How to Create a Day-to-Night Look

As a busy mom, nights out can be few and far between, but they are needed and appreciated! Sometimes I have to rush off to an evening do, or a date night, and it’s great, but there’s a catch. I don’t get time in between being out all day and getting to my evening destination…nightmare, right?!

On days like these, I need a makeup look that will allow me to seamlessly transition from day to night. Follow my step-by-step guide and you’ll see how easy it can be to make it work for you.

Day

It’s worth sticking with your usual choices for the daytime, but with the knowledge in the back of your mind that you’ll be refreshing and possibly adding to it later. You don’t need to layer it on heavily, as it would fade, and it needs to look good in natural light anyway. Remember, you’ll have the chance to go for a more dramatic look later.

Face: Start with your usual makeup base of concealer, primer, and foundation.
Eyes: You can go with a simple shadow in a neutral shade, a slick of eyeliner and one coat of mascara.
Cheeks: Some light bronzer and blush will provide a subtle glow that will work well in natural daylight and be built upon later.
Lips: A neutral lipstick or gloss – or even a lip balm – will be appropriate for the daytime
TOP TIP: To keep your base on your face – a little poetry there – try adding a little powder to lock it in place and spritz of fixing spray.

*ps* this is an example of an easy daytime look, I used the LA girl ‘The Nudes’ eyeshadow palette, stick with the lightest 3 shades on the left (Sorry no shade names :(… )

Night

When it’s time to get ready for your evening out, you don’t need to wipe everything off and start again. You’ve already laid a solid base, so you can simply enhance your favourite features with some more striking and bold makeup choices.

Face: If you need to, refresh your face makeup with a little concealer here and there where it has faded. Go gently so as not to disturb the rest of your base and consider intensifying the brow, for me that just completes a look.
Eyes: Intensify the eyes with extra shadow for a smokey look and add flicks to the ends of your eyeliner. You might even want to apply another coat of mascara. A palette is a really useful choice in this scenario, as you’ll have plenty to choose from without needing to pack lots of individual shades
Cheeks: Add more bronzer or contour and highlighter on cheekbones to make your bone structure stand out more in the more darkly lit settings of the evening
Lips: Pick a bright lip colour to finish the look and you’re done!

Tools

As you’ll be touching up your makeup while away from home, you’ll want to pack a stash of key beauty tools to take with you too.

Brushes: A little set of brushes ( I received luxie brushes travel set in a recent Boxycharm which is perfect) or sponges for your cream products, lips, brows and concealer will be sufficient if your makeup doesn’t already have these with it
Cotton buds: Make it easy to wipe away any mistakes with cotton buds
Mirror: Last but most certainly not least, don’t forget your mirror! Sure, some of your compacts might have mini mirrors in them, but if you usually rely on a magnifying mirror or a full-face mirror, you’ll want that with you

Outfit

Now onto the outfit. It’s amazing how much of a difference jewellery can make to a look, choose a statement neckpiece or perhaps something beautiful and dainty, either way, a jewellery piece will make all the difference. Perhaps you’re already in a pretty top and some flattering jeans, now all you have to do is dress the look up! A fancy pair of shoes will make all the difference, and then just choose a smart coat or jacket for that day that will work for a sleek evening look as well!

If you’re wearing any delicate or special materials, make sure you know how to keep them looking good all day long. It’s worth learning a few tips like how to clean suede shoes, jackets and accessories. That way, armed with your know-how on how to remove makeup stains from clothes and how to clean suede shoes, you don’t need to worry if your outfit gets a little messed up while getting ready for your big night.

Let me know in comments how you create a day-to-night look.

Have a BE YOU tiful day! You’re Worth it!

‘This post was written alongside Eleanor Cains and Katherine Mosquera from Mavens of London.’

5 Comments

  1. I do exactly the same thing. Especially when I have a full schedule for the day. I normally use just cushion foundation since its lightweight and can be easily topped up with foundation during the night. And as for the outfit change, I just bring out a blazer that will look good on any top that I wear.

    1. Blazers are an absolute must-have , they make me feel like I’m dressed for success even if I don’t actually feel that way ha ha ha

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