‘High maintenance to be low maintenance’ beauty trend shaves minutes off your morning routine

We’re all familiar with batch cooking, which involves preparing the week’s meals in advance, usually on Saturdays or Sundays, to save time and avoid grabbing a ready meal on the way home. This practice has been popular in consumers’ kitchens for some time, but it may now be making its way into their bathrooms. At least, that’s what the latest viral beauty trend on social networks suggests.

The ‘high maintenance to be low maintenance’ trend has already scored more than 50 million views on TikTok. It’s a real phenomenon that’s shaking up the beauty habits of consumers, who now prefer to invest in more demanding, more costly but more long-lasting services to free up time day to day.

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Getting up (almost) ready to go

This new beauty routine (1.4 million views for #highmaintenanceroutine) is all about getting more sleep, and waking up (almost) ready to leave the house.

And while you might not yet have heard its name, ‘high maintenance to be low maintenance’ may already be firmly entrenched in your daily habits, with tricks like permanent hair removal, which has been popular for several years now, eliminating the need for daily shaving.

It’s an undeniable time-saver, with the added bonus of avoiding ongoing maintenance that can be both restrictive and costly in the long term.

@fernandaraamirez my WHOLE maintenance routine!!! 💄🧴🎀🫶🏻 #maintenancetips #beautyroutine ♬ 10 minutes! Fashionable and bright jazz piano(1127989) – nyansuke

On the Chinese social network, it’s now customary to share your ‘high maintenance routine’ and show how it saves you time from the moment you wake up. And when asked what tricks people prioritise above all else, TikTokers are unanimous – or almost unanimous – in mentioning laser hair removal, undoubtedly the most popular beauty service.

But it’s far from the only one. In fact, this new-style routine can be tailored to individual needs and budgets, since there are no strict rules. While some go to hair and beauty salons to seek the help of experienced professionals, others get creative with DIY ways to optimise their beauty routine and avoid spending too long in the bathroom every morning.

Brow lamination, blow outs, ‘tantouring’

Salon services include eyelash extensions, brow lamination sessions for full, perfectly defined and neat eyebrows, eyelash lifts for naturally curled lashes, keratin treatments for permanently silky hair, gel manicures (which can also be done at home) or nail extensions, plus microblading for semi-permanent eyebrow redesign and restructuring, and Brazilian hair straightening.

There are many other services and techniques that can be carried out by a professional, but these are among the most popular with social media users. Botox is also cited as a way of avoiding facial treatments deemed inconvenient by some.

But those who don’t have the budget for these services can be inventive at home.

For hair, a blow-out can hold several days, for example, just as numerous tricks spotted on the social platform can get you perfectly defined curls in record time. These include using socks and the ‘ponytail blowout’. But an intense, optimal haircare routine, carried out at least once a week, also means less time spent in the bathroom every day.

On the makeup front, tantouring seems to be a top hack for many people. This involves creating permanent, or almost permanent, contouring using a self-tan products.

These are just some of the tips that can help streamline a morning beauty routine to gain you a few extra minutes of sleep without having to neglect your appearance.

@jacquelynmengel grwm for bed 🫶🏼 #grwm #skincare #makeup #nightroutine #highmaintenance #lowmaintenance #lowmaintenancehair #girls #girlproblems ♬ original sound – anna ☂️