Five College Beauty Hacks for Baddies on a Budget
Image Courtesy: Unsplash
It can be difficult to always feel your best in college, especially when you're habitually exhausted, cramming for exams, and picking up shifts between neverending classes. The fast-paced environment and demanding schedule make it difficult to find the time and energy to get yourself feeling cute. However, I have found that dressing presentably every day enhances productivity and helps to boost my self-esteem. Thankfully, I have found some efficient ways to maintain this look without breaking the bank.
1. Vaseline Everything
Vaseline is the most underrated product of beauty regimens. For those days when you wake up in a time crunch and don’t have time to fully get ready, I find that Vaseline always comes in handy. After washing your face and moisturizing, just apply Vaseline on the high points of your face as you would with highlighter. It gives you a subtle glow that makes you look awake and put together with minimal effort. I have also found some other unexpected uses for Vaseline, which can serve as a hair moisturizer and even extend the longevity of your perfume. A solid dupe for mascara is applying Vaseline on your lashes after curling them with a lash curler. This low-cost, multipurpose product is the perfect investment for college students.
2. Packing an “Everything” Bag
Walking around campus all day makes you feel sweaty (and musty). I personally hate this feeling, so I always make sure to pack an “everything” bag before I leave the house. An “everything” bag consists of anything you may need throughout the day, providing solutions to sweat, makeup smudging, and the overall icky-feeling that comes with walking around a crowded Florida college campus all day. My “everything” bag includes travel-sized perfume and deodorant, gum and mints, dental floss, a mini hairbrush, hair ties, extra makeup (in case I need to reapply), makeup remover wipes, Chapstick, feminine products, hand sanitizer, and hand lotion. It feels good to know that in case anything happens, my “everything” bag has me covered.
Image Courtesy: Elle
3. Razors for Fabric Pilling
In college, you are going to rely on the same pairs of sweatpants and leggings to serve comfy, casual looks. These essentials are the move for classes and late-night study sessions, but over time, the fabric will start pilling, and those dreaded lint balls will start accumulating. A great hack to make your comfy clothes last longer is to take a razor and shave off any rough patches. I have been doing this since freshman year, and it has saved me a lot of money.
4. Green Tea and Lemon Water
I love coffee as much as any other college student does, but sometimes I find that starting off my day with a cup of green tea makes me feel more refreshed, energized, and healthier, ready to handle the day. I'm also a firm believer in what you put inside of your body reflects on the outside. Drinking green tea or lemon water every day does wonders for controlling acne, reducing bloating, aiding digestion, and simply giving you a healthy glow from the antioxidants. Green tea and lemons are also inexpensive, making them a great college beauty hack.
Image Courtesy: Pinterest
5. Investing in a Facial Razor
While unwanted facial hair can be such a hindrance, those trips to the waxing salon can add up over time. I have found that facial razors for peach fuzz, eyebrow shaping, and top lip “mustaches” work beautifully at removing those unwanted hairs. They work just as well as waxing or threading for a quarter of the price. Ultimately, it all comes down to preference, but I personally cannot justify paying twenty dollars to get my top lip waxed when you can just purchase these razors at the dollar store.
Strike Out,
Writer: Emily Valmana
Editors: Noelle Knowlton & Lexi Fernandez
Graphics: Lauren Wakeman
Tallahassee
