As a mum of two young children, if I was to describe my beauty routine in one word it would be this: fast. Between wiping sticky hands, changing nappies, coaxing the eldest into clean clothes, and practically wrestling both of them into having their teeth brushed each morning, there is very little time left for me to enjoy any rituals that can’t be conducted in 60 seconds or less. I like quick make-up products, a snappy (but effective) skincare routine and styling my hair is a very swift process. And it’s not just parents who will relate—between hectic jobs, caring for others and busy social lives, there are so many of us who struggle to find the time to look after ourselves.
However, I’m four years into motherhood now and despite still operating on more nights of broken sleep than not (my dark circles show it) I have managed to cobble together a few key moments throughout my day to still enjoy something of a daily beauty routine. (Thank goodness, or my job as a beauty editor would be hanging precariously in the balance.) For me, these non-negotiable parts of my day not only help me to look like a woman who has her life together, but they help me to feel like one too—offering little moments of calm amidst the never-ending chaos.
Ahead, I break down a few of these daily rituals and the time-saving products that I swear by to brighten and boost my appearance and my mood. And if you're still in the depths of parenthood where it feels like you haven't even got 30 seconds to spare for a wee, let alone do a full skincare routine? Trust me, you're not alone. What lies ahead is my 'perfect day' scenario where nothing has gone wrong—there are many, many more where I count myself lucky if I get to just swish a micellar water-soaked pad over my face and call it quits.
6am: Morning Supplements
I have never been a morning person and never will be, but the first thing I prioritise upon waking at such an ungodly hour each day is drinking a big glass of water and taking my supplements. Admittedly, I haven’t always been the best at taking vitamins regularly—I always start with good intentions which dwindle after a few days—but I’m making a conscious effort to ingratiate them into my daily routine in 2024, and taking them first thing guarantees they’re done for the day.
I take a general multivitamin (I’m awful at swallowing tablets so I only take gummies, like a child) and a liquid iron supplement to manage anaemia, but have recently added a vitamin D spray to boost immunity, a new hair supplement to help with regrowth since postpartum hair loss, and I am experimenting with different collagen supplements in my morning coffee to support skin elasticity.
7am: Speed Shower
Whether my husband is around to watch the kids or not, shower time is always something of a speed challenge for me due to the fact that my 4 year old seems to have some kind of inbuilt detector that means he will inevitably need to use the toilet the second that the water clicks on.
Hair washes are strictly for evenings or weekends for me unless it’s an absolute emergency. However, there is one thing that I won’t negotiate on in the shower and that is a fancy body wash. Yes, you can get shower gels for £1 in the supermarket and they’re great for getting the job done, but a luxurious one that smells (and likely, is) expensive just makes me feel fancy and pampered. And the same goes for the body lotion that follows post-shower.
7:15am: Glowy Skincare
My morning skincare routine is entirely focused on minimising how tired my skin looks, so I tend to reach for products that are hydrating, brightening and plumping. I don’t wear huge amounts of make-up on a daily basis so I really rely on my skincare to do some heavy lifting when it comes to creating fresh, dewy skin.
I almost always use a salicylic acid face wash as my first step (sometimes I even do this in the shower when I’m in a real rush) and then, depending on whether I’m experiencing a breakout or not, I’ll use either a niacinamide or vitamin c serum, a gel-cream moisturiser and a vitamin c eye cream. I like to use products that feel lightweight in texture to refresh and awaken my skin without exacerbating any spots.
8am: Easy Make-up
There’s always a break between skincare and make-up to do some damage control on the toy mountain that will inevitably be forming in the living room by this point, to pack lunches and to get the kids ready for the day. Therefore, my pared-back make-up bag now resides in the living room where I can haphazardly apply stuff to my face using just the fingers on one hand while my other hand picks out Play-Doh from the rug.
I wasn’t a huge fan of stick formulations pre-kids, but now they’re pretty much the only formulation in my everyday make-up bag thanks to their versatility. A foundation that can also be used as a concealer? Yes please. A blusher, lipstick and eyeshadow in one? Absolutely. My general approach is to scribble everything on and hope for the best. My only non-negotiables for some extra polish are good tinted brow gels and some kind of lip product—I’m very much into tinted balms right now, but am also partial to Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk when I want to feel a bit more put-together.
8:20am: No-Fuss Hair
I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’m rubbish at doing my own hair, and it’s always of the lowest priority in my beauty routine. Oftentimes I will adopt the classic mum look of the topknot, but if my hair is down then it’s a quick brush through with fingers (I kid you not) and off we go. Luckily, my hair is quite thick and textured so if I’ve added some waves with a curling tong after my last hair wash then they usually stay in place—and if they’re starting to fall a bit flat then a quick blast of texturising spray usually does the trick. However, I do have a fringe so dry shampoo is an absolute essential for me as it’s the part of my hair that gets greasiest quickly.
2:30pm: Brightening Mask
This is where I’m going to start losing people as, admittedly, not many people are going to be able to whack out a face mask at 2.30pm. However, I work from home. So on the days that both of the kids are in childcare, I will take whatever chance I can to treat my skin. I’m often too tired of an evening to be bothered with a lengthy skincare treatment, but if I can whack out some eye masks or a face mask while I wrap up some emails before it’s nursery pick-up then trust me I will happily do so.
6pm: Hair Treatment
For me, 6pm is the pits of parenting hell. The kids have been home for hours and they’re tired, dinnertime is over, the house is a quagmire of mess and destruction and we still have bathtime to get through before I can even begin to think of getting them into bed and sinking onto the sofa to enjoy a mindless scroll through my phone.
However, bathtime provides the perfect opportunity to ramp up your beauty routine if you’re a mum. If you can turn a blind eye to the toys being thrown out of the tub and the water soaking the floor then I find it’s a great time to either crack on with your evening skincare routine or apply a hair mask that you can leave to work while you do bedtime with the kids and then wash out afterwards. You could really use any hydrating hair mask here, but I like to wet my hair under the sink first to help it penetrate then apply something really hardworking that will improve elasticity, strengthen the hair and restore moisture. I comb it through, pop on a microfibre hair towel to keep it in place and feel quietly smug that I’m doing something for me.
8:30pm: Bath Soak
I’ll be honest and say that a bath for me is not a daily occurrence—it is actually a rarity. But a new year’s resolution to myself is that I’m going to spend way more time relaxing in the bath in 2024. (Yep, I’m dreaming big.) So, once the kids are down and I can’t hear any murmurings from their room, running a hot bath, pouring in something that smells delicious, lighting a candle and spending a few minutes unashamedly soaking is going to be my new thing. (Note—if I’ve applied a hair mask earlier in the night then I will have washed my hair in the shower first as I hate washing my hair in the bath.)
Naturally, I gravitate towards warm, milky, vanilla scents, but I have to say that I am currently utterly obsessed with Vieve’s Bathleisure line which is all expensive-smelling amber and cosy sandalwood and basically makes bathtime feel like a fancy hotel.
