Alison says,

To quickly and easily get your glam on this Holiday season, try brightening or deepening your eyes and/or your lips. For example, if you normally wear a soft plum lipstick, a step deeper would be a more of aubergine color and a step brighter would be more of a burgundy shade.

On your eyes, if you normally wear matte shadows, try adding a bit of shimmer under the brow bone (brighter) and a few extra coats of black mascara (deeper). So next time you are stocking up on your makeup basics, don’t forget to also get a few “deeper/brighter” items so when it’s time for a party, you’ll be ready to celebrate!

If you’re curious about Alison Raffaele Cosmetics, you’re in luck! Receive 30% off any order on site using promo code JFRIENDS (that’s for Juara, one of Alison’s fave brands, in case you were curious!) at check-out. This offer expires December 31, 2009.

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While the look may seem intimidating at first glance (and second too…let’s be honest), if you choose the right products and apply correctly (that’s always key!), it can be surprisingly wearable.

Unlike some of the opaque black shades that you can find on counter right now, our favorite Lipstick Queen - Poppy King - has made this Goth-inspired trend gorgeous with Black Tie Optional Lipstick ($18) and Shine Gloss ($22).

The sheer black lipstick shade is meant to be worn UNDERNEATH your favorite lip color to deepen the tone and enrich the color – making lips appear sexy instead of gothic. Reds become a black cherry shade while light pinks turn mauve.

The Shine Gloss can we worn on its own to give lips a deepened, smoky look – totally chic with just a touch of vamp.

Shop the collection at Barney’s or online at www.lipstickqueen.com.

What do you think of the black lip trend? Is this a look you plan to try?

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First and foremost, before organizing your makeup, make sure that you’re holding on to items that you really love. I know that we’re all prone to hoarding gorgeous colors or special packaging – and that’s okay. But if you don’t love it or it’s not useful to you, it’s a waste.  Try passing along what you don’t use to a friend, selling it on eBay (must be new) swapping it on Makeup Alley or donating it to a battered woman’s shelter (again, they usually accept new products only.)

Now that you’ve narrowed down your makeup to products that you use and/or products that you love, (hopefully there’s some overlap in those categories!), pull out all of the basics that you use every day, be it black eyeliner, translucent powder, your favorite lip gloss, etc. Put those in a makeup bag and store in a cool, dry and convenient place. If you can afford to have duplicates for your purse/car or office, even better.

Now, I have a lot of products that I like to keep on hand for everyday, so I use MAC’s Carry All Case for storage on my vanity, in addition to a sweet Paul & Joe printed makeup bag for the very basics.

If you have the luxury of a vanity or a dresser with some extra space, you may want to consider leaving some of your products out for ease of use (and let’s face it, it’s fun and girly to see them on display!), I dig the Large Acrylic Makeup Organizer from The Container Store:

The compartments let you stay organized and the plastic is super easy to clean in the case of any spills.

Hopefully, you’re not quite at the need-an-intervention stage like me, but if you’re truly at the point of excess, pick up one of these nifty Stor-n-Slide Underbed Boxes.

They’re enormous but allow you to keep things hidden from view, in space that would probably go to waste otherwise.

Do tell, what are your makeup storage solutions?

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The Fairest is a beauty private sale site launching tomorrow. Jolie Nadine blogger, Nadine Haobsh is the Editorial Director for the blog on site – Who’s the Fairest? – if you’re a beauty lover, you’ll adore it all!

Sign up for your membership now and you’ll enjoy brands like Stila, Jurlique, Tarte, Korres, etc) at up to 75% off.

Seemingly along the same lines is The Skinny, which plans to offer exclusive deals on top-shelf skin care products and spa treatments.

The site will also boast educational videos and personalized recommendations to help you find the products to keep your skin glowing.

Join The Skinny now and you’ll even be entered to win an amazing anti-aging eye treatment from Dermaquest.

What do you think of the new private sales sites focusing on beauty? Do you plan to join and shop?

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Born in Chicago, Fine learned the art of makeup while working at a cosmetics counter. After assisting Kevyn Aucoin, he dedicated himself to a career working with women of color.

I recently had a chance to meet Sam and to preview his new “The Basics of Beauty” instructional DVD ($24.99), which demonstrates application techniques and tricks on three real women in three different age groups – 20’s, 30’s and 40’s. The transformations were remarkable and since the DVD focuses on HOW to apply makeup (there are literally NO product mentions – Sam says “It’s not always that the product is the star, you need to know how to manipulate it.”) you can’t help but pick up at least a few tricks. 

 Here are two that resonated with me:

• Apply a thin coat of mascara and let it dry while you work on the rest of your face.  THEN, curl lashes. The first layer of mascara will hold the curl better.
• Do your brows AFTER your foundation and concealer – the base will help the powder last all day.

Visit www.samfine.com for more info or to purchase ‘The Basics of Beauty’ later this month.

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1) Pick pink for your pout.

2) Arch your brows upward.

3) Don’t outline your lips with a dark liner.

4) Whiten your teeth.

5) Cut some bangs.

6) Switch from powder to cream blush.

7) Soft is better than hard (makeup).

8) Illumination is better than darkness (face, hair).

9) Moist is better than dry (skin, lips, eyes).

10) Slim is better than heavy (eyeliner, clothing).

If you’d like to learn from the master (Krupp, that is) in person, she’ll be signing copies tomorrow, May 4th, from 3 to 5 p.m., at the Saks Fifth Avenue Lancôme counter in New York City. The personal appearance is part of Lancôme’s “Ageless Beauty Secrets Event” featuring new skincare innovations, mini-facials and makeup touch-ups.

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1.  A thick balm or gloss is an excellent brow tamer.

2. Apply with a clean mascara wand to add a natural gloss to lashes.

3. Moisturize dry cuticles.

4. Use a teeny bit warmed between finger tips to calm flyaways or split ends.

5. Condition dry knees or elbows.

6. Soothe pesky diaper rash on the wee ones.

7. Calm minor irritations or burns.

8. Mix with loose pigments or crushed shadows to create your own cream eye colors.

9. Use a bit of lip balm to stop the bleeding from minor shaving cuts.

10. Obviously, add shine and moisturize to lips!

Image  of Smith’s Rosebud Brambleberry Rose Lip Balm ($7) via Sephora.com.

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1. “Use a tinted moisturizer to even out the skin tone. Put concealer on any areas that need extra coverage and under the eye. Sweep just a little bit of loose powder over the face, ” says Jody Cohen, makeup artist and founder of Cosmoholic Cosmetics.
2. Curl your lashes and apply 1-2 coats of brown or black mascara (I like Clinique Naturally Glossy for relaxed day looks.)
3. “Pick your eye/lip/cheek colors to be in the same family range, but with a lighter/medium/darker version of the same shade,” says Elke.  She recommends putting the darkest of the three on your favorite feature (for me, that would be my eyes) and then working your way down to cheeks and lips. For shades that might work, think peach, sand and caramel.

One of my fave natural makeup looks - Leighton Meester at the 2008 Teen Choice Awards.

Voila – polished and pretty but without a hint of high-maintenance. Share your natural makeup tips in the comments below!

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1. For a super-fast, neutral (i.e wearable) Smokey Eye: Apply moisturizing Skin Stick concealer around entire orb of the eye – including lash line to brow bone, Set concealer with Pure Radiance Pressed Powder. The concealer and powder bring the eyes forward and act as a base for your eye makeup so that it goes on more smoothly, shows up better and lasts longer.
 
Using the double ended Perfect Eye Wand, Line upper and lower lash line with the eyeliner end. You can make the line as strong, soft or dramatic as desired. Also, you can make the line very defined.  If you’re not expert at applying liner, smudge the line with a cotton swab for a smokier effect that does not require a perfect application!
 
Then, using the shadow end of the Perfect Eye Wand, draw the shadow across your entire eyelid and blend in using your finger tip. Draw the shadow on top of the liner on your lower lash line to further smoke it up. Add Mascara and Voila! Smokey Eyes!
 
 
2. For a more traditional and dramatic Smokey Eye, Apply concealer and powder as illustrated above, then use my Eye Smokey Eyeshadow Trio. Apply the grey shadow to eye lid using the flat end of the Eyeshadow brush, then apply the white shadow under the brow bone to highlight.
 
Using a flat, square eyeliner brush, moisten the brush in water and run it over the black eyeliner in the eyeshadow trio.  Line the upper and lower lashline. Smudge the line if desired and add mascara – you’ll have Smokey eyes for any occasion!
 

If you’re interested in checking out the Ramy Beauty Therapy products above, be sure to visit www.ramybeautytherapy.com.  If you’re shopping in your stash instead, keep in mind that you can likely substitute each recommendation for a similar product that you may already own!

Image courtesy of Ramy.

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Brett Freedman, Makeup Artist & Founder of Vanitymark Cosmetics

Next up in our series of Makeup Minute How To’s are tips on making foundation last.  Foundation is an essential for women who want coverage but getting your makeup to last the duration of the day can be a challenge.

Celebrity makeup artist Brett Freedman (who keeps stars like Reba McIntyre and Jenna Fischer looking gorgeous) gave us his top three tips for foundation with staying power:

1. My first trick to getting a foundation that holds up is to find a long wear formulation. I LOVE Revlon’s ColorStay Active Light Foundation. It’s super sheer, comes in an amazing color range and has SPF 25.  That’s  not even the best part. The stuff STAYS. Oh, it won’t come off till you take it off. It’s so lightweight it lets the skin breath. Very important in the warmer months.

2. Switch to an oil free moisturizer. Apply while face is still damp. Denser moisturizers can sometimes  ‘break down’ foundation. Lock in moisture right after cleansing and allow your moisturizer to dry completely. You’ll use less foundation and it will really absorb and adhere to skin. This trick is all about timing. Origins Plantidote Mega-Mushroom Face Lotion (an oil free moisturizer) is one of my faves!

3. Set with loose powder and a big fluffy brush. A compact is good for touch ups but for a solid, diffused finish to just applied foundation there is nothing better than loose powder. Finely milled powder works best to really get in there and ’set’ every little area. A big fluffy brush insures even distribution. NARS Loose Powder has an amazing feel and ultra soft on the skin. 

For more info on Brett or to check out his line, Vanitymark, visit www.vanitymark.com .

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