Ever had an emergency when you need to remove your makeup, but don’t have a makeup remover on hand? I’m usually quite well organised when it comes to my skincare, so I don’t usually have this problem. When I’m travelling, I usually have a small bottle of cleansing water / micellar water on hand, and I’m proud of myself for being so organized.
But I recently found myself in this exact predicament. Pride comes before a fall, as they say!
Lest you think there’s a juicy story behind it, there isn’t LOL! 😀 It was on my most recent flight home, when I had boarded the plane and was about to cleanse my face. I had on some brow pencil and a light layer of BB Cushion and concealer… but I realised that my on-board toiletries pouch had no cleanser! No makeup remover, no cleansing water, no cleanser.
What was a girl to do? Well, improvise of course! 😉
Well, not immediately. I sat and panicked for a spell, wondering if I was willing to sit and stew in my makeup for 13 hours. When I decided I couldn’t, I decided to MacGyver a solution. (Now, I know they are making a MacGyver reboot but I’m talking about the Richard Dean Anderson one – hands up if you too are a fan of the show! 😀 Yes, good, you realise your age is showing 😉 )
Facial Oil to remove makeup
I looked into my pouch of skincare wonders, wondering if I had any oil on hand. If you are pressed for a solution, any facial oil will do the job at removing your makeup, not necessarily cleansing oil. Slather it on your skin, wipe it off, and then cleanse. Some will be easier to clean off than others but it will remove your makeup quite effectively.
If you are visiting someone and having a sleep over without your skincare arsenal on hand, even some olive oil from the kitchen works. Just be sure to cleanse off thoroughly, and preferably, use a warm face cloth to wipe off the oil.
But I had no oils on me. I only had a spray can of facial mist, moisturiser and other lotions and serums. Hmm… what could I do?!
Moisturiser to remove makeup
And then I hit upon an idea. If people could use cold cream to remove their makeup, couldn’t I do the same with moisturiser? I did have a cream moisturiser on hand after all. I had nothing to lose, so I went for it!
I squeezed out a generous dollop of face cream, and spread it out over my face, massaging as I went, for a few minutes. Then, I used some tissue paper laid over my face to soak up the cream and then tissued off the excess. To my gratification, I saw the makeup come off! I must note at this juncture that you should be using a cream based moisturiser to remove makeup. I’m not sure a gel moisturiser or lotion/emulsion will work.
Then, I took some cotton pads, dampened them with the facial mist, and wiped them over my skin, doing this a few times, until the cotton pad no longer had any trace of colour.
Then, I sprayed my face liberally with the face mist, and tissued it off, and voila! Cleansed skin! 😀 It actually felt clean to the touch.
I then followed up with the rest of my skincare, sealing off with the very same moisturiser that I’d just used to cleanse my skin at the end. How ironic! 😀
I won’t recommend either hack for an everyday solution, simply because facial oils and moisturisers aren’t made to cleanse skin or remove makeup. I’d even go so far as to say that not even olive oil does, despite all the proponents of the oil cleansing method. I’d use a proper cleansing oil and makeup remover designed for its purpose. But in an emergency, when you have nothing else on hand, either hack does a pretty decent job.
Have you ever been faced with a similar emergency? What did you do?
I’m rarely faced with emergencies like this, as I usually have a cleanser in my pouch, at minimum. But it’s nice to know that when push comes to shove, there are options we can make use of. I quite impressed myself with my skincare MacGyver skills LOL! 😀 Now, tell me what you have done in such an emergency?
Paris B
Tine says
July 27, 2016 at 9:48 amOlive oil! And it bloody works!
(Sort of makes me wonder why I pay so much for makeup remover or cleansing balm LOL)
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:20 pmLOL Well, in my case, olive oil breaks me out something wonderful! I attempted that oil cleansing method many years ago. I’ve been terrified ever since! But in an emergency, it’s a life saver
Laura says
July 27, 2016 at 10:03 amI sometimes tend to forget my makeup remover when going on family trips, so I do improvise with whatever moisturizer or facial lotion that i have on hand. Even when I’m at home, whenever I overdo eyeliner or when both wings don’t quite match, I usually dip a cotton bud in lotion and rub off the smudged area or extra eyeliner. 😀
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:21 pmThat’s clever! But around the eyes, I’ll suggest you use a cleansing water to clean off mistakes/residue instead. It’s more gentle on the eye area than lotions/moisturisers that can clog pores. Just a FYI 🙂
Efrain says
July 27, 2016 at 11:49 amI haven’t forgotten any cleanser when traveling but if I were in the same scenario I’d use hand cream because I’d cry if I use my moisturizer or face oil to clean my face and then *gulps* I’d use hand soap to remove everything. I think that’s way better than sleeping with my makeup on.
About MacGyver, it’s really funny for me because I’ve never watched the show but every time I use my Swiss knife to fix something people tells me about how MacGyver I am.
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:24 pmHehe you have to try to find an old episode of Macgyver! It’ll probably make you cringe, at how 80’s it is, but he was very clever 😀 I tend to agree with you about using harsh cleansers in the interim and then making up for it when you get everything back. As you’ve said, it’s better than sleeping with makeup on!
casey23 says
July 27, 2016 at 6:31 pmI’ve been in this situation more than enough and i did try all of them: using a facial oil, using a cream moisturizer and using olive oil (and even one time safflower oil) 😀 all of them worked but because i have an oily skin i am never comfortable enough to leave the residue so I always wash my face afterwards. Also oh yes i do remember macgyver 🙁
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:26 pmYou are a true Macgyver! 😀 I would have washed my face after, except I had no cleanser LOL! So I had to make do and hope for the best! At least it’s better than sleeping in makeup right? 😀 Oh, don’t worry about remembering MacGyver – you’re in good company here 😉
JackieA says
July 27, 2016 at 8:34 pm****Turn Away**** Graphic Content!!!
I would just use any soap available and triple wash with the thing until everything comes off!
PS:- I loved McGuyver too! Grew up on the stuff!
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:27 pmLOL!! You totally cracked me up Jackie! 😀 I did think of heading to the plane’s toilet to see what was in there, but I couldn’t bring myself to! The thought of how harsh that might be on skin killed me 😛 I saw some pictures of the new MacGyver – not half as cool looking as RDA 😛
emmabovary says
July 28, 2016 at 6:53 amSuch a clever hack – I don’t think I’ve ever forgotten my remover on holiday but I have forgotten bits and bobs from my skincare routine (good excuse to buy more skincare while away, hehe)
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:29 pmHaha I know what you mean Emma! I always find all kinds of excuses to buy new skincare while away too! I especially love popping into pharmacies just to see what else I might have forgotten LOL!
Lily says
July 28, 2016 at 9:49 amI forgot to bring my makeup remover on my weekend trip. I’m glad I’m using the 2 Oskia cleansers that are oil based so I just used that. Your moisturizer trick is very clever! I’ll remember that 🙂
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:29 pmIf I had cleansers on hand, I’d have just washed multiple times LOL! But I’ve been wondering about the Oskia cleansers – they get a lot of raves don’t they?
Rohini Sharma says
July 28, 2016 at 12:23 pmI use olive oil or sweet almond oil in such emergencies . I always carry both in my handbag for moisturising my hands 🙂
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:30 pmThat is such good practice and how useful they are right? You can then use them to moisturise after that as well!
plue says
July 28, 2016 at 11:09 pmi remember the old macgyver show and he was quite cool that time! hahaha
i forgotten to bring makeup remover once and had no cream based moisturizer, i tried with gel and it doesn’t work. i only had the pawpaw ointment n i stupidly think it would work. and what a gooey yucky mess! in the end used wet tissue to clean everything n next morning rush off to nearest watson to buy makeup remover n clean my face.
i am so not forgetting that remover, ever again!
Paris B says
July 31, 2016 at 4:32 pmHaha oh dear Lucas Papaw would definitely not work! Sorry you had to work it out the hard way, but lucky you had wet tissue! In an emergency, that works too 😀
Norwati says
August 18, 2016 at 6:43 amThere’s a MacGyver reboot!!?? ?
Paris B says
August 20, 2016 at 1:45 pmhahhahahaa! You totally cracked me up 😀 yes, apparently there is!