Makeup Tips/How To

Do Your Brows Need a Trim? Here’s One Way to Tell

July 27th, 2012 by Karen 48 Comments

Before we get to brows (in just a sec), first things first — happy Friday! 🙂 Here, have a celebratory cup of chocolate macadamia kona coffee with me…

Mmmm, chocolately goodness…

I gotta power up today with some extra caffeine because your nephew kept me up with his shenanigans last night. He was being NAUGHTY! — in bold, all caps like that.

He kept running up and down the stairs all night long, who knows why, and then this morning, he used El Hub’s back as springboard, leaping into the air and landing in the middle of the bed.

But the worst — THE WORST — was the incessant pawing at the bottom of the linen closet door.

I don’t know why, but he’s become obsessed with opening and closing it. He hooks his claws under the narrow space at the bottom and pulls and pulls and pulls. It makes an incredible racket, starting off as a quiet bah-dump, bah-dump, bah-dump that turns into a fast and feverish thump-thump-thump-THUMP-THUMP! as he gets more and more fired up.

Finally, after about the third episode of this, probably around 3 a.m., I rolled out of bed and propped open the door. Of course, that took all the fun out of it for him, so he moved on to wreaking havoc somewhere else.

This is not the face of an angel…

Cats! You just can’t tell ’em what to do, but I guess that’s what gives them so much personality.

Now…I may have absolutely no control over Tabs, but I do have some control over my brows.

I usually maintain my brows myself at home because I’m a little reluctant to trust those little caterpillars to strangers (yes, I have control issues, LOL!), so I pluck to keep the strays at bay (always from below the brow, and never, ever above) and trim from time to time, too.

To determine if/when my brows need trimming, I grab a brow brush and brush my brows upward. If I see any long hairs that go past the natural shape of the brow, ding-ding-ding! — we have a winner. That’s when I’ll trim ’em down with a pair of scissors.

I just have to remember to work slowly, so as not to poke an eye out or snip away too much brow.

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Easy on the Eyes: A Super Simple Smokey Eye With Brown and Black

July 25th, 2012 by Karen 53 Comments

A simple smokey eye tutorial

Of all the eye makeup looks I’ve worn over the past — let’s see, I started wearing makeup when I was 14, and I’m 37 now (LOL! First I typed, “…and I’m 27 now.”) — 23 years (!), this simple smokey number with brown and black has to be one of my favorite five.

It’s one of my best conversation starters, because whenever I wear it and bump into fellow beauty fiends (MY PEOPLE!), there’s a pretty good chance they’ll ask what I’m wearing.

I like that it’s easy and elegant, and even though it’s more dramatic than the look earlier this week, I still think it fits within the “natural with a kick” category.

In terms of products you’ll need, there’s not much to it. Just a few things…

smokey eye tutorial 1
From the left: MAC 239 Eye Shader Brush, MAC 217 Blending Brush, MAC Kohl Power Pencil in Feline and MAC Eyeshadow in Soba

Like last time, I’m mostly using MAC products here, but there are literally dozens if not hundreds of similar shades out there from other brands. There’s no reason you couldn’t use some other colors and brushes you already have on hand.

Right. Now, on to the look! 🙂

First, it’s time to prime — at least if you have oily lids. If not, let’s skip ahead.

Next (or maybe first, if you didn’t need to prime), grab something like MAC Kohl Power Pencil in Feline, and apply all over your lids.

Don’t worry if it looks a little messy at this point, because we’ll be doing some blending in a minute. Right now we’re just trying to start with a good base and give the overall look some depth.

smokey eye tutorial 2

You can probably guess one of the reasons I’m a fan of Feline, but it’s also super soft and easy to blend.

For this step, I’d probably steer clear of quick-setting, long-wearing pencils like Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Perversion that might not allow enough time for blending, but other than that, any good black liner should do.

Now, take your blending brush (I’m using the MAC 217 here), and gently start buffing out the edges; your smokey look should start to take shape.

smokey eye tutorial 3
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Get More Bang for Your Brows With This Eyebrow Makeup Tip

July 25th, 2012 by Karen 24 Comments

makeup tips for eyebrows 1

LOL! That’s me trying to make a “Shhh!” face, as in “I have secret to tell you, shhh!” Believe it or not, getting it just right on camera is a lot harder than it looks, shhh! Who knew?

Before I get distracted yet again by goofy pics and this delicious cup of coffee (GOOD MORNING!), can we talk brows? 🙂

If you fill in your brows with brow powders, pencils or gels (or maybe a combination of all three, which I do sometimes), do you ever find the products vanishing halfway through the day? It can be kind of a pain.

With that in mind, here’s a tip to help keep those beautiful brows from disappearing.

Start by grabbing your favorite colorless eye makeup primer. If you don’t have one yet, there are lots of good ones out there to choose from, like Too Faced Shadow Insurance, Tarte Clean Slate and Urban Decay Primer Potion, among others. I’m using NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base here, which is my current go-to eye makeup primer.

Apply a small amount of your primer directly atop your bare brows…

makeup tips for eyebrows 2

Then, pat it down with a finger to work the product down between the follicles into your skin.

makeup tips for eyebrows 3
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Take Your Nude Lip Looks to the Next Level With This Quick Makeup Tip

July 24th, 2012 by Karen 23 Comments

lip makeup tip

I realize I look a little crazy-pants in this pic, but there is a method to my madness, LOL!

Talking about Big Baby Plushglass yesterday reminded me of one of my favorite makeup tricks for nude lip looks.

After I finish applying concealer under my eyes, I take the leftover product on my brush, and run it across my lips. The thin layer of concealer evens out my natural lip color and creates a blank canvas for nude lip liners, lipsticks or glosses applied on top. It also allows more of the nude lip color to show through.

If you have very pigmented lips, and nude lip glosses like Big Baby look almost like clear glosses on your kisser, this little tip can really help bring out the nude in nude lip colors.

Here I’m wearing MAC Pro Longwear Concealer in NW 25, which I also use under my eyes (I’m usually an NC, but I think the peachy tones in this NW shade offset the blues and purples in my dark circles — a trick I learned from a friendly MAC makeup artist), topped with Big Baby Plushglass, a plumping peach gloss with pink and white pearl.

lip makeup tip
A thin layer of concealer…

lip makeup tip
Then a layer of Big Baby!
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Easy on the Eyes: A Quick Eye Makeup Look Starring Bronze and Brown

July 23rd, 2012 by Karen 54 Comments

A bronze and brown eye tutorial

Oh, did I tell you? Last weekend I did a marathon…text message session about makeup with my friend Jen. 🙂

Jen’s a busy new mom with a full-time job. She hasn’t been too adventurous with her makeup for the past few years — mostly just mascara and gloss — but she wants to start playing a little more now and asked me for some easy eye makeup ideas. Nothing fancy, just simple looks she could wear to work or to dinner with her hubby.

When she described the overall look she was going for as, “natural with a kick,” that got me thinking… It might be fun to make a series out of this. Just some really easy eye makeup looks to get you pretty, polished and out the door.

If you’re a busy mom like Jen, a student heading back to school this fall, or anyone looking for a few more quick eye makeup ideas, hopefully the brief tutorials I’ll be sharing over the next few days can help.

So, what does “natural with a kick” mean? Well, for me it means a look that’s one step above a no-makeup makeup look, like something where you can definitely tell that you’re wearing makeup, but it doesn’t look anywhere near as done up as a full-blown Kim Kardashian smokey eye.

The colors I think of for looks like these are usually soft daytime neutrals, bronzes, browns and khakis with matte, sheen and shimmer finishes. Nothing too crazy at all. Just a simple, pretty look with very few products and a wee bit o’ blending.

Today’s eye look is super easy, too. It’s a soft and shimmery eye with bronze and brown, and it only takes about 10 minutes.

I’m mostly using MAC products here, but if you have any similar shades from different brands, feel free to substitute.

bronze and brown eye tutorial products
From the left: MAC 239 Eye Shader Brush, MAC 266 Small Angle Brush, MAC 217 Blending Brush, MAC Eye Kohl in Teddy, MAC Eyeshadow in Concrete and MAC Paint Pot in Indianwood

First things first — if your lids are oily, as mine sometimes are — prime them first with a translucent primer (I like NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base). The primer gives the other products we’ll be using a better surface to adhere to.

If your lids are dry, on the other hand, in the interest of saving time, you can probably skip this step.

bronze and brown eye tutorial 1

Next, apply MAC Paint Pot in Indianwood on your lids with something like the MAC 239 Eye Shader Brush, concentrating most of the color along the lash line.

(No need to worry about being too neat here, because we’ll be blending things out in a minute.)

Then, take the remaining product on your brush, and run it along your lower lash line.

Grab a MAC 217 Blending Brush (or something similar), and blend out the edges of the shadow on your lids.

Try to create a soft gradient/transition where the pigment is at its darkest along your lash lines, fading as it moves up toward your brows.

To further define the shape of your eyes, reach for MAC Eye Kohl in Teddy, and line the upper and lower lashes (you can also be a little messy with this step, too), and then use your MAC 239 to softly blend out the edges.

bronze and brown eye tutorial 2
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Thursday Greetings and Funny Faces With My New Favorite Face Makeup Combo

July 19th, 2012 by Karen 68 Comments

For the love of husky tabbies! — yesterday I could not take a normal picture to save my life.

I don’t know how Tabs and Tyra do it. Some days it just seems, by my expression in every single pic, that I look like I accidentally stepped in dog poop:

But wait, it gets better…

LOL!

I do have a point, and it is this: I have a new favorite face makeup combo that I’ve been dying to tell you about — NARS Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer topped with a little bit of Hourglass Oxygen Foundation Powder.

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Neon Helps Nails Do the Bright Thing: Dazzle Your Digits With This Easy Neon Nail Art Look…and Then Enter to Win $600 in Prizes!

May 17th, 2012 by Karen 46 Comments

This series is brought to you by Buxom Color Choreography Eyeshadow. Buxom wants to inspire you to live life vividly.

You know why summer is one of my favorite seasons?

Okay, I mean besides the sun, the warm weather, the blockbuster movies, the lighter traffic on the highways (because school is out), the beach days, swimming pools, and aaaaaaall of that stuff. Besides all of that, do you know why summer is one of my favorite seasons? 🙂

One word: color! Summer is a fantastic excuse to go buck wild with color.

For those three months, it’s everywhere you turn — on lips, cheeks, eyes, and yes, also nails.

And what better way to celebrate the coming color storm than with some of the neat neon nail colors popping up in summer collections.

Here’s an easy neon nail art tutorial that you can do even if you’re pressed for time. And you can also try some different color combinations to suit your mood.

Step 1: Start with a bright base

First things first, apply a base coat, followed by a layer (or two) of your favorite neon nail polish. Here, I’m using a creamy bright orange (just because I think it’s summery and fun).

Wait until that’s completely dry before moving on to the next step…

Step 2: Add your stripes

Tabs, a self-proclaimed feline expert in stripes, insisted that I do mine freehand, painting them directly on my nails. For this look, I used a bright creamy neon pink.

Before I let the brush touch a nail, I try to remove as much excess polish from the brush as I can by running it against the mouth of the bottle. Then, with the lightest touch I can manage, I draw each stripe, beginning at the base of the nail and brushing up toward the tip.

When I’m done with the first layer, I wait for it to dry, and then repeat the process (if necessary, depending on the opacity of the color you’ve chosen) for extra intensity.

Now, you can draw your stripes anywhere you want. Remember, this is all about you going buck wild. 🙂 But I prefer to draw them slightly off the center of each nail.

Why? Because I like my stripes like I like my cat — bold and kinda chunky!

But thin stripes are cool, too. I’ve done it both ways.

If you have trouble painting your stripes freehand, clear scotch tape can help. Just lay two strips of tape down along the sides of each nail to create a homemade stencil, and then paint in the middle.

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No Crease? No Problem. In-Crease Your Eye Makeup Skills With These 5 Monolid Makeup Tips

May 12th, 2012 by Karen 70 Comments

About the Author
The following guest post was written by Sunny of Mostly Sunny blog. You can also find Sunny on Twitter and Facebook.

Despite the fact that it’s impossible to generalize “Asian eyes” in a single word, monolids seem to be one of the traits most commonly associated with them. Monolids are characterized by the lack of a prominent crease, and monolidded eyes are usually more almond shaped than round.

I remember thinking how unfair it was as a child that I ended up with my father’s monolidded eyes, while my mother and one of my brothers have a prominent crease. It took me years to see how both were beautiful in their own way, and now my monolids aren’t something I try to work around, but something I enjoy working with!

Sure, round eyes with pronounced creases are beautiful, but so are almond-shaped eyes without a crease. 🙂

My naked eye

Now, I know that it’s also impossible to generalize even among people with monolids, as there are different shapes and techniques, and people will sometimes prefer one method over another. Ultimately, it all comes down to what you like and feel comfortable with.

Nowadays, there are even eyelid tapes and glues available to create a crease, if you think it helps you apply makeup, and some even find that applying false lashes gives their eyelids a fold.

In general, I don’t believe in hard and fast rules when it comes to makeup, and I think you should do whatever you’re most comfortable with. The following tips are just some things that have worked well for me.

I know that many readers who come across this post might not have monolids themselves, but why not keep these tips in mind for a friend who does?

The MAC 217 Blending Brush

Tip 1: Blend, blend, blend!

As important as blending is when it comes to eyeshadow application, I think it’s even more important for those of us with monolids, because we lack a natural demarcation between our eyes and brow bones, so if we apply a patch of color right on top of our eyes without blending, it can look a bit unnatural.

Unblended eyeshadow

In the picture below, I’m wearing Urban Decay Verve on the inner half of my eye and Busted on the outer. Personally, I think that once the eyeshadows have been blended, they appear more natural, and add more dimension to the look than a simple patch of color.

Blended eyeshadow

Tip 2: (Don’t) work it into your crease

If you don’t have one, why fight it? I know that dramatic cut-crease looks are gorgeous on our double-lidded counterparts, but if we’re not careful, they can easily look overdone, and dare I say it, a little fake.

While it’s not impossible to emphasize the outer v and bring a bit of the color into our (imaginary) crease, I try to do it with an easily blendable color using a blending brush instead of a pencil brush; otherwise, it can take a looong time to blend the harsh line out afterwards!

Defined outer v
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