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 The Best Beauty Tricks I've Learned After 10 Years

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Beauty has changed tons since I started working within the industry back in 2007. If you'll remember 2007, that was the year that the iPhone debuted—when the selfie was but a twinkle in your first smartphone's screen—and Britney Spears shaved her head. during a decade of twiddling with products, testing tools, and interviewing countless makeup artists, hair colorists, hairstylists, nail artists, dermatologists, and estheticians, I've seen many an beauty trend come and go. But I've also amassed a goldmine of expert tips and tricks that stand the test of your time and have forever altered the way I look after my hair and skin. I could seriously continue forever, but these are without a doubt the 19 best pieces of beauty wisdom I even have learned in my years within the biz.

1. Keep your eye cream and nail enamel within the fridge.
The reason some eye creams are sold in tubes with metal tips is that the metal helps deflate puffy areas by cooling the skin, which theoretically constricts blood vessels. But you'll get an equivalent exact effect by just stashing unspecified eye cream within the refrigerator. During the summer, I do that with my can't-live-without-it Yes To Coconuts Ultra Hydrating Overnight Eye Balm ($16, ulta.com), but it works with any formula. The fridge is additionally an excellent place to stash nail enamel , because it keeps it from thickening over time.

2. Always layer your skin-care products from thinnest to thickest texture.
If you think that about your skin as if it were a sponge, you would like it to take in all the great stuff you're applying to your face and body. Therefore, it is vital to layer properly. Use the thinner, more watery products first in your skin routine and finish with the heaviest creams or oils. Oils help lock in any products applied prior. So if you're starting with an oil then adding a lighter mucopolysaccharide serum on top, you are not getting to see those amazing HA benefits.

3. you'll curl your entire head with an iron in under two minutes flat.
This is the one trick that has saved me the foremost time over the years. Splitting my hair into one-inch sections then rolling over each with the home appliance wont to take me half-hour , but I even have cut styling time to a mere two minutes with this hack I learned from Pinterest. After blow-drying hair straight or letting it air-dry, throw it into a high ponytail atop your head and split into four even sections. Roll the wand around each, set with some texturizing spray, then shake out after hair is cool—like after your morning commute. i prefer an easy-to-use curler just like the Eva NYC 25mm Tourmaline Clipless Curling Wand ($60, target.com).

4. Never underestimate the facility of a bold lipstick.
I can't tell you ways many makeup artists have told me lipstick would be their "desert island" beauty product pick. Before i started my career, i used to be a mascara diehard. Now, not such a lot . seems a lipstick, especially something bold (I love a hot magenta or coral within the summer; a classic red within the winter) also can be dotted onto the apples of cheeks and therefore the lids of eyes for a monochromatic look you'll gather in two seconds flat. I regularly do that with whatever lipstick I even have available . (If you are a bit gun-shy at the thought of a one-color-fits-all look, try a lipstick on the brink of your lip color for a neutral effect.) My go-to is Tom Ford Lips & Boys in Thomas ($36, sephora.com).

5. Don't touch your face unless you've got to. Your hands are GRUBBY.
And hand sanitizer totally doesn't count—at all. As someone who is oddly frightened of others touching my face, perhaps I take this tip a touch too seriously. But your hands are REALLY dirty. Anytime you're just cradling your chin in thought, putting your hand to your cheek or the likes of , you're actually leaving germs behind, and creating a possible zit minefield.

6. Setting spray is really life.
Makeup primer is that the natural go-to product to prep your skin for long-wearing makeup application, while also helping lock in your skin-care routine. But what's even better is setting spray. After you finish your makeup, just a couple of choice spritzes will keep everything in situ . Try one with added benefits, like Urban Decay Chill Makeup Setting Spray ($31, sephora.com), which cools and hydrates skin, or CoverFX Illuminating Setting Spray ($31, sephora.com), which provides dull complexions an ethereal glow.

7. Don't double or triple process your hair like I even have .
I have made a trillion hair mistakes in my almost 33 years. i used to be born with light blonde hair that turned green every summer because I loved to swim. By the time i used to be a teenager , it had gotten darker and curlier—the latter of which was extremely distressing within the 1990s when everyone's hair was stick straight and mine had a Jewish frizz pattern that even the toughest of stylists had problems taming. So I started getting highlights at far too young of an age (15, fine, I'll tell you). By the time i used to be 17, the japanese straightening process had rolled around. and that i did that, too.

You know what happened? My hair about broke off. I had pieces of varied lengths and textures. But I didn't learn my lesson, and doubtless never will, because today, I highlight my naturally dark blonde hair to a reasonably bombshell hue and obtain keratin treatments. But that's because I'm beyond repair. Treat your hair well. Be kind thereto .

8. Use a gel-like topcoat on every single manicure.
I've had manicurists check out me strangely for toting a gel-like topcoat everywhere i'm going . albeit you're employing a regular nail enamel , use one among the topcoats designed for gel-like results without the UV light, like Essie Gel-Setter Topcoat ($10, target.com). It gives any regular polish a tough , clear lacquered coating, and if you refresh it every other day, your mani will last twice as long.

9. the simplest defense against oily skin is an offense of face oils.
Oily skin isn't something you'll fix—it's just something you've got to manage. And instead of stripping oily skin entirely or employing a super lightweight lotion, seems the simplest thanks to moisturize oily skin is with face oil. The key's to seek out the oil that suits your own skin type or complexion issues. for instance , grapeseed oil is lightweight and filled with antioxidants, making it ideal for pre-sunscreen hydration. Other oils, like tea tree, can actually fight sebum buildup, bacteria, and inflammation. Some oils even have acne-fighting properties, like Sunday Riley U.F.O. Ultra-Clarifying Face Oil ($80, sephora.com), which has earned a permanent spot in my medicine chest .

10. Don't ever leave home without a Beautyblender.
This must-know tip relates to your grubby hands, too. Remember how I told you to not touch your face? Same goes for once you apply makeup and skin-care, which i do know looks like tons of labor . All you would like is one magical tool: the Beautyblender. The OG miracle pink sponge seamlessly blends face creams, foundations, eyeshadows, blush—pretty much any thing you'll consider . The key's to dampen the sponge before use, but bonus points if you employ something soothing, like anti-inflammatory perfume . I keep both a Beautyblender ($20, beautyblender.com) and Glossier Soothing Face Mist ($18, glossier.com) with me in the least times for that specific purpose.

11. Coat your hair in conditioner before a swim at the beach or the pool.
If you have ever gone to a public pool, likelihood is that you'll are asked to hop under the showerhead first, to rinse any excess dirt. While you're there, give strands a fighting chance against damaging chlorine or saltwater by coating them with a sulfate-free deep conditioner, like L'Oreal Paris Advanced Haircare Total Repair 5 Damage-Erasing Balm ($5.99, target.com). The conditioner helps to fill holes (read: damage) within the hair cuticle, preventing any longer breakage from forming.

12. Purple shampoo saves blonde lives.
As a lifelong blonde with only a quick flirtation with the relative dark side (a dark, dark dirty blonde), there's been nothing more helpful than maintaining my bright blonde and avoiding orange brassiness than a high-quality purple shampoo. If you wanna splurge, Oribe Bright Blonde Shampoo ($46, oribe.com) is literally the best smelling shampoo on earth, but you'll get an equivalent effect for a fraction of the value with Clairol Shimmer Lights ($8, sallybeauty.com). Purple shampoo neutralizes orange deposits, helping eliminate brassiness or that bad-dye-job look.

13. Wiggle your mascara wand horizontally through your lashes to make definition and separation.
While this might seem counterintuitive if you are looking to elongate your lashes, the sole way you're gonna really get clump-free coatings is with this badass makeup-artist trick. I'm pretty sure I learned this in one among my very first interviews, but it is the only way I'll actually wear mascara now. By simply wiggling the wand back and forth, slowly working your high , your eyelashes get coated with only enough formula to define, lengthen, and volumize without it looking like you're an additional from the new Spiderman.

14. a couple of drops of volatile oil on the shower floor—plus a couple of minutes to let the steam really develop—makes for a spa-like experience.
This is probably my oldest trick within the book. Thank you, Lisa Hoffman (yes, the wife of Dustin!), for this excellent tip, which I regularly use to the present day. Because I'm all that #selfcare life, i prefer to form my showers as experiential as possible. Sometimes I'll do a selected shower meditation or smudge the toilet in sage to urge obviate negative energies before hopping in, but the one consistent is that I'll always let the shower run a couple of minutes after I've dropped a touch of whatever volatile oil I'm feeling that day to make a spa-like steam shower. When I'm half asleep, I'll reach for an energizing oil or two, like lemongrass or eucalyptus, but if I'm close to hit the pillow, I'll usually do something more meditative and calming, like lavender or frankincense. no matter the oil you select , take a couple of deep breaths, use caution to avoid slipping, and chill the hell out.

15. choose a microfiber hair towel—and never flip your head over post-shower.
Guilty as charged. for many of my life, after showering I'd flip my head over, shake out some excess water, and tie it up with a terrycloth towel. This routine little question contributed to all or any the aforementioned hair damage. But once I discovered the slew of towels designed for hair specifically, just like the Aquis Lisse Luxe Long Hair Towel ($35, aquis.com), i noticed what proportion LESS damage i might cause if I didn't flip or overly twist fragile, wet strands. Instead, these towels gently sop up excess moisture after I carefully blot a freshly washed head of hair before applying a styling product.