Beauty for Bad Days

I feel like shit today. There's just no way around that. I've been in Hurricane Ivan, Level 4, with a side of Fibro. I am doing all of the basics of coping with pain, but I need an advanced intervention. I need Beauty for Bad Days.

Beauty for Bad Days is my way of bringing some tiny bit of normalcy (and fashion) to what would otherwise be a day spent in bed, sans brushing my teeth. Because beauty can be a tiring effort (just

Bad Day Makeup Routine

depends on what you have to work with at the start), I have a mini-makeup routine and a couple of cheats. Want to know how it works? Here we go:

 

Getting Ready:

I have to skip the shower so I have energy to put on makeup. But, I may circle around later in the day, if I have it in me. I can't stand it when my scalp is smelly (you know what I am talking about), so I use Tresseme Dry Shampoo, which I found at Target. Of course, the teeth must be brushed and the face must be washed.

Makeup:

Ironically, the sicker I am, the more important it is to me to wear makeup. I just need that boost, that lift to my spirits. Plus, I feel better when I look in the mirror...I look god-awful when I am at my worst. I do the basics of mascara, blush and lip gloss...but I use a tinted moisturizer instead of foundation. Here are the products I used today (all of these can be found at Ulta or Sephora):

• Nars Tinted Moisturizer in St. Moritz (gives a little extra glow)
• Clinique Advanced Concealer in Light
• NYX cream blush in Glow
• Estee Lauder Bronzer
• Milani MultiTasker Face Powder in Light Medium
• Almay One Coat Triple Effect Mascara
• TheBalm Mary-Lou Manizer (came in my Birchbox last month)
• Nars Lip Gloss Duo in Sandpiper and Pillow Talk

This probably took me about 10 minutes...and I added steps that you could totally skip. But before you drop off the bronzer and luminizer, let me tell you that they make a huge difference. In fact, if I were going to leave anything off the list, I would drop the lip gloss and stick with my fave, Carmex.

Clothing:

 

Loungy Lady Clothes in Fuschia and Black

This is where cheating comes in very handy. After spending many years in pajamas and sweats, I've become a connoisseur of both. Unfortunately, many of said sweats and pj's are very unattractive. So, I have amassed a collection of loungy lady clothes. No, that's not a brand...though it probably should be...it's a philosophy. Loungy lady clothes are those outfits that are both supremely comfy and stylish. They can go from the bed to the pharmacy with no change at all. In fact, some of my "LL" clothes are so nice, they can go from bed to a school play in the wink of an eye.

 

Today, I am wearing my uniform: awesome active wear top (Calvin Klein Performance Plus Funnelneck Jacket), brightly colored tee (Pima Land's End plus polo) and knit pants (Lane Bryant Knit Active Pant). 

Shoes:

Shoes are a constant source of drama for me. My feet hurt quite often and I have the worst time finding shoes that are comfy AND stylish. Once I find a brand and style that works, I buy it in multiple colors (the same goes for clothes.) My favorite fancy shoes are Sam Edelman Beatrix. They are badass looking, while being so amazingly comfy. They are essentially padded leather ballerina slippers with spikes on the toe boxes. I have the solid black and the solid gold versions. LOVE!

But I digress...because on days when I feel like this, I am only wearing one thing. Slippers. That's all I can tolerate. And I have found some recently that are so warm and soft, that I am pretty much wearing them nonstop. They have a rubber sole so I a) can take the dog out in the morning and b) don't fall down the slippery deck stairs taking the dog out in the morning. Did I mention they are adorable? They are from Land's End and are black, quilted booties with a fur collar and warm fleece inside...so delish!

I'm always looking for beauty tips for bad days...what are yours?

 

My fave slippers...one must have faux fur to feel comfy.

 

Comments

[Shingledout.wordpress.com]

That is really great advice. Thank you!
I have to admit that I skip the shower too, with nerve damage over almost half of my back and round to under my ribcage, the feeling of water on my skin is excruciating and takes hours to recover (if I am lucky!).
I really admire you for putting on make up, I do my best to keep up with a decent skin care regime and when I see other people I always wear make up (to hide the greyness and dark circles!)
Like you I have adopted the casual lounge wear with yoga style trousers and a brightly coloured cardigan or jumper (funny how I wear more bright colours since I have been sick).

A nice pick-me-up is painting my nails - definitely my toes and my fingers when I can and I try to always use hand cream.

[Jean Ann Van Krevelen]

I love that you do your nails! I've recently started doing mine. For the longest time, I was like "that just takes too much time!" Then, I realized all I have is time. :)

I'm going to do a post on the products that I use when I do my nails. Some of which mean no drying time...which is awesome because I am impatient. ;)

[Sophie @ Tailored Shirts Online]

Really gorgeous pictures and I love the boots.

[Jean Ann Van Krevelen]

Sophie, thanks for the comment...those slippers are getting some serious wear. I'm thinking I should by a back up pair...