Friday, January 15, 2010

Nail Brushes~

I had another post scheduled for today, but I has a neat experience this morning that I had to share!

I painted my nails a really deep red last night, and I was tired so I was a bit messy and decided I would just take care of it in the morning. And let me tell you-- it was pretty messy, haha! I pretty much immediately regretted that decision.

So before I hop in the shower I grabbed a little nail brush that I had in this little manicure kit. I have honestly never touched it, but I though hey-- maybe it'll help!

I waited until the end of my shower, thinking somehow it would "loosen" the rogue polish. I put some soap on the little brush and went at it. While it was still sudsy on my nails I absentmindedly picked around the edges. When I washed it away I was left with a professional looking manicure-- amazing!

















(bad iPhone photo, sorry!)

And at only a few bucks a piece, if you're a nail person at ALL I would highly recommend investing in one of these babies! Found at any drug store.

Hope you all have a nice weekend!

Until next time~
Beauty Maven

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Blow-Out!

So I keep seeing articles in magazines instructing us how to achieve "The Perfect Blow-out." Personally, I have tried this but 1. my arms get tired and 2. I get BORED. One day my memory brought to light that I once saw on an infomercial an electronic rotating round brush.

Seems silly? I think it sounds like a dream come true!! Now.. where to find one..

Do you know? I'm going to go google all over this one!

Until next time~
Beauty Maven

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Let's Talk Eyebrows

Ok. So I never really had bushy caterpillar eyebrows, or insanely thin ones, so I never put much thought into eyebrows. I do get them waxed occasionally because, quite frankly, eyeshadow looks prettier with no little fuzzies. =)


On a side note: I haven't gone to get mine waxed in some time, actually. Just using the ol' tweezers. But I never seem to notice that they need attention until I use my flip-down visor mirror in my car. Oops. Maybe I should designate a morning to making it a point to notice my eyebrows, haha!


But, back on track--

This past year has definitely shown that a strong brow is definitely THE accessory to have on your face, and is apparently the key to a balanced and framed face. Ok, then! Let's try this....


I'm assuming Megan Fox is the goal...































Without being Scarlett Johansson:




Let's break down the products:

Pencils: Tend to have more staying power, but look the most fake.

Powders: Easiest to use, very natural look.. as long as you don't use a heavy hand.

Gels:Best of both worlds: staying powder and natural.. once you figure out how to use them. Gels are hands down the most difficult to use.


With that being said! None of these are impossible, so don't stray away from one.. just head to a make-up counter or Sephora and play with each until you find one that you can work with. An the key is *use short, light-handed strokes!*


Here's my try at it, with Maybelline's Ultra-Brow brush on color:


Without anything on the brows:























With the brow powder:























Powder with glasses:






















Conclusion? In the picture it looks a little extreme.. and I could probably use a lighter color powder. However, I think filling in my brows is going to be a daily occurrence for me now! It really is a nice frame to your eye, and it helps me look polished even when I have my glasses on.


Go Brow!


Leave me your thoughts on eyebrows, and what product you use, or if you will try the strong brow look--


Until next time~

Beauty Maven

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

I love mascara!

The is one of those "comparison" posts, and the focus is on my all-time favorite cosmetic, mascara!

Now, I am a firm believer that make-up should enhance, not cover, our own skin and features.

Saying that-- I am also a firm believer that it is not THAT hard to put on concealer and mascara before going out. To quote Catherine Zeta Jones: "You never know, you could meet the President!" You never know who you might see or meet, and taking an extra 5 minutes in the morning is worth it!

Here is a picture with all my make-up done, sans mascara:





























And here is a picture of me after applying mascara:





























See how my eyes just stand out so much more with mascara?
And that extra step took a grand total of 3.5 minutes.

Voila!

So what about you? Do you agree/disagree? What make-up do you wear daily? Do you only wear certain make-up for certain events? Let me know!

Until next time-
Beauty Maven

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Gossip Girl Project -- Serena's Make-up

Happy Monday!!

I'm not going to lie-- I had a lot of fun with this one!!

As a reminder, here is the original photo:































Gorgeous!!!!!!



Here's a layout of the products I used... Sorry the numbers are a little hard to read.






1. MAC Strobe Cream 2. Lancome Tient Idole 3. Maybelline Super Stay Concealer 4. Prestige Kabuki brush 5. Neutrogena Healthy Skin Blends bronzer 6. Clinique High Impact Curling Mascara (for bottom lashes) 7. L'oreal Voluminous Mascara 8. Lancome pallet-- I used the blush from this pallet, both colors mixed together 9. Another Lancome freebie-- Juicy Tubes in Hallucination 10. Maybelline Ultra Brow Brush-On color 11. Maybelline Eye Stuido Color Plush Silk Eyeshadow in Taupe Temptress 12. MAC Eyeshadow in Nylon 13. Covergirl eyeshadow brush 14. Neutrogena eyeliner in brushed pewter 15. Maybelline Color Sensational Lipgloss in Raspberry Sorbet

Whew! That's a lot, haha!!

Here are my pics:























































The *key* to this look is the inner-V shimmer-- I used the MAC eyeshadow in Nylon for this. It's the perfect color!! Just a hint of gold to really bring out the gold flecks in my eyes. Also, she has a lot of color everywhere (lips, cheeks, etc.), but the second *key* is flawless skin. Mixing the MAC Strobe Liquid with your foundation will do this nicely! (I love this lotion-- review soon to come!)



If you have any questions, just ask!!

Until next time--
Beauty Maven