Fashion
6 Ways Your Beauty Routine Changes in Your Twenties Because Your Teen Routine Won't Cut It
There are a lot of things you have to worry about in your 20s. That whole career thing, if tonight is the night you'll land a guy at some dingy dive bar, and by now, you're 100 percent expected to have that whole walking-in-heels-of-any-height thing down pat. All the while, things are changing. You're changing. And the biggest modification of all? Arguably, your beauty routine. So, how exactly does your beauty routine change in your twenties?
That's right, as if you didn't have enough to worry about while sending that iMessage in line at CVS, that effortless beauty of your teenage years is now a thing of the past. Now that us 20-somethings are aware that eye serums are something we should be paying attention to if you're born before 1995, it's as if a whole other world has opened. A whole other (slightly) scary world. Check these six ways your beauty routine changes in your 20s.
Moisturizer Is No Longer Optional
Your skin will never feel the same as it did before you hit puberty. The good news: You’ve probably gone through the worst of it during your high school into college years. The not-so-good news: Smooth, even skin requires a lot of work to maintain. That means moisturizer, and lots of it.
… Not just one, either. You’re now the proud owner of a day cream, a night cream, and another night cream you use as a day cream because you’re skeptical about the functionality of your day cream. You swear by all three, and feel incomplete when you leave home for more than a night without your trio of skin defense.
Burt’s Bee’s Day Cream, $9, Amazon
Burt’s Bee’s Night Cream, $10, Amazon
Olay Regenerist Night Cream, $12, Amazon
Image: Fotolia/maska82
You Need to Examine the Side of Your Face … With Tweezers
Don’t even try to tell me you’ve never had one. The menace. The 1-inch hair that somehow pops up out of absolutely nowhere like the ex-boyfriend from college semi-formals past. And when it does, it’s wretched. Horrific. How many people have noticed this before you? HOW have you been staring at your face day-in and day-out, and never noticed it?
It’s okay, don’t be so hard on yourself. Just pluck that sucker.
Tweezerman Stainless Steel Slant Tweezers, $18, Amazon
Image: Fotolia/vladimirfloyd
Dry Shampoo Becomes Your BFFL
Your teens are for showering way too often. Your twenties are for realizing there are a zillion other ways to appear “clean” without actually going under the faucet. I couldn’t even attempt to count the amount of days I’ve used dry shampoo as a clutch in between a quick post-work barre class and cocktails with friends. Priorities. Socializing always overtakes a full douse in a cramped fitness studio shower stall.
Batiste Dry Shampoo, $8, Amazon
Image: Flickr/ldhren
You Understand the True Power of Green Concealer
Red pimples, beware! In your teens, you thought green concealer was for buffoons. Instead, you’d gop on whatever light-colored stuff you bought for $3.99 at the drug store, doing an extensive amount of damage to your already oily, skin. In your 20s, though, color is in. Not only own the perfect shade of green concealer, but you also own the accompanying brush that ever-so-perfectly applies the magic to your trouble spots.
NYX Green Concealer Jar, $5, Amazon
Bare Escentuals Concealer Brush, $8, Amazon
Image: Fotolia/Monkey Business
You Finally Comprehend Why Mom Never Left the House Without Lipstick
Until I reached 21, I felt like a little girl playing dress-up every time I slicked on lipstick. Correction: A drag queen of sorts. It felt about as natural as Kylie Jenner’s lips. But as soon as that first legal sip of alcohol touched my lips, I was inherently cool enough to rock shade on my puckers. Reds, crimsons, heck – even deep plums. There’s rarely a night now that I head out without some sort of lipstick.
Manicures Are a Part of Existence
You have a love/hate relationship with the nail salon under your apartment. You can identify Ballet Slipper without hesitation, and know exactly how long you can push a fresh manicure before you have to splurge for another. Yes, you go back when it smudges after one day. Yes, you know exactly which technician is your favorite. Granted, your wallet hates you slightly for this. But hey, it’s a much healthier habit than your affinity for late-night pizza.
Image: Fotolia/WavebreakMediaMicro
