Five Instagram beauty hacks that are actually useful

I swear, Instagram beauty gurus are either genius or completely batshit crazy. While I love and swear by a few skincare and makeup hacks that I’ve come across on Instagram, I cringe whenever I see a popular post suggesting for me to put lemon juice or baking soda in my face. I don’t want to disrupt my acid mantle and suffer a breakout, thank you.

There are millions of beauty hacks to be found online but not all of them are safe and effective. We’ve tried Japanese beauty hacks, and we tested out some nail polish hacks from Pinterest as well. Here’s the Instagram version, and these five simple tricks that are PV-approved. ;)

Store your egg sponges in Easter eggs

Liz gave me the other sponge from the Nippon Pro Blend Sponge kit and I’ve been storing it in a coffee mug like I do all of my other makeup tools. Plastic Easter eggs are a much better idea, however. It’s more travel-friendly this way, too, so your precious (dry) sponge won't get squished in transit.

Maximize your mask with cotton pads

I’m all about that sheet mask life but my wallet would cry if I were to use one every single day. I would if I could though, TBH, so thanks to this hack, I just might! Somebody thought to combine Liz’s neat trick of saving  the leftover mask essence and the Korean cotton pad masking practice. Now I can extend the life of my favorite mask for two to three more uses!

Hide your roots with contour powder or brow mascara

If you’re out of tinted dry shampoo or too lazy to DIY, a quick fix to hide your roots would be to use a contour powder or a brow mascara. Just remember to wash it off at night or the very next day if you don’t want to deal with the horrors of product build up. I don’t mind when my roots are showing, but this is a pretty handy hack for special, heavily photographed moments.

(Editor's Note: You can also use a combination of brown and black eyeshadow to match your hair color!)

Increase the color vibrancy of any pencil through heating

If you have any pencil product that takes several swipes to show up, don’t throw it out just yet! Hold it near an open flame for about three to five seconds, and allow to cool before applying. The heat makes the pencil creamier and the color more vibrant.

Blend your foundation with a sock

It sounds weird and maybe even a little gross but it works surprisingly well! I saw this on Instagram but found that this video explained how to ball up the heel or toe area properly, depending on which part you want to use. Use the balled-up sock to lightly bounce and blend foundation all over your face. 

It wasn’t streaky like I imagined and I did get a nice, even sheered out finish. It’s not Beauty Blender airbrush levels but it blended out the same way as if I had used a kabuki brush. The only downside is that it does absorb more product than usual. You also have to make sure to wash the sock after each use but it dries faster than brushes or sponges so I don't feel like it's a hassle at all.

Let me know which among these you wind up trying out! And if you've tried any other Instahacks that worked for you, we'd love to hear about it in the comments.