Beauty 101: Keeping It Professional

Several readers recently wrote in asking if we’d consider doing a Beauty 101 post about office-appropriate makeup, and how to take a look from day to night. So let’s do it, yeah?

Our readers wanted to know how to break out of their normal routines and present themselves in a more polished, professional manner for job interviews and career networking opportunities. One reader wrote that she felt her look was “too young” and that she wanted to come across as more mature, but wasn’t sure how to do so. So here are a list of questions to keep in mind:

1. How can I look both natural and polished for a job interview, in terms of makeup, hair, and nails?

2. I don’t have a lot of time to get ready before work in the morning and I never have time to do my hair; any tips for a quick, last-minute style? Or a nightly routine?

3. I just got invited out after work and I kind of want to step things up a bit; how can I turn my daytime look into a evening look?

4. I’m on my feet all day/working with my hands all day and they’re killing me when I get home- what’s the most effective way to soothe them?

5. My office blasts the heat in the fall/winter, so the air is always dry; is there any way I can stay hydrated and keep my skin from drying out while at work?

6. I’m thinking of stashing a cosmetics bag in my desk—what should I keep in it?

7. I got the job by interviewing in “professional” makeup. Now that they know me around the office, can I go back to rocking my typical look now?

Think you can help? Please leave your tips in the comments below. Any other questions? Feel free to ask them, as well—hopefully one of your fellow readers will come through with the answer. A roundup of tips and tricks will be posted tomorrow.