Vampire Grodon
6 Beauty Things to Do Now While Stuck at Home
Think of self-isolation as an opportunity to experiment and get organized.
Bright sides are few and far between during these turbulent times. I’ve been using this time of social self-isolation to pause and really think about what’s important to me and to cherish my relationship with my family. But truth be told, being cooped up together 24-7 for who knows how long is making me go a little bit koo-koo-bananas. Carving out me-time is becoming increasingly important, and a lot of my me-time has revolved around beauty.
I’ve written about the importance of my skincare routine during this time, but it’s also time to let loose and get experimental. If you’ve been putting off starting something you’ve wanted to try in the beauty realm, now is the perfect time to get to it! If your beauty life is a mess, it’s time to work through it! Below I’ve got six ideas on how to best use your beauty time during this lockdown. So let’s get to it.
1. Try out those artsy graphic liner looks
All the cool kids are doing it, and they make it look so effortless. With all this downtime, why not perfect the art of a killer liner look? Look up some tutorials and brush the dust off your wildest colors. Practice makes perfect, and by the end of this you might just become a pro.
2. Get on acid
Have you been dying to kickstart your active acid game but were afraid of the possible visible side effects? Who cares! Ease on into retinoids, AHA, or whatever else you’ve been too afraid to tackle! If it doesn’t work for you and you turn beet red, you won’t have to cover it with makeup and potentially irritate your skin further. If you trigger a purge, you can let your zits crop in peace during your hiatus. Plus if you’re keeping indoors, you have less exposure to the sun, which is huge considering what a big no-no the sun is when you’re using acids.
3. Peel winter away
Speaking of chemical peels, there is no better time to strap into a deep peeling foot mask and let it work its gruesome magic. Afraid of shedding sheets of dead foot skin at work in your peep-toes? Don’t even sweat it! It’s just you and your house slippers now! By the time this is all over you’ll have soft, sandal-ready feet raring to go.
4. Experiment with new products
Much like the acids fear, introducing a new product can be a scary thing if you have sensitive or acne-prone skin. Now’s the time for experimentation since a filter can easily hide any adverse reactions during your video chats.
5. Clean ALL your brushes
You’ve got time to burn and a collection of brushes that need attention. It’s time to give them the deep cleaning treatment they deserve. Sit down, turn on a podcast, and give those brushes a good hearty scrub. (Check out some genius brush cleaning hacks here.) I recently did this with my (embarrassingly large) collection, and the sore wrists I had afterwards were totally worth it after the rows of gleaming white brushes greeted me the next morning.
6. Organize your stash
Now’s the time to go in and take stock of everything that does and does not work for you. (Some tips on how here.) It’s time to purge the expired product you shoved back into the bowels of your shelves and bring the forgotten experimental purchases to the forefront. After you’ve done that, organize it all nice and neat and feel that rush of accomplishment and relief that a good spring cleaning always brings.
With more optimistic news being released daily, hopefully we’ll be getting back to our normal soon and things will be wrapping up before we reach for the scissors and decide we’re totally qualified to cut our own bangs.
Are you trying any new beauty products while in self-isolation? What are you doing to get through this time?
Beautytap
julianmalone
I absolutely agree with the idea of trying new makeup techniques and new skincare routines while there's no pressure. Also, a good cleaning spree can boost anyone's mood!
vintagesavvy
Verified Expert
This is so aspiring I cant wait to try some of these and step outside my comfort zone !! :)
vivibrant
Verified Expert
This is a great time to try new thing and experiment (safely). Beauty trends are all over social media, simply pick your favorite and give it a go! I definitely agree that we can see great benefits to our skin now that we are less exposed to the sun. Nevertheless is still essential to use your SPF DAILY, even if you’re staying in, because you still have to look out for UVA. So give acids a try but don’t neglect your sunscreen!
jonaranastyle
Verified Expert
yes! i wanna buy and try all these new brands! Also yes on the cleaning and organizing. Things can really pile up and we don't realize it. great article. great to see an actual list of suggestions :)
alxissbeauty
Verified Expert
such a perfect time to do any peels and get on any retinoids and aha/bha.. just make sure your don't hit the beach and if you decide to step out always remember to slather on that Sunscreen and wear a hat.. oh and put on your mask or better yet just invest in a bandit mask haha
estheticianaly
Verified Expert
I actually gave myself a medium grade chemical peel because I wasnt going to be outside or seeing the public. I could sheet-peel like a lizard in the comfort of my own bed, eating potato chips and popcycles if I wanted. Luckily though, I didnt peel much at all. But I could have, and none would be the wiser!
estheticianaly
Verified Expert
I never thought about cleaning my makeup brushes during such a time but what a wonderful idea. No one wants to take on such a tedious task during the regularly hectic flow of life, but given a bit too much free time and the task starts to seem like an exciting project.
jodyzehnderbeauty
Verified Expert
Now is a great time to organize, clean, and take inventory of your beauty products before we head back to work! This article is a great tool to help you with all that.
estheticianaly
Verified Expert
I cleared out so many old products I filled up my bathroom bin. This should have been done ages ago!
alicequeriapa
Verified Expert
Thank you for great tips Coco, my next project is washing all my make up brushes. Normally it will take me half a day but hey! we got nothing but times!! yay
Stay safe - Stay Beautiful
Alice
caitlynquamme
Verified Expert
I've been scaring my pets and SO by walking around with various face masks all day to try to "fix" my winter skin now that it's getting warmer. Ready for my acne to start healing and those summer freckles to start showing (through sunscreen of course!)
estheticianaly
Verified Expert
Why can I picture that in my head and not stop laughing ? I love this.
caitlynquamme
Verified Expert
I was multi-masking the other day and my cat attacked me! I could not untangle her from my hair. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried getting clay out of fur but it’s not easy. My poor dog was just confused and hiding. Very glad my boyfriend was at work for that episode of “what could possibly go wrong” !
estheticianaly
Verified Expert
I dont have cats but I do have two pomeranians with long fur and I can imagine what a disaster that would be. I'm so sorry that happened but one day you'll look back and laugh. That should seriously be a scene from a comedy movie!