If you struggle to apply hair products with the same light-handedness of your stylist or try to apply your foundation like a pro with little to no success, let this how-to guide be your saving grace.

1. Swipe off eye makeup off using gentle downward motions.

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Rubbing your eyes side-to-side can rip your lashes out and even can contribute to crow's feet over time. Gently swiping your eye makeup off with a remover wipe in a downward motion helps keep your lashes in tact and won't cause wrinkles.

2. Apply sunscreen from the center of your face outward, and then from your chest up to your neck and under your chin, using upward and outward motions only.

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When you apply sunscreen, you want to avoid pulling your skin down, which can contribute to a sagging appearance over time.

3. Apply eye cream in dots around your eye, and then pat it into your skin using your ring finger to blend.

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Use your ring finger, the weakest of all your fingers, to avoid unnecessary pulling on the skin. Start from the inner corner of your lower lid toward the outer corner, and then along your upper lid from the outer corner to the inner corner.

4. Brush on your foundation from the center outward toward the edges of your face.

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Applying your base this way keeps the brightest part, which should be the middle of your face, the focus.

5. Conceal blemishes by dotting on concealer and then patting it with the tip of a makeup sponge until it's invisible.

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It's better to use a sponge to do this rather than the tip of your finger, since the warmth of your skin can actually melt away the cover-up as you apply it. Try The Beauty Blender Micro Mini.

6. Using a clean fingertip, blend cream blush in a circular motion on the apples of your cheeks, and then out toward your temples.

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First, smile so that the apples (the rounded part) of your cheeks pop, and then apply the cream blush directly over them. The warmth from your finger will soften the product for smooth application.

7. Apply powder blush starting almost an inch away from your nose.

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Because powder is harder to control than cream, to avoid any pink particles from getting too close to your nose, making it look red and irritated, start applying powder blush almost an inch away from your nose on the apples of your cheeks. Then, blend outward.

8. Use two different shades of bronzer and apply it to your face using the "3 technique."

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Start by dipping a fluffy brush into the darker color and then the lighter shade, and then sweeping it along your hairline where sunlight would naturally hit it. Then, in a fluid motion, bring the brush right below your cheekbones, and then back out along the outer part of your face, tracing your jawline and completing the "3." Remember to brush any excess onto your neck and chest (if you're wearing a low-cut top) so that your face, neck, and chest aren't two different colors. Try Dolce & Gabbana Bronzer Duo.

9. Top your cheekbones with powder highlighter using a fan brush.

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You won't want to walk out of the house looking like you used the entire pot of highlighter, so it's best to use a fan brush, which isn't dense, to dust on a touch of highlighter on your cheekbones before going out.

10. Dash on your brow bone highlighter to make it look more natural.

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Highlighting your brow bone can go very bad quickly (i.e., if you make the area too white from heavy-handed application, it will look like clown makeup), so to ensure you're applying the highlighter pencil subtly for a natural finish, put it on in dashes under your brow instead of drawing a line, and diffuse it with a clean fingertip. The warmth from your finger will help it blend in to your skin easily and flawlessly.

11. Apply setting powder over your T-zone only, since that's where you produce the most oil.

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Your cheeks won't pose a problem when it's hot out, so if you want your makeup to stay put, apply a translucent powder along your forehead, down your nose, and then onto your chin.

12. Brush your brow mascara up toward the start of your arches, and then out toward the tail.

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First, make sure you don't have a ton of product on the brush or else your arches will look overdone. Secondly, it's important to brush the hairs up at the beginning of your brow and then outward from there on, keeping them going in the direction of the hair growth. Try Benefit Gimme Brow.

13. Hold your eyelash curler at a 45-degree angle and gently squeeze for insanely curled lashes.

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With your eyelash curler as close to your lash line as possible, clamp down gently, holding it out at a 45 degree angle, and continue to pump the curler without ever letting it fully open up and release from your lashes. This way the hairs get an extra lift from the root, making them look extra-curled and longer.

14. Use a back-and-forth wiggle motion to apply mascara to your upper lashes.

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Start wiggling the wand back and forth to really get into the root of the lashes, covering the hairs and the lash line to create the look of thicker lashes. Then, continue the motion as you work up to the tips to fully cover them.

15. Apply mascara to lower lashes by holding the wand vertically for an easier, less messy application.

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You've been there: You start putting mascara on your lower lashes, holding the brush horizontally, but not only have you coated the super tiny hairs, you've also painted your lower lid black and now resemble a panda. Cute, but not the look you were going for. To keep the mascara off your face, hold the wand vertically and slowly coat your lashes by painting the formula on with the tip of the brush. Try Benefit Cosmetics They're Real Mascara.

16. Line your lash line in one continuous back-and-forth motion by gently pulling the skin at the outer corner of your eye taut.

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This makes your lash line straight instead of rounded, which makes the liner go on easier.

17. Use the handle of a spoon and the rounded edge to create the perfect cat-eye.

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Hold the handle of a spoon against the outer corner of your eye, and draw a straight line. Then, flip the spoon so it's hugging your eyelid, and use the rounded outer edge to create a perfectly curved, winged tip. After you've made your outline, fill it in, and draw a line across your lash line to finish the look. Clean up any wobbly edges with a precision cotton swab.

18. Apply eye shadow in the crease of your eye using a windshield wiper motion.

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Regardless of whether you're using a cream or powder shadow, dip a domed-tip contour eye brush into the formula, and then apply it using a windshield wiper-like back and forth motion, hugging the top of your eyeball for precise application.

19. Draw an "X" to define your cupid's bow.

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It's hard to make your cupid's bow look perfect like Rihanna's on a daily basis, but it isn't impossible. Actually, just by drawing an "X" in the center of your upper lip, you can instantly define it and then line your lips from there. Voilà!

20. Spray or shake your dry shampoo directly onto greasy roots to freshen up your style.

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To fix oily roots in a flash, spray or shake dry shampoo, like Bumble and Bumble Prêt-à-Powder, directly onto the area that needs oil sopped up. Not only will it leave you with fresh-from-the-salon-looking hair, it will also add volume to your roots.

21. Immediately scrunch your hair after spraying it with salt spray to boost waviness and texture.

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If you have any texture in your hair, the scrunching motion (after you've wet your hair with the salt spray, of course) will amp up any waviness. This combo also works if you don't have any wave in your natural hair, since the salt spray, which pulls the moisture and natural oils out of your hair, will instantly give it texture and the scrunching motion will increase the effect.

22. Slowly lift your hair from the ends and let it fall as you apply dry texture spray.

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With dry texture spray, you want to make sure you have even application for allover volume, especially when it comes to the layers underneath to give it structure, so it's good to use this technique to fully coat your strands.

23. Alternate wrapping sections of hair over and around the curling iron barrel, and then under and around for natural-looking curls.

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If you don't want prom spirals (who does?), alternate wrapping your hair over and under and then around the barrel of the iron to avoid a pageant-y look.

24. Dust styling powder that adds grip onto the section of hair you're about to work with.

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Whether you're putting your hair into a braid or wrapping it into a bun, styling powder will give it grip so it doesn't slip out. Try Osis+ Dust It Powder.

25. Use the "locking" technique with bobby pins to keep your style in place all day.

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When inserting a bobby pin, aim the open end of it against the direction that your hair is pulled. Next, rotate the pin so the open end is now facing the same direction as the hair, and push the pin in toward your head to secure it. If it's pushed in correctly, the pin will pull your hair tighter.

26. Conceal your scalp with a slanted contouring eye shadow brush and eye shadow to make it look like you have thicker hair.

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Celebrity stylists use this tip all the time to make A-listers look like they have thicker hair IRL and in photos. To pull off the same trick, run your shadow brush over eye shadow that matches your hair and dust it along your part.

27. Hold your hairspray can six to eight inches away from your head to avoid helmet head.

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If you hold your hairspray too close to your head, two things will happen: (1) You'll have really crunchy-feeling hair, and (2) your hair won't move when it's down, so it will look like you're wearing a helmet. To keep your hair in place, but still looking sexy and touchable, hold the can of spray six to eight inches away so only a light dusting falls onto your strands.

28. Apply cuticle oil properly using a horseshoe curve motion.

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You can put cuticle oil all over your nails haphazardly, but if you don't want it dripping down your fingers, trace your nail bed in a "U" shape, and then run the brush over the tip of your nail. This keeps your cuticle hydrated (three cheers for zero hangnails!), plus it strengthens the tips of your nails so they don't crack, tear, or peel. Try Lumos Dadi' Oil Organic Nail Treatment.

Follow Carly on Twitter and Instagram.

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Carly Cardellino

Carly Cardellino was the beauty director at Cosmopolitan. If you follow her Instagram, then you know she'll try just about any beauty trend or treatment once (the pics of her purple hair are on IG to prove it). But her favorite part about being in beauty is finding the most effective products, and then sharing that intel with others—because who wants to spend money on stuff that doesn't work? No one, that's who. Her most recent discovery: De La Cruz Sulfur Ointment, which will change your blemish-clearing game! Hopefully through the beauty stories she writes—and the experiences she shares—you can see exactly why she's in this business.