Even though I am obsessed with beauty, I don’t spend a lot of time getting ready in the morning. Reason? Laziness, perhaps? Also, as time goes by, I find I don’t like the feeling of a lot of stuff on my face. But, like anyone, I like to look polished, bright eyed and as radiant as possible with as little effort as possible. I spend time on my skincare routine, and even though it took me almost 12 minutes to explain it, it really takes less than 5 minutes in the morning and at night to take care of my skin. If anything, as we age we should spend more time on My cosmetic routine in the morning is pretty no-nonsense as well. So- what do I use?

Start with a cleansed and moisturised face. Give your skincare a few minutes to soak in before applying make up- this is a good time to brush your teeth, apply body lotion, brush hair etc. Then:

Concealer: this is a must have for a wide awake and radiant look. Nothing ages you quicker than dark skin around the eyes, and uneven skin tone. Using a concealer brush ( love the one I got from Lancome) I apply my HG concealer, Lancome Effacernes. It is creamy and never creases or settles into lines. It’s also waterproof. I blend it lightly under my eyes and on the sides of my nose.

Eye Make Up Primer: I have oily skin, and truthfully a lot of use have oily eye lids even if the rest of our skin is dry. My hands down HG primer is the incredible Urban Decay Potion Primer  (UDPP) in the slightly yellow toned Eden. I use my fingers to apply a very thin layer on my eyelids- too much gets cake-y and uneven so a light hand is key. Also- a trick: using a small brush, I use a small amount of UDPP on spots/blemishes before applying any concealer on them. It helps extend the life of any concealer you use. It’s the little things, folks. UDPP in Nude is slightly pinker, Greed is a gold shimmer and Sin is a taupe shimmer. I also have and love Sin. Gorgeous.

Powder: I don’t use foundation, but if you do, apply it now! I just use a foundation type of powder, and dust it all over my face. My favourite is Jane Iredale Pure Pressed Base pressed powder. It’s practically invisible yet evens skin tone beautifully. It has sunscreen and doesn’t irritate my oily acne-prone skin. I will weep if this is ever discontinued.

Eyeliner: I am a huge tightlining fan. I tightline along my upper lash line (explanation here) and I use a waterproof pencil or liquid. My fave pencils are Urban Decay 24-7 Glide-On Pencil and Lancome Le Stylo Waterproof. I take tightlining a little further and like to wriggle the pencil between my upper lashes a little bit as well. My favourite liquid liner is L’Oreal Lineur Intense Felt Tip – this stuff is fool proof! When I use this, I don’t waste my time trying to draw a line along my lashes- oh goodness no. I leave that to the pros. And my daughters. What I do with the felt tip liner is dot it between my upper eyelashes- tightly of course, sort of like connecting the dots. I always use black or an almost-black colour, as this shade will make the white of the eyes appear whiter and brighter. Brown tones can emphasise redness in eyes- NOT what we want. What tightlining does is give the illusion of thick eyelashes and opens the eyes beautifully. On a lazy day, that’s all I do. I use Revitalash and tint my lashes so mascara is mostly optional. But for a more finished look, I give a swipe of my favourite mascara, Clinique Lash Power.

Blush & Bronzer: Almost done! Now, I look in the mirror and smile, so I can see the apples of my cheeks. Then I apply a soft dusting of a sheer pink blush right on those babies. My latest love is the gorgeous Bobbi Brown Antigua – it’s called and illuminating bronzer but to my eyes its a sheer cool pink. I LOVE it! The shade is universally flattering, and so sheer that it is practically fail proof. Illuminating? Yes it is glowy, but only in the broadest definition. There is no glitter or glimmer but somehow it adds a glow and I can’t believe it took me until 2 months ago to get it! Then, if I need it, I grab my favourite bronzer (lately also Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzer in Aruba but I also love Guerlain Terracotta – read about my fave bronzing powders here ). You don’t have to go all Jersey Shore with bronzer. At this time of year, a tiny bit to add colour to our pale faces is all you need.

Lips: And now apply whatever you want on your lips! After brushing my teeth, I give my lips a good scrub with a facecloth to prep them. I am a balm fanatic so I usually apply my lip balm now and put on gloss or sheer lippy before heading out the door. Almost all my lip colour is in my purse so I do that after my morning routine. My balms du jour are La Mer and, save me from myself, Chanel Lip Care. Cold weather and central heating dry out my lips so I work hard to keep them soft and supple.

S o- TA DA, you are done! Seriously, if this takes you more than 15 minutes, you need to practice and practice to get your time down! It’s easy and a great way to look polished but not make up. And, it’s super easy to glam up your look for parties by adding some shimmery taupe or gold shadow, or a little grey or taupe liner along the bottom lash line, and a dramatic or bright lip colour. I keep a blotting powder in my purse to keep shine at bay, and my YSL Touche Eclat in case I need to hide/highlight anything mid-day. But- that’s it!

Do you have any tips for your morning routine? I’d love to know!