You've woken up late for work, you're in a rush and you still can't find anything good/clean to wear in your closet (are yoga pants office appropriate?). Makeup isn't your priority, but you still want to look your best and presentable (afterall, isn't that big meeting today?). 

What you need is a makeup quickie. A look that you can put together in a few minutes that leaves you looking alert, awake and put together.  We decided that we would put ourselves to the makeup quickie challenge and created a look that did just that. You may also recognize a familiar face in this article: the lovely Xolisa of the pink lip pose off fame dropped by to help us out again. 

Here's what we used + the basic steps: 



The Products: We used an exciting new product for this tutorial, the Benefit for Sephora 'How To Look The Best At Everything' Complexion Kit in Deep (C$36.00). It contains the Benefit POREfessional primer, Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow Brightening Liquid Foundation, Hello Flawless Powder Cover Up and Boi-ing Concealer. 

We used Mary Kay Mineral Cheek Color (C$12.00) in Dark Cherry for blush. We definitely suggest investing in a great, multi-purpose highlighter. We went with a light, shimmery cream highlighter for this look. 

Also pictured here is CoverGirl Eye Enhancers Eyeshadow Quad in Goldmine (C$7.99) and Mary Kay Mineral Eye Color in Gold Coast (C$7.50). We won't discuss those here but keep reading on to see Xolisa's final look with her eyes and lips done! 
 
Step 1: Prime and apply foundation. These two steps will give you a more even skin tone and help your makeup to last through the day. 

Step 2: Conceal problem areas. Check out our tips and tricks for properly concealing a pimple over here. Avoid using too much concealer and use a fine tipped brush for best results. 

Step 3: Apply blush to the apples of the cheeks, and sweep outwards, following your cheekbones. Next, lightly dabbed on highlighter on the tops of of the cheeks, following the same line as the cheekbones. Set your makeup with a light powder. 

These steps don't take very long and give you a more groomed but minimal and pulled together appearance. If you want to take your look up a notch, keep reading! 

Eyes/Lips: For your basic, everyday looks, I highly suggest investing in a palette with colours you'll use daily. Look for a palette with matte and shimmer shadows for more options.  To make your eyes appear larger and for a fresh faced look, go for a volumizing mascara. For work or a casual day, I like to go with a lip gloss or a lipstick in a very similar shade as my own lips. This makes your lips stand out and gives more colour to your face.

For Xolisa's eyes, we swept on a taupey shadow with hints of pink all over her lid. Then, on the outer corner and in the crease we added a darker, purple shade. This defines her eyes and really makes them pop. On her lips, we did a natural, pink lip colour with just the tiniest amount of gloss in the middle bottom and top lips. 
 

1. Lancome Blush Highlighter in 001 Moonlight Rose (C$48.00, available September 2012) 
2. Benefit Ultra Plush Lip Gloss in Coralista (C$18.00)
3. Lancome Rouge In Love #353M (US$25.00)
4. Lorac Unzipped Palette (C$52.00)
5. Rimmel London ScandalEyes Lycra Flex (C$7.99)
 

We love how soft and feminine this look is on Xolisa! All we did was enhance her natural, beautiful features and give her an even canvas to work on. 

What do you think of this look? Is this something you'd try? What's your go to makeup routine for an everyday look in a hurry?