Must-have Beauty Products for Hot Mamas (Literally & Figuratively speaking) - PART1

 

Technically, I'm still supposed to be on maternity leave. And I really should be, because gosh I am dead tired from all the broken nights and feel hotter than ever (literally, that is) due to a combination of hormones and constant baby lifting/carrying/cuddling/feeding. I do however feel an urge to share the beauty products that kept me sane the first weeks of being a mom, in order for other moms to survive. Call me vain or superficial, but when you look good and feel hot (this time figuratively speaking) you tend to feel much better - and a happy mommy equals a happy baby, right?

The reason why I decided to share these products was a comment my mother-in-law made on a picture of myself, my husband and Baby B on Facebook: "you look so well-rested!" - see below:

Such a happy family...

The opposite was true however (Baby B's face illustrates pretty much how well-rested I actually feel), and I replied her not to be fooled as it was just a matter of gooooood makeup. This made me decide to sum up the products that saved my life the past weeks that cannot be missed by new moms:

MAC - Mineralize Blush "Sweet Enough"

As natural and barely-there as it gets, this sheer blusher is a must-have makeup-cheat and absolute lifesaver. No matter how pale and sleep deprived you are, this blusher will bring your complexion back to life again - the corpse-look really isn't cool until Halloween.

Sweet enough, eh?!

I love how this blusher builds lightly, layer after layer, without heavy coverage. It looks great both with or without any other makeup; after all, the days that we had enough time for our full makeup routine are mostly gone. If -like most moms- you have limited time only, just mascara and this product will do!

MAC Mineralize Blusher, "Sweet Enough"
Price: 49 SGD
Available at the 12 MAC Stores island-wide.

CHANEL - Rouge Allure Lip Ink "Amoureux"

Suck this!

Amoureux - what's in a name! For the date nights that you have to plan at least once a week to keep your relationship from crumbling down after giving birth. This lovely lipstick is hassle-free and because of the natural color it doesn't require messing around with a lip pencil. It has a smooth and velvety texture that is extremely comfortable to wear yet long-lasting (a combination seldom seen), giving you ample time for each other instead of wasting time fixing up your makeup while you're finally out together.

Chanel Rouge Allure Lip Ink, "Amoureux"
Price: 50 SGD
Available at Chanel Cosmetics Counters and Boutiques island-wide (Tangs, Robinsons, Takashimaya etc.)

YSL - Touche Eclat Face Highlighter Pen

Please Mr Panda, make me look fresh and well-rested again...

For the inevitable dark circles under your eyes that arise once you live under one roof with a newborn. Technically, YSL's Touche Eclat isn't a concealer and shouldn't be used as such; having worked for YSL in the past, I'm somewhat ashamed to confess that I still use it more or less as a concealer instead of the "face highligher" it is.

The reason why is that most concealers are quite heavy and, in my experience, work best when you opt for full makeup including foundation, (loose)powder and bronzer/blusher. For daily use, I find concealers mostly too cakey or too heavy - they rarely look natural, especially when you don't wear much other makeup.

Whereas a concealer 'conceals' dark spots by covering and caking them, the pigments in a highlighter like Touche Eclat reflect light, which optically smooths fine lines and wrinkles and makes you look more awake instantly. I therefore apply Touche Eclat right under my eyes for a sheer and natural effect and a somewhat fresher appearance instead of heavy concealment of my lack of sleep.

Yves Saint Laurent, Touche Eclat "2.5 - Luminous Vanilla"
Price: 62 SGD
Available at Yves Saint Laurent Cosmetics Counters island-wide (Tangs, Takashimaya etc.) and at Sephora.

CLINIQUE - Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer

No more unwanted spots & splotches

Pregnancy combined with the tropical sun left me with quite some dark splotchy spots on my face, even though I (mostly) used a sunblock. These spots most commonly appear on your forehead and cheeks and are a result of increased pigmentation, which in turn is a result of hormonal changes during pregnancy. Any dark splotches you developed during pregnancy usually fade within a few months of delivery, but using Clinique's Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer twice a day, I felt that after only 4 weeks post-delivery I already started seeing results. So definitely worth a try. Do not forget your sunblock when heading out with your baby in the stroller though!

Clinique Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector & Optimizer, 30ml
Price: 105 SGD
Available at Clinique Counters island-wide (Tangs, Isetan, Takashimaya etc.) and at Sephora.