First Date Survival Guide: Beauty Self-Care Tips You Need to Know

Preparing for something as special as a first date can be challenging. Having never been out with this person before can make it difficult to figure out what to wear, how to act, where to go, and what to talk about during your time together.

Of course, like most things, you’ll want to be your most authentic self when going into this experience, but learning how to do so in a way that helps you make a good first impression can certainly be tricky. From the way you dress, to the amount of makeup you wear, everything plays a part in your ability to carry yourself confidently throughout your date.

Feeling good on the outside starts with feeling good about yourself on the inside, which is why we’ve created a first date survival guide to assist you as you prepare for this special moment. So, get ready to put your best face forward by following these beauty self-care tips you need to know for your first date!

First Date Skin Care

A truly effective beauty routine starts with prepped and primed skin. To learn how to enhance your complexion before your first date, follow these beauty self-care tips for healthy-looking skin:

Establish a Daily Skin Care Routine

First and foremost, you need to establish a daily skin care regimen that’s customized to your skin type and particular concerns. Gently washing and moisturizing your skin is great and all, but these steps aren’t fool-proof when it comes to actually targeting and treating the needs of your skin. To do this, you’ll need to add a few treatment products that are unique to the conditions you’re looking to care for. For example, if you’re struggling with chronic breakouts, now is the time to introduce a custom acne treatment to your current skin care regime. Doing so will allow you to combat those unwanted blemishes in no time, allowing you to maintain a clear, clean complexion for your first-date, and ultimately feel more secure in your skin.

Exfoliate

Although exfoliation should not be an everyday step in your skin care regimen, it’s something you’ll want to incorporate into your weekly routine once or twice a week depending on your skin type. Regardless if you have dry skin or not, exfoliating is for everyone. No matter how sensitive your complexion may be, exfoliating works to buff away dead skin cells, which in turn, helps to minimize the appearance of discoloration and even out skin texture. Plus, regular exfoliation will better serve to support the foundation of your makeup, allowing your beauty products to apply more smoothly to the surface of skin and enhance your natural glow overall.

Perform DIY Facials

Whether you’re ballin’ on a budget or simply do not have time to book a professional facial, nothing says beauty self-care quite like a DIY facial. Creating your own luxurious face mask using common ingredients found in your kitchen (honey, aloe, coconut oil, etc.) is a great way to give your skin the extra boost it needs before you head out on your first date. And you don’t just need to stop there! Aside from crafting your one-of-a-kind face mask at-home, you can also perform other facial techniques that can further compliment your features. For instance, using a jade roller to gently massage your facial muscles is not only effective for sculpting out your bone structure, but it can also be an effective way to temporarily decrease puffiness as it works to stimulate lymphatic drainage and remove toxins from your face.

First Date Hair Care

Your skin isn’t the only area on your body that deserves some TLC when preparing for a first date, your hair needs some love too! To ensure you’ve given enough to your locks, remember the following beauty self-care tips:

Bathe in Lukewarm Water

It doesn’t matter if you opt for a relaxing bath or de-stressing shower. Either way, bathe in lukewarm water. Even though hot water is oftentimes preferred, it’s not ideal when it comes to caring for your hair, as it can reduce moisture content and weaken the strands of hair on your head. Lukewarm water, on the other hand, can strengthen your hair and reduce breakage and hair loss. So while it may be tempting, try to refrain from scorching hot temperatures when bathing. Or, if you do decide to stick to warmer water, try to reduce the heat in the last few minutes of bathing. This way, your hair will have a chance to rinse the extra heat and replace it with cooler temperatures, so breakage is less likely to occur afterwards.

Apply a Hair Mask

Hair masks work similarly to face masks as they’re designed to treat particular needs of your hair using problem-solving ingredients like coconut milk and/or olive oil. They’re sufficient in treating a variety of hair types and concerns including breakage, shine, frizz, dryness, and color, making them essentially universal for everyone, no matter what hair type you’re working with! Still, it’s important to know which mask is right for you before making your selection. For optimal results and hair protection, consider building your own perfect hair mask formula.

Detangle & Polish

When you’ve finished cleaning and treating your hair, it’s time to detangle and polish. The last thing you want is to look like you just rolled out of bed right before your first date, so try to take this step in stride by properly combing through your knots and styling your hair in a way that’s conducive to you and your first date plans. Are you going to a romantic dinner in the evening? Are you spending the day doing fun fall activities like apple picking or pumpkin picking? Having an idea of what the agenda is for your first date can give you a better sense of how you’d like to style your hair for the duration of your date.

First Date Style

Finally, as you prepare for your first date survival guide, be sure to spend some time addressing your style. The clothes, shoes, and accessories you wear out can be very telling about who you are as a person, so take advantage of this while you can! To get you started out on the right foot, here are some beauty self-care tips you’ll want to follow:

Pick Your Fit the Night Before

To give yourself ample time to decide what to wear, aim to pick your outfit the night before your first date. The very act of picking out your attire much earlier than you need to will help to ease nerves and give you a chance to try on multiple outfits if needed. Having this step taken care of the night before will also allow you to get your beauty sleep, another critical aspect to your pre-date beauty routine.

Choose Cute & Comfortable Clothes

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t have to dress to the nines to make a good first impression. While you may look fashionable in a tight, bodycon dress, chances are you’re not going to feel that comfortable, and therefore, not as confident. Remember that body language plays a huge role in your ability to make a good first impression, and when you feel uncomfortable, your body is going to show it. That said, reach for clothes that you know are both flattering, fitting for the occasion, and practical to wear throughout the course of your date.

Wear Red or Black

To seem more desirable and confident on your first date, opt for red or black clothing. As reported by two psychologists from this University of Rochester study, “The color red makes men feel more amorous toward women. And men are unaware of the role the color plays in their attraction.”

Interestingly enough, the same study also found that men were more likely to spend more on a woman if she was wearing the color red! Comparatively, wearing black can make you appear both attractive and fashionable in the eyes of the other person. According to a 2018 study conducted by the British reality television show, “First Dates,” the color black is actually the most popular color to wear on a first date, regardless of your sexual preference or gender.

It can be hard to expect the unexpected when it comes to first dates. Luckily, with the help of these beauty self-care tips, feeling confident from the inside out will come much more naturally, making for an ideal first impression. Good luck!