 to $13, depending on if it’s your hands or your toes. You can’t beat it.
4. At-home teeth whitening
This next beauty hack probably won’t come recommended to you by your dentist, but I think everything is okay in moderation. I brush my teeth two or three times a day, and I hope you do too, but have you ever looked in the mirror and freaked out because you felt like your teeth were yellow? It’s a confidence crusher. You may ask yourself, “How is this possible if I take care of my teeth and brush responsibly?” The answer is Starbucks. Stop drinking so much damn coffee.
Most traditional whiteners are either astronomically priced or take too long to show results. I needed my teeth pearly white in exactly 24 hours for a date, and, to my surprise, I was able to do it. 5-minute whitener, sold in any drug store, whitens your teeth in literally five minutes and it costs less than $10. The reason I say it probably wont come recommend by your dentist is because it strips the first layer of enamel off of your teeth using bleach, revealing a brand new pearly white layer in no time at all. I’ve never had any weird side effects or sensitivity to temperature from using it. Just rinse with fluoride before bed as an apology to your teeth.
5. Waxing
Last but certainly not least is my waxing beauty hack. Eyebrow waxing is expensive, not particularly pleasant, and time consuming, but it’s a part of life and non-negotiable, especially if you have dark hair. When I moved five hours from home to a completely different state, the one question that weighed heavy on my mind was “Who’s going to do my brows?”
This is not something you can just Google. It is certainly not something you can blindly try out. A lot of my peers go to the nearest nail salon, because having to drive only five minutes away and paying $10 to get your eyebrows done sounds super ideal. With that being said, here is my most important beauty hack: do not go to a nail salon. Find someone in the area who you trust or whose brows you admire and ask for their recommendation. Next, call and ask for the senior stylist. You don’t want the brand new esthetician having a field day on your face. After driving way too far to the nearest decent salon, take a minute to look at your esthetician’s brows. If they are over plucked, too highly arched, or just plain ugly, run.
If you like them, take a minute to express how important they are to you and how particular you like them. Instill a sense of fear in your esthetician that if she/he doesn’t follow your specific requests, bad things will happen. I usually say “I just want them cleaned up” so they aren’t encouraged to make any major changes.
