By Mackenzie Eyles
Dear Normo girls,
Summer holidays are the perfect time for your glow up. Come back to school in 2025 as a brand new you. However, glowing up isn’t about spending 1000’s of dollars on skincare and makeup to make you look nice, glowing up is about glowing from the inside out - from confidence to an external glow. Here are my personal steps to glowing up.
Step 1. Confidence is key!
I know this sounds super cheesy but it’s true. You cannot expect to have a glow-up when you walk around with your head down, dragging your feet to class. You need to imagine the school hallway as your Victoria Secret runway and keep your head up high and your confidence dialed up.
Step 2. Digital Refresh
Delete apps that take up too much time in your life, block those quick adds on snapchat who only ever talk to you when you start the conversation, unfollow those toxic creators, download some study apps, set your screen time, delete unneeded photos and find a nice wallpaper to match your 2025 vibe.
Step 3. Create a vision board for 2025
Add examples of things you want to achieve next year, could be represented by images or even words or affirmations.
Step 4. Improve your health and lifestyle
Cut out unhealthy diets and toxic routines - remember not every workout or diet you see on tiktok is going to work for you - it may make your mental health and physical health worse and put a strain on your lifestyle. If you truly want to glow up physically you need to find something that works for you. Meditation or yoga can be a good start to physical health. To improve your lifestyle you could create a set daily routine or make sure you go to sleep on time and wake up at a sensible time.
Now that you have improved your lifestyle as well as mental/physical health it is time for the usual glow up step - improving your looks. Glowing up the outside is a step in growing who you are inside - if you look in the mirror and go, “Wow, I look good today”, your mental health will sky-rocket.
Step 5. Skincare
I have put together a skincare guide for your skin type according to research done by Dermalogica. Don’t get angry if these don’t work because you may have to look harder for a product that is safe and actually works for you.
Oily skin (larger pores and an oily complexion): Implement a daily double cleanse and exfoliation.
Dry Skin (skin lacking moisture): Invest in milky cleansers, rich moisturizers and products containing plant-based butters and oils.
Combination skin (in between oily and dry skin): Try out foaming cleansers, hydrating serums and medium weight moisturizers.
Balanced skin (not too much oil secretion and not too little): Use foaming cleansers, hydrating formulas and keep your routine consistent to maintain this skin type.
Sensitive skin (reactive to certain chemicals and products): Focus on rich formulas that strengthen your skin barrier.
Acne skin (breakouts): Begin double cleansing and exfoliating.
Step 6. Cosmetics
Cosmetics isn’t just makeup - it includes perfumes, makeup of course, nails and other toiletries. Just remember not to come back to school with nail polish because first day back concerns suck.
Let’s start with makeup:
Always focus on one part or two at most of your face.
Always use an SPF foundation or use sunscreen as your first product
Keep in mind that during the day, at night and at special occasions makeup is different (unless you have one specific makeup routine)
If you suck at makeup, try pinterest and search “Makeup placing for … look” (add whatever you want before look could be joker or doe eye) or even watch GRWM’s or makeup tutorials on tiktok.
My favourite makeup tiktok accounts are probably @nats_not_okay or @lumapaias.
Perfume:
Find your signature scent - go into mecca or sephora and find some scents that appeal to you or even ask a friend what scent they think of when they think about you.
You could also even complete a perfume personality quiz if you want to click this link
Invest in a nice perfume or even go into a chemist where perfume is not overpriced nor 100$ for a small bottle. If you have money go for it and invest in one of the expensive perfumes but that is entirely up to you.
Step 7. Extra add ons
Drink water regularly
Eat more fruits and vegetables
Enhance your sleep quality not just quantity
Practice some form of exercise daily whether that be the gym, a walk, the stairs to the teen rooms or VR 1.11/12 or even some yoga/pilates in the morning.
Improve your posture
Remove negative people from your life.
Do something for yourself and something that makes you smile.
Learn a new skill
Make a new playlist (you can find the best playlist covers on pinterest)
Go shopping - because retail therapy is not a myth
And maybe even switch up your fashion style
Don’t forget to manifest that life - it may seem fake and a stupid thing to waste time on, but it takes less than a minute and it has worked for so many people.
Good luck with your glow up and enjoy the summer heat or the northern hemisphere chill. Put your school books away and lock your laptops in your desk drawers and make this holiday about improving you and increasing your confidence.
Lots of Love,
Kenzie xx
🔥