Makeup can take a lot of time and effort before you get the hang of it. And honestly, with all the makeup hacks and tips out there now, it can be hard to narrow them down. Luckily we have rounded up five of our favorite makeup hacks that will keep your skin feeling healthy and make your beauty routine easier.

1) The "triangle of light" concealer trick

This makeup hack is a lifesaver for those sleepless nights with a sick kid, late night working or a night on the town. You might be familiar with the classic crescent concealer method which involves dabbing concealer along the under-eye area, but we’re here to help you step up your concealer game with the triangle concealer trick. This technique will illuminate your face while giving you more coverage to those dark circles under your eyes.

• First, with your concealer, draw an upside down triangle under your eyes. The thicker lines you draw, the better because it will give you more surface area under your eye. Once you have drawn your triangle, lightly shade it in.

• Next, take a beauty sponge and gently blend the triangle outward into your face. Once you have blended both triangles in, you will notice an instant glow to your face

The triangle concealer method only takes a few minutes to do, and if you didn’t get a full night’s rest, no one will ever notice.

Try: bareMinerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener

2) How to get your lipstick to stay in place all day: blotting paper

Touching up and reapplying your lipstick can be a hassle. And for most women, it’s convenient to grab the closest thing in the bathroom to blot your lipstick: facial or toilet tissue. When you blot your lipstick with tissue what ends up happening is the pigment and oil get absorbed into the tissue, and most of it comes off in the center of your lips. This is why you may find yourself reapplying your lipstick more often than you’d like to during the day.

Blotting paper is handy for other makeup hacks besides just removing excess oil from your face. Blotting paper is more effective than tissue for lipstick because it removes the oil while leaving the pigment on your lips. After applying your lipstick, blot your lips with blotting paper. Repeat both steps one more time. This will ensure your lipstick stays in place all day long.

Try: Eminence Organics Green Tea & Hemp Blotting Tissue

3) How to fix powder makeup with rubbing alcohol

You may know the horrible feeling of looking down and seeing one of your favorite eyeshadows, blushes or powders shattered into a million pieces. This simple makeup hack will easily repair your broken makeup and have it back to new. It only takes five minutes to do with these three things:

• The broken powder makeup
• Rubbing alcohol (It is more effective with higher concentration, i.e., 91% isopropyl alcohol)
• Paper towel

Directions

• Put all the broken pieces of makeup into the original container and crush all pieces including non-broken pieces
• Add two or three small drops of rubbing alcohol into the powder. Wait a few seconds for the alcohol to soak in
• Cover the makeup with a paper towel. Using a spoon or knife, gently pat the powder down until the powder forms a smooth surface and then remove the paper towel

Leave the makeup and rubbing alcohol mixture open and let it sit overnight to dry. Your makeup powder will look brand new the next day.

4) Cleaning your makeup brushes

How often do you wipe down your makeup brushes after using them? Did you know that you should quickly sanitize your makeup brushes after every use? Regularly cleaning your makeup brushes helps keep bacteria and dirt away. Think of cleaning your makeup brushes the same way you do about washing your hair. It’s important to do to keep your skin healthy. An easy way to clean your brushes daily is using a brush cleaner. You can loosen the dirt and leftover makeup off the bristles with a spare toothbrush.

Next just spray the head of the brush with the brush cleaner and wipe the bristles down with a microfiber towel. A microfiber towel is most effective to absorb dirt and makeup off the heads. Plus, regular cleanings will help even out your makeup the next day. If you used a dark colored eyeshadow the day before and wanted to apply a lighter color the next day, having clean brushes will make blending your makeup so much easier.

Try: Colorescience Brush Cleaner

Even though you are quickly spraying down your brushes every day, you still want to deep clean your makeup brushes once a month. When your brushes need a deep cleanse, we recommend gently washing them with CLn Cleanser because it contains bleach, a natural antibacterial agent that eliminates germs and bacteria without the worsening of antibiotic resistance. In general, you should discard your makeup brushes every six months whatever the case.

5) What you need to know about makeup expiration dates

Do you know the last time you went through your makeup bag to check all your cosmetics’ expiration dates? Or better yet – Do you know the date you started using your makeup product? Just like eating expired food can be bad for your body, using expired makeup can be bad for your skin and can cause breakouts, redness, swelling or infections. On the makeup product, you will find the expiration date near the ingredients. Some cosmetics may list the month, date and year on the product while others may have a number and symbol like “M” (month) or “Y” (year) on it. So if you see “6M” that means the product will last up to six months after opening.

We know keeping track of all your cosmetics’ expiration dates can be challenging, but we’re here to show you a simple solution. Get a little piece of masking tape and stick it on your makeup product near the expiration date. With a permanent marker, write down the date you opened the makeup product. Writing down these dates will help keep your makeup bag organized and help you remember when it’s time to start replacing your cosmetics.

What are some of your favorite makeup tips and tricks? Share your makeup hacks with us in the comments.