Butt glue may not be useful in everyday scenarios, but pageant contestants have a few other helpful beauty tricks up their sleeveless ball gowns.

 

This past weekend, 2.9 million viewers tuned in to watch women from every corner of America compete in the Miss USA pageant for the 66th time. 51 evening gowns and one Pitbull performance later, Kara McCullough, Miss District of Colombia, was crowned Miss USA  2017.

 

While we can’t believe beauty pageants are still a thing, we are pretty in awe of those extremely polished—not to mention cry-proof—looks. A lot of time, skill and effort goes into the shiny hair, perfect makeup and sky-high heels, all while maintaining an air of easy confidence. Here are the tips that you didn’t learn from watching Miss Congeniality.

 

1.Get Glowing Skin

 

Contestants come from varied backgrounds, but one thing they all have in common is flawless skin. How do they do it? Adding to the seemingly never-ending uses for coconut oil, one beauty queen trick is using the pantry staple for a moisturizing makeup remover. Simply rub it onto dry skin, wipe off with a soft cloth and voila! You’re ready to give your skin a deep cleanse. Seasoned pageant participants also swear by baby wipes to take off all that stage makeup.

 

2. Arrive Bright-Eyed

 

Under the bright lights, under-eye bags take center stage and probably won’t earn you any points with the judges. Backstage tricks for diminishing dark circles and under-eye puffiness range from cold spoons to eye massagers, but there’s one universally-loved makeup secret: Preparation H. Something about imagining so many stunning women running around with hemorrhoid cream on their faces just makes us giggle.

 

3. Smile for the Cameras!

 

 

It may sound like a cliché beauty queen answer, but if there’s something you should always wear, it’s a smile. After all, “Smilers wear a crown, losers wear a frown.” To make those pearly whites shine even brighter, contestants recommend brushing with baking soda once a month. The easy-to-clean silicone ISSA makes the transition between baking soda and toothpaste a breeze. And should you ever have the need to grin for four hours straight, put petroleum jelly on your teeth to remind you to smile.

 

4. Not a Hair Out of Place

 

When it comes to pageant hair, volume and shine are key components. Nothing beats a set of curlers, a teasing comb and hairspray to get hair high enough to be crowned Miss Texas. For shine, some contestants live for DIY hair treatments. Egg masks and beer rinses turn on the shine in an inexpensive way.

 

5. Highlight Your Best Assets

 

The much-discussed swimsuit portion of the competition sounds like our worst nightmare come true, and wrapping up in cellophane before hopping on the treadmill to tighten up sounds a bit extreme. But, there are a few pageant tricks to emphasizing your best features. Adding highlighter to your collarbone and hip bones will help them pop. For picture-perfect photos, stand with one foot in front of the other for a slimming effect.

 

You may have to keep working on your pageant wave, but in the meantime these tips will help you bring out your inner beauty queen. You’re all winners in our eyes.