Christmas Week: How To Take Your Make Up From Desk To Dancefloor

It's that time where Christmas Parties are the main social event of the month. But what if you don't have enough time to redo your entire make up ready for the night. Well no worries because today I'm sharing with you my Top 5 tips to help refresh your make up and take you from day job to night out.

Keep a hydrating facial spritz nearby
Seriously, a facial spritz will be your saviour this festive period. Most facial spritzs can be used over the top of make up and help to revive and hydrate the skin whilst simultaneously taking away any signs of creasing or cake face. My personal favourite is the Liz Earle Instant Boost Skin Tonic Spritzer. It contains Lavender, Aloe Vera and Vitamin E so it not only hydrates the skin but soothes and stops any causes of irritation. Another good one to try comes from B Beauty and contains Hyaluronic Acid to give skin a moisture boost without disrupting make up.

Top Up Concealer, Not Foundation
When it comes to touching up your base don't add another layer of foundation of the top of your exsiting make up. It has the chance of going cakey and nobody wants that. Instead go in with your concealer of choice and a damp beauty blender. Concealer is a lot easier to work with because you can pin point and choose exactly where you place it. And bop it in with a beauty blender than a brush because it will make it look more natural and shouldn't disrupt the rest of your make up. I like the Collection Lasting Finish Concealer as it has the coverage but doesn't look cakey or layered when freshly applied over exsisting make up.

 Powder To Set In Place But Don't Go Overboard
Now it may be tempting to just go wild with powder in hopes that it will keep everything from moving but too much powder can actually make things look powdery and essentially cakey. So the best way to set everything in place is to take a big fluffy brush and lightly dust your pressed/loose powder of choice into the places you've touched up. It'll set them in place without adding extra powder to the areas you set when you first did your make up. I really like the Collection Pressed Powder in Ivory. It's lightweight, barely has any colour to it and doesn't leave skin feeling clogged up or looking cakey. To apply I love my B Beauty Powder Brush. It's fluffy and big enough to apply powder without going overboard.

Give Your Lips A Festive Twist 
If a bold lip is too much for you day to day but you want to give your look that pop for the evening then start with a nude lip. A nude lip will be appropriate for the daytime, easy to wear with any look and most of the time they're easy to remove. Before you begin touching up your make up take off your lip of choice, you can always touch up anywhere that gets smudged. Once you're make up is touched take your red lip or bold lip of choice and apply. A lip liner may be required but if the applicator of your lip product is good enough then you may be able to go without. My go to red this time of the year comes from Stila and is their Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in Beso. It's a true matte finish that can be drying but a bit of lip balm underneath and it lasts hours without feeling uncomfortable.

Setting Spray Is Your Best Friend
Once that's all done you want your make up to stay in place and that's where setting spray comes in. Not only does it help prolong the life of your make up but it helps combat any signs of oil and can even give skin that flawless, almost airbrushed look. That means it removes any signs of cakey-ness or excess powder and overall makes things look more natural. My favourite is the Maybelline Super Stay Setting Spray. It's a fine mist that doesn't leave the face feeling like it's been drenched and dries down quickly to lock make up in place.