Beauty Routine Calendar: Plan Your Care Schedule
Choose how often you exfoliate, use retinol, wash your hair, mask, do your nails and remove body hair to get a four-week calendar that spaces the…
Makeup Look Planner: Plan Makeup for Any Occasion
Choose the occasion, the minutes you have and your skin type, and get a makeup look that fits the time: the steps in the order to apply them, with minutes for each.
The makeup look planner answers a practical question: with the time you have, which steps are worth doing? It chooses the steps that matter most for the occasion, fits them into your minutes, and lists them in the order to apply them.
What this tool does
Each occasion has its own list of steps, from the most to the least important. The planner works down that list and adds every step that still fits into the time. A fuller step, such as blended eyeshadow, takes the place of its quicker version when there is time for it. The finished look is shown in application order, as explained in Makeup Application Order: What to Apply First.
What you enter
| Field | Choices |
|---|---|
| Occasion | Everyday, work or study, evening out, wedding or formal event, photos or video, hot day or outdoors |
| Time you have | 5, 10, 20 or 30 minutes |
| Skin type | Dry, normal, combination or oily |
| What should stand out | Balanced, skin, eyes or lips |
| Your experience | New to makeup, or comfortable with makeup |
Minutes for each step
| Step | Minutes |
|---|---|
| Moisturizer and sunscreen | 2 |
| Primer, concealer, bronzer, blush, highlighter, setting powder, mascara, setting spray, tinted balm or gloss | 1 each |
| Skin tint or light foundation, eyebrows, one eyeshadow, eyeliner, contour | 2 each |
| Lip liner and lipstick | 3 |
| Foundation built up where needed, false lashes | 4 each |
| Blended eyeshadow in two or three shades | 5 |
If you are new to makeup, one minute is added to contour, blended eyeshadow, eyeliner, false lashes, and lip liner with lipstick.
How the look is worked out
- The first two steps on the occasion's list always come first.
- The steps for what should stand out come next: base, concealer, blush and highlighter for skin; mascara, eyeshadow and eyeliner for eyes; lip color for lips.
- For oily skin, setting powder moves up to fourth place. For dry skin, it moves to the end of the list.
- Each step is added if its minutes still fit. A step that does not fit is skipped, and the planner tries the next one.
- A fuller step replaces its quicker version and costs only the difference: lipstick instead of tinted balm adds 2 minutes, not 3.
Steps that did not fit are listed under "Left out to fit the time".
Messages you may see
"Choose an occasion.", "Choose how much time you have." and "Choose your skin type." appear when a list is left on "Choose". The other two lists have a starting value.
Worked example
Work, 10 minutes, oily skin, balanced, comfortable with makeup.
The plan has 7 steps in 10 minutes: moisturizer and sunscreen (2), skin tint or light foundation (2), concealer (1), blush (1), setting powder (1), eyebrows (2) and mascara (1). Powder is included early because the skin is oily. Tinted balm, eyeshadow and the remaining steps are listed as left out.
Limits and assumptions
The minutes are typical figures for one person working at a steady pace. They do not include waiting for skincare to settle or fixing mistakes, and a first attempt takes longer. The plan is a starting list: drop any step you do not enjoy. For the products behind the steps, see Beginner Makeup Kit: Essential Products to Start With.
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Frequently asked questions
What makeup can I do in five minutes?
For an everyday look on normal skin, the planner gives moisturizer and sunscreen, concealer and eyebrows. Those three make the biggest difference to how awake and even your face looks.
Why is sunscreen in a makeup plan?
Because it has to go on before makeup, and it takes time to apply properly. Counting it in the plan stops it from being skipped on a rushed morning.
Should I emphasize eyes and lips together?
You can, but one focus is easier to balance and quicker to do. For evening looks, the planner suggests going stronger on either the eyes or the lips.