What is one tip or trick that has helped you speed up your makeup routine?

Keep all of your go-to basics (foundation, powder, brow gel, etc.) organized and together! The more of your “usual” things that are together and easily accessible, the faster the routine will go!

— Christine

18 Comments

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Nancy T Avatar

Basically, just putting everything back in its place once I’m done using it makes it a thousand times easier to find it the next time! My “vanity” appears to be very messy and disorganized at first glance, but items are actually gathered together in their respective usage “families”. Skincare, foundation and BB cream are to my direct right. Lip products (galore) to my left, along with my “tower” of most used highlighters. And so on.
As my Mom always taught me: “A place for everything, and everything in its place”, or said more bluntly by her: “Dammit, put that back where it belongs or no one will ever be able to find it again, Nancy!”

xamyx Avatar

I do my best to clean my brushes as I use them, or at the very least, later that night before bed, so I have them ready to use. This also helps make the chore of cleaning them much less daunting, LOL! Those brushes also tend to be my most used, so they’re also separate from my relatively large stash.

I learned early on, especially having grown up with cats, to put things back in their place when not using them; I found lip products make particularly nice cat toys, and have woken up to find them under furniture…

I also keep “failsafe” products in a separate bin on my desk, or pull things the night before. All my Naked palettes are in a large makeup bag, along with mascara & primer, so sometimes I’ll just grab that…

Ziwei Avatar

For a normal work day, I will not try out any new base products, because a screw up on base means I have to take the whole thing off and waste precious time in the morning. I can still choose to be a little creative with my eye makeup if I so desire.
A cream shadow one and done look saves the most time and is the most efficient way to look put together.

Deborah S. Avatar

I agree that organization is probably the most helpful in keeping application time to a minimum. I tend to have two different makeup application routines. The first I use when I am actually going to go somewhere and have to be ready at a certain time and that involves trying to plan ahead. If I know what I am wearing then I will pull products to use and have them ready for the next morning or packed if I am going somewhere. The second type of makeup application is just playing around and it generally doesn’t involve having to be anywhere by a certain time or having a certain presentable look. In those cases I tend to more casually pull things out just to play with them and I don’t worry too much about whether my playing results in a wearable look. There is a YT’er who shops her stash on Sunday for the products she is going to use during the week and I have read on makeup blogs, other people using this process. I think if I were still working that would be a process I would use to help me speed up my morning routine.
I also agree that using tried and true products, when you are in a hurry, is important. It isn’t a great idea to try a new foundation on a busy morning and then find out it isn’t working. Seems like common sense but I have seen some people do it.
When I was working full time and was doing 12 hour shifts at the hospital, I used a mineral foundation because it was much quicker for me. I just buffed it on with a kabuki brush and was done in a few minutes. I kept eye makeup to a minimum and just a sheer lip colour and I was good to go.
The one thing that really slows me down is trying to wait for a while after applying skin care and primer. I know I need to wait but some days I just don’t have that luxury and my makeup doesn’t always look great on those days.

CeeBee Avatar

Keep your brushes organised and easily accessible in the order that you use them.

I’m very much foundation first, then eye makeup (I keep all my eyeshadow brushes together so I can literally grab them with one hand and have whatever I need), concealer and powder, etc and then brows and lips last. So instead of grouping all my face brushes together, my foundation buffing brush is in one prime spot and then my concealer and fluffy powder brushes are behind my eye brushes. I also wash my foundation brush more often than the others, so it can be rotated out easily when it’s grubby and a fresh one just slots in place.

Nell Avatar

Organization
Organization
Organization
I keep my “top shelf” favorites in my top vanity drawers. At night I lay out a paper towel with everything I need for the next morn. As I use a product, it is placed back where it lives. Then I use the towel to wipe my vanity and I’ll be neat and ready for the next time.
After misplacing items in a frenzy, I’ve learned my lesson. That and finding the eyelash curler has slipped inside a drawer thus preventing the drawer from opening, leaving me without my makeup. Yes, I’ve learned my lessons.
As the chefs say, “Mise en place” – everything in it’s place.

Genevieve Avatar

I have all my ‘basics’ in one bag on my makeup table – eye brow pencil, blush, setting powder, mascaras and a couple of single eyeshadows that I use regularly (City Colour Cleo, Sandstorm and All Eyes on Me). My foundations, primer and daily moisturiser with SPF is handy too.
Having decided the night before what I am wearing the next day helps me to co-ordinate my look with eyeshadows and lipstick.

Gilad Avatar

Moisturize & color correct at home. Everything else in the car on the way to early AM clients – a pretty basic look, but serviceable, neutral, professional.
If not a client morning, then I might do it in stages – ‘prep the canvas’, then deal w/ emails, then go back to add color/shaping. Mood/weather/clothing get to influence the decisions, and it takes longer.

Nicole D Avatar

As many pointed out, Organization is #1.
#2: I’m currently exploring the Reverse Foundation Technique that Samantha Ravndhal showed a week ago on YT. It was taken over by Stephanie Marie as well, following Samantha’s video. I can easily see how it can become a game changer. Basically, the products that are normally put on top of the foundation, are applied underneath (except the finishing/setting powder). I agree with both of them; this technique can give a skin-like finish. I need to play with this technique more but it works 🙂

CK Avatar

The only things that you can do to meaningfully cut time other than being organized is cutting out layers of product. There is a credible case to not bother with primers, depending on the other products you’re using, like a tinted sunscreen, for example or use a really good primer that hydrates well enough to skip the moisturizer beforehand.

Sometimes when I’m really crushed for time, I go monotone and whatever blush I’m using is also my eyeshadow. I blush and then put whatever that blush is on my eyes, and maybe a deeper color in the crease. Add on eyeliner and mascara, maybe a highlight, and the color portion of the face is done in less than 5 minutes. Use the blush or bronzer as your contour like they used to in the 80s/90s and skip that extra step.

Silvus Avatar

I keep my makeup extremely well organized I’m like Monica in Friends when it comes to that especially things I wear in my face. I have three cute coffee mugs with owls and one a frog in those I place my blush brushes, bronzer brushes, a slanted blush brush to use really quickly either for blush or contouring (which I thought I’d follow the trend hype but didn’t same with primers on face I won’t anymore they all tend to give me mellea breakouts so I’ll have enough for my eyes for a 100 years now) and highliter brushes. I keep all eye brushes in one cup and a couple if kabuki brushes standing in their own since they take more space. Lately since my son returned home after graduating from college and likes to share my bathroom instead of his dad’s since I have all the goodies on mine like soaps, shampoos, etc. I been thinking when he is in a rush to shower and get to work I’ll just place in a small basket my spf, moisturizer, foundation, blush, mascara, eye and lip products and be able to get out of bathroom quickly and finish applying in my bedroom.
Tight organization and use of less products will certainly speed up the process. Primers, baking, contouring, tight lining and all these extra fancy steps I don’t need in my mornings. But I do wear a bit of highliter if not in a big rush. Love them! !

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