Monday's Beauty Bits: MacGyver Beauty

Although he does have awesome hair, I'm not planning on providing tips to help you look like MacGyver. Nope! This weeks' tips are ideas on what you can do if you're on a trip at a remote hotel without a pharmacy in sight, and you left half your makeup kit at home. Horror! Here are some fun ideas I dreamt up in my idle moments (yes this is what I think about, stop edging away you!)

Oh no, pimples! Blackheads! And you left your emergency masks at home? Try a honey, sugar and lemon mask. If you're lucky your hotel room bar will have packets of sugar, and a small jar of honey. Otherwise there's always a rather confused room service attendant to call. Mix all three slap it on, and let it sit for 30 mins. Then gently rub it off so the sugar can act as a scrub, and rinse. And don't forget the ever-handy aspirin mask. Room service can bring that up, just remember panadol is NOT aspirin!

Honey can also act as an emergency pimple treatment. Guest reviewer Eli once advised a desperate friend to dollop honey on a big pimple, slap a bandaid on and go to sleep. And guess what? It worked!

Forgot your eyeliner? Use an eyeliner brush and your mascara. Forgot the brush? Use a cotton bud. Black eyeshadow and water also works. =D

FORGOT the mascara? *gasps* Umm.. go medieval and use petroleum jelly mixed with soot applied with a toothbrush on the lashes and with a cottonbud for an eyeliner. (ok, this one I have never tried, but it's how mascara started!) Or try black eyeshadow. Whichever is handier.

No lip and cheek stain? According to Poppy King the Lipstick Queen medieval ladies used to use lemon to sting their lips red. And I'm fairly sure they pinched their cheeks red. Again resort to increasingly confused room service. Haven't tried this one either I must add.

No tweezers and your eyebrows have run amok and you have a moustache on its way? Watch this video on threading. Learn it, love it, and you'll always have a means of hair removal at your disposal.

Left your foundation? Well I hope you have your concealer at least. And compact powder. Mix the concealer with some moisturiser and apply as foundation. Conceal as usual and pat the compact powder over to set. If you have no concealer, try patting a heavier compact powder over moisturiser for slightly heavier coverage. This may result in caking though so approach with caution. Light yellow, matt eyeshadow can also double up as a brush-on undereye brightener.

White or cream shimmery eyeshadow can double up as a highlighter. Dust on nose bridge and cheek bones to contour, and add a pat to the centre of your upper lip for fullness. Similarly, matte grey-brown shades of shadow can be used to contour, and shimmery golden browns used to bronze.

Mineral blushes with clear gloss or lipbalm make fantastic lippies that perfectly coordianate with your blush. They even darken or turn colour slightly so it's not too matchy matchy.

Other good multi-tasking items to tote along almost everywhere you go are Johnsons Head-to-Toe body wash, a tin or tub of Vaseline, and Aloe Vera Gel (good for everything from moisturising and soothing burns to hair gel!)

Got any tips of your own? Tried some of the above with good / bad results? Tell us! Can't wait to hear your ideas. =)

Syen: This has absolutely nothing to do with the DIY beauty tips, but it IS a beauty bit. Flowerpixie once asked where she could get Cargo products in Melbourne and since I have been there now, I am glad to inform you girls that you CAN get Cargo products there.

Melbourners, make your way to Melbourne Central and on the top most floor is a makeup store called Zuza. There you can find heaps from Cargo to Gosh, to Smashbox to Bloom. The prices might be slightly pricier than what they cost in the US, but if you gotta buy it, you gotta buy it. =P

The BAD news is, you'd better RUN!!! The cashier told me that they were going to stop selling Cargo products there sometime in March I believe. So RUN!!!