With the weirdness 2020 unwillingly brought, I'm resolving to do things my way this year.
The days of buying into prescriptive beauty rules, for me, are over. After 10 months (!) spent at home, I’ve gained a new perspective on things I so firmly believed before the world changed. Namely: a handful of live-by hair, makeup, and skin-care mantras that now feel as outdated as they are dull. I’ll admit, it took some time before I began rebelling against these customs that have been drilled into me over time, but with the weirdness 2020 unwillingly brought, I’m resolving to do things my way in 2021. Keep reading to find the nine beauty rules I’m happily breaking in the new year.
“A bold lip is for a night out.”
My makeup went unused for the first few months of quarantine since throwing on a lip had been a key part of my getting-ready routine. “Completing the look,” some might say. I managed to remain lipstick free for months before the urge to delve back into my makeup stash hit.
I kept it simple at first. Sitting on my couch face-deep in my computer screen, Milk’s Kush Lip Tint created a flush of color, tricking myself into thinking I was work-ready. But here we are, after months of working from home, and I’m sitting in the same spot with fuzzy socks on and a deep maroon lip liner topped with cherry red lipstick to finish the look. I’m not going anywhere but to the other room and I’m fine with that.
“Perfume is for leaving the house.”
Can’t say I’ve done much house leaving this year. As for most of us, my weekends involve relaxing at home with a good series to watch and another recipe to try. Still, with my location staying so stagnant, it’s hard for me to escape—even mentally. In the past, out of habit I’d spray Aerin Wild Geranium or Ariana Grande Cloud on before rushing to make the train each morning. Well, since I’m not leaving my apartment, the power of fragrance and its many ways of telling stories, evoking memories, and recalling loved ones’ scents brings a comforting feeling of connection and joy as I make my way into 2021. Take Dedcool’s No. 2 Juniper/Sandalwood, for example. It satisfies my ongoing craving for some sand between my toes and a walk on the ocean shore. For date night in, you can never go wrong with Tom Ford’s deep, sexy Lost Cherry.
“Hair masks are to be washed out after the allocated 15 minutes.”
If you’re like me, you’re using this surplus of spare time to treat your hair to some type of hydrating or repairing treatment regularly. One thing I’ve come to realize: grabbing a huge scoop of mask and leaving it in longer than the allocated 15 minutes (or whatever the instructions advises) is not a bad thing. I obviously don’t recommend ignoring directions for other hair-care treatments—bleaching, for example—but I find sleeping with a treatment in or using a conditioning mask for styling works for me. My curls have never looked so bouncy as they do with prolonged usage of Briogeo’s Avocado Kiwi Hair Mask.
Source: glamour.com
