'I'm Melanie [@melanie _aman], and I'm from Tampa, Florida, but go to journalism school at the University of Florida in Gainesville. It's a quintessential college town centered around football, but when you get past that, there's a lot of amazing places to eat and discover. I recently scored a record player for cheap, and now I'm addicted to record shopping. I love going to this place, Hear Again Music and Movies, and just browse for hours. I'm kind of exploring what I'd like to do past college now, and I think I'd love to work at a fashion magazine or as a freelance stylist. I'm dabbling a bit in both with my position as a Style Guru for College Fashionista.
My college life is very quick, so I like to simplify my beauty routine. School can get a bit stressful, especially around exam time, and I'd rather be in bed watching Bob's Burgers or Brooklyn Nine-Nine than doing a full face of makeup just for class. Most of the time, I keep it really simple. I also have pretty OK skin, so I try to stay away from putting any makeup on unless I need to conceal any blemishes. I can't get behind a heavy, perfect veil of foundation and powder when all I need is light concealer and a good tinted moisturizer.
In terms of cleansers, I really love using Cetaphil. I try to look for cleansers without salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide because it dries out my skin. I use a heavy moisturizer at night, so my face is usually a bit oily when I wake up. Cetaphil is a good, gentle cleanser that makes my skin feel clean and soft. If I’m feeling really lazy and I don’t want to wet my face, I love Vichy’s Pureté Thermale 3-in-1 One Step Cleanser.
My favorite daytime moisturizer is hands-down La Roche-Posay's Effaclar Mat. As a broke college student, it’s a bit expensive but so worth it. It's so much cheaper in Europe though, so the last time I visited Paris, I stocked up. I have a very oily T-zone, but this moisturizer keeps my face oil-free for the entire day. If I feel like my skin needs a bit more effort, I like to use Nars’ Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer—it's got SPF, has never broken me out, and the color-match is pretty spot on. I set this with a Maybelline Dream Matte Pressed Powder that's so old, it's discontinued.
Next I’ll move onto my brows. They're the most important step in my makeup routine, and I will rarely leave my room without a full set of brows. I love Anastasia Beverly Hills products. I currently use the Dipbrow Pomade because it allows me to easily control how bold I want my brows to be. I used to use the Brow Wiz by Anastasia but hated having to repurchase it every two or three weeks. Anyone else come across this? When you do your brows every single day, I need something that works and that's going to last me a while.
To curl my eyelashes I use either my Shu Uemura or Tweezerman Procurl Eyelash Curler. I have to use a waterproof mascara to get my stick-straight lashes to hold a curl. The formula works better than non-waterproof mascaras, and I stand by my Maybelline Volum’ Express The Falsies Waterproof Mascara.
If I wear eyeliner, it’s always a cat-eye. I’ve tried a lot of different eyeliners, be it gel, pencil, or liquid. Now that I’ve perfected my cat-eye method, I prefer using a waterproof liquid eyeliner. My former roommate went home to Korea and brought me some Korean makeup, and I’ve been loving the Clio Kill Black/Brown Waterproof Brush Liner. I don’t know how unique this is, but when I do my eyeliner I like to start with the flick. I turn my head and try to match the end of the flick to the top of my ear. Usually it turns out pretty even.
Most of the time, I skip bronzer, blush, and highlight just because I can’t be bothered on a regular school day. If I’m going out, OK, then I will use my Nars Blush/Bronzer Duo in Orgasm/ Laguna.
For lips, if I want to channel Kylie Jenner, I’ll opt for my Etude House Soft Touch Auto Lip Liner in #03. To be honest, though, most of the time I just wear my favorite lip blam, Nuxe’s Rêve de Miel. And if I wear a lip color, it’s probably going to be a MAC Lipstick. MAC’s Russian Red is my go-to red lip. Sometimes I'll just wear a bold lip because I go to a school with 50,000 other students, and this is my little way to stand out and tricking my professors into believing I didn't just pull an all-nighter.”
—as told to ITG
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