2016 Jul 23
by Akansha Naraindas
“Ladies and gentleman, we have come together today to mourn the loss of a very dear member of my makeup bag, staying strong through tears, bad weather, break ups. I am sad to say goodbye to the most loyal friend I had, sticking to me despite all odds and even 12 hour flights…”
Bit melodramatic? Not really. We all feel extremely sorrowed at the loss of any member of our coveted makeup collection. The pricier, the more it stings. But there are a few ways to avoid acquaintance with the dreaded makeup graveyard and put your makeup on life support, increasing its longevity a little longer, atleast until you can say your final goodbyes.
Heat it up!
Ironically, incineration may actually be a way of avoiding death in this instance. Heat will be your best friend! One of my favourite tactics with gel liner is to microwave it for 30 seconds. This makes the product very creamy and allows you to draw a fine line without any tugging. With drying pencil liners it’s better to use an actual flame (with parental supervision if required). Hold the pencil above the flame for no more than a second, this heats up the product and also increases the pigmentation, giving you a vibrant colour. With mascara, I find that putting it in a cup of hot water usually does a good job of making the lashes less clumpy. It is important to remember that mascara only has a shelf life of 6 months, therefore it is advisable to avoid this process after.
Eye drops
Calling all contact lens wearers! This hack will be remarkably easy for you. If you ever find your mascara to be quite clumpy or your cream eyeshadow too dry, contact lens solution is the perfect lubricant. This inexpensive product can immediately change the application of your makeup. Just add 2 drops to your mascara and leave capped for about 3 minutes. With eyeshadow the process may get slightly messy and is more of a touch and feel process depending on how dry your eyeshadow is. Its important to try and mix your eyeshadow with the liquid and make it a thick paste like consistency. This ensures high pigmentation as well as the longevity of your application.
Alcohol
Humorously so, this isn’t just effective in drowning our sorrows, but also in ensuring the binding of our powdered makeup products that we may have carelessly dropped or cracked. Jokes aside, you will need rubbing alcohol for this or else 70% alcohol. Crush the product up completely to a powder and add atleast 10 drops of alcohol to it. Then smooth the mixture with a spatula and leave for a few hours. this will have completely mended, giving you a product that is good as new!
Cream it!
How about turning your broken products into all new products? all with the help of a little moisturizer. Resuscitate your broken powder compacts by mixing them with your daily moisturizer to make a tinted moisturizer ideal for daily wear. This will work with any powder items and is especially effective with your highlighters which are all the rage this season. The cream-powder mixture gives your face a highlighted look without the additional spending on a cream highlighter.
