Create An Express Makeup Station




  A neighbour of mine works as a nurse and has a crazy schedule. She likes to always wear makeup and to style her hair, as it makes her feel pulled-together. Often she has to get up and get ready in the middle of the night. To make the process faster, she uses a simple system that she showed me.

   She puts her everyday makeup and hair products on a tray, which she places on her living room table every evening (that's where it's convenient for her to do her makeup at night). On that tray is everything she needs to use to get ready for work: moisturiser, mascara, hair spray, hair brush, mirror. She doesn't have to rummage for her stuff, it's all there in one place.

   I adopted this system from her. When you own quite a few makeup products, it is nice to have the basics in one place when I just have a few minutes to get ready. It also actively reminds me to put on my makeup -- yes, this is a habit I have adopted only recently.

   If you are often in a rush, or are trying to remember to use makeup, you can easily create something an Express Makeup Station. Use a pretty tablet, bowl or box; and put the stuff you use everyday in there. It can be just two or three products and a mirror, in fact the less you have the less overwhelmed you will be. It can be just makeup, or you can add skin or hair products.Keep the tablet wherever it is convenient for you to apply your makeup in the morning -- if using your regular spot wakes your spouse, you can take your little tray to another place in the house. You can also keep other essentials on your tray: medicine or supplements that you take in the morning, jewelry or keys.


   Here is my daily makeup tray:



  On the tray are my tried-and-tested products. Depending on how much time I have, I might just use hide-a-pore + mascara + perfume, or all of them. I keep my skin and hair care products in the bathroom, so I use my Express Makeup Station after I have applied my sunscreen and done something with my hair in the bathroom. Here is a breakdown of what is on the picture:
* Sweetscents hide-a-pore: sometimes it's the only thing I use, when I just want to matte my sunscreen. Otherwise it is my primer and my last coat.

* Catrice concealer: Best concealer I've had so far.

* Makeup Egg from Ebelin: I apply the concealer with it, it's the best dupe to the original Beauty Blender.

* Alverde False Lashes Mascara: I love it for it's silicone brush. I almost always wear mascara, as my lashes are one of my favourite features.

* Alverde Eyebrow Gel:  I wear this almost daily because not only are my eyebrows unruly, they look weird when they don't match neither my hennaed hair nor my lashes.

* Mineral foundation from Lumiere: I reach for this when I have a bit more time.

* Kabuki brush from Lumiere Minerals. It's too small and chubby it fit in the glass where I store my brushes. I use it to apply the mineral foundation.

* Green mineral corrector from Lumiere minerals: I use this if I have a bit more time

* Ambrozia Bronzer from Lumiere: I use this as a bronzer and to contour my face.

* Perfume: Fleur For Women from Hobbythek. More on this soon!

* Lip Gloss: I rotate the lip products on the tray. At the moment I use Couture Lip Polish Stain from P2. It's a nice bright shade, great for women with a warm colouring.

* Mirror (not shown): with a 3x magnification on the other side

* Makeup fixing spray or thermal water (not shown).

  My tray lives on the dresser which doubles as my vanity table.

    Do you have an express makeup station? What's on it?





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