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Some looks from the NARS book Makeup Your Mind

(click image to enlarge)

So whether or not you’re just starting out in makeup or you’re well-versed in the makeup world, you still need a good read. The things that are in these books are essentials to the understanding of how makeup changes the face, from a basic look to runway couture.

Chances are, if you’re reading  this blog you’ve heard of Francois Nars and Kevyn Aucoin. Kevyn Aucoin passed away in 2002 from liver failure due to a painkiller addiction. He lived his life through his passion for sculpting faces and making women (and men) feel beautiful.

Making Faces and Face Forward by Kevyn Aucoin

Making Faces is a great book for anyone who wants to learn the basics of contouring, highlighting, and makeup. This book is very inspiring and has been credited as the backbone for many makeup artists knowledge on face shapes and contouring. This book is definitely an essential.

Face Forward is another great book by Kevyn Aucoin that celebrates the beauty of being able to transform a face into something totally different.

An example from the Face Forward book. As you can see, Alex Peruzzi on the left, has been transformed into a Linda Evangelista look alike! At first glance, it is nearly impossible to tell that the image on the right is of a man. Learning the skill of transforming a man’s face into that of a woman is an incredible skill to obtain as a makeup artist.

Can you guess who this is?

(It’s Martha Stewart!)

The next essential book that I think is a must is the book by Francois Nars, Makeup Your Mind. When I first heard about this book I assumed that it would be just another makeup book and I would not need to check it out. When paroozing the beauty section of my local Borders, I realized otherwise…

The book is very thick and spiral bound (yay!), it also comes in a protective case that is very aesthetically pleasing. The concept of the book is to showcase the NARS looks and explain how they are done. The interesting thing about the book, though, is that when open the image on the left shows the model with no makeup while the image on the right shows the model with the full look. There is a plastic overlay that lays over the made up model’s face showing EXACTLY where each product is used and exactly what product is used.

Some looks from Makeup Your Mind

The book showcases many looks, from wild runway to fresh and dewy. I cannot wait to pick up this book, as I have noticed the price has dropped dramatically on Amazon.com

Beautiful model Shannan Click talks about how she got into modeling, while wearing beautiful bronzey red eyeshadow.

Who doesn’t like an elaborate nail once in a while? I know that I sure do! I can’t wait to try out some of these techniques the next time that I am painting my nails. Although nails like these have been on the runways, it seems that the real nail trends for the winter season are dark purples, greys, and dark browns.

Here is a look at O.P.I.’s fall polishes from their “La Collection de France” collection

I am very excited about the prospect of finding nice purples and mauves!

To make the muted greys and purples look their best I would say to use: 1 coat of base, 2 coats of color (let dry between each coat!!), and 1 coat of top coat (I use Sally Hansen’s diamond acrylic top coat because it is thick and my nails are very brittle). When painting your nails, try to just swipe the brush down the nail 3 times, once in the middle and once on each side of the nail, this will keep the color nice and not messy.

and for a little inspiration…

horray for junk food and hello kitty nails!!

This last one might be on my nails for xmas because I’m very into Christmas <3

]]> http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/17/fashion-nails/feed/ 2 youaremakeup fashionnails fall-nail-polish-3 nails nails_2 2781853262_604ec2e99e_o http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/15/oh-sephora-i-love-you/ http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/15/oh-sephora-i-love-you/#comments Sat, 15 Nov 2008 02:10:58 +0000 youaremakeup http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/?p=35 ]]>

I’m so excited because I just made some purchases online at Sephora.com and I was able to take advantage of their freebies!

Sephora is really good about giving you at least 3 free samples at check out (and for every 100 purchases or something like that you get a really good sample) not to mention they give you a free birthday surprise (this year and last year it was cupcake scented bubble bath!)

This beauty box is supposed to come in a traincase that has 15 samples

So if you’re already making a purchase at Sephora.com why not go ahead and enter “BEAUTYBOX” at checkout and get your freebies!

Not into free samples? Enter “SHIPFREE25” for free shipping instead

I am also really excited about Sephora carrying the Make Up For Ever (“MUFE” as it is commonly referred to) immaculate triple pallet.

Every time I look at this I melt into a little puddle on the floor. I can not afford this pallet as it is $390 (though a $640 value) even though it is an amazing value for the amount of product that you’re getting (and these are very high end amazing eye shadows) and the fact that they’re in the beautiful professional box and they are organized by color, instead of you having to buy them individually and then organizing them by color yourself (it’s harder than it sounds!).

This pallet is limited edition and an incredible find and if you have the money to shell out on your makeup kit then please buy this.

In photographing my purse’s makeup bag, I realized why my purse is so heavy . . .

I have an obnoxious amount of lipglosses

I know, it’s hard to believe, but it’s true, I have a lipgloss addiction. I just can’t choose a few for my purse.

I think it is because I feel like lipgloss is a product that is supposed to be reapplied after you eat or drink, so therefore all of my lipglosses should be carried with me…

First off here is my beautiful purse. It is about a month or two old, and I love it with all of my heart. It is from Forever 21. It has these great gold buckles, I love love love everything about this purse . . .

But in case you are wondering, I would not mind having these purses

which are both from Forever 21 and under $30.

And here is the makeup explosion!

First off, the makeup is kept in my Fafi for M.A.C makeup bag that has a Purell hand sanitizer attached to it.

Next to the sanitizer is my Michael Kors Leg Shine

which is supposed to make leg’s shiney and glimmery in the sun, I still haven’t decided if it really does anything. Although, it smells amazing like magnolias, and it is very pretty in the tube <3

Directly under that in the picture is my Sonia Kashuk creme blush, I prefer to take creme blush in my purse over powder blush because it eliminates the need for a blush brush.

As you will see, I have 16 lip products in the picture. This amazes me but I feel like I really need all of them. I need to have lip moisturizers, so I have Burt’s Bees, Chap Stic, Rosebud Lip Salve, MAC Lip Conditioner, and Mark’s moisturizing lipstick. The other glosses are clears, peaches, and a minty clear red one (in the mint green tube).

I also have 3 lipsticks (the pink one is from MAC’s Heatherette collection) and the MAC Pro longwear Lustre Lipcolor (in Pink Air/White Top)

Next to the lip products, you’ll see that I have a Rimmel eyeshadow pallet, I don’t recommend these because they have poor color payoff, but I do recommend having eyeshadows in your purse. Next to that is a NARS cream eyeshadow. I also keep a cheap eyeshadow brush in my purse.

In the picture you will also see my double ended concealer (amazing and from the drugstore… weird!), Ben Nye foundation (for if I need serious cover up, I don’t use this often), Benefit’s LemonAid for brightening my eyes, and Benefits highlighting stick.

I also always use a black liquid eyeliner which I keep in my purse and apply at the stop lights on the way to school on lazy days

My compact is a gold Marc Jacobs heart and my makeup bag is Fafi!

]]> http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/14/my-on-the-go-makeup-kit/feed/ 0 youaremakeup purse purse 2 purse3 purse makeup kors heart fafi http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/14/the-secret-to-beautiful-skin/ http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/2008/11/14/the-secret-to-beautiful-skin/#comments Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:27:15 +0000 youaremakeup http://youaremakeup.wordpress.com/?p=28 ]]>

I think that I was in the fifth grade when I found out that I had eczema, or atopic dermatitis. My face was red, my arms were red, my legs were red, and everything itched. The skin on my face, arms, and legs would flake off. When I was in the fifth grade, eczema wasn’t that well treated and I got to use the brilliant (yeah right) steroid creams that soothed(and bleached) my skin for a few years. After those few years I became extremely allergic to them and if they touched me, my skin would become so hot that I thought it would fall off. I remember laying in bed thinking about how I would love to just rip all of my skin off.

I remember when all they could tell me to do to soothe it was to smother Vaseline all over it and to soothe it with a hot rag. Imagine middle school when you’re the awkward red scaley-faced and armed itchy girl with glistening skin from Vaseline holding rags on your face. Yeah, not too popular

Over time, I’ve overcome the disease and can live with it as it has dramatically decreased how it affects me. I have also learned how to treat my skin and what not to do (ahemmm wet rags and vaseline = no no).

Before I get to my routine I should state that it is very important to clean and moisturize your face in the morning and at night. During the winter, heaters and dry air can ruin skin, so turn on those humidifiers!

So here it is, my skincare routine… though simple, when you can’t go to a drugstore to buy moisturizer because you’re allergic to everything, it is like heaven on earth.

I was my face with Philosophy’s Purity Made Simple

This facial cleanser has no fragrance yet doesnt smell weird, it smells natural. I use the 32oz. huge pump bottle from QVC, which (I think) is the only place where you can buy the big bottle with the pump. At $36 for what seems like a lifetime of facial cleanser, thats an AMAZING deal. I think it will take me about 2 or 3 years to use it up.

After cleansing my face, I moisturize with Dermalogica’s Intensive Moisture Balance
Dermalogica is more expensive, but not when you realize how amazing the product really is and how great your skin feels after! I would recommend going to their website and taking their survey of your face to figure out which products would work for your skin. All of their products are amazing and don’t have any scary ingredients.

When using a moisturizer, I do not just slather it on and walk out the door. After patting my face dry, I take a dime sized amount of moisturizer in the palm of my hand and lightly rub my hands together to get it on both hands. When applying the moisturizer to my face, I take time to work the moisturizer in (using upwards circular motions), like really work the moisturizer in. After I’ve applied the moisturizer I try to wait 10 minutes before applying any makeup so that the moisturizer has worked it’s way into my skin.

If I find that my skin is becoming flakey, I can use the ever popular St. Ives Apricot Scrub, which they’ve recently released in a GENTLE version (yay!). I try not to exfoliate as often as I’ve been told to because I hear differing opinions on if exfoliating is good for you or if it is bad for you.

Another good technique for REALLY making my skin feel beautiful if I’ve been out partying or haven’t slept is to take an avocado, scoop out “meat” into a bowl, add about a teaspoon of olive oil (or more, whatevs) and squish it into a guacamole, then put it all over your face. Sorry, it is gross and does feel weird, but get over it you will LOVE how it feels afterwards! Wait about thirty minutes (watch TV! take a bath!) then wipe off the goo, rinse off the rest and feel your skin.. It will be SO soft!

For an all over body exfoliant that will make your skin soft afterward, try taking a scoop of brown sugar mixed with olive oil and mix together. Rub the mixture all over in circles, massaging off the dead skin. This is one of my very favorites!