I am always amazed at the female news anchors and reporters who always look so fresh, happy and awake at 5:00 in the morning...how do they do it?!
I asked a few friends of mine from the local news stations to give me some of their early morning beauty tips.
Michelle Wright of
WTAE TV, says, "I get enough sleep & water and love Joe Blasco foundation and cover up and Mac blush and eye shadows".
WPXI's reporter, Cara Sapaida, begins her day very, very early.
"Getting extra sleep, even a few minutes, a few days a week is key. For that I invest in a good dry shampoo. That way I don't have to wash my hair every morning. Some people swear by it and use it on day three as well! I'm not one of those gals. There's a new shampoo by
TIGI called
Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo. I also like good eye cream though for sure. And lately i've been using
Hope in a Tube by
Philosophy. My favorite tip is a nice, hot cup of coffee. When all else fails, I can count on THAT!"
As a film and television makeup artist, my job is to make actors look their very best first thing in the morning, often with crew calls starting at 4:30 am, so I, too, have created a list of beauty products to help you look & achieve your very best, too!
The key to looking fresh in the early morning is to wear
bright colors!
Add colors like pink, corals, reds & blue...they instantly perk up your skin. You want to avoid, greys, black, khakis, beiges and browns, those colors will make your skin appear lack luster & dull.
Your skin also needs perked up in the morning, so get your circulation going by gently exfoliating your skin.
I love
Queen Helene mint julep scrub, to wake up your skin.
You can also try good 'ole baking soda, it's pure natural & very cheap. Just keep a box in your shower & mix a tablespoon in your hand with a few drops of water, and any excess can be worked through your hair to remove excess hairspray build up.
While your at it in the shower, try some
Caffeinated soap from
ThinkGeek.com and follow with a final blast of ice cold water to add shine to your hair and really wake you up!
The next step is to work on the
eyes, first thing we do is add eye drops!
Many actors I work with swear by
Collyre Blue eye drop to make the whites appear their absolute whitest.
Your other best friend is to invest in a good eye cream, find something cooling, firming and smoothing.
I like
YSL's contour eye cream.
Many eye creams now have
caffeine in them which is said to perk up the eye area.
Another less expensive, but effective eye cream is, from
100 percent Pure, check out their
100 percent organic caffeine eye cream!
Curling the eyelashes
instantly opens the eyes up & makes them appear larger.
The best eyelash curler on the market is:
Shu Uemera. It's a little more expensive than drugstore eyelash curlers, but so worth every penny! The wider curler fits the eye shape better and gently curves the lashes and doesn't bend them in half.
Mascara is another way to appear more awake.
After curling your lashes, apply two coats of navy mascara to make the whites appear brighter and more awake.
Concentrate on adding more mascara to the outer lashes to make the eyes appear more open, and cat like!
I like
Lumene blue mascara:
...or if you're really looking for some eye popping fun, try
Dior's Azure blue mascara-
the brightest blue around!
Eyeliners should also be deep navy or blue to make the whites look their whitest. You want to avoid any purples, khaki's or brown eyeliners on a sleepless night. Those colors will only accentuate under eye circles.
I like MAC's Navy stain Powerpoint liner, it's one of the best! The color is not too bright but also has a hint of metallic that will also make your eyes sparkle in the early morning.
The formula is long lasting, and waterproof but glides on effortlessly.
Avoid any
eyeshadows with pink or purple that day, especially on the lid.
Any colors with red undertones applied on the lid or close to the lash line will make your eyes appear red, tired and puffy looking like you've been crying all night.
Add a touch of sparkle to the lid by applying a waterproof, creaseproof creme shadow such as
Laura Mercier's Platinum Metallic eye color:And finally, the most important, and our
BFF, is... under
eye concealer!
I cannot live without
YSL's Touche Eclat for an instant pick me up, anytime; it is the
best beauty product on the market today! It highlights under the eye without ever looking cakey.
If you need a little more coverage that day, look for products that have yellow undertones to help counteract the purpleness under your eyes.
I also use a lot of MAC's studio finish concealer for television- works great!
Blush is another way to appear more awake!
Sometimes, sleepless nights require a little more blush to make you look refreshed & alive!
My all time favorite is:
NARS orgasm blush- it's a very flattering pinky coral blush with soft golden highlkights that look great on just about everyone!
Lip color is a
must!
This will always make you look your very best in the early morning,
Avoid beige, matte tones that will blend into your skin.
Clear reds and soft pinky coral tones will brighten your tired skin, as does a little lip gloss!
I like
Benefit's tinted lip balm, a great shade that works for all skin tones.
...And if you really need that extra pick me up, try:
Smashbox's caffeine laced lip pencil!
or how about a
caffeinated lip balm to keep you awake?!
And, finish your look with a dust of a pink powder, which helps brighten the skin.
T LeClerc makes the finest powder out there, it's used by many models and makeup artists.
Their Orchidee pink veil powder perks up all skin!
These tips only
mask a sleep deprived face, naturally, your best bet is to get 8 hours of sleep, exercise 30 minutes a day, and drink 8 glasses of water to hydrate & plump your skin, but with a lot of us creative night owls, who has time to sleep?!
...sometimes life gets in the way of beauty, bring on daylight savings time!
