Makeup

You guys, I just love Bobbi Brown.  Love!  Her collections never disappoint me and most of the time, when I see them, I have a moment of, “Ooooh, that’s how I should wear those colors!”  Her Spring 2012 collection, Neons & Nudes, falls exactly into that category.  I just adore the way she has the pops of color on the lips, while everything else is soft and muted.  I tend to find myself falling into the same pattern of always emphasizing my eyes and doing a nude lip, so this is a perfect way to get me out of my rut and shake up my look.  (more…)

We recently caught up with celebrity brow specialist and makeup artist Kristie Streicher, who has an incredibly keen eye for stylish, often eco-friendly finds. In addition to grooming famous brows in New York City, volunteering with her father’s nonprofit organization (Divine Spark) and amassing what Vogue dubbed a “killer vintage wardrobe,” Kristie recently opened the new Kristie Streicher Beauty Bar inside L.A.’s Warren Tricomi salon. Here are her latest obsessions: (more…)

Sephora has a new collection of eye shadows out called Prisma Chrome shadows that caught my eye right when I walked in the other day.  I love when the packaging of products is appealing as well and these certainly fit the bill for that.

The shadows come in individual compacts with a half-raised sort of wave pattern.  So pretty!  The shadows themselves are billed as bringing together the best features of baked, powder and cream shadows.  To me, they seem more like powder shadows, but I have to admit, when I first started playing with them, I just thought they were going to be cream shadows, for some reason.  I was totally surprised when I felt their texture and it was more powdery.

The shadows are available in ten different shades ranging from an opalescent pink beige to a dark plum and I really like the color selection.  There wasn’t one that I wouldn’t have been happy taking home with me.  I tried out three different shades – Shimmery Sand 10 (a light golden sand), Gold Reflection 20 (a bright yellow gold) and Sapphire Shine 30 (a royal blue).  I really like the finish on these – they’re very shiny and pigmented and they reflect light fabulously.  I especially like the bolder shades; I don’t have any colors in my (far too) vast collection that are the same as Gold Reflection and Sapphire Shine has very few dupes as well.

They’re bright and fun and would totally work for a dramatic colorful look for a night out.  And at only $15 each, it’s an easily justifiable purchase.  In fact, I have to return something at the mall tonight and I’m thinking of stopping in Sephora and picking up the Burgundy Gem shade.  I deserve it!

There’s nothing more important than having your skin look as flawless as possible.  After all, if your skin doesn’t look good, no one will be able to get past that to check out your fabulous eye makeup!  One of the best ways to achieve the look of perfection is with MAKE UP FOR EVER’s new HD Complexion Starter Kit.  The Sephora exclusive contains a .17 ounce HD Microfinish Powder, a HD Kabuki Brush, a .5 ounce HD Microperfecting Primer, and a 1.01 ounce HD Invisible Cover Foundation.  I’ve used all these products and they’re all great individually, but together, they’re like Photoshop for your face.  I love how perfect the set makes my skin look and how well it photographs while I’m wearing them, especially since it’s not a lengthy process – I can do it in the morning in less than five minutes, so it’s super easy.

To celebrate the launch, MAKE UP FOR EVER is hosting its first ever open casting call to find the next model for their Unretouched ad campaign.  Women can create their own makeup look and then submit it for consideration here.  All of the finalists will get their photos posted on Facebook and the winner will be flown to NYC for a professional photo shoot in late February.

In addition, they’re also launching an interactive shade finder tool that’s made to help women find their perfect foundation match online.  Such a great idea since that’s always dicey without help, especially when a company offers as many different shades as MAKE UP FOR EVER.  Just go here to try it out for yourself.  Your skin will thank you!

My good friend Jen, who has the skin of a 2-year-old, just tipped me off about the Josie Maran Argan Care for Beautiful Skin kit at Sephora. At only $56, it’s such a good deal. (I mean, a full-size Josie Maran Argan Oil by itself is $48!) It even comes with a pack of one of our favorites makeup removers, Bare Naked Wipes, as well as a cleanser, lip treatment, and blush/lip color.

If you’re an Argan-oil fan, or just need a great lightweight all-purpose moisturizer, don’t miss out. We’ve professed our love for Josie Maran products many times before, and the line continues to exceed our expectations. I can’t wait to get my hands on this … in fact, I won’t wait. I’m going right now, and I might even snag their brand new Josie Maran Argan Balm while I’m at it.

So, confession: I’ve been hoarding eyeliners — specifically Tarte MultiplEYE Lash Enhancing Liquid Liner — and I’ve been holding out on telling you how great it is. I know, I’m a horrible person. Please forgive me. On the bright side, I don’t think I’m alone; they’re frequently “out of stock” at tartecosmetics.com and celebrity makeup artists like Amy Nadine (Lauren Conrad, Kate Bosworth, Krysten Ritter) loooove them. (more…)

In the week leading up to the Golden Globes, all I can think about is Marilyn Monroe’s style. Actress Michelle Williams may face tough competition for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical (she’s nominated along with Jodie Foster, Charlize Theron, Kristen Wiig and Kate Winslet); but when it comes to who played the character with the highest chic factor, Michelle wins hands down.

Here, my favorite ways to channel Marilyn’s timeless look (clockwise): (more…)

Whether you plan on rocking out hard this December 31st  or attend an intimate soiree (that’s me), New Year’s Eve is the best reason to try a festive new makeup look- and a few sparkles.  Below, I share some of my favorite new finds for the season.  May these great products make you feel extra beautiful this New Year!

Complexion

Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturizer:  Too many flutes of bubbly may dry out your skin so make sure to take preventative action with this new tinted moisturizer from Clinique which combines sheer layer of color with the brand’s best selling ultra lightweight moisturizer. If you’re going for a au-natural finish, this product does double duty as your moisturizer and foundation, or if you prefer a flawless finish, dabble heavier coverage foundation in trouble areas over.

Cle de Peau Refining Fluid Foundation: This serum-like foundation ranks as one of my all time favorite products and uses complex technology to make your skin look radiant and dewy under any type of lighting while a built in control powder prevents shine. The long lasting formulation stays as fresh at the end of the night as when you first apply it and the medium coverage provides a flawless finish.

Bobbi Brown Party Shimmer Brick: Having long been a fan of Bobbi Brown shimmer bricks, it’s no surprise that I think the special party brick in Oro/Argento is perfect for an evening look.  Whether you’re going for an overall warm or cool makeup look, this brick has got you covered, adding just the right amount of shimmer to highlight and brighten.  Try sweeping the gold across the brow bones to add a subtle twinkle to your eye.

Clarins Passion Face Palette: While this holiday palette is meant for the face, my favorite use is  to sweep it along the collar bones and decolletage for an all over subtle rosy finish that is sure to look great in photos.

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Urban Decay never fails to wow me, especially around the holidays when their already impressive lineup always expands to include lots of fun sparkly makeup and tons of holiday gift sets.  This year is no exception.  There’s so many fun things to play around with, I almost didn’t know where to start when I picked them up.  (more…)

I never really thought that I liked matte lips, although admittedly I hadn’t tried on a matte lipstick in a very long time.  But recently, I got the chance to try some of Chanel’s new Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colours and now I’m all over the matte trend.

One of the main reasons that I’d avoided matte shades is because I thought they’d be drying, but these aren’t at all.  They have as much moisture in them as all my “regular” lipsticks, so that fear was put to rest immediately.  There are eight shades total, ranging from a few bright colors to other, more subdued neutrals, which were my favorite of the bunch.  (Although shade 41 L’Exquise, a deep red wine shade, is probably my first pick out of the ones I tried.  It’s just so rich and sophisticated).  I like that all the shades are highly-pigmented – these aren’t lipsticks you’ll have to put three layers on to see any color, which is my pet peeve in a lot of lipsticks.  They’re vibrant and colorful right from the first touch.  I also like that although the finish is definitely matte and not glossy, it’s not a formula that settles into the lines on your mouth.  There are no Grandma lips here!  All in all, any of these would make a great addition to your lipstick wardrobe.  Plus, the case is so chic and I love the way you push on the bottom to get the lipstick out.  It means there’s no way that any of the shades will wind up all over the inside of your purse and since that just happened to me with another lipstick and ruined a bunch of things inside, I’m very happy about it.  I heart Chanel!