9 Genius Beauty Hacks You Can Do With Q-Tips and Cotton Balls

Take Down Your Perfume

If you sprayed a little too much perfume on your wrists, apply unscented lotion to your skin on a Q-tip (or a cotton round) to wipe it away.

Prevent Your Eye Shadow From Breaking

Pretty clever: Keep your eye shadow in one piece by placing a Q-tip Beauty Round inside the case or palette. Trim it down if necessary to fit.

Dial Down Your Bronzer

Every now and then we all get a little heavy-handed with bronzer or blush. Rather than washing off your makeup and starting over, gently rub a dry cotton ball over the area where there’s too much makeup to remove the product.

Use It With Lipstick in Place of Lip Liner

If liner isn’t your thing, apply a few swipes of lipstick and use a Q-tip to blend it out against your lip line for better definition. 

Know What Your Polish Looks Like

There’s nothing worse than getting a manicure only to discover that the color you’ve selected looks nothing like it did in the bottle. One of the smartest ways to use Q-tips is by dipping the end in the bottle of polish and making a small dot on the cap. This way, you can see what the color looks like when it’s dry.

Get That Perfect Highlight Down Your Nose

If you don’t have a brush, dip the end of a Q-tip into your favorite powder highlighter and apply it down the center of your nose in a thin line. Then, use your finger to buff it out, if need be.

Save Your Favorite Makeup

Hate it when you drop your favorite makeup and it cracks and breaks? Us, too. Salvage it by adding a few drops of rubbing alcohol to the pan and mix it together with a Q-tip, using it to pack the shadow back into place.

Touch Up Your Roots

When you can’t make it to the salon and a root concealer is nowhere in sight, a bit of matte eye shadow (use one that’s close to your hair color) dabbed onto a Q-tip and swiped over grays can cover them up in a pinch.

Thicken Your Lashes

To add even more volume to your lashes than what your mascara wand can deliver, dip a Q-tip in loose translucent powder and gently apply it to your lashes before you put on your mascara.