Originally published July 2022.
I am not a makeup girl. I will likely never BE a makeup girl. But rather than take this information and decide to not trust what I have to say, what if we could all start understanding that the best people to listen to about makeup are the people who have zero skill at this whatsoever—you know, like us. I don’t need a makeup artist to tell me which foundation to buy and which $80 brush to apply it with. I need a normal woman to tell me what she slaps on her face with her fingers before she runs out the door—I need kindred spirits, people.
Vacation makeup starts with grand plans and ends up being like three products. Why spend time in front of a mirror when you could be purchasing croissants and eating them on park benches, amright? I brought a full bag of products to Paris, and in the end used ONLY the items below, day after day. So much so that I threw my travel container of foundation away in the hotel trash can. I want easy, fast, and yet somehow visually appealing. Friends, I think I found it.
L’Oreal Glotion: Whoever designed this product deserves an award. Glowy but not sparkly, minimal coverage but also somehow way better than bare skin. I was scraping my travel container (read: contact lens case) of this stuff and I regret nothing. At home I was using this pre-foundation, but in Paris it was the only thing on my skin at all. (After sunscreen of course, we’re not animals.) If you like a soft glow and don’t like…well, your bare face, this is $10 and WELL worth a try.
Nyx Concealer Serum: Given the efficacy of this product and the fact that it costs less than $9, I see no reason to use any other concealer ever again. I use the shade Beige and there is ALWAYS a backup tube of this at home because it’s so good that it sells out all the time. My under eyes don’t recognize themselves.
Flower Beauty Bronzer: I’m not a powder girl, but I will dust this shit all over my face in an attempt to look alive. Not only did I use it on this trip to bronze and give myself something adjacent to a contour, but I also used it as eyeshadow and still do. It’s $11 and it’s just one of many Flower Beauty products I use, I just couldn’t fit any more of them in my little liquids bag. I never leave the house without shellacking myself in their setting spray. I live in New Orleans humidity and my makeup stays put. If you need a better review than that I can’t help you.
Flower Beauty Eyeliner Pencil: I debated even including this because I barely wore any of it, just the smallest amount at my lashline blurred out with a brush was MORE than enough to make me feel like there were eyes on my face. It’s under $10 and worth every penny.
Benefit Magnet Extreme Mascara: Confession…I only used this mascara because I had a brand new trial size of it and I didn’t want to travel with a full sized product, but it DID remind me how much I love this one. If you have 10 mascaras in your drawer and hate them all, toss them and try this stuff — it’s a workhorse.
Rare Beauty Blush: Literally bury me in this. This is the only bush I use or ever want to use. If I could have only take one product on this trip I’d take this stuff. It makes your face look airbrushed and if it was acceptable to blush your whole face I would. This is desert island good I kid you not. I have two colors. I’m not done.
That’s it! That’s my whole face for nine entire days. It was very quick, minimal, and enough to make me feel like I had my shit together. Enjoy.
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