Thursday, August 13, 2009

My New Favorite Website

I just happened to stuble on this website. It's great. It has product reviews, blogs (by people like Carmindy), and lots of tips.

www.dailymakeover.com

Check out their face shape quiz. It's pretty cute and easy and has some good tips. I've a diamond shaped face. What shape are you?

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

My Experiment

Jojoba oil is the oil that is most similar to human sebum, your body's natural moisturizer.

Wiki can tell you a little bit more about it than I can: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jojoba

I've done quite a bit of research on it recently, so I'll let you in on my little experiment. For the past couple of weeks now, I've been rubbing in a small amount of jojoba on my face before my moisturizer. So far, it seems to be making a big difference, and my skin in much happier with me. I'd like to let it go for a few more weeks before I make a conclusive judgment on whether or not this is a great supplement to add into your beauty routine. I'll keep you guys posted!

Thursday, July 30, 2009

No-Makeup-Makeup/Saturday-Day-Makeup

To follow up my makeup ideas for fun in the sun (i.e. primer and waterproof), I'd like to give some tips and ideas on how to create an easy, natural, minimalist look that can help polish up a little bit.

It's no secret that I love makeup, but to be honest, I don't love having to have on a full face at every waking moment. At the same time, I don't usually like to be completely without any makeup either. And while Dominic does have an appreciation for me wearing makeup, if I were to put on a full face of makeup on a Saturday afternoon, I'd get laughed at. (I'd laugh at me, too.) Understandibly so, given that our typical Saturday day consists of doing laundry, washing cars, and running errands.

So then what's the happy medium? What do you do when you want to look like more than you just rolled out of bed and shampooed and look less like your about to go to prom? I've come up with a makeup look that I would like to think of as either my no-makeup-makeup or my Saturday-day-makeup look.

(I'll be giving a number of different options and talking about a variety of products, so that you can figure out what works best for you, your features, and with what you already have. I'm not intending to imply that you go out and get or use every product or tip here to create your 'no-makeup' look, just trying to give lots of different options.)

So my theory behind the this look is that it polishes you off just a little bit. It's what I said, I personally don't enjoy looking like I only got out of bed and showered, but I also don't necessarily want people to say, "Oh, yes, Daisy will even wear makeup to go to a garage sale". So then, a look that uses minimal product, natural colors, and tones down the sparkle, makes sense. Using the right products, in the right places will cut down on time and effort, looking more natural.

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Before you start...
When you wash your face that morning, be sue to do a little exfoliation. Use a face sponge, a washcloth, or an exfoliating cleanser and scrub off all that dead skin you don't need any more! This will brighten you up.

Where to begin? With primer!
Like I discussed in another posting, using a primer will fill in your pores and fine lines, giving a more even appearance to your skin. This is one of the primary purposes of using a liquid foundation, but liquid foundation can be time consuming, heavy, and sometimes obvious, especially in the summer. So using a primer alone gives some of the benefits that you would get with a liquid. Also, some primers have little light deflecting particles/sparkes, that help even out reddness. This alone, even though transparent in color, will take the edge off of uneven skin tone or, even to some extent, blemishes.
Suggested Product: Avon Magix

Next... powder.
I would recommend using either a transparent mineral powder or transparent finishing powder. Sometimes I use both together (mineral then finishing). This, again, will make your skin look more even, but without looking like you have on heavy makeup. I would say, unless you can do a very sheer application avoid using a regular mineral foundation. Using a transparent powder, finishing or mineral, will, logically, look a lot more natural, but still let you feel like you're a little more pulled together.
Suggested Product: Prescriptives * magic liquid powder (Yes! It's worth the moolah!)
Suggested Product: Avon Smooth Minerals Ideal Shade Mineral Makeup in Transparent Glow

After that, comes cheeks.
Again, I want you to keep in mind, that I'm not saying that you need to do every one of these steps, just that some combination of these can make up your no-makeup-makeup look. So, if you have a lot of natural color in your cheeks, then skip doing cheeks! If you're looking a little bit like a brand new coloring book, then go ahead and do a little bit of blush. Pick whatever looks most natural on you. For example, I seem to look more natural with a cream blush, in a color that's in the berry family. Momzy looks more natural with a warmer pink in powder form. Everybody is a little bit different here.
(Tip: Look at the color of the inside of your mouth, or tounge, or your lips after you bite them. Chances are, you want a color in that family.)
(Remember: If you're applying a cream blush, you'll want that to come before any powder, so switch the order of the steps.)
(Another option: If you have time, or have the natural color already, consider applying a highlighting powder to the tops of your cheekbones or the apples of your cheeks, depending on your facial structure.)

Then comes lips.
The main key here is to think sheer and pretty clear. Don't wear a lipstick on this day. Ditch the heavily tinted lip glosses. Maybe just apply a decent coating of chappy. I would say that a tinted chapstick is even better. Avoid sparkle on the lips; sparkle will make your lips look makeup-y. If you have a nice clear, or very sheer tinted gloss, that is good too.
Suggested Product: Burt's Bees Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil
Suggested Product: mark Glossblossom Ripening Lip Tint

Lastly, eyes.
Don't foget about eyes. One of the quickest ways to brighten up eyes, is by using an eyelash curler. I know some people hate them, but I think their great. It's a no-makeup way to make your eyes look bright and pretty. What I most often do for super light eye makeup is use a sheer highlighting powder, either in a matte just a little lighter than my skintone or a something with a very light shimmer, and dust it on the top of my brow bone, under the arch of my eyebrow, and in the corner of my eye, by the tearduct. Then, curl and mascara.

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That's about it. I hope this was helpful. And yes, haha, I know this was a long write up for a look on how to do just a little bit of makeup. But good luck and let me know if you have any questions at all.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Why I've Mapped Out For A Bit: 4th Fun Part I

So, I realized that I have not posted in a while.... sorry. But it's been for good reason! I've been out having fun with Dominic, seeing beautiful Washington and having a good time on the 4th.

We went out to the lake...so that meant lots of sunscreen for me! I even water skied for the first time since I was little. I think I did surprisingly well.

Then what are my beauty thoughts for the week? Well, because I knew that I was going to have plenty of lake and pool time, I went out and got Covergirl LashBlast Waterproof. I normally do not use the waterproof version, just the regular LashBlast. And I'd honestly have to say that it did pretty well; it held up better than I thought that it would have. It didn't clump up and went on nice. And it didn't just give up on me at the end of the day like some other waterproofs have. So for fun in the water and sun, I think this is a definite must have. (Although, for everyday, you bet your hiney I'm going back to regular.)

Another thing that I could suggest, besides wearing lots of good quality sunscreen and waterproof mascara, would be to forego the liquid foundation if you know your having a day of play and just wear a primer (and maybe some powder if you won't be in the water). Wearing a primer will help with two things. First, it will help take some of that glean from your sunscreen down. Second, it will help fill in pores and fine lines in the same way that a liquid foundation helps do. This way you can still get some of the effect, with out having makeup that's running off your face.
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I've also attached some pics (in the previous posting). They are from our 4th of July weekend. Hope you enjoy!

Monday, July 6, 2009

Why I've Mapped Out For a Bit: 4th Fun - Part II

On the drive up through the reservation.

Dominic driving. (Glad I didn't have to!)


Dom out on the water...looking infinitely better than I did! Haha!


Out on Lake Spectacle.

On the drive back home. These are in Whitman County.

Friday, June 26, 2009

Check It Out

This is one of my very favorite sites for makeup. Marlena, who runs the site, does a great job. Her skill level is amazing. Although some of the looks here are more than I would ever do, there is a lot that I have learned from this site. So when you have the chance, check it out!

makeupgeek.com

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Ticky - Hot Lashes - Part Duex

Why does mascara dry out or become to hard? Well, one of the primary ingredients of mascara is wax. Soo.. this means that when it hits the air and cooler temperatures it won't stay in its most desireable state. Especially if you live somewhere that gets very cold in the winter, you may have noticed that when it's cold your mascara doesn't go on as nice.

How to fix this? Let your mascara take a little hot water bath. Either fill up your sink a bit or fill a mug with very hot water. Warming it up will melt the wax and make it easier to apply. I would say that it's best to let it sit in there for at least 5 minutes. If you do this right before you start your makeup, by the times you're ready for mascara, it will be perfectly melty and good.