The 5-Minute Face: A Busy Girl’s Guide To Makeup

You know who I’m talking about. The woman at work who’s always perfectly coiffed. Every day, from head to toe, she looks as though she walked off a Vogue cover shoot, impeccably dressed, effortlessly styled, breezing through the office with an air of confidence you thought was reserved for movie stars and CEOs.

And while she’s constantly crushing it at her job, she also goes to Soul Cycle every morning. Oh, and she’s got two kids. How could we forget that? So our biggest question is–how does she manage to leave the house looking presentable, let alone impeccable?

Perhaps, dear friends, she has tapped into the 5-Minute Face. Let’s be honest, whether you’re like your power co-worker or not, most of us are not blessed with the luxury of time. Or maybe for you Sephora is more like a maze of mystery than a palatial playground? Fret not.

We tapped into four beauty experts to get their take on the 5-Minute Face:

Emmy® Award Winning Beauty Expert Kevin James Bennett says that first and foremost, that skincare is your #1 concern.

“Dealing with skin ‘challenges’ eats up the precious time you should be spending getting gorgeous. A quick exfoliation will clear away dull, dead skin cells that are preventing your makeup from sitting pretty and looking its best. I love ‘enzyme’ exfoliants because they’re extremely effective and gentle enough to use frequently. One of my faves is Dermalogica’s Daily Microfoliant, which uses fruit (papain) and rice enzymes.”

And for putting on that foundation, he recommends a tinted moisturizer (a BB/CC Cream) but says to avoid the store-bought stuff and just make your own!

“I love the versatility of a medium to full-coverage liquid makeup that can be multi-purpose and Make Up For Ever’s HD Foundation is perfect for this. Put a small amount of foundation on the heel of your palm and then mix in a few drops of treatment oil designed for all skin types, like Nude Skincare’s ProGenius. Apply to your skin while it’s still slightly damp (after you’ve exfoliated and patted dry). It will seal in the moisture, even out your skin tone, cover minor imperfections, and leave a gorgeous glow. Apply a little of the full strength foundation where you need extra coverage.”