Mummy Beauty Blog: Getting the Pregnancy Glow (Even When You’re Not Preggers)

Fri, 21 September 2012 4:04PM

Ahh pregnancy, never before have I worn so many tight singlets and empire line dresses or drank so much Turkish Apple tea (haven’t tried it? I insist you leap from your seat as soon as you finish reading and Usain it to your nearest T2, you’ll thank me later). The other delightful side effect to being up the duff? That glorious effect it has on your skin. It turns out that the pregnancy glow isn’t just an old wives’ tale. It’s actually thanks to the extra blood merrily whooshing around your system, the added secretions from your oil glands, and an increased heart rate. These powers combined dramatically reduce the amount of makeup you need to use (as well as attracting Captain Planet, hey I’m a child of the ’90s) largely because you look so ridiculously good that you can gleefully skip (or waddle) from the bathroom dramatically shouting ‘Take that, I don’t need you anymore,’ to your illuminator.

 

Thing is, once the bambino is delivered by the stork that lustrous glow retreats and you’re left with the same skin you had before. I haven’t taken this cruel twist of biology lying down however, Primpettes. No, no, no. I have made it my mission to recreate that pregnant glow. It’s a genius plan and means that you too, pregnant or not, can be a frequent visitor to the kingdom of glowyness. Now all you’ll need to do is fend off suspicious looks from colleagues who believe that they know the reason behind your natural gorgeousness (fools, they know nothing).

This look is a subtle one, ideal for weekends, low-key workdays or at your weekly crocheting class. What we want to do is recreate plump skin that radiates good health. To do this this, you’ll need to ensure that your skincare routine is up to scratch and includes regular exfoliation to speed up cell turnover and fake that pregnancy ‘flush’ (I’ve always been a fan of Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant, $83.50, Dermalogica, an oldie but a goodie.) A brightening cloth facial mask wouldn’t go astray either (Skinvitals A-Whiten and Skinvitals C-Brighten, $9.99 for three, from Priceline, are a fab, cheap-as-chips option).

Once you’ve got that ticked off, the most important step is getting your base right. We want just the right amount of dewy that screams ‘hey look at me glooooow,’ but without going to extremes and resembling a disco ball. A little bit of light coverage to smooth out imperfections is also essential, as we want an even, uniform complexion. Liquid formulations are your best bet here as stick or creams will be too thick and matte.

To achieve a baby-growing glow, I layer on a brightening face balm (Aum Anti Age Organics Brightening Face Balm, $24, Aum is a goodie), followed by a tinted moisturizer (Dr Lewinn’s Facial Moisturising Lotion SPF 30+, $49.95, from pharmacies packs a perfect amount of coverage and sun protection punch). For those pesky purple marks on my chin (I hate these little beasts and am currently on a divide-and-conquer regime which I will post about shortly), I dab on a little bit of Youngblood Mineral Cosmetics Crème Powder Foundation, $65, Youngblood, which gives enough coverage without being thick or heavy.

Now that the base is sorted (and how easy was that?) it’s time to dress this dolly up. Sticking with the whole ‘luminous liquids’ theme. I use two of my favourite of all favourite products: a cheek/lip tint and liquid illuminator. ModelCo Cheek + Lip Tint, $34, ModelCo, has been in my makeup bag for over two years now (not the same tube though I * may * have cut the end off a couple of times to squeeze out the last remaining drops of goodness). I am a little obsessed with its perfect colour (doesn’t make me look like a clown, good thing as clowns scare the socks off me), soft gel-like consistency (ideal for sensitive skins as it melts onto your cheeks without the need for lots of rubbing) and longevity (a couple of dabs will last most of the day). I tend to apply this with my fingers straight onto the apples of my cheeks. I also put a few dabs on my kissers for the kind of pout that has strangers whispering; ‘her lips look so good but where is the product? OMG they’re just naturally perfect.’

The final piece of the puzzle is liquid illuminator. I am quite enamored with both Girl Meets Pearl, $53, and High Beam, $45, both made by glow guru Benefit, from Myer. I use the ol’ boomerang trick and dab liquid light along the top of my brow bone, out to my temple then blend it down my cheekbone. I find tilting my chin downwards and turning my head slightly to the side allows the light to catch the illuminator, showing where I’ve positioned it and if I need more (or less). I’m also partial to applying under my brows, fab for opening up the area and the perfect match for a clean, only-the-basics, eye.

So there you have it ladies (and gentlemen who are also after a faux preggie glow, I know you’re out there). This look can, of course, be dressed up with a cheeky little eye or a bold lip, the options are endless, but, as is the case with stock-standard-no-fancy-peanut-butter-or-other-stuff Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate, it’s perfect just the way it is.

Naomi x

Posted by: Naomi Cotterill

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Tags: aum, benefit, brightening, dermalogica, dr lewinn's, glow, illuminator, illuminiser, luminous foundation, modelco, pregnancy, pregnant, reese witherspoon, skinvitals, Youngblood