Treat Your Legs Like Your Face

Have you ever thought to put makeup on your legs? We hadn’t. Lotions, creams, sunscreens, shaving cream…sure. But makeup? On second thought, given that foundation is meant to do any number of non-cosmetic wonders to your face in less than a minute—even skin tone, increase luminosity, create the general appearance of good health—it’s not that big of a stretch to think, What if things could be looking better south of the border? Beyond hair removal. In a world (our world) where the phrase “I’m so low-maintenance” is often uttered but is rarely true, why not incorporate your legs into the getting-ready process? Put another way: If you're planning to highlight your legs on, say, a night out, how about actually highlighting them with makeup?

We posed this question to our intrepid foundation reporter/ wannabe redhead, Molly Young, equipping her with three bottles of Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs—a “lightweight leg makeup” that has a fiercely loyal, if niche, following in the States. “Bare legs are nice. Airbrush Legs are irresistible,” Sally Hansen says. As Molly set about exploring its irresistibility for an upcoming ITG story—“This product is actually pretty awesome,” she wrote from the field— we tried it two ways: 1) On a 98-degree day with a faulty air conditioner; and 2) With our friend Zoe for this video.

The consensus:

-Four shades and versatile coverage (mixing it with a bit of your moisturizer of choice is one way to go—you can build) means that you get a lightweight, glowy, Gisele-on-a-regular-day leg up, or, with a bit more product, a Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show-ready pair of gams.

-Despite having no clue how to apply so-called body makeup, this stuff is exceedingly simple to use: spray into palms, rub your hands together, and get in there.

-Our number one question: will it come off? When will it come off? The happy answer: once it dries, it does not move until you take a shower.

As for that irresistibility factor: a bit of makeup on the legs, in turns out, actually does make them look “airbrushed,” in a good way—red spots, veins, and other 'inconsistencies' disappear—a way in which people wouldn’t necessarily know why or how. Which is, of course, the mark of success for any cosmetic seeking to imperceptibly improve one’s appearance.

The facialist Isabelle Bellis once told us, “Treat your skin like a piece of silk.” Following that train of thought, might we suggest treating your legs like you would your face—at least when short hemlines and cameras are involved. And stay tuned for Molly’s in-depth report.

Part 1 of a 2 part series sponsored by Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs. Buy a can (or tube) here.