6 Ways to Speed Up Your Morning Routine
By Sasha Beautyblogger for GalTime.com
For most women, every morning seems to be a rapid race against the proverbial clock. And unfortunately, makeup and hair are often casualties in the war on making it out the door on time.
After hearing my girlfriend's latest tricks to help save minutes in the morning (which involved questionable roadway safety), I was inspired to poll everyday women on their top-secret tips and tricks for speeding up their AM routine.
Conquer The Clutter: One of the biggest time sucks is a cluttered countertop. Valuable time is wasted on trying to locate your AM moisturizer or eyelash curler, which inevitably is buried under a sea of other products. These no-nonsense tricks will help conquer the clutter:
PM cleanup: Take two minutes before you go to bed and organize your countertop. By putting your items back in their designated places, you'll know right where to reach for them in the morning.
Routine product purge: It's a good rule of thumb to spring clean your beauty products every three months. If you have 14 concealers, chances are you're only using a few of them. You can really speed up your AM routine by having fewer products to bypass each and every morning. Go through each product category and if you haven't used it within the last 6-12 months (depending on the product's typical shelf life), toss it.
Related: 4 Beauty Products Every Gal Should Carry in Her Purse
Create A "Morning Makeup" Bag: Let's face it, most cosmetic cases look more like a man's toolbox. No surprise here, as we women love accumulating makeup and cosmetic tools (I swear I'm one lip gloss away from a few…thousand). But this can be a major time suck when trying to get pretty in a hurry. An easy solution? Invest in a small or medium-sized makeup bag and designate it as your "morning makeup" collection. Here's a snapshot of my morning makeup bag:
~ Eyebrow pencil
~ Concealer (that pulls double-duty for face and under-eye areas)
~ Mineral powder (with SPF)
~ Blush (that can also be a bronzer)
~ Dual quad shadow (a neutral brown for lids; a beige to highlight the brow area)
~ Volumizing mascara (with show-stopping lashes, eyeliner won't be missed)
~ Lip gloss
Total time: 6 minutes (Insert applause here!)
Sonia Kashuk Geometric Print Cosmetic Bag, $14.99
Once you determine your morning makeup musts, with a little trial and error, you'll get your AM routine down to a science.
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The Night Before Strategy: One of the time-saving mavens I polled, who travels more than most airline pilots, offered these no-nonsense nighttime tricks for saving mega time in the AM:
Hair in a cinch: Get creative when it comes to hair. You can braid it the night before for soft waves in the morning. Or, try hot rollers. Don't think mom's rollers. Today there are a variety to choose from that provide big volume (think Adele type style). Wash your mane the night before, then throw the rollers in while you're getting ready the next morning. Finger comb the curls and, voila, gorgeous, voluminous hair in under 10 minutes.
Speedy skin: Hydrate your skin the night before with an intense moisturizer and you'll wake up with baby soft skin that's primed and ready for makeup.
Heavy-duty freshener: While skipping a shower isn't ideal, if you're anticipating a manic morning, shower the night before and apply over-the-counter, prescription-strength deodorant. The good news is it will absorb overnight, saving you the stress of trying to get rid of those white streaks that inevitably happen when you're in a hurry!
Bliss The Youth As We Know It Night Cream, $79
Secret Clinical Strength Antiperspirant and Deodorant, $8.99
Sayonara morning madness! With these real-life tips and tricks, no more leaving the house with one eye done and attempting to do the other while driving (hey, we've all done it).
Do you have any awesome time-saving beauty tips? Share 'em in the comments box below!
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