Beach Make-up for the Holidays

As the festive season approaches, beach holidays are at the top of the list for most. This means beach bodies and of course, a flawless face as one sits on the loungers by the sea soaking up sunshine.

Those selfie worthy looks applied painstakingly in front of a mirror look perfect in the confines of the air-conditioned resorts.

Picture this, after taking a few selfies inside the hotel room that has a magnificent view of the Indian Ocean you decide to go out and bask in the sun as the waves serenade you with their soft sounds.

A few minutes out of your air conditioned room and into the humid weather outside your face starts to get an oily sheen due to the sweat forming on your face. And then your worst fears are realised, your face looks like it is melting off and you want to run back to your room and wipe off the make-up on your face.

Spending time at the coast is fun but with it comes the extreme weather conditions mean that most have to give up the luxury of most makeup products. Professional however indicate that this does not need to be the case, offering hacks to get around the temperatures.

Andy Nicole, a professional make-up artiste and lead trainer at Linton’s Beauty Academy, says that a person should consider three things when applying make-up in places that are hot.

The first is considering how long it is going to last, second is how mattifying it is going to be and lastly your skin type.

“Your skin type is very important, because when you have an oily skin and then there would be heat of course it is going to get oilier. And if you have dry skin it is vice versa,” says Nicole.

“You also have to consider the type of foundation and sun protection,” she adds.

Applying sunscreen as a base on the skin prior to applying make-up is an added advantage.

When at the coast she says she prefers powders over liquids or creams settling for two-in-one powders. This is key because it reduces the number of layers of makeup needed.

“Instead of layering myself with foundation and its already hot and my pores need to breath I rather use a powder that might cover some things that I wanted to cover and also work as a foundation.”

Getting a moisturiser that has sun protection as one of its components is important she explains.

“A moisturiser that is also hydrating people tend to forget that as much as you have oily skin for example you also need hydration.”

Instead of super mattifying your face a person can consider adding extra moisture in the skin.

“Less is key, if you are on holiday at the coast and you want to go out and have lunch or go walk around at the beach and thinking of applying make-up I would advise that you start with a moisturiser, followed by sunscreen for sun protection and if you want foundation that is when you first apply your primer so that it sets the foundation and makes it last longer.”

She adds: “set the foundation applied with a light powder or loose powder. These help in setting the foundation rather than adding up another layer.”

Applying eyeshadow for the eyes at the coast she says is also not a popular thing for most women and hence opt to only use waterproof mascara. This makes the eyes pop and avoid instances of having black rings around the eyes commonly referred to as racoon eyes that are usually as a result of the mascara melting with the sweat.

“If you understand your skin and the type of makeup that works for it there is no way you cannot get that perfect natural slaying look when at the coast.”

Over her half a decade career working with big brands she says that she still cannot recommend a particular brand or one that she uses to another person simply because skin pigmentation is different with each person.