How to Get Your Makeup to Look Good in Fluorescent Lighting!
Office lighting doesn’t only drain your energy but it can cause your makeup to look a little uh…off.
Harsh lighting has a bad habit of highlighting dryness, dullness, texture, oiliness, and redness. The reality is that there are just some makeup looks which should be left for more flattering lighting, as they’ll be wasted under those nasty fluoros. Shimmery or glitzy looks, full matte skin or full-glam eye looks are going to come off cheaper, cakier, and harsher than what they really are. That’s not to say you should let the lights dictate your beauty preferences, but if you prefer to look as fresh as poss, then follow these tricks!
The Prep
No matter your skin type, you’ve got to hydrate your skin in order to layer makeup successfully over it for an office-friendly look. Give your face a quick rub with your face cloth when cleansing for a super-fast exfoliating effect. Start with a hydrating moisturizer and allow it to sink in before adding a moisturizing primer to the face. By now, your skin should be smooth, free of dull-making dead skin, and plumped with moisture. Perfect.
The Base
Now add a really thin layer of your go-to base makeup. Just use enough to even everything out without actually covering the natural look of your skin. Take your concealer and use it strategically to conceal redness, blemishes and dark under eyes. Set with a translucent powder but go lightly…
Your base should be glowy, even, fresh and without a trace of powderiness or cakiness. If you can easily detect the base in the bathroom mirror…it’s going to be 10x more stark at the office.
The Eyes
For the eyes, stick with creamy textures and avoid heavy lower-lash makeup. Super powdery eye looks with lots of layering and color may come off as harsh and overdone in the office.
Use a cream shadow and smudge all over the eye, then smudge a kohl pencil into the top lash line before adding mascara. Your eyes will be defined but there will be no risk of exposing an unblended eyeshadow or creasing throughout the day.
Keeping the lower lashes free of shadow and liner simply eliminates the risk of smudging, fall-out, and that unfortunate dark-colored creasing when liner migrates south. A fresh lower lash line will make a smoky upper lash line stand out even more while opening up the eyes.
The Cheeks
When it comes to blush, try a cream blush which can be smudged into the skin for a flush of color and skin-like texture. If you do use a powder blush, make sure to blend and make sure it’s totally glitter-free.
For highlighter, avoid glitz but go for glow. A cream luminizer with NO glitter specs is ideal for pressing along the cheeks and down the nose as it will catch the light in all the right ways.
The Lips
By all means, go for an opaque, bold color if that’s your go-to. But just make sure it’s a product which fades nicely as opposed to flaking, bleeding or smudging or a liquid lipstick that stays put all day like LiveGlam’s KissMe lippies! They’re perfect for the office because they’ll last throughout all of your cups of coffee, lunch, and twiddling your thumbs at your desk.
Choose a product which stays put well and is easy to re-apply if it happens to fade. Otherwise, balmy or sheer finishes are super easy to maintain and they keep the lips looking full, healthy and smooth under the lights.
The Finish
Use a spritz of setting spray just to lock everything into place so you don’t have to worry about multiple touch-ups throughout the day. A setting spray will also take care of any powderiness and will help everything melt into the skin for an undetectable finish.
Conclusion
Look, at the end of the day…who cares if your makeup looks a little crazy or overdone at the office from time to time. If you feel like doing a full-glam look because it makes you feel great, then go for it. But having worked in many fluoro-lit workplaces, I can sympathize with anyone who feels the frustration of finding that balance between flattering, fun and glam at the office. The key components are hydrated, exfoliated skin, a light layer of base, and a seamless, blended finish!
Gin Mabey