How to Make the Sweaty Makeup Look from NYFW Cute

Remember the sweaty makeup look that was at the latest NYFW? There’s a way to make it cute, so fear not.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you might have noticed that it is fashion week season. New York Fashion Week had many shows (Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Tory Burch, to name a few) featuring a makeup look going for an ultra glowy, maybe too glowy, kind-of sweaty and greasy effect. Because FASHUN. That’s right, the sweaty makeup look is going to be your go-to for Spring, and you’re going to need a tutorial on how to make it passable… you’re welcome.

There is one particularly easy way to get the sweaty makeup high fashion look, I just like to take a five to ten minute walk outside in the New Orleans heat and humidity. But if you are in a cooler climate or want your sporty athletic glow to last all day, here’s how to replicate the look but make it a little more cute and workplace-friendly.

Let’s start off with clean hair. This is the one aspect of the sweaty-chic look that doesn’t really translate well in real life. So wash it up, dry it off and style your hair as you like! If you want to keep with the NYFW trend on your hair too, go for a sleek low pony or low chignon that were popular at many shows.

Prep your skin. To get as much glow as possible, prep your skin with a particularly hydrating moisturizer if you have dry skin or an illuminating primer like the Dior Glow Maximizer. Primers made with glow in mind will help any foundation have a shinier effect and can help your makeup hold on longer. Follow it up with a radiant foundation or tinted moisturizer.

Highlight like whoa. To really seal in the glow, selectively apply a glowy (not glittery) highlighter to your cheekbones or anywhere you want to look a little sweatier, avoiding less chic places like the upper lip sweat ‘stash. Good highlighter choices for this look would be the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfector liquid in a shade close to your skin tone or the RMS Living Luminizer. If you really want to go all out, try a face gloss instead. Milk has a face gloss that will do the trick but if you have a glossy balm on hand (Elizabeth Arden 8 hour cream, or even vaseline) you can use that too, just keep in mind to use the face gloss sparingly.

Top it all off with a tiny amount of mascara. Some shows went sans anything on the eye, but you don’t have to because you’re trying to go for a sweaty makeup glam thing, and a bright pink or red lip (as seen in the Marchesa, DKNY, Zac Posen, and Jason Wu shows). Now you are more than prepared to rock the chic high fashion glow without getting a poor hygiene note in your HR folder.