FOTD Featuring "Dirty" Greasepaint Stick!

Though today was a pretty chill Saturday (just some errand-running!), I opted for a darker eye (more specifically a taupey/purple-toned smoky eye) with a soft, glowy cheek, and a pale pink lip. I'm really not one to post FOTD looks, but I really liked how this one turned out!

Here is the breakdown of what I used to achieve this look:

FACE:

MAC FIX+

Jan Marini Antioxidant Daily Face Protectant SPF 30

Origins GinZing Eye Cream

Make Up For Ever UV Prime SPF 50/PA+++ foundation primer

NARS Sheer Glow Foundation in "Mont Blanc"

NARS stick concealer in "Honey"

MAC Studio Sculpt concealer in NC15

CoverFx MatteFx Oil Absorbing Powder in "Light"

Benefit Powderflage

NARS bronzer in "Laguna"

MAC Cremeblend Blush in "So Sweet, So Easy"

Laura Geller blush in "Transparent Pink"

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in "By Candlelight" (for highlight)

EYES:

Urban Decay Primer Potion

MAC Greasepaint Stick in "Dirty" (on lid only)

MAC "Shale" eyeshadow (on lid over "Dirty")

MAC "Wedge" eyeshadow (in crease to soften)

MAC "Shroom" eyeshadow (highlight under brow bone)

MAC "Pink Opal" pigment (tiny bit in inner corner)

Jordana Fabu Liner in Black

Urban Decay Eyelash Primer Potion

Make Up For Ever Smokey Lash mascara (top lashes)

Maybelline Full & Soft mascara (bottom lashes)

LIPS:

CoverFx MintGlazeFx (to prime)

Revlon Super Lustrous lip gloss in "Petal Peach"

**Originally wore LORAC Cream Lipstick in "Baby Doll," a pale salmon pink/peach, underneath the gloss (LOVE!!)

A better view of the eyes

Side view of eyes and cheeks

What do you think? Let me know if it's a "yay" or a "nay!"

P.S. Ignore the messy hair and brows that are in desperate need of some grooming!

"The Runaways" Meets Make Up For Ever...And A Sweepstakes!

I love me some Make Up For Ever, so upon hearing that their wonderful products were used on the set of the upcoming movie, "The Runaways" (starring Kristin Stewart as Joan Jett and Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie), I felt I should share some of the behind the scenes beauty with you all. Documenting the all-woman rock band of the 1970's, the makeup was set to incorporate the rock and roll edge of the time.

Taking center stage for the look was a gorgeous smoky eye, created by Robin Mathews, head makeup artist for the film. She employed a variety of MUFE products to achieve this effect.

Here is the breakdown of the specific colors used to design each character's signature beauty look:

Kristin Stewart (Joan Jett) - Classic Smoky Eye:

1. Cover the entire lid area with Eyeshadow #127 (metallic taupe). Blend well to ensure that there are no hard edges.

2. Apply a good amount of Aqua Eyes Pencil in 0L (black) to the under eye area. Add to the upper lid as well, staying as close to the lash line as possible.

3. Use a smudger brush to smudge out the liner that was applied to both the upper and lower lash lines. Tip from the MUA: The smoky eye is all about the smudge! After, reapply a heavier dose of eyeliner.

4. Smudge Eyeshadow #139 (iridescent brown-black) over the previously applied eyeliner.

5. Curl lashes!

6. Apply Smoky Lash mascara, "scissoring up" to create volume and separation.

Dakota Fanning (Cherie Currie) - Colorful Smoky Eye:

1. Apply Star Powder #922 (copper) to the eyelid, all the way into the inner corner area, leaving the outer corner free of color.

2. Line the top and bottom lash lines with Aqua Eyes Pencil #3L (iridescent navy blue). Tip from the MUA: Apply liner as close to the lash line as possible to help create the perfect smoky eye.

3. Smudge the eyeliner with a smudger brush to blend out the color.

4. Apply Eyeshadow #81 (metallic navy blue iridescent) to the outer corner of the eye with a small flat brush and drag the color into the crease slightly.

5. To "smoke out" the eye, add some of the blue shadow to the lower lash line and blend it out.

6. Curl lashes and apply Smoky Lash mascara.

Robin explained why she used Make Up For Ever to create the look for the movie. She said, "I designed 'The Runaways' eyes around Make Up For Ever eyeshadows. Their highly pigmented eyeshadows and Aqua Eyes eyeliners are silky smooth, blendable, and long-lasting. The color selection is limitless, giving you endless possibilities. I finished each look with Smoky Lash mascara - which is truly smudge proof, a necessity on and off stage."

As a fun sweepstakes, Make Up For Ever has partnered with "The Runaways" to send one lucky winner and a guest to the NYC premiere of the movie on March 17th! For official rules and information on how to enter, check out www.makeupforeverusa.com/runaways.

Make Up For Ever has also created two video tutorials for the above looks along with Robin Mathews. You can also view these at www.makeupforeverusa.com/runaways.

To shop Make Up For Ever and for information on pricing, see www.sephora.com.

Have fun recreating these looks and be sure to enter the contest!

Backstage At bebe Kardashian: A Style360 Production At Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week

The retail chain bebe recently teamed up with the Kardashian sisters to create a line inspired by their signature styles. The offerings include classic Kardashian (or bebe, for that matter) body hugging dresses and tops, off-the-shoulder dresses, and blazers that are predominantly offered in black. The clothing is cute "clubwear," nothing extraordinary or unique, in my opinion. Nor did anything that I saw surprise me very much. In general, I'm not one to shop at bebe, as I tend to feel that the fabrics of their garments do not warrant the high price tags attached to them.

I did get to go backstage to check out the behind-the-scenes beauty for the show. The overall look I saw was very much in line with the sisters' own looks - a dark smoky eye, nude lip and long wavy locks.

Lead hair stylist, Whitney Blischke, used TIGI products to create what she described as "effortless glamour," beautiful and easy to achieve. She wanted to create the effect of having darker roots transitioning into lighter ends (to establish a varied texture and color), and to that end, she used both a dry shampoo (to mattify), as well as a shine product at the hair's ends. Hair was blown out, and Fashionista Spritz and Shine was first added to the hair for some hold. Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo followed, to incorporate somewhat of a matte finish into the look. Large sections of hair were then taken and rolled with a barrel curling iron. Finally, Your Highness Aerosol Dry Spray Shine was used on ends and distributed by hand through the hair to establish the final look.

Nathalie Bechard and her Sephora Pro team were behind the sexy makeup look. Bechard explained that the look was to be inspired by the type of woman who transitions effortlessly from working during the day to partying it up at night. In other words, she clarified that this look translated into a "day-friendly" smoky eye with some added "dimension and depth" in the outer corner area. Bechard used grays and greens to achieve this wearable effect. Cheeks were highlighted and adorned in a soft rosey-hued blush. Lips received a nude-pink color.

Products used to create the look:

Eyes:

Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes Pencil in 1L, "Star Black" (a black sheen)

Make Up For Ever Aqua Black Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow

Make Up For Ever Diamond Powder

Dior Brow Gel

Sephora Collection Colorful Artist Palette

Make Up For Ever Smokey Lash Mascara in "Black"

Make Up For Ever False Lashes

Skin:

Make Up For Ever HD Elixir

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10

YSL Touche Eclat Radiant Touch

Fresh Twilight Facefresh Glow

Lips:

Sephora Rouge Cream Lipstick in "Mmmm..."

Sephora Nano Lip Liner in "Candid Candy"

Finished look:

Love this top!

Nails were done by Kim D'Amato of Priti NYC. She used the shade "Willow" on the fingers (a transparent nude) and "Spring Song" on toes (a more opaque nude).

Sites to check out for products mentioned: www.sephora.com, www.pritinyc.com, www.tigihaircare.com, www.bebe.com.

People of note spotted backstage and at the show included Kim Kardashian herself (who sat front row and looked gorgeous), Jennifer "JWoww" Farley of MTV's "The Jersey Shore" (I have trouble calling her a celebrity, though...), and Dina and Caroline Manzo from Bravo's "The Real Housewives of New Jersey." In addition, a few of the models from the last cycle of "America's Next Top Model" were in attendance (including, finalist Laura).

New Product Alert: Make Up For Ever HD Microfinish Blush!

I just read an email that brought to my attention a new product that will be available soon from Make Up For Ever. This cream blusher will be offered in 14 different shades (light to dark, with pink and yellow undertones) and the formula promises to be highly pigmented and non-drying, with an extremely natural finish. In keeping with the HD philosophy, the blush will be invisible to high-definition cameras as well as the naked eye.

The HD Microfinish Blush, $25, is available now at www.sephora.com, and can be found at Sephora stores by March.

I can't wait to test this out! Who's with me?

I've Got Eyes For You, Baby: Current Lemmings

New collections are launching. I'm a beauty addict. Sephora's having a Friends and Family sale. My birthday is coming next month. These might sound like excuses for creating a list of "products I just can't take my eyes off of," but whatever the case may be, I am feeling the need to get some of my beauty (and other) lemmings put down in writing.




First off, the Holiday '09 collection has popped up on the Nars website, and a few of the goods are just calling out my name (don't you hear it, too?). I'm particularly impressed by the new shades of the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. The hues are rich and bold - Toundra, a deep wine, and Pop Life, a "holly" red.











Nars eyeshadows are among the best in their buttery soft formulation, and the earthy and smoky colors being offered as part of the collection are definitely appealing. I'm especially loving the look of the Eurydice duo, a coupling of gorgeous aubergine purple and clean graphite.

As the Sephora sale is fast approaching (it will run from October 19-November 2), I have put together some of the items that I've been waiting to purchase from the website. As I've previously blogged about the new Urban Decay Book of Shadows Vol. 2, I might finally "break down" (kicking and screaming, arm-twisting and all, right? ;-)) and purchase this palette. Between the color assortment and the great value, this one is pretty close to a definite score for me. As I'm keen on makeup/product sets, I'm also eyeing the Buxom Babes About Town collection from Bare Escentuals (I really adore their lip products!) and the Fresh Star Light, Star Bright kit. I'm a Fresh "virgin," and this little compilation of some of their products would be a great way for me to get my feet wet, so to speak. Make Up For Ever always has me lemming something. Right now, I'm itching to try out the HD foundation, the HD concealer, and the Flash Color palette (though these might all go on my list for the next Make-up Show!).

I'm forever a "perfume freak," always checking out the new scents to set my olfactory system a-flutter. LOLA, Marc Jacobs' new fragrance, is up there on my list right now.

My final beauty lemming is the Chanel Rouge Allure Laque in Dragon. I'm going on lip swatch photos for this one, but the pigmentation on this product seems to be pretty phenomenal. In between a gloss and a lipstick, this vibrant red color has me stopped in my tracks (red light does mean stop!).

And now for something I actually need - a camera! As some of you know, towards the end of Fashion Week I lost the Canon digital Elf camera I have had for about four years. I was devastated. I mean what does a blogger do without being able to capture swatch photos?!? I've been feeling quite lost (hence the lack of product reviews as of late). Needless to say, I will have to get myself a new camera ASAP. I've been looking at the updated version of my beloved Canon, namely the SD970 model. With 12.1 Mega Pixels and 5x optical zoom, I think I would be able to take some quality pictures. Was losing my camera a blessing in dusguise? Hmmm.....

So I've shared with you some of the items that I'm currently desiring. Now, I want to know... what's on your list (you know you have one!)?

Gossip Girls <3 Make Up For Ever!

Though this comes as no surprise (I mean who doesn't love Make Up For Ever?!?), on the set of the hit show Gossip Girl, make-up artists and stars alike, have been spotted using some of the long-lasting and high-definition products from the Parisian make-up line's range.

Here are just a few of the MUFE sightings:

Blake Lively (Serena van der Woodsen) was seen applying her Glossy Full Couleur #6 (bright pink)

Joanna Garcia, who has a guest-starring role on this season's GG, swears by HD Invisible Cover Foundation #155

Hilary Duff, who plays a new character this season, is a huge fan of Kohl Pencil #1k (deep black)

Amy Tagliamonti, the head make-up artist on set, keeps lots of HD Invisible Cover Foundation and HD Invisible Cover Concealer on hand to create the perfect on-camera complexion. She loves how the concealer "covers, but it's not heavy and doesn't cake."

Even the Upper-East Siders can't seem to get enough, huh? ;-)