Get the Look: Cheer Hair and Cheer Makeup

If you eat, sleep and breathe the cheerleading life, then you know what a vital role hair and makeup play in your game day routine. Glitter, bows, matte makeup, voluminous ponytails and bold eye looks are a few things that come to mind when you picture a cheerleading beauty look. This means sweatproof makeup with long-wearing formulas and hair products that provide volume and long-lasting hold are key. 

If you’re on the lookout for some new beauty products to take your cheer beauty routine to the next level, we’re sharing a cheer makeup tutorial with long-lasting products and a cheerleading hair tutorial with the best hairspray to keep your makeup and hair in top shape while you relish in the team spirit.

Cheerleader Makeup Tutorial 

Cheer makeup should exaggerate your features so they can be seen while you’re on stage, on the court or on the field (even from the furthest back in the bleachers). Here’s a step-by-step routine to help you achieve a long-lasting cheerleader makeup look.

1. Prime

Your cheerleading makeup look needs to last for hours through sweat, lots of movement and possibly under warm fluorescent light or hot temperatures. The best way to keep your makeup intact is with a long-wearing makeup primer. If you have oily skin, try the L’Oréal Paris Prime Lab Up to 24H Matte Setter, which keeps your face shine-free and extends your makeup for up to 24 hours. The Prime Lab primer collection also includes options that address redness, dullness and large pores.

2. Apply Foundation

When deciding on foundation for your cheerleading makeup look, it’s best to pick a matte, long-wearing formula. We suggest the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Up to 24H Fresh Wear Foundation in a Powder because it’s sweatproof, transfer-proof, waterproof and lasts for up to 24 hours without looking cakey, making it perfect for a long day of cheers, jumps and flips. For a natural, airbrushed finish, apply this powder foundation with a blush brush and lightly stipple it onto your skin.

3. Highlight and Conceal

Once your foundation is on, then you can focus on concealing any blemishes and highlighting your features. A full-coverage concealer, like the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Full Wear Concealer up to 24H Full Coverage is a great option, plus its long-wearing formula and matte finish will help to boost the longevity of your cheer makeup look. If you’re concealing, go for the same shade as your foundation, if you’re highlighting, go two shades lighter. 

4. Add Dimension With Bronzer

Bronzer can be used to add color to your complexion, but it can also be used for contour. If you’re a competitive cheerleader, this step is vital to ensure that the harsh fluorescent stage lights don’t wash out your skin color or make you look flat. We suggest using the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Up to 24H Fresh Wear Soft Matte Bronzer, a bronzer powder with neutral undertones, that make it perfect for bronzing or contouring. 

5. Add Color With Blush

After you’ve bronzed your skin, applying blush is a great way to add a pop of color to your complexion, which further ensures that it won’t appear flat. The L’Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Blush is a great option with a long-wearing, matte formula that seamlessly blends into the skin to mask texture and imperfections. 

6. Define Your Eyes

Cheerleading makeup typically includes a smokey eye or some type of winged eyeliner to define your eyes. For a smokey eye, use a gel eyeliner, like the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Grip Mechanical Gel Eyeliner, which comes with a built-in smudger and allows you to achieve the look in minutes. To dial up the blending and smokey tones, use a neutral eyeshadow palette, like the L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Pocket Palette Eye Shadow in Boudoir Charm to create more contrast and deepen the look.

For a cheerleader-approved winged eyeliner makeup look, a waterproof, long-lasting formula is a must. We suggest the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Grip Precision Felt Waterproof Eyeliner, for its precise felt tip and its smudge-resistant formula that wears for up to 30 hours. Like your eyeliner, finish your eye makeup with a mascara that has a waterproof formula, like the L’Oréal Paris Telescopic Instant Lift Waterproof Mascara, which provides length, volume and lift to your lashes without clumps.

7. Choose a Matte Lipstick

Matte lipstick is always going to last longer than a glossy or satin formula because it’s meant to stay in place and not transfer. We love the L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Intense Volume Matte Lipstick because the long-wearing matte formula includes hyaluronic acid for a comfortable finish that doesn’t look or feel dry on the lips. Choose a bright shade, like red or pink to help your makeup look pop.

If you prefer liquid lipstick, try a long-wearing formula, like the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Pro-Matte Liquid Lipstick, which coats your pout with pigmented matte color for up to 16 hours.

8. Set Your Face

To ensure that your cheerleading makeup look lasts well past your competition or game, spritz your face with the L’Oréal Paris Infallible Pro-Spray and Set Make-Up Oil-Free Setting Spray to give your makeup a smudge-proof finish that lasts all day.

Cheerleader Hair Tutorial

These days, cheerleader hair includes lots of trends, including the tried-and-true half-up ponytail or a high, voluminous ponytail with a bow. Here’s how to get both looks with a few simple steps.

1. Brush Your Hair

Before you attempt any type of updo brush your hair — it’s going to make the process much easier by making your hair more smooth and manageable. After you brush through your hair and it’s free of tangles, feel free to use a frizz-reducing serum, like the L’Oréal Paris Elvive Dream Lengths Frizz Killer Serum Leave-In, to smooth any unruly flyaways.

2. Create Your Ponytail

First, decide on your ponytail. Are you doing a half-up pony or a full ponytail? Once you decide on that, then you can decide on the placement of your ponytail. Use a brush to comb your hair towards the back of your head, creating a smooth crown. Once you have the proper placement of your half-up ponytail or full ponytail, use a hair elastic to secure it in place and make it tight. 

3. Add Your Bow

Once your ponytail is secure, grab your bow and attach it to your ponytail. Make sure it's secure so it can stay put through back handsprings, cartwheels and jumps.

If you’re not using a bow, take a small piece of hair, about half an inch thick, and wrap it around the base of your ponytail to conceal the hair tie. Once the hair tie is no longer visible, secure the section of hair you wrapped around it with a bobby pin.

4. Smooth the Crown of Your Hair 

To keep your ponytail smooth, add hair gel, like the L’Oréal Paris Studio Line Mega Gel to a clean toothbrush and use it to smooth your crown and lay down any baby hairs. 

5. Add the Finishing Touches

After applying the hair gel, feel free to add some curls to your ponytail or half-up style for extra volume. If you plan on using a curling wand, first apply the aforementioned, L’Oréal Paris Elvive Dream Lengths Frizz Killer Serum Leave-In, which doubles as a heat protectant.

Once your style is complete, set it with a light mist of strong-hold hairspray, like the L’Oréal Paris Satin Extra Strong Hold, Light Hairspray Unscented. It leaves the hair soft and shiny without that dreaded, hairspray crunchy curl. 

Next: The Best Passport Makeup for a Great Travel Photo

Photographer: Rachel Bronstein, Makeup: Rachel Bronstein, Model: Taylar Bronstein, Hair: Lyndzi Bronstein