The party season has arrived – and for those of us with 9-5 jobs, that usually means a dash to the ladies to fight over mirror space as we transform ourselves from a classic office look to full-on party glamour.

It doesn’t have to be that way. With the tips below, you can get the hard work done in the morning, gliding effortlessly from desk to dancefloor with the help of a compact mirror and a few key purchases. Get ready to party!

9AM – APPLY WEAR A LONG-WEAR BASE

5PM – PERFECT WITH POWDER
Apply a long-wear base that morning – and top up with a quick application of powder at the end of the day to mattify and perfect your complexion. Stila Stay All Day Foundation and Concealer, £29.50, is ideal – an ultra long-wearing makeup base that glides effortlessly onto skin and hides imperfections and blemishes.

For the powder top-up at 5pm, slip DIOR Diorskin Forever Pressed Powder, £29.05 into your handbag, which has an ultra-fine, transparent texture to blend with foundation and extend foundation hold by 4 hours. It also has a wide mirror to make application easy.

9AM – LINE EYES WITH WATERPROOF LIQUID LINER

5PM – ADD A FLICK TO CORNERS OF EYES AND APPLY EYE-SHADOW
Keep the rest of your makeup classic and office appropriate, but on the morning of the party, line your upper lid with jet-black liquid eyeliner. It needs to be a long-wearing formula, such as Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner in Carbon Black, £13.

At the end of the working day, add a flick to the corner to each eye to take the look to party glamour. Rest your elbow on your desk to keep your hand steady, then draw a quick, confident flick out and then curled slightly upwards. The larger the flick, the more dramatic.

Keep the rest of your eye simple, with one sweep of a sparkly shadow (do your best to avoid the line you drew that morning to keep it sharp) applied up to the crease of your eye. Stila Jewel Eye Shadow in Opal, £13, will work well.

5PM – THE FINER DETAILS – CHEEKS AND LIPS

With your base and eyes perfected, it’s time to move onto the finer details. Start by dotting a small amount of highlighter on the apple of each cheekbone. A liquid formula is easier to blend, such as Stila All Over Shimmer Liquid, £14.

Finish with your choice of lipstick or lipgloss on lips. If you like wearing bold colour, you can’t beat a bright, pillar-box red at Christmas parties – try Daniel Sandler Micro-Bubble Lipstick in Red, £13.25. If you prefer gloss, look for something with a little sparkle and reapply regularly throughout the night, such as Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Flash-Pumping Spotlight Shine Gloss in Extravagant Grenadine, £20.