In an ideal world, 9am starts wouldn’t exist but unfortunately for us (especially us lazy students),it’s a constant battle of‘do I get up now and look human or that extra half an hour in bed?
In 1st year, this wasn’t much of a debate. If I happened to accidentally on purpose ignore my 8’o’clock alarm, well? That was just “unfortunate” but this year? Things are most certainly changing, the realisation that I can’t sleep till the cows come home AND look some-what human has hit.
I am not blessed with Mila Kunis looks, I do not wake up looking like I just fell from the heavenly skies above. It takes us girls’ effort to get ready, and effort means time … but bed? Sleep? They’re such luscious, sacred, wonderful things (especially at those dreaded hours of the morning.) Who even has time to look good for 9ams?
Fortunately for you lot, I have tried, tested (and blown half my student loan in the process) some make-up bag must haves that take literally minutes to get you looking gorgeous AND saving on those precious extra minutes in bed.
MOISTURISE MOISTURISE MOISTURISE
Moisturising helps repair your skin, especially when you're sleeping; it also helps makeup application and generally brightens up your face while also preventing lines and wrinkles. It's so important to have a good skin care routine as your base before you even think of doing anything else. Wash - Cleanse - Tone - Moisturise. Morning and night!
FOUNDATION
The bane of my life. If it’s not getting the right colour, it’s finding a one that hasn't sank half way in to your face by midday. Honestly, this is all down to personal preference and individual skin type but from experience you get what you pay for so I'd always recommend MAC. However you can keep it cheap, get what you pay for doesn't necessarily mean paying a ton, it means just not picking up any cheap and nasty thing. Rimmel and Maybelline offer a good variety of foundations and tinted moisturisers for cheap prices. A good foundation because a good base halves makeup application time. If you accompany foundation with a primer, this will help your makeup stay on longer and go on smoother. You could also use a tinted moisturiser if foundation sounds a little bit too heavy for you, tinted moisturisers are cheap as chips and offer lighter coverage for a more natural look.
POWDER
You don’t really have to splash out on these, and you can get a few different types such as pressed powder or loose powder. I prefer loose powder because it gives a nice finish to your skin and it takes literally seconds to puff over your skin, this will stop your skin looking shiny. A good loose powder to try is Bare Minerals for around £20, or if you're looking for something cheaper then Rimmel also do great pressed powders.
EYES
It’s the most time consuming part of makeup and especially as we are time saving, you can skip any complicated eyeliner or eye shadow. Keep it simple and focus on the lashes, grab an eyelash curler - curl for 10 seconds and apply your mascara. A good one to use I find is Maybelline falsies volume express for £5.99. I find that lovely long lashes, without eye liner makes your eyes seem wide awake and gives a fresh, natural look. Just what you'll be after especially at 9am. Make up can turn anyone in to professional con artists.
EYEBROWS
So everyone is eyebrow crazy all of a sudden. We live in a society where we are literally judged on our eyebrows, but how can we achieve that perfect arch in the time we have? Simple, the good old fashioned eyebrow pencil. Rimmel does a good one for literally a couple pounds. These guys are seriously under rated and do a smashing little job.
LIPS
Lips are the final touch, you want a quick application and something that stays on. Try Maybelline 24 hour lipstick, you can pick this up for literally £7 from your local drug store.
When you're off to uni early you want to be up, ready, and out the door fast so here's a bag I picked up to quickly shove all my books in and it's casual/fun so matches the student scene. All this is cheap, and takes about 5-10 minutes in application time.
BAG
This year I thought I’d try something different and invested in a rucksack. Taking it back to the old school. I picked this one up from River Island for £20, slightly bright but I quite liked the bright colours and it's perfect for fitting everything in. River Island offer a wide range of bags and ruck sacks, you'll definitely find one that tickles your fancy, looks great and is literally effortless to simply throw all your books and what not in. 