JOIN USGet dressed for work in a jiffy
Whoever said women need hours to get dressed will now stand corrected, says Ankita Sengupta.
You check your watch, it’s 8:31 am. Your heart skips a beat because you have less than half-an-hour to dress up and get your hair and make-up done before you leave for work. You rush off to the closet and grab the first outfit that catches your eye.
As you struggle to get into the dress, you check the time. Now it’s 8:42. You have exactly 19 minutes before you leave home. You stumble towards your dressing table and you see the hair brush, the eye liner, the mascara, the lip gloss and you start making calculations in your head and your heart starts racing. There is absolutely no way that you can get your make-up done in 15 minutes.
How often have we felt this way? Sometimes, most of the time or almost every day?
We want to look our best before we head out to work. From the crispness of our shirt to the colour on our lips, we want everything to look perfect.
After all, the better we look, the more confident we feel and confidence really is the key when it comes to our work life. But when it comes to grooming, there is a bunch of factors that women need to take care of: the hair do, the make-up, the clothes, the accessories and even the nails. It is a commonly held belief that women need at least an hour to get dressed — but that is a myth and you can bust it.
You can not only get your make-up done but get fully dressed for work in 15 minutes only if you keep certain things prepared the previous night. So let’s first take a look at those precautionary preparations.
Skin
How many times have you heard beauticians stress on cleansing, toning and moisturising? The reason why every skin-conscious person will ask you to adopt this method is because it really does help your skin.
If you have dry skin, you can use a cleansing milk or baby oil. A face pack or a face wash can be used for oily skin.
Cleansing is essential because not only does it help in removing make-up but it also removes all the dirt that may have accumulated throughout the day.
Toning, on the other hand, tightens the pores of your skin and makes you feel fresh. And after losing moisture to the sun and to the pollution of the city, it is essential to moisturise your skin at the end of the day so that it is soft and supple the next day.
Hair
Using a conditioner is a must after you wash your hair or else what you’ll end up with after your hair dries up, is a frizzy, dry mop. In case your hair is dry and frizzy to begin with, use a leave-on conditioner. Serums also help in conditioning and detangling hair shafts but you should be careful and use products suitable for your type of hair.
Feet
This is usually the most neglected part of our body but when the time comes to flaunt our feet, the cracks and the dry skin flakes give us nightmares. So to keep those nightmares at bay, to wear those peep toes to work without giving a single thought to whether your feet look presentable and to take a few seconds to slip into your shoes, get a pedicure done at least twice a month. One more thing: It is very important to moisturise your feet every day.
Nails
Properly maintained nails can save you a lot of time that you would spend in last-minute filing and painting your nails or removing paint from them. If you want to apply colour to your nails, do not wait for the morning to paint them.
Irrespective of what you think, time runs faster than an express train when you are rushing around in the morning, so it would be better to get the work done on the previous night.
Clothing
Set aside whatever you intend to wear the next day. Not just clothes, you should try to fix the accessories as well so that in the morning you don’t have to rack your brain over which bag to take and which blouse to wear.
Now that we have got the basics covered, let’s move on to the tips you can use to cope with the morning rush hour.
Make-up
This is what consumes most of your time so it would be best to get this over with first.
You can try using a moisturiser-based foundation as it will be easy to apply and will not take up much time. Also, block concealers are great for covering dark circles under your eyes, and also other marks on your face, in a matter of seconds.
Next, take a nude shade of eye-shadow, which complements your skin tone, and apply it just above your lashes blending it towards your eyebrows. Now take a slightly darker shade of eye-shadow and apply it below your eyebrow, blending it downwards.
Then outline your eyes with kohl. Using a pencil liner is a better option as you will have to exercise more caution with the liquid liners and that takes more time. Load up your lashes with mascara but keep a tissue in hand to wipe away any stray marks instantly.
Now for your lips: if you have been keeping them moisturised then you will not require an extra coat of lipstick now.
Invest in lipsticks or lip colours that stay on for more than five hours; that way you will not have to re-apply after every hour or so. Cream-based blushes are the best as they are very convenient to use and they blend into the skin effortlessly, saving you from looking made-up.
Moving on, since you have already kept aside your attire for the day, it should not take you more than three minutes to slip into your dress or your shirt and to pull on your trousers.
Getting down to the hairy details, you can try some easy hair-dos which not only look stylish but also take less than five minutes to get done. You can tie your hair up in a pony-tail, a side braid or knot it up. This will ensure that your hair does not fall all over your face and distract you while you’re working.
Now that everything has been done, it’s time for you to slip on your footwear. Stilts, pumps or ballerinas? With all the care that you’ve provided your feet with, you won’t have to think twice before flaunting them with a pair of peep toes. And what’s more, they’ll feel more comfortable now.
And for the final stroke, check your bag to ensure it has everything that you may need throughout the day. Then, just before you leave, apply a non-oil moisturiser on your hands. So when you extend your hand for a handshake at work, not only will you exude confidence but also femininity.
Getting dressed for work in 15 minutes may seem impossible at first but with practice you’ll be able to do it in even less time. It all depends on how well you can manage to keep things ready the previous night and how quick your fingers can fly in the morning.
This routine also has health benefits. By following it, the next time you take a look at the clock while dressing for work, you will not have to worry about having a heart attack.