Multitasking makeup products that will cut your 'getting ready' time in half
Extra minutes you can dedicate to sleeping in
When someone asks me what my hobbies are, I get stumped. After all, I can’t really tell them I spend most of my free time watching random YouTube videos. From true crime narrations and infographic videos about space and our galaxy to puppies climbing stairs for the first time, it’s amazing how much useless information I gather. But sometimes, you stumble upon a realisation worth having, as I found when I was bingeing on skincare and glam routines. Most celebrities slather on layers of products like their faces are red velvet cakes. Even though I love watching them, these routines are too intimidating for my inner lazy girl. Thankfully, we live in the age of low-effort beauty and multitasking makeup products that slash your getting-ready time in half.
Though our makeup pouches made a permanent place for themselves at the very back of our drawers, now that we’re going out and meeting people — at least on Zoom calls and FaceTime dates — it’s time to dust them off, throw out your expired products, and fill them with multitasking makeup products that work harder than you do.
From the PIXI On-the-Glow Multi-Use Moisture Stick to a beet lip-and-cheek tint from Ilana, this list contains all the multitasking makeup products you need to tweak your routine. Bonus: it’s another reason to shop for makeup – not that we needed one.
8 multitasking makeup products you won’t regret buying
e.l.f. Cosmetics Monochromatic Multi Stick
I am the kind of person that wakes up at 10:20 am for a 10:30 am Zoom call. I inhale my breakfast, run my fingers through my hair and then pick up the e.l.f. Cosmetics Monochromatic Multi Stick that is always lying on my bedside table to add some colour to my lips and cheeks. In less than 10 mins, I go from looking like I ran through a hurricane to looking, well, presentable.
The e.l.f. Cosmetics Monochromatic Multi Stick is one of the most-used multitasking products in my beauty treasure chest. It’s as versatile as a makeup product can be, used as a lip tint, to add some subtle colour to your cheeks, and if your eyes need a wake-up call, dab some on your lids. It comes in various shades and its lightweight formula makes it easily blendable.
And one of the primary reasons I rely on this like it’s a childhood friend is because it’s literally just a stick. There is no kich-kich of brushes and sponges. You just have to apply it where you want and blend it using your fingers.
PIXI On-the-Glow
Have you ever had a moisturiser bottle explode in your bag? It’s sticky, icky, and even after you’ve washed your bag five times and cleaned all your belongings, you will still find bits of moisturiser in the corners. This is where the Pixi On-the-Glow comes in. A moisturiser stick that you can use on your face, body, lips, and even your hair. Basically, it’s the multitasking travel-friendly companion you didn’t know you needed.
Packed with glycolic acid, vitamin D2 and aloe extracts, the Pixi On-the-Glow not only hydrates but also protects your skin, balances out your complexion, and promotes gentle skin renewal. According to the brand, it is suitable for all skin types and is very easy to use. All you have to do is twist the base to bring the product up, apply it, pat your skin with your fingertips, twist the product again and close the lid. You can’t go wrong.
Mars Illuminati Base and Dewy Primer
What is your go-to makeup routine? Allow me to walk you through mine. I apply a primer, foundation, some concealer (I love pandas but I don’t want to look like one), a red lipstick that I use as a cheek tint, some highlighter on my cheekbones, eyeliner, mascara and finally, lip balm followed by my trusty lipstick. Getting through this routine takes seemingly forever, especially if I want my wings to match. Which is another herculean task in itself.
Thanks to the Mars Illuminati Base and Dewy Primer, I’m able to club a few steps together. This product works as a slightly tinted primer to use under your foundation and as a liquid highlighter to use over. It is loaded with light-reflecting microparticles that leave a subtle shine on the skin.
Not to mention, it will make your on-the-go make-up feel much lighter.
Benefit Cosmetics Brow Contour Pro
When I was 5 years old, I burnt part of my right eyebrow off while playing with fuljhadis on Diwali. Even today, that section looks like a barren field. It’s like my mother always says, you could be made up from head to toe but if your eyebrows are messed up, nothing else matters. So, I had to teach myself how to shape and contour my eyebrows to make them look fuller. It’s intimidating because if I get it wrong, I end up looking like Mia Thermopolis from Princess Diaries — the before picture. The Benefit Cosmetics Brow Contour Pro saves me from that fate, and as a bonus, it looks like one of those fun all-in-one multi-coloured pens we had as kids.
The Benefit Cosmetics Brow Contour Pro is not your ordinary eyebrow pencil. It’s what would happen if your ordinary eyebrow pencil went through a Pokemon evolution. It’s a 4-in-1 defining and highlighting brow pencil. According to the brand, it features a lighter brow shade, deeper brow shade, edge definer and arch highlighter. It has a blendable formula and is available in 5 shades to suit all types of skin tones and hair colours.
Are you ready to turn on party mode for your brows?
Disguise Cosmetics Velvet Glow Multistick
You know that unmistakable surge of self-confidence when your highlighter is on point, your eyeliner has equal wings on both sides, and your eyeshadow is blended to the T? But that takes time, effort, a heavy makeup pouch, and ten thousand brushes that, like scrunchies, just vanish into thin air one day. Here’s the multitasking product that does it all: the Velvet Glow Multistick from Disguise Cosmetics. This can be used as an eyeshadow, highlighter, lip topper and eyeliner. Ah, who are we kidding? If you have the right shade, it can also be used to add a little shimmer to your cheekbones. It’s one stick that does the job of four products and their subsequent sidekicks (the brushes, of course).
The Velvet Glow Multistick is enriched with marula oil, avocado oil, almond oil, argan oil, jojoba oil, shea butter and vitamin E. It is highly pigmented but still easy to blend and long-lasting. Available in numerous shades, it can spruce up your look in minutes. Another reason we recommend this brand is because it’s vegan, cruelty-free, and has a brilliant recycling programme that allows us to send back our empty product bottles to reduce wastage and use of plastic.
Innisfree Simplelabel Lip Colour Balm
The Innisfree Lip Colour Balm is one of those rare lip balms that are moisturising, yet not heavy, and glossy without being annoyingly sticky. It is enriched with murumuru seed butter, meadowfoam seed oil, shea butter and jeju hydrangea leaf extracts to soothe and protect lips from all irritants while adding a bit of colour.
This is the multitasking product to turn to when you need a little pop but don’t want to do a full face of makeup. It comes in three different shades that are packed in an eco-friendly carton made from sugarcane paper and soy ink. It’s pretty, eco-friendly, and functional on different levels. There are no more boxes left to check.
Tweak tip: You can also dab some of this lip balm on your cheeks and blend it with your fingers when you need a natural-looking flushed look.
Forest Essentials Clear Lash & Brow Serum
When I tried this product for the first time, I didn’t quite understand the need for a lash and brow serum. But over time and multiple uses, I was forced to recognise its value. This serum conditions the hair, can be used as a lash primer before applying mascara (no more lumps irritating the eyes), and with regular use, adds volume. With its age-old Ayurvedic formula, this gel-like serum repairs and protects lash and brow hair.
According to the brand, it is infused with amla fruit extract and fenugreek (or methi) which are blended with almond and olive oils and then infused in a base of rich, cold-pressed castor oil, vitamin E and organic beeswax. This product is expert- and grandmother-approved.
After using it twice a day for nearly two months, what I like most about this product, apart from the fact that helped increase my brow and lash volume, was the glossy finish that it leaves behind. Also, it’s a great product to use on any flyaway baby hair around your forehead.
Ilana Beet Tint
Show of hands: how many of y’all have used beet juice as a child to stain your lips after your mother forbade you from using her lipsticks? If you could see me now, you would see my hand enthusiastically waving in the air like a first-bencher who knows the answer to the teacher’s question. Ilana took this hack and created a lip and cheek tint with it. Just as the name suggests, this favourite among multitasking makeup products is made with the goodness of beetroot juice, glycerine, and honeysuckle extract.
Its simple and lightweight formula makes it easily blendable and leaves you with a pinky glow, while the ingredients nourish your skin.
₹ 790 for the full-sized bottle
