True Life: I Forgot My Makeup Bag! 5 Beauty Products to Grab in a Pinch
Picture it: March 2017. I touch down in Los Angeles' LAX airport, retrieve my checked bag and slip off to the ladies' room for a quick touch up. Unzip the bag - no makeup case. I calmly close my suitcase, say a silent prayer, and open it again as if by magic I'll find my robin's egg blue train case full of cosmetics.
Clearly this did not happen but instead of panicking I simply headed to the store. Was my makeup bag curated to #carefreeblackgirl perfection? Yes. Could I survive one trip without it? The answer was also yes. Here are the five inexpensive products to pick up in a makeup emergency.
Foundation. When you're in a pinch the last thing you want to worry about is if your foundation is blotchy or sliding off your face. Enter Maybelline FitMe foundation. The shade choices are pretty extensive if you hit a large pharmacy or retailer like Target. I opted for the Dewy + Smooth formula to give my dry skin some extra oomph and luminosity. If your skin tends to get oily during the day try the Matte + Poreless for coverage that lasts.
Brow Pencil. Eyebrows frame your face and therefore are essential when you only have a few products at your disposal. Just as you wouldn't place a Basquiat in plastic, we have to be stringent on what graces our brows. Much to my surprise LA Girl Cosmetics has an amazing retractable pencil that rivals my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. For my trip I chose the "Blackest Brow" shade to stand in for Anastasia's "Medium Brown." The composition is dry and pigmented enough to do light hair-like strokes that will look natural and stay put.
Mascara. Maybelline Great Lash is the OG of mascaras, an inevitable choice emergency or not. If eyebrows frame the face I would say mascara opens it up. With just two coats of Great Lash you can go from sleepy-eyed to doe-eyed in seconds. The wand catches every little lash, perking them up as you swipe along. My pro tips: hold the brush vertically for the first coat as if you were trying to coat each lash individually, this will lengthen your lashes. Then wiggle the brush from the base of your lash line upward to give extra volume on your second coat.
Liquid Eyeliner. If makeup was armor liquid liner would be the sword. Who doesn't feel like a boss with crisp, sharp winged eyeliner? My favorite of all time is Maybelline Lash Stiletto which comes as a pen with a felt tip. It's so easy to use and gets my wing lethally sharp. When I'm prepping for meetings or a girl's night out this is my go-to so I couldn't be without it!
Lipstick. I'm a solid nude or red type of woman most days of the week. In an emergency I'll always opt for a nude and NYX delivers on simple formulas with great color payoff. Their Matte Lip Creams feel exactly how they sound - soft, light, and well... creamy. Pick one (or three) up to change your look to fit your mood. They come in decent sizes and at a great price.
In light of it all, it was a fun challenge to build an emergency makeup kit for my LA trip. Tweet me what your favorite go-to products are or if you've even been caught in this situation!
xx
Miss Suber
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