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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Duke chapter.

We’ve all had those days. We’re late for class, our hair is unruly, our contacts simply won’t cooperate, and our only clean article of clothing is a sweatshirt. One of my New Years’ resolutions is to never, ever try to rock the grunge look again. Instead, I thought of new ways to turn my otherwise sad appearance into Geek Chic. 

Since your outfit doesn’t meet your normal cute standards, you have to make up for it in two other key areas: hair and makeup.
 
For your hair, you can do a quick and easy (but oh so cute!) ballerina bun. (Watch this video to see how it’s done!)
Follow these steps:

  • If time allows, start by quickly curling under the ends of your hair with a one-inch curling iron.
  • Flip your hair over and gather it all into an elastic for a high ponytail. Use a brush to ensure that everything is smooth.
  • Hold your ponytail straight up and back comb to create volume. Use a regular brush and downward strokes.
  • Twist the ponytail (but not too tightly) at the base, and wrap the rest of your hair around it to create a bun.
  • Use bobby pins to secure the bun in place and a comb to smooth down any fly-aways.
  • Use a firm-holding hairspray to keep your perfect ballerina bun in place.

 
Now that your hair is finished, you need the right makeup so you look fresh and awake behind your glasses.

  • Begin with your normal base regimen (e.g. concealer, foundation, powder). Peach tones are best for under the eyes because they will counteract any dark shadows cast by your glasses.
  • With so much attention drawn to your eyes because of your glasses, you may want to define your brows using a brow shadow and brush or a brow pencil.
  • Highlight your eyelid with a light, shimmery shadow.
  • Add depth to your eyes by brushing a medium shade into the crease. You use Double Feature 6 by MAC for the perfect colors.
  • Really open up your eye by lining your lower water line with a white or nude liner. This one in Topaz is great.
  • Line your upper and lower lids with dark brown shadow (in bronze), with more emphasis on the bottom lid.
  • Make sure to curl your lashes so that they don’t hit your lenses. The trick is to curl in three places: right at the root, midway, and at the tips of your lashes.
  • Finish off with your favorite mascara.
  • After putting your glasses on, round the edges of your face with a pretty pink blush on your cheeks, like MAC’s in fleur power.
  • Add a pop of favorite lip color, and you’re good to go!

 
Photo from: http://thenylareport.com/2010/07/28/trend-alert-geek-chic/
Thumbnail from: http://styletips101.com/hair-how-tos/never-have-a-bad-hair-day-again.html

Betty Liu is a senior at Duke University where she is majoring in Biomedical Engineering.  Although her main interests lie in bioengineering, she loves keeping up with the latest trends on Duke's campus. Also, she enjoys learning about new music, reading and travelling around the world. One of her life dreams is to go to all seven continents! So far, she has been to four.