My baby girl, now 17 months old, is a chatterbox. She loves Greek yogurt, taking long baths, and playing on outdoor swing sets. If you meet her, she’ll say “Haaay,” and promptly ask you to read her a Peppa Pig book. She’s a delight. A non-stop, energetic, full-speed-ahead sunbeam pointed directly between the eyes. When she’s awake, I’m awake. As you can imagine, this has cramped my once leisurely beauty routine. So I’ve made a few changes to accommodate motherhood—ones you might want to consider whether or not most hours in your day are spoken for. Check out my new essentials below.
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The Face Roller
First thing’s first: I’m tired. Like, most of the time. If you’re tired, too, I suggest investing in a stone roller, like this rose quartz version from L.A. facialist Angela Caglia. The cool stone feels joltingly refreshing when it hits your skin, and the mechanical rolling can help boost circulation. All of which makes for rosy cheeks and an I’m-wide-awake expression.
The Cover-up
So guess what? Kim Kardashian’s concealer is good. And I mean good. I dot some of the cream (which is dense but easily spreadable) under my eyes, around my nose, and between my brows. By the time I blend it into my skin, my whole face looks even-toned. If you see me wearing it, you’d swear I slept eight hours (and you’d be wrong).
The Blush
A makeup artist once taught me to apply blush super high up on my cheekbones (almost in the area you’d apply concealer). This immediately gives you a face-lift. Ever since Liv was born, I’ve ditched my powder and chosen a melt-in-your-skin gel or cream to give me a fresh, natural, healthy-looking flush.
The Highlighter
I’m not going to lie: After welcoming, feeding, and doting on a newborn 24/7 for weeks on end, it can look like someone shut the lights out behind your complexion. A highlighter, I’ve found, is essential to bringing back that luminosity (until you can recharge and restore it alone). And this sheer cream, from makeup artist Charlotte Tilbury, is one of the best I’ve ever tried. It draws a glow so radiant, I’ve had strangers stop me to tell me how fantastic my skin looks. No joke.
The Hot Rollers
My final hack comes in the hair department. Now I understand how hot rollers can look like more work from the start, but trust me: Once you wind them up in your hair (which takes literally 5 minutes) you can go about getting you and your little one dressed and fed, then unwind each one and you’re done! I’m left with hair that looks like it’s been freshly blown out. #Gamechanger
