Hot or Not Beauty

One thing I’m fanatical about is mascara. I really border on trashy with my mascara tastes for myself. I like my lashes unnaturally full and long. Not quite your Tammy Faye Baker caterpillar look, but I like them as close to fake without being fake.

To that end, I have used dozens of mascara brands, and I always come back to my tried and true favorites.

1. Best price, best thickening mascara:

Loreal Voluminous. Found at drugstores everywhere. It regularly sells for about $7.99, but when it’s on sale, I stock up on it. I use the waterproof version on my clients. Color – always Blackest Black. Why even bother if you’re not using black?

2. Looks like Fake Lashes:
Bourjois Pump up the Volume Mascara – $13.50 at Sephora. Two coats and your lashes look like you just put on a pair of fabulous fakes. The Metallic Bronzed Plum is pretty on green eyes.

3. Curl Power
CHANEL Extracils - Super Curl lengthening Mascara
Cream formula curls and holds.

4. Longer is better
Urban Decay Big Fatty lengthens and thickens. The addition of hemp oil conditions and softens lashes.

5. Comb don’t brush
Rimmel Volum’Eyes 5 X Volume Comb Mascara. Thanks to my teenage daugher, I’ve been turned on to Rimmel. One of the many products that Kate Moss is the face for. And I love this mascara. The comb individually coats each lash, works wonders.

Some mascara application tips:
1. When you pull your wand out of the tube, bend it slightly, so you have an angle. Professional makeup artist use their wands this way to get as close to the lash line as possible.

2. When you notice your mascara getting clumpy, clean off theexcess by wiping your brush on a tissue.

3. If you use mascara everyday, you should toss it in about 6 weeks.

4. Don’t pump your mascara — air gets pushed into the tube, causing bacteria to harbor.

5. Don’t share mascara.

6. Don’t think you can add life to your mascara by adding water. This just makes it easier for you to get an eye infection.

There you have it. From high end to low end mascaras. Go ahead, bat those lashes.

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Elizabeth Arden set the model years ago for makeup sets by giving their loyal customers a ridiculous amount of makeup in kit form one time per year. That set had more makeup than one person could actually use in a lifetime, but still customers return year after year for that fun filled kit overstuffed with makeup goodies.

Every woman in your life deserves a kit that does it all. Here are my favorites:

1. Teen Princess
Hard Candy Take Out Makeup Kit – $25 at Sephora

Kit includes: Layer 1: Lip Glosses in sheer cherry, clear with blue multi glitter, champagne with glitter, sheer peach, sheer rose with glitter, and clear with pinky-blue multi glitter, plus two lips brushes. Layer 2: Shadows in golden pink, lavender shimmer, black with silver glitter, shimmering lime, white pearl, medium brown with shimmer, apricot shimmer, and vibrant turquoise with shimmer, plus a black eye pencil, mini black mascara, and two shadow applicators. Layer 3: Two shades of concealer, a neutral rose blush, and a bronzer.

2. Delicious Diva
Smashbox Beauty A-Go-Go Palette and Brush Kit – $50 At Sephora

Set includes eight .29 oz Eyeshadows in gold shimmer, ivory sheen, champagne shimmer, charcoal sheen, rich gold shimmer, taupe shimmer, plum with gold glitter, and matte black, four .07 oz Lip Glosses in golden pink shimmer, rose, nude, and berry shimmer, two .06 oz highlighters in rose sheen and nude champagne and an eyeshadow blending brush and lip brush with houndstooth handles.

3. South Beach Babe
CARGO 10th Anniversary Signature Collection – $45 at Sephora
The oversized, signature tin includes: Bronzer in Medium (an award-winning CARGO favorite), BeachBlush in Coral Beach (a soft, blendable bronzer), Lip Gloss Duo in Soho (two shades of sheer rose), Reverse Lip Liner (holds your gloss in place all day as it enhances the appearance of fullness), and Liquid Powder 01 (wear alone or over foundation for a gorgeous finish). All products are full size and limited edition.
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It’s just not hot to stuff your adorable party purse with a bunch of unnecessary stuff. Pare it down to a few essentials. Aside from the mandatory ID, credit card, cash, mints, Purell, safety pin and Tylenol, here is my list of top 5 petite purse necessities.

1. Delux Beauty lipglosses. They are small, but still jam packed with color and shine.

2. 3CC Powder Mini Pressed Compact
One little compace kills shine and lets you see who is the fairest in one fell swoop.

3. GoSmile Mint Mini Touch up Refresher
Polishes your teeth. Perfect after a couple glasses of red wine.

4. Pop-Up Travel Brush - Signature Black & Red
Sephora’s signature little hair brush. Even has a mirror so you can check out the competition over your shoulder.

5. Bliss High Intensity Hand Cream To Go
Smooth hands make a perfect introduction.

You go girl. Get your party on!

What’s in your purse? Do share!
For makeup tips click here.

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Wearing Red lipstick is the perfect way to look fabulous without much effort. But don’t just slap on some red lipstick and think you are ready to go. Do take some care with the rest of your makeup. Here are 5 looks to pair with your red lipstick that work every time.

1.Fresh clean face – perfect for a casual day

>Start with freshly cleansed and moisturized skin. Apply a tinted moisturizer. I love Stila and Laura Mercier.
>Apply cream or gel blush in a light natural color that matched your tone. Try NARS Multiple, Stila Convertible Color or Laura Geller Cheek Pops. >Dot right on the apple of cheek and blend. You should look like a fresh faced toddler if you do it right.
>Groom brows and fill in with color if needed
>Apply a light shimmer cream shadow to lids. Lighter skins may want to try Delux Beauty Cream Eyeshadow in Sheer Ice, Medium skin Golden Apricot and Darker Skins Burnished Bronze. Just a light swipe with your ring finger for sheer coverage.
>Finish eyes with Mascara.
>Apply a sheer Red Lipstick. My favorite sheers are Stila Ava and Lola Torch which looks gorgeous on darker skins.

2. Classic Day Office (1)
>Start with freshly cleansed and moisturized skin. Apply your foundation and finish with powder.
>Apply a light neutral toned blush. Try NARS Orgasm for most skins and Lovejoy for darker tones.
>Groom brows and fill in with color if needed
>Sweep a medium toned powder shadow over lids from lash line to crease. Try Cargo in Mojave, Nepal or Ceylon.
>Finish eyes with Mascara.
>Apply Red lipstick of your choice.

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I love red lipstick. Red is the only lipstick color that I ever wear. I’ll make a diversion when it comes to lipgloss, but it’s only red for lips. Remember when matte red was all the rage. I only wore MAC Russian Red for years. In homage to Sade, a style icon for sure. (I even had the pony tail, dark eye brows and hoop earrings)

My top Brands for Red lipstick are…. Drum roll please!
1. NARS

His reds are sooo red. There is a red for every occasion, every skin tone, and every preference. My favorite is Scarlet Empress, a semi-matte true blue red. Makes your teeth their whitest! Also other good reds by NARS are Red Lizard, a semi matte true red (great for blondes) and Fire Down Below, which is universally flattering. Plus you gotta love those names.

2. Delux Beauty
Their reds are right on target. And the creamy texture combined with rich pigment makes them hard to beat. Add to that the boy’s names attached to the colors, and you have a red for every occastion. I love, Clovis, when I’m feeling sultry, Nigel when I’m feeling classy and Vinnie when I’m just feeling it.

3. Lola Cosmetics
That cosmetic Guru of the ‘80’s Victoria Jackson has a gorgeous makeup line. Her red lipsticks are perfect. And, she has more than I could ever use in a lifetime. But that hasn’t stopped me from stocking up. The colors are true and rich. The ones I can’t live without: Ruby, a red flame, true red. Brick House,(ahem, that’s ALL me!) Red with a hint of brown. For the shoe lover in me, Stiletto. The ideal vampy purple red. And for the wine lover in me, Bitten, a deep wine red.

4. BeneFit

Can’t forget my favorite red that they discontinued. Ankelstrap. I still have the tube, even though those genius Ford girls ditched the color. Now, I have to opt for First Class, a sheer true blue red. Beautiful with clean face makeup. You will truly look and feel first class.
5. CHANEL
Last, but certainly not least, Chanel. I must have a couple dozen of their reds. The quality of these lipsticks make them worth the splurge. The reds last, and don’t fade. I’m still partial to Vamp. How old is that? Remember when that dark brown/red that almost looked black hit the runways? It’s still inspiring color today. Short dark nails are very chic for fall. Shanghai Red, Ingenue and Red Dream are sure bets.

Check back on tips on how the perfect makeup to accompany red lipstick.

Red lipstick, definitely HOT.

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When lipgloss first became all the rage, I was such a holdout. Despite my makeup artist viewpoint, being on the cutting edge of what was new and hot, I was a hold out to my matte red lips. But I became a believer! I love lipgloss. But don’t get me wrong, I will never give up red lipstick. But, the gushing over red lipstick is for another day. Here is my list of top 5 best lipglosses. The pros and the cons.

1. Stila Lip Glaze
My all time favorite lipglosses. They are sheer, but with color. They are “tacky” enough to last more than an hour. Who can’t resist that applicator pen with the brush that makes for perfect application? They smell and taste good. The color assortment is amazing. Check out the new spice collection for winter/holiday. My personal favorite is Brown Sugar. Shimmery without being too shiny, the perfect nude with a hint of color. Plus I happen to think the color describes yours truly perfectly…No con’s to this product. I used to hate that they didn’t have much in the pen, but Stila listened to their customer and increased the size without increasing the cost!

2. Cargo Lip Gloss
These lipglosses are a cult favorite. Named after cities around the world, the duo combination of a sheer gloss with subtle shimmer in one side of the tin and a lip conditioner in a complimentary hue in the other side are perfect. The color selection is awesome. I can’t decide which I love best — San Fran or Walla Walla. They are all beautiful. Downside — that darn tin. The top gets stuck. Plus you need a brush to apply the gloss. Tip - I keep a used up lipgloss wand in my bag to apply this type of gloss. No fingers in pot gloss please. That’s just gross.

3. Chanel Glossimer
What better way to show your sense of style than to take out a lipgloss wand with that Chanel logo emblazoned on the end and apply your ligloss in front of the girls? Ok, that is perfectly tacky, but we all do it. Glossimers are just about perfect. The color selection is incredible. The glosses pass the tacky test. (hair doesn’t stick to your mouth). The have great color without being overpowering. My favorites are Glow and Sirop. Glow is my current favorite Bridal Gloss. Lips just plain look luscious. Downside — the price for not so much gloss. But it’s Chanel, so who cares? If you can’t afford the shoes, you can afford the gloss!

4. Dior Addict Plastic Gloss
For glosses that have strong color, Dior Plastic Gloss is your best bet. They are packed with pigment and have shine that resembles highly polished plastic. For color drenched yet glossy lips, this is your gloss.

5. Bourjois Effect 3D High Shine Lip Gloss
I love this lipgloss. When J Lo wore one of the bronzy peach colors in this gloss a few years ago, it started selling like mad. But for those of us in the know, Bourjois lip gloss was already a favorite. It lasts and lasts. The color array makes it hard to choose just one. The shimmer effect on the lips makes those with the teeniest lips look like Angelina Jolie. (not quite, but you get my point) And when compared to other top brands, the $15 price tag is quite doable for the amount of product you get.

I do have another favorite from my corner beauty supply that is $2.99, but I have no idea what the brand is. Shhhhh. Don’t want my friends to know that I buy knock off stuff!

Do you have a favorite lipgloss? Let me know!

Lipgloss, definitely HOT.

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