In honor of the amazing Sandra Bullock and her Best Actress win at the Oscars, but mostly about her fuscia red lips, were gonna talk lipstick today. Man she looked good last night! I saw some stunning classic old Hollywood makeup on the red carpet. I must admit, it is my favorite.
I have to mention my good bud Jessica at Jessica B. Photography asked for a tip on purchasing red lip stick. As we all know, red can be a deceptive color and difficult to purchase. Red comes in shades of orange, pinks and blue. I should know I carry 5 shades of red in mykit and sometimes I'll mix in a bit of the above just to make the color work on my subject.
This is where beauty advisors at the mall come in. But first thing is first! You need to be in control of the purchase.. Don't be mesmerized by the sale's girl's makeup mastery. And counter hop, every line's colors are going to be different, so be prepared to tell the truth and be opinionated. Yes, they will hate you for it and when you buy only one tube after you've spent 3 hours going through colors, they'll roll their eyes when your not looking. Your other options are inviting a beauty consultant to your home, or attending parties like Mary Kay, Arbonne and Avon. This affords you the opportunity to try as many colors as your heart desires without collecting a drawer full of lipstick tubes you don't like.
Purchasing a red lipstick is all about being prepared. Be on a Red Lipstick Mission! Don't go looking for red without makeup on or in a shirt that clashes with red. You will hate every color you try, I promise.
Red Lipstick is a polished look of balance, so have a simple polished face on when you embarq on your mission. A white or black shirt will also help you see the true results as you are trying different shades on. And bring touch up concealer/foundation and powder with you. Because you will have a pink ring around your lips as you remove each try. Apply the concealer over the pinked skin before each application.
Red is such a preference color, its all about what you like and how it makes you feel. There really is no perfect shade for every woman in the world. My Favorite reds are by Avon, Loreal, Bobbie Brown and Lancome. I looked up shades, but alas most of them are discontinued, such is the norm with cosmetic companies and color in particular.
So have fun and make a day of it... I know like we have time for this right?
Remember all those awesome Runway Looks I told you about. Boy did I have fun doing them on this beautiful flawless model. She looked amazing. Actually, she'd look amazing in a gunny sack..
Now that it has hit the stands, I can share the Spring Fashion Shoot with you via Luxury Las Vegas Magazine.
These were my faves of the bunch. Now I you know you all wanna go out and buy orange eyeshadow and tomato red lipstick for spring right? Just kidding.
I myself find breaking the makeup routine difficult. Especially as I age. Yesterday, we were going out on a date, so I decided to try a new makeup look on myself. I used a product on my eyelids that I love to use at work and never use at home. It was a disaster, it looked aweful. Now tell me why is it I have trouble with makeup??? I'll tell you.. My face isnt young and flawless anymore. In fact I have very crepe-y eyelids, due to a bout with psoriasis in 2000 that was all over my eyelids and underneath my eyes. The only thing that made it go away was a cream that thinned out my skin so badly, I have 80 year old eyelids. I've managed to find products that don't accentuate the wrinkles. But Ugh! It sux.. Anyway I digress..
My point is, perhaps the same old same old isnt so bad. I decided to continue to live by my 5 minute rule. "If you can slap it on in 5 minutes and feel good about yourself, then you've done a great makeup." So what if you like your blue eyeshadow from the 80's, if you carry well... you go gurl..
So I'll pass on the orange eyeshadow this season, I might consider the lipstick. However the foundation, loose powder, blush mascara routine I've been doing since 1990 will stay with me for now...
See even I cant break the makeup habit.. Have you changed your makeup routine lately? Hard Habit to Break by Chicago
So I have a few secrets up my sleeve when it comes to skin care. This one really is totally old school but still applies and something that is so important but so forgotten as well. One thing I learned back in the day working at a cosmetic counter was that women want to fix skin problems with makeup...
They'd come and say things like
"I need a new foundation, my skin is flaky" or "My foundation is making me really oily, can you suggest a new one" or "My foundation is turning orange, I need a new one." or "My foundation is separating and coming off, I need a different one."
So people, "I know this much is true", you cant fix your skin problems with makeup...
The same questions would come up regarding moisturizers and skin treatments. "It's not working." "My skin is breaking out in pimples." etc. etc.
When I was in training I hung on to a tid-bit of information that really really stuck with me.
PH Balance...
xxx
The first time I'd ever heard of PH Balance was with Sea Breeze back in the 80's. So what is the magic product that can 90% of the time fix all your problems? A simple toner.. Yup, that's it.. See without PH Balance in the skin, your acidity levels are whack and because of this your skin actually rejects any treatment you apply, so all that expensive skin care is sitting on your skin and wasting away. Some people still see small results with skin care, but when you add a toner, you are guaranteed bigger better results.
Here is a great clip from AnswerBag
"When you skin ph is too high it means your skin will be less able to fight off bacterial infections, acne and oil skin (??). When you skin ph is too low your skin will appear dull, aged and un-elastic. You see in the skin there are two layers the outer layer, the epidermis layer, and the inner layer, the Dermal layer. One is responsible for fighting off Bacteria (Epidermis layer) and the other responsible for making your skin appear more elastic and youthful (Dermal Layer). It is important that you maintain your skin ph around the 5.5 range because the epidermis layer functions better in acidic conditions whereas the Dermal layer functions better in Akaline conditions. I hoped this helped."
This was a dangerous piece of information to a cosmetic sales girl who was sick of pushing unnecessary products on people. I'd send them home with a toner, not the most expensive thing at the counter and their problems would be fixed. Needless to say, my sales went way way down because I was fixing problems instead of pushing the latest, greatest most expensive new product at the counter. I have a hard time endorsing products I don't believe in.
Toner seems like a pain in the hiney step, you gotta get the cotton ball, open and close the bottle, throw the cotton away, etc. What I do is buy a small spritzer from the travel section and fill it with a non alcohol toner, and before I step out of the shower, spritz the face before you dry it. Simple and done! I've also learned that toner is great for dry scalp as well, my hubby and I both struggle with it with our dry climate and hard water. We keep a spritzer of Rosewater and Witch hazel for our heads in between shampooing and conditioning. Works like a charm. My uncle was having issues with dry hands and callouses, he too started spritzing his hands before lotion and it worked!
Is there a magic toner? NO... Here is the tricky part, as is with all products. REMEMBER THE TRUTH "We all have a different body chemistry, so what works for you, may not work for me." So I say, start at the drug store and work your way up the chart. Would there be thousands of different products and a billion dollar beauty industry if there was one magic line for everyone?
What works for me is Loreal Hydra Fresh Toner. I also like Kiehlsarray of toners. And as for my scalp, Thayer's does the trick for me.
Let me end with. If something burns or causes raised redness or a pimply rash, stop using it. If you have some blemishes, most likely your skin is purging and a complete skin cycle is about 3 to 4 weeks, which seems like forever. And if you just ate a bag of Butterfingers like me, you cant blame your makeup when zits start to show up.
And on a sidenote SUPER SMOOCHES to Sassy Chica for this award.
Awards are so fun. They validate my rising blogging time on the computer when I could be doing other things like cleaning the kitchen, doing the laundry, picking up dog doo in the back yard. But Awards totally justify ignoring these things, don't you agree? Thanks for the LOVE Sassy and the justification. But the thing with awards is, there are rules. Which is a good thing, rules make it official. So I must blog officially... right?
The rules for this award are very simple...see for yourself
1. Post award on your blog, thank the person who awarded you and link back to their blog.
2. Pass the award to 15 newly found or favorite blogs you feel are worthy of the Best Blog Title.
(be sure to let the awarded blogger know you have awarded them this lovely honor)
I've been lacking for clever blog topics, because my brain is soooo geared for Graphic Design these days (I'm designing blogs and websites while I sleep) my other creative outlets are stumped. So I said to myself "Self, how about a makeup tip today?" And I said "Ya, but what do people wanna hear from me? What secret dare I share? I mean I can't give the whole cookie away, can I?"
Nope but will a crumb suffice?
So when it comes to civilian smokey eyes time after time I see almost as much smoke under the eye as on the lid. Making the poor girl look as if she has already been out all night before she stepped out of her bathroom. Well when it comes to a clean looking smokey eye, you need to take precaution. Even Oprah has advice on this... I believe Kevin Aucoin had this same advice as well.
Apply loose powder under the eye over your foundation and concealer to protect it. When your done blacking out.. swish the dirty powder away with a fan brush. My question is how many of us actually have a fan brush in our makeup bag? "I DON'T EVEN HAVE ONE THERE!" It definitely works getting the excess powder off, but if your like me and have lovely lines under your eyes, 9 times out of 10 that excess powder over-sets your concealer and then its cakey. While I don't entirely disagree with this method, (great for Halloween) I like my way better.
It's so genius, you will not believe it!
Do your eyes first!! Yes girls before foundation, before concealer, before anything. This way you can blend vigorously, go on.. make messes.. smudge away. Use a makeup wipe to clean the excess you don't want all over your face, (no black freckles please) then apply your foundation and concealer. It makes for a beautiful finished face.
No foundation under the eyeshadow, use an eyeshadow base, like I recommend here. And it can be hard to judge how much or how little to use, the first few times you may think you need more because you don't have that smooth skin palette in front of you. I never let the girl in my chair see their eyes before I've put foundation and concealer on, they cant see past the discoloration and pimples, but trust me grasshopper... Once you figure this out, your ways will be changed forever....
In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel (my all time #1 favorite song, did I mention of all time?)
OKAY how silly was that? I could have dressed up for the occasion, ya think? Also, I think I sound just like those silly teenagers, I'm just too old to act like that. Anywhoo here are my favorite backcombing products I'd like to share with you. Warning I'm a bit old school...
Shaper, oh yes what I like to call glorified Aqua Net! I recommend regular Shaper for backcombing, works great the only thing is, if you breathe too much of it your nose hairs stick together and break off. As I said in the vlog, this is one of my new faves, Elnett. You can find it at Target for around $15. What I like about it is that you can comb through it easily if you need to, and I've yet to see flaky build up.
And this my friends is what I have deemed the proper backcomb. I buy mine at Sally's beauty supply. They also have them as a full comb without the parting tip, and they're only a few bucks. With this particular style of comb, I find there is less breakage than there is with a rat tail comb, that comb with the weapon on the end and hair breaking bristles, they are great for sectioning and working on wigs. But wigs don't care if you damage them.
What do you think should I keep on Vlogging? What would you like to see? Jessica from Without a Place wants some help shopping for RED lipstick. Wouldn't it be funny to see us at the mall quizzing beauty advisers? Probably get kicked out for filming..
Alright already, you've forced me into it, my audience demands makeup tips and tricks. My friends here in Bloggerland have dropped hints more than once on my big toe about sharing makeup advice. My arm is twisted and I'm shouting "Uncle!"
I'll start with the eyes. (model, my bud Diane Boyle, former ballerina and mother of two, makeup and hair by moi)
So do you ever put eyeshadow on and it just disappears? I see this all the time when newbie models come to the set. I can tell they've put something on their lids, but its all faded and the translucent color has creased into yucky lines.
Two things girls and Adam Lambert boys - Eyeshadow Base and Quality Eyeshadow!
I use an eyeshadow base (of sorts) on every model in my chair (not to be confused with foundation on the eyes). I prefer to use two different products.
For a shiny sparkly look on firm eyelids sans wrinkles (I'm just gonna be blunt people) I like Christian Dior's Eye Show cream shadow as a base. When you apply a nice pigment over it, it really stands out and has a pretty pretty princess feel to it!
my fave 622 Undressed Beige (warm beige shimmer)
For those of us in the less firm eyelid department, I'm a fan of Benefit's Lemon aid eyeshadow base. Your pigments pop and stay on all day. Use sparingly, really there is no need to over do it, this is a less is more product.
Okay so lets talk eyeshadow. Not a fan of M.A.C. Its a waste of money IMO. Yea they have a gazillion colors, but they're crumbly and they break easily which is a total waste. While they may seem like the best price in the department store, around $14 each, I beg to differ... While in the department store I'd rather drop dough on (again) Dior's 5 Colour eye shadow palette. These run in the $55 - $60 dollar range. Not only are you spending less per color, these pigments will last you YEARS! Seriously, they glide on effortlessly and the pigments are soft and beautiful. Yeah they have the Mimi from the Drew Carey show colors too. But really, when are you going to don electric blue on your lids? Perhaps your next PTA meeting or in the morning at your job at the M.A.C counter (in which case, no offense)?
As for the drugstore, I really dig Loreal HIP for eye color. So far they've held up quite well in the kit.
Now you ask "Mary whats your personal eyemakeup regime?" Answer: "I hit my lids with a little blush and call it good."
Remember: "The first rule of makeup is THERE ARE NO RULES!" by Mary Rockwood-Crabtree
So I've been asked more than once... "What is your favorite makeup?" This is not an easy question to answer. If I had not taken my vow to NEVER sell makeup again, perhaps it would be an easy shout out.
After working at a makeup counter by shear circumstance, my experience showed me that one product is not for everyone. I became the worst Beauty Advisor because I liked to tell the truth, and that doesnt help your paycheck. Be wary of "Counter Girlz and MAC bots" they have quotas and sales goals to meet. What they don't tell you is that God made us different in so many ways, including our body chemistry and style. I find myself saying the following time and time again...
"My first rule of makeup is... There are no rules. If you can slap it on in 5 minutes or less and feel ready for the day, then baby you look marvelous. It's all about confidence and how you carry yourself."
"What works great for me, may not work for you. Some women can only use Oil of Olay and some can only use Chanel. So I say start at the drug store and work your way up. Just because it has a hefty price tag doesnt mean its perfect for everyone." I'm not a brand junkie, except for maybe Christian Dior for work, but I don't personally wear the stuff. Foundation seems to be a difficult one for everyone... am I right? I was in Wal-Mart the other day and a lady was buying foundation and asking her husband to pick out the color! He was so not into it. I stepped in and handed her my card. She had a beautiful colored skin that not a single line could duplicate. I have the same issue, not one single color matches my skin, in fact I belive this is the case for most women. I always use more than one color of foundation at work.
My advice: Buy two shades that you can mix. I do this daily. I have two bottles, one light and one dark, one is a bit more olive and the other more pink, I fall somewhere in between like the lady in Wal Mart. I put a bit of both, depending on the season and my tone determines how much of each I add to the mix, on the back of my hand and mix with my finger. I dont totally totally mix it, I like to use the lighter bit under my eyes and down the ridge of my nose, then I really mix and cover the rest of my face. Maybelline is my foundation of choice these days... Age Rewind... works for me..
Lips Like Sugar - Echo and the Bunnymen
