What's worse than being sick? Looking sick.

Alas, I have been struck by the flu! And whenever I'm sick, I really just prefer to stay indoors, curl up with a hot mug of tea and some TV series. There will inevitably be days though when you'll have to go out, see people, and look somewhat presentable. So if you're feeling a bit under the weather, but have to go out, I've got you covered! :) I'm sharing with you my sick day make-up routine. :)

Let us establish the current condition of my face:
Usually, when one has the colds, the face gets super dry. For my skin, it's been so dry to the point of having dry patches in some areas. And because I've been blowing my nose off, the area around my nose is really dry and red. My eyes have been watery as well, and my lips have been so unbelievably dry, it's not even funny.

For the face
moisturizer: On sick days, I swap in my usual Aveeno Positively Radiant moisturizer with SPF 15 for The Body Shop Vitamin C Daily Moisturizer SPF 30. Because my skin is a little bit drier, the Vitamin C content in this stuff really (REALLY! I kid you not!) helps to wake up my dull skin! And being that this has a higher SPF content that my usual Aveeno moisturizer, it's surprising how light this feels on my skin. Gets absorbed super quickly, too. And the smell, oh, the smell! This stuff smells like straight-up orange juice. Really helps to wake you up too. It's times like these that I remember how much I love this product and I wonder why I ever stopped using it!

BB cream: I would normally just wear powder on a daily basis, but on these days, I do like to use a BB cream instead to give me an extra boost of moisture while adding coverage. I typically stay away from BB creams too because they feel thick on my face. I notice, too, whenever I have a BB cream on, I have to blot my face more often because it greases up more. The Face Shop Aqua Tinted BB cream SPF 20++ however, is different! It's water-based, so it feels suuuuuper light and hydrating on your skin! It must also have some special cooling ingredients in it because the moment it touches your face (or even your hand before you go to put it on), it feels super refreshing. Coverage is quite light, though, so I do have to go in with some concealer if I do want some extra coverage on blemishes or in red areas especially around my nose.

concealer: Nothing fancy here, I use my usual Rimmel Wake Me Up concealer if I do want a little extra coverage under my eyes (because our under eye area somehow always looks worse when we're down with the flu!), to cover the redness around my nose, or on blemishes. Usually, I would use the MUFE Full Cover concealer for blemishes or around my nose, but I go for the Rimmel one on sick days just because it's a little more hydrating. :)

bronzer: Because I look so sallow, I do like to put on a little bit of bronzer on my face to make me look a little bit healthier. I use this FS Cosmetics Two-Way Cake in Rajah as a bronzer (I love using darker colored face powders as bronzers! They look waaay more natural than regular bronzers.) I just do a very light dusting all over with a fluffy brush on places that you would normal bronze/contour. After bronzing/contouring, I just take whatever is left on the brush and go over my entire face to set the BB cream and concealer. I don't like using another powder just to set to minimize the look of dryness or flakiness.

blush: I go for cream blushes more on sick days, again for the extra hydration they provide. Something about cream blushes look so natural and make you look like you have that 'glow from within' (which I clearly lack when I'm sick!) The one I'm using (and loving) at the moment is this Fashion 21 cream blush in shade 4 :) It's a creamy, peachy-pink color that would look amazing on anyone, especially on Asian/Filipina skintones! :) This was a steal at my local Watsons for only PHP150!

For the eyes
brows: Fuller, thicker brows always make you look younger, healthier, and fresher. So, no matter how sick I'm feeling, I never skip this step. I don't do anything special here, I just fill them in with my MAC eyeshadow in Espresso as per usual.

inner corner highlight: To make my eyes look brighter, wider (even when I really just want to lay down and sleep all day), I do like to pop some shimmery-champagne eyeshadow on the inner corners of my eyes. Helps you to achieve that 'glow from within' we all want! I just use any that I have, one I'm using now is the FS Cosmetics single eyeshadow in Glamour Peach (only PHP150!)

mascara: Just my normal, eyelash-curling, mascara-putting routine here. The only difference is that I make sure to use a waterproof mascara (like Maybelline The Falsies Waterproof) since my eyes do get watery throughout the day when I'm sick!

For the lips
lip tint/balm: My lips have been so dry that I really can't even stand the thought of putting on a lipstick, nor a thick, heavy, goopy gloss! So this Etude House Kissful Tint Chou is the next best thing! It feels hydrating as a balm when you put in on, and it provides a nice, bright but translucent color to your lips. Also gives a nice, thin gloss that always makes you look healthier. If you had a bright lip stain and put a clear gloss on top, that's what this looks like. The nice thing also is that this leaves you with a stain, so that you still have some color left even after you've been eating. :)


After my face, I do like to throw my hair up in a high ponytail. My dad always says I look fresher this way. Plus, it's also nice just to get all that hair away from your face, especially when you're already dealing with a cold!

Above all, I think the most important thing when you're sick is to drink lots and lots of water and get even more rest.

If you're sick, I'm sending lots of love to you! I hope this has been helpful. :)