The sweatpants of makeup – my comfort makeup routine

This post is for those days that you’ve worn the same sweatpants for the 4th day in a row and you know that you need to change something fresh and look like a human for once but can’t manage much more than a new pair of sweatpants and the least possible amount of makeup to make you look more like a human and less like a gremlin.

Or in other words, this post is for when you’re depressed and are ready to start functioning again, but aren’t quite ready to go through the whole rigmarole of your actual normal routine.

I don’t think anyone needs to hear my non-insightful fashion advice about how to change from your most comfortable but probably not fit for the public sweatpants to slightly more presentable sweatpants, but recently I’ve been wearing this lightweight barrel leg sweatpant and shirt set over and over, throwing it in the wash, and then putting it back on immediately.

This isn’t just minimal makeup, this is makeup that is also foolproof and easy to apply and requires the least amount of effort without dealing with brushes or sponges and also feels good to apply. It’s the effort I can manage when I’m just about my lowest functioning self – when I’ve finally dragged myself out of bed and feel more ready to face what’s ahead of me.

Let’s get into the steps that make up not just a very minimal pared down routine looks like for me on days I want to boost my spirits but truly cannot be fussed to deal with much:

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While there are some days I truly cannot be bothered with any type of foundation, I find that even the lightest tinted moisturizer like the Chanel Fresh Water Tint never fails to make my skin look more alive and healthy and glowy. I know I talk about it over and over again, but it really is the best at faking my skin but better with barely any effort to blend out. It has super light coverage but the glow and freshness last all day, with a water texture that also feels refreshing and soothing to apply.

Another option I’ve been loving lately is a super sheer balmy cream tint from Salt New York that I can just apply and blend out with fingers. It’s emollient and allows me to do something between spot concealing and a full face of light tint. It’s great for making my skin look like skin, making it perfect for those low effort days. It has a dewier finish so I need to set my t-zone with a bit of powder if the temperature is warmer, but this would be a dream for drier skin. P.s. use code UNHYPED10 for 10% off.

On days I’m truly lazy and want to skip base all together, a concealer that’s easy to blend and has a natural finish is my best friend, and the Fenty We’re Even Concealer checks all those boxes. It even has a shade that does the dual work of correcting and concealing on my slightly warm olive skin – the pink tones of 200C are just pink enough to neutralize the darkness under my eyes and conceal them, but isn’t too pink to look off on my skin. It’s truly a miracle concealer that stays on all day and doesn’t look like an obvious layer of makeup.

On some days, I prefer a cream concealer – sometimes it’s easier to tap on a little bit of a thicker cream rather than a liquid product, and these days I’ve been reaching for the R.E.M. Beauty Sweetener Concealer, which is a super pigmented, but not overly thick formula that makes it easy to dab on in a light layer or in multiple layers if my skin needs some extra help. I wear shade Light 10N.

I know we all know this, but blush really is key to the whole looking alive game. I can skip a foundation or skin tint, and I can even skip a concealer (sometimes…those dark puffy eyes can really be a fright), but blush is non-negotiable. But it can’t just be any blush. It has to be foolproof, not too much, and it has to look absolutely seamless with my skin. If I really had to, I could come up with a whole wardrobe of blushes that fit these criteria, but lately I’ve been reaching for these 4 formulas:

1. Phytosurgence Skin Spark Blush Balm – the most blendable natural looking and seamless blushes I own, and what I wear most often. I can easily tap it on and blend with my fingers and I can apply it for just a subtle touch of color. They have the best range of subtle muted neutral shades to brighter shades than can be applied for a hint of a flush. These days, I’m reaching for Fume or Condensate a ton.

2. Merit Flush Balm in Archival – these are the most idiot-proof blushes, with an easy dewy formula that swipes on and blends with ease. Archival is also one of those great nude but not too nude blushes that add a touch of something without being too much. The lasting power isn’t the longest on these (6ish hours on my combo skin), but the ease of wear is hard to beat.

3. Rhode Pocket Blush – I know, I know, am I ever going to shut up about these? But the velvety seamless formula makes it effortless to tap on some product and blend it out for a natural looking finish that lasts. I love Sleepy Girl for a more subtle mauve or Toasted Teddy for a bit more of a deeper look.

4. Make Beauty Heat Stroke Dewy Gel Cheek Tint – this gel tint provides a beautiful watercolor-type tint that blends out effortlessly. These days, I keep reaching for Slush, a scary looking violet shade that blends out to a more subtle purple-mauve.

   

I love eyeshadows and glitter and a smokey eye, but some days are not just the vibe for eye makeup, and a slick of brow gel and mascara are all I can bother to put on. I’m not really picky with my brow products, but the Make Beauty Infinite Hold Sculpting Brow Gel has been my go to for the past few months for the light tint but the all day hold is where this brow gel really shines.

There are days where I’ll skip mascara, but I really find that just a bit of lash definition really helps open up my eyes and can make them look a little more elongated and awake without any other makeup. A tubing mascara is the ultimate low maintenance mascara – it keeps a bit of my curl, which is no minor feat for my stubborn Asian stick straight lashes – and doesn’t smudge at all, but comes off easily with water. I really love the Merit tubing mascara because it does all this and it doesn’t clump, making it the ultimate no makeup mascara.

On days I want more of an opening effect, these Japanese mascaras are my tried and trusted favorites. There are so many versions but all of them are waterproof enough to last through a torrential downpour, perfect to hold my curl all day. Right now I’m really loving this base version, which has a tiny wand that catches all my lashes and deposits the lightest layer of product so that it’s virtually undetectable, but still keeps my lashes lifted.

The options are really endless these days when it comes to tinted lip balms and treatments, so take your pick here, but these are the ones I’ve been reaching for lately:

• Eadem Le Chouchou Lip Balm – the ultimate comfort lip balm, with a formula that feels like a nourishing hug on your lips. The perfect balance of not too thick and not too thin, with almost a jelly texture that really makes it feel extra cushiony. The clear is hard to beat, but all the tinted shades are great for when I decide to add some more color to my face. I like Boba Bounce, a sheer brown that gives a hint of dimension that isn’t too bright or too deep. Code BEAUTYUNHYPED15 for 15% off.

• Rhode Peptide Lip Treatment – lightweight formula that still has enough thickness to stick around and keep my lips moisturized. I also love the tinted options but I’ve been reaching for the clear version in the mornings and throughout the day to keep my lips hydrated.

• Tower 28 LipSoftie Balm – I’ve had some really crusty lip days lately, and this balm quickly moisturizes to get rid of the crusties while actually healing any cracks in my lips. While other balms in thai list will do that over time, I find that the Tower 28 version works the quickest. It also has the lightest formula but it is still hydrating enough for me to wear overnight. The new shades in the tinted version are also perfect so a subtle hint of color.

  

• Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm – the tinted balm that really made me fall in love with tinted balms, and I’ve been going back to this one lately, especially the shade Vanilla Beige. The sheer rosy beige adds a touch of tint without looking like any obvious color, and the formula is thick enough to stay on for a while.

• Phytosurgence Calm Conditions Lip Balm – while I tend to stick to sheer glossy products for maximum hydration, sometimes I like the ease of swiping on a chapstick style balm, and Phytosurgence has really perfected the solid lip balm format, also with a hint of color. I love Distant Depths as a sheer brown that gives my lips just a bit of a subtle brown color.

For some people, this may still feel like a full face of products, so I encourage you to adapt to what feels like your comfort makeup routine of the easy to apply products that never fail you, but hopefully my rotation of products I consistently reach for on rough days provides some inspiration.

What are your comfort makeup products? What do you reach for when you want to put on something, but with the least effort possible?

In the meantime, stay well, folks.

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