Brush Cleaning....You wash your face, right?

Makeup brushes are THE essential tool for your makeup collection.  Whether your makeup of choice is Dior, Cover Girl, or a little of it all, great makeup brushes are key for a perfect application.  I have a mixed collection of brands, Bobbi Brown, MAC, Benefit, E.L.F., etc.... but regardless of your brushes' price tag it is so important to regularly clean and maintain them.  I have heard lots of ways to clean and disinfect them, from brush cleansers to baby shampoo but the best way I have found to cleanse and condition them is a mixture of antibacterial dish soap and olive oil.  Yes, olive oil.  I place a 50/50 mixture of soap and oil on a plate, around a tablespoon of both, and swirl my brushes in the combo, coating the bristles but avoiding contact with the metal connector that attaches the bristles to the handle.  After soaking up the mixture I swirl the brush in the palm of my hand, rinsing under the flow of water in the sink.  It is amazing how much product comes out of the brush.  I keep swirling the brush around in my palm until the water runs clear.  After I have cleansed and conditioned the brush I shape them with my hand, back to their original shape and lay them on their side, on a towel to dry.  Try to avoid drying them in a cup, brush up, as the water can leak into the metal connector, loosening the glue that connects the bristles to the handle.  Try to cleanse your brushes once a week, especially those that are used to apply creamy textured products for not only a flawless brush but to keep that skin glowing.

Sun Damage, No Thank You!!

This is WHAT I AM LOVING right now.  It is fabulous!!  Run to buy Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Glow Pad. 

I have spent years and years baking in the sun, looking for that high you get from a tan.  Only in my early 30's, with a face full of melasma, did I stop spending countless vacations seeking that sunkissed glow.  I have tried lots of sunless tanning products, but almost all of them have left me disappointed.  That is until now.  Not only does this product deliver a healthy, natural glow but it does so with no harsh or offensive smell and no stained fingertips.  Another big bonus in my mind is that it is Cruelty Free, Vegan and Paraben Free!  Great for your face and body, get that fabulous glow so you can glow year round.

Be lovely
xoxo
Suzanne

Mascaras, Worth the Price?

Mascara is one of my deserted island must haves.  I rarely leave the house without at least one coat and a touch of concealer.  I think that it makes all the difference in the world and without it, I feel totally undone.  Although I love cosmetics and find myself spending pretty pennies on fun, new products, I have a very hard time paying top department store prices for mascara. Is it worth the price?  After tubes and tubes of the stuff my answer is, sometimes.  Here are a list of my favorite drug store brands, that rivel most high end ones and a few that I think are not only worth the price, but are a must in my ever evolving kit.

$ Covergirl LashBlast Fusion Mascara- Love the volumizing and legthening power of this mascara.  The brush is oversized and a bit clunky, maybe not the best if you have small eyes.  Don't bother with any color other than Very Black.

$ L'Oréal Paris True Match Naturale Mascara- A true natural look.  Doesn't clump or give you a scary spider look but does lengthen and volumize nicely. 

$ L'Oréal Paris Double Extend Waterproff Mascara- Best of the waterproof ( I would say water resistent) products that has a two step application with a base that creates volumized, all day wear amazing lashes.

$ Rimmel London Extra Super Lash Mascara- An inexpensive mascara that challenges any Dior mascara for depth of pigmentation and ability to layer for a dramatic and flirty look.

$$ Blinc Mascara (formally known as "Kiss Me")- the original mascara invented to form tiny water-resistant "tubes" around your lashes. The tubes bind to your lashes and cannot run, smudge, clump, or flake, even if you cry or rub your eyes. Easily removed with light pressure of your fingers or a wash cloth and warm water.  Worth every penny.  I picked it up at Sephora.

$$ Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Mascara- My favorite new mascara that has pigment like none other.  The color is the blackest of black and delivers extreme volume.  Not for the natural girl look.

Play around, find what you like for the right occasion and wear MASCARA!

Be lovely
xoxo
Suzanne

Eyebrows Abound

It is pretty tough and really overwhelming to decipher the mixed messages telling us how to keep our brows lovely, soft and perfectly shaped.  We hear first waxing is best, then threading or wait, maybe tweezing. Maintaining those lovely eye-frames can be not only confusing but quite costly.  Waxing maybe the most widely available form of shaping your brows. It is quick, rather painless and cost effective.  Keep in mind that you do have many options to keep your eyebrows looking lovely, manicured and expressive.  Try one or or them all, lord knows I have.  Please just don't go on your own. Those eyebrow stencils that you can use to create a shaped brow only spell DISASTER. Put your brows in the eyes of a professional. My new favorite are brow bars that are popping up in cities and suburbs. I make a regular trip to Benefit's Brow Bar at Bloomingdale's.  They wax and tweeze to give a natural, shaped and elegant frame perfected just for your face.

After you have achieved that perfect shape it's time to talk products that will give a flawless finish to your snazzy and newly shaped brows.

I adore Makeup Forever's Waterproof Brow Corrector.  It's a waterproof eyebrow defining cream in a tube that fills, defines, and intensifies brows with natural-looking, stay-put color.  You must use a slanted brush to apply.  Trust me, you put this product on and you will be flawless all day and night.

Another must is Anastasia's Brow Wiz.  I am absolutely ga-ga over this product.  It delivers a precise application with its ultra-fine pencil tip, mimicking the appearance of tiny hairs.  This product is ideal for a natural look or use it to freshen up your shape when it seems as though your girls are unruly. Anastasia also makes another product that I covet for ladies with very sparse brows.  It is her Brow Pen. Not only does it fill in the brows with a true natural whispy hair look, it also can be used as a base for your other brow products for double duty long lasting wear. 

If you love a penciled brow look and can't seem to part from your method of brow filling check out Clinique's Instant Lift for Brows.  This two-in-one automatic brow pencil and pearlized highlighter duo creates a contrast and definition that give eyes a virtual lift. First, fill in and shape brows with long-wearing natural-looking pencil. Then optically 'boost' brow arches with universal highlighter shade just below brow hairs. A fantastic and portable manner of making your brow look amazing and your eyes open and bright anytime.

Be lovely
xoxo
Suzanne

Girlfriend or guru, maybe a little of both

Lisa Eldridge is a London based makeup artist with 20 years of experience. Her talents have taken her around the world working for top fashion magazines, celebrities and fashion houses.  Her signature look is fresh, flawless skin with a modern approach to beauty.  Despite her amazing success as an internationally respected artist, Lisa's expertise is quite accessible to us gals who love trying new looks.  Lisa posts how-to videos on her website,You Tube and most recently Chanel Confidential, a monthly digital magazine for the Chanel Beauty Division with topics ranging from what are her fav product picks from the drug store to how to create a perfect first date look.  Here a few videos and if you are anything like me, just after one, you'll be addicted.

I hope you have as much fun and find these as informative as I do.  Between Lisa Eldridge and Gwyneth Paltrow I think I have a competition for my "best friend in my head."

Be lovely

xoxo

Suzanne

Everything Illuminated....not on your wedding day

A make-up trial is an essential step in your bridal beauty planning.  It is so important to meet with the make-up artist to not only discuss, but to see how you are going to look when walking down the aisle. Every bride should feel beautiful on their special day. 
The word shimmer is just so pretty and hey, who doesn't want to glow, but let's leave that shine to come from within on your big day.  Keep the shimmer out of any concealer, foundation or blush. Any product that light reflects, illuminates, highlights, sparkles or shimmers has a place in your makeup bag and even part of your daily routine, but NOT only your special day.  As lovely as these products are, they are not flattering in photographs.

Here are a few products that I think rock and will leave you flawless on your wedding day.

For us girls with combination/oily skin, Clinique's Acne Solution Foundation is fabulous.  It leaves your skin with a gorgeous, velvety matte finish.

Another foundation that will leave you not only radiant but also looking like you have perfect, I mean perfect skin is the Makeup Forever HD Invisible Cover Foundation.  This miracle foundation formula leaves your skin flawless, both to your groom's and the camera's eye. 

Blushing brides should be that, blushing with a natural flush.  Depending on your skin tone you will have to adjust the color, but I love Nars Blush, my favorite Amour.  A gorgeous pinky peach that leaves a sheer hint of natural color made with transparent pigments.  Another good option is MAC Powder Blush in Mocha.  MAC's high concentration of pigment should have you blushing all day or night. 

Now that your skin looks incredible, let's have it go all night.  Have someone in your bridal party carry the essential touch-up products like lipstick and powder.  Make sure you have blotting powder to take away any shine from your T-Zone without depositing noticeable color or texture to your skin.  MAC's Blot Powder Pressed is probably the most widely used and recommended by tons of experts.  Also, Bobbi Brown makes  Blotting Papers which will absorb shine and perspiration from the skin without leaving any trace powder behind to dull your makeup.

I hope your wedding is incredibly memorable and you feel like the beautiful bride you are.  You soooo got this.

Be lovely

xoxo

Suzanne



My Favorite Things

This is just a short entry to tell you about a product I recently picked up at Bloomingdales.  Benefit has a beautiful new counter there, so feminine and intimate.  I popped in to see what was new and went for the Stay don't Stray primer for concealers and eyeshadows $24.  It does exactly what it says, primes so beautifully, almost acting as a thin concealer with beautiful tone and texture.  I even use it alone when I just want to run out and give the skin underneath my eye and lid an even, lovely, soft look.

  

Be careful when you pump the product.  You will get way too much if you press down all the way.  Only push the pump half way to get a more controlled amount of product that won't be wasted.  Half a pump is more than you will need for a day worth of priming. Kudos to Benefit Cosmetics for reformulating their eyeshadow primer into a fabulous double duty primer for both concealer and shadow.

Be lovely
xoxo
Suzanne