Hot or Not Beauty

With this year’s fall trendy being all smoky, alluring and mysterious, contour is back with a vengeance. Although it’s a technique that I prefer strictly for night-time when the lights are forgiving, however many people still wonder what products they should be wearing to create the illusion of more sculpted features. So here are a few guidelines:

Contouring creates false shades that help reshaping your face, so just because you have a darker shade of blush or a bronzer, it doesn’t mean that it’s suitable for contouring.

Here are the rules of thumb for contouring and then a few suggestions:

Whatever you purchase for contouring it has to be of a matte finish, whatever you purchase that has shimmer to it will defeat the purchase because it will attract the light and reflect it and it won’t look like a shadow at all. So blushes with shimmer, Mineralize Skinfinishes and the like are definitely a no-no, you might love them to pieces but it will defeat the purpose just by being there.

Bronzers are not a product to contour with in my opinion, reddish, orangish terracotta like pigments are not the color of any shadow on your face, so it will look too artificial and incredibly fake.

To me, the best type of product you can for contour is pressed powder in a darker shade than your own color, although some people use powder foundation I think that it gives too much coverage and if you want to be subtle, the pigment concentration can actually make your job harder.

You don’t need a contour brush and to layer the product on your face, you use the side of a blush brush pick up some powder, pat the excess away and softly smooth it on the areas that you want to contour. An advice be sure that the area that you’re going to contour has been dusted with loose powder so the pressed powder won’t smudge and end up making you look dirty.

To highlight you need a powder or highlighting product that is lighter than your skin tone and this one can have shimmer and sparkle, however if you have problems with enlarged pores, the shimmer can enhance them and end up making you look worse, so if you don’t want too much attention brought on to the areas you want to highlight, so in that case stick to a lighter shade of pressed powder and fear enlarged pores no more.

If you have a light to medium skin tone, feel free to try “Make Up For Ever“’s Compact Modeler, the darker shade has a wee bit of gray pigment that helps to further create the illusion of shadow on your face.

For an example of this Fall’s polished flawless look, take a look at my post regarding Yves Saint-Laurent’s Fall Collection

This season glamorizes one of my personal makeup obsessions which is eyeliner, so I decided to focus a bit on it regarding the types available, techniques and best options available on the market.

Eyeliner helps to create a stylized look to your eye that can range from a subtle allure around the eye to a full-fledged graphic black in a winged/cat eye shape for the ultimate sexy look.

Here’s the type of formulas available and product recommendations for desired look:

Eyeliner with eyeshadow:

Eyeshadow - Eyeshadow allows to create an eyeliner effect (with the help of a flat, small eyeliner brush like Make Up For Ever’s #2S) and can create a line without making it too harsh or obvious which can be practical for everyday look or if you work at a more conservative place but like to define your eyes. There are no color limits and you have the advantage of coordinating it with whatever eyeshadow you are wearing without aditional purchase:

Pros - Soft undefined line that are only limited by your selection of eyeshadows

Cons - Is not as long wearing as other formulas, highly stylized graphic designs are harder or impossible to attain.

Recommendations - Definitely an eyeshadow whose formula is high on pigment, shimmery light colors will prove almost invisible, less resistance to sweat and oil throughout the day. Personally I prefer a matte finish, but you can chose iridescent or pearly finishes if you decide to line with eyeshadow. I recommend Shu Uemura, MAC, NARS and Make Up For Ever eyeshadows for this effect.

Next we’ll explore other types of formulas, so sit tight.

After evening out and perfecting your complexion, you have created the canvas for the next stages of makeup application.

Before applying your eyeshadow, apply a primer (like Urban Decay’s Primer Potion) and after it’s completely dry, use a large brush and apply a neutral eyeshadow the color of your skin tone to ensure that whatever colors you use afterwards will not stain.

Favorite eyeshadows:

MAC - Eyeshadow
Chanel - Le Quatre Ombres de Chanel
Shu Uemura

There are no rules regarding whatever eye-makeup should be for these types of occasions. You should consider the time of day and what kind of outfit you will be wearing and leave the more heavy and dramatic looks for evening rather than daytime. However there are no set rules, if you want to wear smoky black and deep red lips by all means do so.

Prefer a more holding eyeliner like a gel eyeliner rather than pencil (if you prefer pencil, then opt for a waterproof one) to assure that it will hold throughout the day.

Bobbi Brown’s Gel Liner
MAC’s Fluidline
MAC’s Powerpoint
Guerlain’s Loose Eye Kohl
Make Up For Ever’s Aqua Cream Liner
Make Up For Ever’s Cake Liner

I prefer waterproof mascara for these occasions, even if you’re not emotional you never know when an unexpected tear might appear, so be ready and bullet-proof.

I recommend one of Helena Rubinstein’s mascaras, they’re my personal favorites and allow all type of desired effects, my Holy Grail is Lash Queen. For a mascara primer, use the Shiseido one without a doubt. If you’re more daring then opt for false lashes.

Do your eyebrows with a dark pigmented matte powder, using brow brush that has hard bristles making sure that you don’t overdue the application to avoid the eyebrows ending up too dark and artificial.

Only consider contouring if it’s an afternoon/evening wedding, contouring in the daytime looks extremely artificial and you’ll be drawing attention to areas that you would prefer to keep minimized. You can add a touch of bronzer to the areas where the sun naturally hits your face, but avoid orange pigmented ones or those with too much glitter.

Unless your skin is dry/normal (allowing the use of a cream blush), opt for pressed or loose powder blush, applying it with a light hand to ensure a careful and controlled application (invest in a good blush brush as well) and while a bit of shimmer is perfectly acceptable avoid colors with too much glittery look to them, a softer, more formal look is quite often preferred and photographs a lot better.

Where blushes are concerned, my preferences go to MAC, Chanel and NARS.

There are no definite rules where lips are concerned, try to keep lip-lining as natural as possible and fill in your lips with your liner so you won’t end up with lined lips and nothing else underneath, keep your liner as closest to your lipstick color as possible and usually a creamier lip liner is easier to apply and blend. To avoid harsh lines, blend the liner with your lip brush.

My favorites are Chanel’s Le Crayon Levres and MAC’s Cremestick liner.

Add a touch of gloss for a pouty lip or lay it on for a more lacquered vinyl-ish look with:

Lancome’s Juicy Tubes
MAC’s Tinted Lipglass
Chanel’s Glossimer
Yves Saint-Laurent’s Le Touche de Brilliance
Dior’s Gloss Show
NARS‘ Lip Lacquer

After looking your most gorgeous, the next article will focus on what to bring in your purse to always look your freshest.

First, let me apologize for my lack of posting, unfortunately my modem decided to die on me and I was unable to post for most of last week. Hopefully everything will be taken care of this week.

And now back to beauty!

This Saturday I attended a small intimate wedding and although I enjoyed the food, my clinical eye didn’t have a moment’s rest while I analyzed everyone’s makeup.

With mental notes enough to last me for the rest of the month, I’ll use this experience to give some tips on how to prepare for a wedding and how to shine your most while enjoying it.

Skincare:

If you want to do a more aggressive facial to make sure your skin looks its best, be sure to do it at least 2 weeks prior to the Cerimony. Some facial treatments will make skin purify itself from inside out and you might experience some skin irregularities.

Make sure you drink a lot of water to allow your body to get rid of toxins, it would be nice if you didn’t smoke but at least drink at least 2 liters of water per day, that will help your skin to look its best.

Before applying makeup:

Treat yourself to a booster (not to be confused with a primer), a booster will infuse your skin with a yummy cocktail of skin nutrients and make it look more radiant. Here are a couple of my favorites.

Chanel’s Instant d’Eclat - Conveniently packed in individual packs, not only boosts your radiance, it helps make skin firmer, transforming dull skin into an “awake state”, use it after your daily cleanse/tone/moisturize routine.

Clinique’s Moisture Surge Facial Sheet Mask - Apply this the night before to fully treat your skin to pure moisture (if you have combination/oily skin) or in the morning (if you have dry/normal skin), to pamper and cushion your skin.

Estee Lauder’s Perfectionist Power Correcting Patch for Deeper Eye Lines/Wrinkles - To give your eye area that extra lift that will make all the difference.

Before going to bed, also coat your lips in vaseline, this super moisturizing balm will heal your lips and help to plump them. The morning before, generously coat your lips in vaseline, let it sit for a couple of minutes and then use a soft toothbrush to exfoliate and remove dry and dead skin cells to ensure maximum lipstick hold.

This concludes the first part of wedding makeup, always remember that beautiful makeup starts with beautiful skin.

A compact of pressed powder is one of the most iconic items in makeup, the expression “to powder one’s nose” or similar are ages old and in some cases like Edo Period Japan used as code words for geisha and oiran and we always associate a pressed powder with a touch of elegance and sophistication, it comes very hand for “product placement” in movies or tv series, the one that comes to mind is Sonia Braga in “Alias” with a MAC compact checking her makeup.

Estee Lauder is also known for its collectible compacts, Chantecaille will on occasion create special edition compacts (ouch, wallet), it is probably one of the most used makeup items when creating limited edition items.

Loose powder has the glamour of a beautiful package and a luxurious powder puff softly by a vanity or armoire.

Powder can be used for two goals:

Slightly evening out your skin tone and still keeping your look natural and created the illusion of smaller pores, it also reduces excess shine in the T-Zone or other areas.

Setting foundation and concealer (specially in fluid/cream formulations) keeping them “stable” and preventing them to migrate to other areas on your face.

Preferably, loose powder is applied to set the face makeup and ensure a proper blush and pressed powder application making color and pigment application a lot easier because the foundation or skin’s natural oils don’t adhere to the powder product that is being put on top.

Pressed powder on the other hand is preferably used in a shade closest to your skin tone as an alternative to foundation or for touch ups to reduce the shine. It can be also used in darker shades than skin tone to contour and reshape the face. While some makeup artists (like Kevyn Aucoin) would regularly use contouring techniques to beautify the face, others like Bobbi Brown avoid contouring altogether believing that it makes the woman (or man) look unnatural. In this case, the lighter shade to enhance areas like the nose bridge can be of a more pearly finish to attract light and the darker shade is matte to create a shadow effect.

In my opinion, if I decide to contour it’s in evening makeup where light is more forgiving and you can get away with it more easily.

Both loose and pressed powders can be matte, pearly or iridescent (be careful with shimmer finish powders, some are too glittery and look weird and almost circus like) and achieve a wide variety of looks.

Since I’m prone to an oily complexion, I will wear MAC’s Blot Powder in pressed format during most of the year and will use Chanel Le Poudre Universel Compacte at the peak of winter.

The usage of powder requires some extra care with your skin, as powder will absorb sebum and oil and residual moisture, if you don’t exfoliate on a regular basis you might end up with dry patches and flaky skin that isn’t all that flattering, so remember to exfoliate if you like to apply powder in your face.

Powder can be applied with a powder puff or a large brush, a puff ensures a higher coverage of product and a more matte finish. Using a brush allows a more sheer application resulting in a more natural look. If you use a powder puff, then slightly sweep with your powder brush to remove excess product.

Loose powder can also be used with a large eyeshadow brush as a “safety net” under the eyes to catch falling eyeshadow or mascara, specially very dark colors that can stain your under eye area and make you look like you’ve been hit.

For more mature skin, avoid very dry matte powders as they will make your skin appear very dry and emphasize fine lines, specially under the eye, so it’s best to avoid powder in this area unless absolutely necessary or opt for a more “moisturizing” formulation.

One of the biggest myths is that translucent powders are suitable for every complexion and I disagree, they work for light to medium complexions, but in deeper skin tones it will end up making the complexion look ashy or dull and you require a certain amount of pigment to make sure the color doesn’t change. Other brands will always have yellow tones in their powders to maintain the looks natural and balanced.

While some resist to the application of powder, I believe it to be essential to ensure a proper blush and eyeshadow application and there’s always a pressed powder compact in my backpack.

Everything constantly changes in the world of fashion and beauty and what are apparently minor details like the shape of eyebrows define an overall look.

Bold and thick eyebrows are this coming season’s sensation. Although you won’t be expected to wear the highly sculpted and defined eyebrows of Dior or Chanel’s runway, thinner is out and thicker is in.

Thicker doesn’t mean you have to go full Frida Kahlo, instead think Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.

Well groomed and kept eyebrows make the difference and enable you to transform your facial features adding a subtle touch of sophistication.

So prepare to tweeze with less pizazz and to softly define your eyebrows with a soft matte eyeshadow closest to your hair color or a nice eyebrow pencil. For a while, the highly stylized theatrical arched eyebrow will fade away.

Refrain from waxing your brows unless in areas where hair is obviously unnecessary like in along your temples or between your eyebrows. Waxing will make your hair become a lot weaker and inevitably it just stops growing, considering the change is constantly changing it would be best if you left waxing to the above mentioned areas so you won’t have to regret it years later.

All cosmetic consumers try all sorts of new products and colors, it’s just like candy, all the constant innovations of formulas, colors, textures, finishes, they’re meant for us to buy and try and try and try. But what are our favorites?

Still, there is “the” item that we constantly repurchase and can’t seem to find a replacement for, whether it’s that unique color that always suits us, that fragrance that is almost a part of our identity. Or just something we wore at a very special occasion that cannot help but evoke special memories.

Mine? I’m quite plain actually, besides Christian Dior’s Fahrenheit who remains my signature scent since the age of 16 (I’ve worn other colognes but keep coming back to it and it’s a scent that friends and co-workers immediately identify with me), other than that I always have either Shiseido’s Translucent Stick Gloss that moisturizes my lips and gives it a natural gloss finish without looking overdone or Chanel’s Cristalle Gloss in “Ice” when I want the extra shine.

So here’s my question for today? What are your cherished beauty items? What are those products that you always have no matter what and as soon as you wear it, it makes you feel special.

Every now and then I ask my friends on what topic I should dwell here and the absolute majority said “CONCEALER”. So today’s journey will about this product and what we should have in mind when we’re shopping for one.

Personally I don’t like concealers that you apply to all areas of the face, meaning I believe you should have one concealer for your eye area and another for blemishes, face discoloration, veins, etc etc…

First: Consistence! The thicker the concealer his the more it covers with less product, however the more you apply the more artificial it will look and you have to be specially careful so it won’t enhance your fine lines because of too much product has been applied in the area. Yes, it can get rid of the darkness underneath your eyes, but if if creases and enhances your fine lines it will give you at least 10 more years. If you have fine lines under your search for a moisturizing concealer with a lifting effect.

They go from very light and fluid like Yves Saint-Laurent’s Le Touche d’Éclat to MAC’s Studio Stick. Be extra careful with very fluid formulations on under eye circles, the light reflective properties of those concealers and their usual light tints might give your under eye area a grayish or greenish tint. If this happens, you’re using the wrong kind of concealer, it’s probably too light for your skin tone or for the color of your circles.

Also, most articles on concealers advise you to get them in one to two tones lighter than your skin tone. This is correct when you have dark circles, but it’s wrong if you have puffy eyes. Applying a lighter shade of concealer on puffy eyes will attract light to the area and make your eyes look a lot puffier. So, if you have slightly swollen puffy eyes, hunt for a concealer in the exact shade of your skin tone just to even it out.

For very dark circles, instead of layering tons of product maybe you should consider a bit of color correction first. If you have blue circles apply a corrector of a peach tone to neutralize the color, if you have brown circles then a corrector of a yellow tone is in order. Apply the color neutralizer first, pat and blend and then follow with the appropriate concealer or your foundation if the coverage is able to even out the area.

Always prep your eye area with a moisturizing eye-cream so that its delicate skin won’t feed off the emollients in the concealer you are using and damage the skin over the years. After the area is prepped and moisturized apply a very small amount of your concealer with your brush or finger. I personally like using concealer brushes with stick/pot cream concealers, it always me to control the amount of product used and the area that it’s being used on. For more fluid concealers I used the wand/applicator when the product has it or if it’s a tube concealer I apply it with my ring finger.

Last, but not least, do you apply it under or over foundation? If you’re using a color corrector then you should definitely apply it under your foundation, just remember that when you do apply your foundation you shouldn’t “sweep” the area with your fingers, sponge or brush but instead pat your foundation in place so you won’t drag your concealer to other areas.

When it’s stick concealers or pot cream concealers, I usually apply them over foundation to do some last minute correct that the foundation wasn’t able to cover.

Hope this has been useful and I’ll be back to dwell on concealers for other parts of your face.

If I had a penny for each time I hear the question “What colors do you think I should wear?” or “Could you give me a good eyeshadow recommendation?”, I’d be a very rich man.

To me, the most important rule in makeup is that there are no rules. You have to create your look with what makes you feel right. If you ask a makeup artist what you should wear, you will be heavily influenced by his or hers personal taste. Per example, when applying makeup on anyone, very rarely will I apply green eyeshadow because it’s a color I’m not quite fond of.

The other day, after buying some lipstick, the salesgirl decided I was in need of some self-tanner to warm up my complexion, she was very nice so I didn’t say anything but I like being pale.

What you have to keep in mind is that makeup and cosmetic companies need to constantly reinvent the looks and collections to keep the consumers buying, that doesn’t mean however that every collection suits every single person; nothing could be further from the truth.

I advise you to first determine how you like your makeup, do you like a polished matte look to your skin? Or do you prefer sheer and dewy? Do you like pearl/shimmer on your blush or solid color? Determining your makeup persona(s) is of the utmost importance. Sure, magazines, the web, movies, TV, singers can provide the base images that you get your inspiration from but don’t limit yourself to it. If you don’t like thick defined black eyeliner then no matter how many issues of Vogue, Elle or InStyle say that it’s the “it” look you will never feel comfortable wearing. What to do when a certain makeup trend is exactly the opposite of your liking? Don’t wear it, it’s as simple as that. If you feel the drive to be in tune with the current trend see what particular aspect can be incorporated into your makeup without making you feel that you look like a clown.

It can be a type of lip color, applying highlighters, a different formulation on a product (i.e. like switching to cream eyeshadow instead of pressed powder form) and you’ll still look hip without being a blind follower that sometimes not only doesn’t suit you but makes you spend hundreds of dollars on makeup that you will end up not using.

Unless you’re completely oblivious to all the hype about this little golden pen, you’ve seen it in several counters or being raved in make up sites or blogs.

It’s been my experience though that most of the women that buy this illuminating wand end up being disappointed by it. Why? Usually they’re using it wrong.

Le Touche d’Éclat is a fluid that brings light to strategic points in your face but it’s not a miracle concealer that’s going to make your dark circles go away.

So here are a few pointers:

- If you have very dark circles, forget using this altogether, it will most likely lighten the circle area but they’ll be there.
- If you have very puffy eyes, forget about it too, the light reflecting properties will only draw more attention to that particular area and end up not flattering at all.
- Use it on the whole eye area from lash to brow to prep the skin and enhance any eyeshadow that is put on top of it.
- Using it on your brow bone, nose bridge and around your lips will attract attention to these areas and enhance them, per example they make your lips appear fuller and more defined.
- Using too much product will probably give under eye area an ashy/gray look, enhance fine lines doing completely the opposite
- The product is gentle enough to be re-applied throughout the day (trust me, you’ll need to) and doesn’t alter your makeup so you can put it on top of your foundation and powder for a quick pick-me-up before an unexpected dinner or business meeting.
- It’s conveniently sized for utmost portability and you can take the magic golden pen anywhere.

My advice? If you’re new to this type of product then start with something cheaper from another brand like Clinique’s Airbrush Concealer before spending double on Yves Saint-Laurent to see if you like this type of product.

Did you ever dream that cruises dictated a makeup trend? Well they do. Most major deisgners produce a cruise collection each year. You know, for those ladies who can afford to buy a complete new designer collection of cruisewear just for the occasion. While most of use get a new swimsuit, a pair of capris, a couple pair of shorts and a dressy gown for that special dinner night, cruise collections are extremely popular.

This brings us to makeup. Designers spend time in perfecting the makeup looks for their collection along with their makeup artist. Backstage at the Christian Dior Cruise 2008 Fashion Show, held May 14, 2007 showed the perfect looks to accompany cruise wear. Now a couple things to remember. One — maybe you aren’t going on a cruise, but cruise wear is in effect a type of spring clothing, so you may want to check out the spring trend in makeup as presented. Two– runway makeup or makeup done for fashion shows is exaggerated. Just look at what the focal point is in the makeup and then you can have an idea of what to emphasize in your makeup to step up to the trend.

Let’s look backstage at Dior:

Notice the bold brow. Do you want to wear a thick dark brow that brings back images of the beautiful Audrey Hepburn? Maybe that’s your style. Be careful, you could easily do the Groucho Marx look. But, the designer is trying to tell us to pay attention to our brows. Fill them in with a pencil or powder. Take to to acheive a beautiful full brow. Your eyebrows should be full, not necessarily thick, sculpted and frame your face. Check out how the eyes stand out even more prominently when eyebrows are defined.

In this next set of photos, look at how cheekbones are highlighted. What’s the message here? Well, a soft highlight on top of your cheeks is flattering and soft. Even if you think you don’t have cheekbones, they are there. Take a soft shimmer powder of a cream luminizer and dot on top of your cheek to achieve this look. I love NARS Multiples, try Cococabana. Laura Geller’s Beauty Dews which contains 3 luminizers to create a luminous highlight.

Last but not least, keep lips nude or neutral so that all eyes are on your eyes.

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Have you evertried to put foundation only to have it skip and tug on your skin? Or you notice that it seems to have vanished by mid-day? Or do you use moisturizer and feel a few hours later your skin feels like all the moisture has been sucked out of it? If you can answer yes to those questions — its time to check out an under makeup primer!\

So what exactly is an under makeup primer? It’s a lightweight preparation that helps makeup to go on smoother, last longer and look fresher for the day. Most primers have some sort of silicone derivitive in them to give them a nice finish on the skin. The silicone helps the primer to “float” on top of lines and large pores, creating a more even canvas for makeup application.

I find primers to indespensible for makeup application on my clients. They are paying me for meticulous makeup application, and part of that is having the perfect groundwork laid before I even begin application of the makeup. I have used practically every primer on the market and am constantly trying new ones.

I have a couple favorites that are my consistent go to primers:

1. Laura Geller Spackle Under Makeup Primer. Takes down redness, calms and leave no residue.
What it is:One of Laura Geller’s signature creations - a sleek foundation primer.

What it is formulated to do:
This sleek undercoat smoothes and perfects skin’s texture, prepping it for foundation. Formulated with nourishing, soothing botanicals, it’s lush, lightweight, and suitable for all skin types.

What else you need to know:Spackle is 100 percent oil-free and comes in an “airless” pump so you can get every drop.
Fantastic Price point! $21.5 for 2 ounces.

2. PerFekt Skin Perfection Gel — My new discovery. This primer can almost double for foundation. It even comes in a variety of “skin” tones.
This multitasking miracle ‘per-fekts’ and enhances the skin offering an alternative to traditional foundation/primer. The all-in-one vitamin enriched, sweat-resistant and water-resistant formulation glides on effortlessly to instantly improve skin tone, reduce redness, and help minimize the appearance of enlarged pores and fine lines.

Enriched with powerful antioxidants including the universal antioxidant alpha lipoic acid, and vitamins A and E to help repair, protect, and fight future environmental skin damage, this lightweight gel helps maintain hydration leaving the skin with a healthy, even glow by locking in moisture and absorbing excess skin oils. Oil Free. Fragrance-free. $57.50

Go ahead and get primed! You will have HOT beautiful skin!

Primers — Hot!

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A few days ago I begged for questions for my new column, Ask Ms. Hot or Not. And I got plenty of questions to answer. The first one off the press was from Erin who wrote:

Dear Ms. Hot or Not:
I would love to know how to get rid of bumps or razor burn on your bikini area. Are there any good razors or products to use to try to prevent them all together?

It’s warming up all over and it’s almost time for those leg baring, high cut, show-it-all bikinis. And for those who dare to bare, being hair free is of most importance. For women who wear bikinis there is always the question of wax or shave. Brazilian and Playboy style waxings can leave the bikini area sensitive and prone to infection if not properly treated after waxing. While waxing leaves skin stubble free and eliminates the need to remove hair again for up to six weeks, shaving is a whole new can of worms.

Improper shaving can leave skin irritated and prone to having ingrown hairs. This is often the condition that that is evident on the surface of the skin that we catagorize as bikini bumps. Using the right shaving method is one way to cut down on the possibility of bumps.

How to Shave:
Start by getting pubic hair and skin thoroughly saturated with a shaving cream. Soap will not do the trick. Try a product that’s made for men like Jack Black Beard Lube which moisturizes the hair and skin. This helps to soften the hair and makes shaving easier. First, be sure to adequately wet the skin and the bikini hair. Since pubic hair is coarser than facial hair, this is an important step. If you are using a disposable razor, choose one that is for sensitive skin. At times, too close leave hair too far below the surface and it may create a bump if proper exfoliation doesn’t occur between shaves. (more about exfoliation to follow) Gillette Mach 3 razor is my razor of choice for clean close shaves. With a disposable or with a cartridge type head, replace after each shave.

When you begin to shave, pull the skin tight with your non-shaving hand. Then shave in upward strokes. Make sure there is adequate shaving cream on the hair and skin before each stroke. Without this protection, you’re likely to get red and bumpy after you shave.

Some experts recommend rubbing an ice cube over the shaved bikini area to reduce redness and discomfort. A pure Aloe Vera Gel is ideal for using after shaving to conquer irritation. Also over the counter hydrocortisone creams are helpful. Some post-shave products made up of mainly rubbing alcohol can actually increase inflammation. So consider taking a Tylenol or Ibuprofen to reduce the amount of inflamation that may occur.

(more…)

For several years, I spent my time writing advice for Sephora.com. If you are a product junkie, you know that it’s the hugest e-tailer of beauty products, cosmetics, fragrance, haircare and skincare in the world. As a makeup artist and esthetician with years of experience and one who has tried thousands of products, I am what you might call a pretty jaded guru. I’m not impressed by hype, but by results.

So in my own humble opinion, I know what’s hot and what’s not. But this is where I need you — the beauty blog readers out there. I am starting a new feature — Ask Ms. Hot or Not. So please send your questions to me via the contact link on the page, or in the comments section. If I don’t know the answer, I will do the research. If it’s a product I haven’t reviewed, I’ll get it, use it and review it. And know, I will give you my honest opinion.

Please, deluge me!

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It’s your prom night and you definitely want to outshine the other girls. It’s time to bring out your inner bling. With a few key makeup accents your will be as hot as Paris Hilton in her party element.

Major focal point for bling – Eyes.
Try a metallic shadow, or even better, a glittery eye liner. Don’t feel compelled to have your shadow match your dress. That is so last millennium. Use colors that you love and are attracted to. The main key to makeup application is BLENDING. If you are wearing shadow, be sure to blend the edges down without leaving hard lines.

Best Metallic Shadows:
Urban Decay
Smashbox
Mac Pigments

Be part of the Gliltterati with pencils and liquid liners that give eyes extra sparkle with micro glitter. Check out Hard Candy Glitter Eye Pencils and Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliner.

Go all out with heavy bling, or do subtle lining with your shimmery metallic pencils.

Keep cheeks subtle with light blush. Accent cheekbones with shimmery highlight. Try Pop Beauty Pop-Up Glow or Pout Shimmer Dust. Remember that less is more, so just do a light dusting on the top of your cheeks and on decollete’ for ultimate shine.

Lips should have major impact too with tons of shine. Best Lipshine– Lorac Mocktails. Flavored gloss with high shine. Or Urban Decay XXX Shine Lip Gloss that gives glossy shine and leaves your breath minty fresh.

You’ve got the dress, got the date, got the limo and now you’ve got your makeup tips. Have a great time and don’t get in trouble!

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