Sick-day makeup: how to look your best when you’re feeling your worst

When you’re feeling sick, the best thing you can do for yourself is stay in bed with a cup of hot tea, snuggled up with a favorite book or a movie…

.. but sometimes you don’t have that luxury of being able to stay home and need to leave the house for a bit. If you don’t feel the need to wear makeup- awesome! But if you’re anything like me, then you like to give yourself a little “pick me up” by making yourself look pretty, while still keeping things to a minimum.

It seems like everyone is battling a cold right now, I’ve been sick for almost a week now, but I still had to show up for an important meeting at work on Saturday, run some errands during the weekend, and take care of some thangs. I stuck to some of my favorite light coverage, cream products, since those usually work best for me when my skin feels dry and exhausted. If you’re on the same boat as me, wipe that snot right off your nose girl!

KEEP YOUR SKIN MOISTURIZED

When you’re dealing with a cold, you’re dealing with more than just sniffles, sneezing and a cough: your skin also tends to feel dry and rough. That is why it’s very important to moisturize your skin- especially if you’re planning on wearing light makeup. The skin around your nose also tends to feel very dry when you’re sick (because of constant use of tissues) and what I like to do is apply some Vaseline around my nose to prevent my skin from getting irritated.

USE CREAM PRODUCTS

Again, your skin is probably feeling dry and that’s why it’s best to stick to cream formulas. If your skin feels a bit oily, you can use a little setting powder, but I’d recommend that you try blotting papers instead. I always like to stick to a bare minimum when it comes to wearing makeup during sick days, so all I really use is a light base, some concealer and a cream blush. Speaking of base…

STICK TO LIGHT FORMULAS

Forget foundation. If you have great skin and don’t feel the need to wear a base- great. Instead, you can use a bit of a brightening product like MAC’s Strobe Cream– just mix a little bit with your moisturizer and use it on top of your SPF lotion. It won’t add any coverage, but it will give you a nice, healthy glow. If you feel like you have to give yourself a little coverage- go for a BB Cream or a tinted moisturizer. It’s just enough to cover up any redness and even out your skin tone. If you have any breakouts or discoloration, don’t worry about them. I know from my own experience that when you’re not feeling well and your skin is feeling dry, the more you try to cover those little imperfections, the worst they end up looking, so try to avoid caking up multiple products on your face. For the last couple of days I’ve been using Guerlain’s Meteorites Baby Glow Light-Reflecting Makeup– even though it’s a foundation, it feels more like a tinted moisturizer and makes my skin look nice and healthy, without looking unnatural or feeling heavy.

FORGET LIPSTICK

Your lips are probably feeling dry, you’re constantly wiping your nose, coughing or you’re sipping on your tea.. Lipstick? Ain’t nobody got time for that. Stick to your favorite tinted lip balm.

IF YOU HAVE TO WEAR MASCARA..

I’m sorry, but it doesn’t matter how sick I’m feeling, if I’m leaving my house and planning on interacting with other human beings, I’m wearing mascara. Mascara is my jam. When you’re feeling under the weather, it’s usually best to stick to water-proof formulas. I stay away from anything that gives me tons of volume or feels very heavy so I just use any mascara that gives a minimal and natural look, like Maybelline’s Great Lash. I usually don’t like this mascara, I don’t think that it does much for my lashes, so I always use it on those “no makeup makeup” days because it’s so delicate and natural-looking.

WASH YOUR HAIR

Okay, is this a weird one? It doesn’t matter if you’re going to put your hair up in a bun, make sure your hair is nice and fresh. As much as I love dry shampoo, I love freshly washed hair even more and whether I’m having a bad skin day, or I’m simply battling a cold like right now, I always make sure that my hair is clean. I know, it might be weird, but it just makes me feel so much better. You know when you’re shopping and you’re trying on clothes, but your outfit looks so much different (meaning better) when you have your hair and makeup done? It’s kind of the same thing with feeling sick and having fresh hair- it just makes me feel a little less bummy. :P

Like I’ve said in the beginning of this post, when you’re sick, the best thing you can do is forget about makeup altogether and stay in bed, so don’t go around thinking that I’m making you wear makeup when you feel like crap! :) Stay healthy my friends, I’m off to make myself a 13727th cup of tea this morning!