As promised!
A few months ago, I met Lauren Luke at her Sephora launch event, and LOVE her. So, when I saw she had updated her YouTube with some fabulous new tips for Halloween makeup, I had to share them here!
For those who don’t know, Lauren is the beauty-blog-queen of of the UK. Her YouTube channel has over 300,000 subscribers…just to watch her play with makeup. (Geez. Why didn’t I think of that?)
Her ideas are great, though. Check out some below.
Gothic Vampire Look
Lauren used the Twilight Ash eyeshadow from her My Smokey Classics makeup kit to help create this vampy look.
Angel …read more

Next week is the Miss Black USA Pageant, and millions of girls will look upon the contestants and covet some aspect of their look.
Why not start a week early?
Kebra Emanuel-Autry, Head Make-up Artist for the 2009 Miss Black USA Pageant, says she is in love with Black Opal. “I am so excited that they are this year’s sponsor for the Miss Black USA Pageant. Their products are great– and not just for fashion shows but also for the everyday woman with a “no fuss” approach to beauty!”
Kebra swears by makeup brushes, and says they “are a must …read more

I keep on getting emails with how-to’s on how to blow out your hair. I am grateful..and yet, I know that many of us cannot learn such an invovled task simply by reading a few paragraphs!
I just discovered MonkeySee, though, a free how-to video site featuring real experts offering instruction, demonstrations and advice on almost any topic imaginable. Turns out there’s a whole channel devoted to this sort of thing, and one is … blowouts!
How to Blow Dry your hair, Mona Harb, salon and spa owner:

I spend my whole life growing out my hair, I think. I love to wear it short and I love it long, so I am always transitioning to one style or another. So, I am growing out now, from this, which was my spring ‘do, to – well, I don’t quite know yet. I have been lusting lately over Gene Simmon’s wife, Shannon Tweed’s, hair – it really is gorgeous – see (and, ahem, Gene isn’t looking so bad after all that surgery either, eh?)?  I always cut it off before it makes it that long though.  …read more

I remember when my mother took me for a bra “fitting” when I was mucho younger. An old lady was poking and prodding on me in the fitting room, adjusting straps and bands and checking cup size, and well, just putting her fingers all over where they didn’t belong! It was the closest I have ever felt to violated – well, not really, unfortunately, but it was sure icky when I was 12. LOL My new favorite undergarment store, Figleaves, has a great guide to bra size – minus the old lady and her prodding fingers. …read more

Clothes, bags and shoes aren’t the only things that are supposed to be shiny this season. Shiny hair is in fact in style all year round. If you don’t have a model-shiny mane, perhaps it is time to try one of the temporary hair glosses on the market today. Not too long ago this was a service only available at your salon, but now it is sooooo much easier and a whole lot less expensive! John Frieda has a wonderful gloss, and Clairol is unveiling theirs very soon. My best tip so you will …read more

My good friend Shannon, over at MakeupMinute, has a *don’t miss* post on correcting your skin tone, that you might want to check out. Even though, thankfully, I don’t suffer from rosacea or any other big skin problems (besides my constant black/whitehead battle), we all have skin tone issues – and evening it out is the major purpose of a whole class of cosmetics. Check out Shannon and see what she has to say about it.

Esthetic Plus (the tweezer folks) have some really great tools for pedicures – the one I have tried lately, and liked, is their Stainless Steel Pedicure File ($20).
This is not your best choice if you have really bad callouses, but is a great choice if your feet are not too bad, or if you get regular pedicures and just need some in between maintenance. This tool is double sided, with a medium-coarse file on one side and a much smoother, “finishing” file on the other side. The handle is exceptionally strong (one of my pet peeves …read more

As you may have noticed, your nails need extra attention in the cold weather to prevent chips and breaks due to brittleness. Switch to a base coat for brittle nails, and keep your nails polished (1 coat of base coat, 2 coats of color and a top coat). Don’t skimp on the moisturizers either – use oil regularly on your cuticles – this has tremendous benefit for your nails. Try a 10 minute hot olive oil soak when you remove your polish – no more often than once a week, as all polish removers are harsh and …read more

Did you run out and buy that cool pink flat iron the other day? If you did, or if you are a flat iron user at all (or want to be), this is a great video from Clairol’s Herbal Essences on how to straighten your hair. Even if you don’t flat iron it, the use of the hair dryer, as shown in the video, will give you a pretty darned straight look.

That gal is terminally cute, eh? LOL
That is a good video – my only comment is that she made a pretty quick mention of the importance of …read more