With Fall increasingly approaching and marking its territory, I’ve been switching out my wardrobe and packing away the Spring/Summer items until next year. For my beauty palette, I’ve been switching out the lighter, summery colors for the darker colors.
And during this time, I had what Oprah calls (yes, collective eyeroll) an “Aha” moment.
I always wear darker colors during the Fall and Winter months when I do wear makeup. For my lipsticks and glosses, I tend to go with colors such as mauve or almost like a deep brown. I even wear a light purple-ish tint as well. One color that I have stayed away from–year round–has been red.
Once, a well-meaning lady at the Nars makeup counter was trying new looks on me and pulled out a red lipstick tube. I held up my hand and told her, “Oh thanks, but uh, I don’t do red.”
She looked at me quite stunned and said, “Oh honey, everyone does red. You’re just not ready right now.” I shrugged off her comment and let her finish her makeover and walked out with an almost nude lip color.
Now, as I’m putting together an almost black wardrobe this Fall, I’ve become a bit bored of my current lip color selection. The nude colors are too Spring/Summer and the other dark colors aren’t vibrant enough to stand a chance against the black. So I went out and bought a red tube of lipstick. I started out small. I bought a Maybelline Moisture extreme lipcolor tube in “Ruby Red” and wore new color out to dinner with a friend:
What did I think? I liked it. I liked it a lot. For some reason, I felt more vibrant, more confident. Even if I looked like complete and utter crap with my outfit and hair, it didn’t matter because my lipstick made up for it. Is this what wearing red lipstick does to you?
I know I’m late to the party on this one (as I am with most things), but I really didn’t know what I was missing out on. So my apologies to the Nars counter lady and I shall continue to wear red lipstick throughout the Fall. And if there is one thing that Gwyneth Paltrow and I agree on, it would be this:
“Beauty, to me, is about being comfortable in your own skin. That, or a kick-ass red lipstick.”
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize that my intentions the way I wear my makeup has changed. When I was in high school, I was all about the glitter with Urban Decay and Hard Candy (R.I.P) eyeshadows, eyeliners and lipsticks. I would only wear concealer, powder, and foundation on special occasions. During my college years, I slowly introduced concealer, foundation and powders with MAC cosmetics, but the colors were never quite right, the makeup would appear to be caked on, so I never looked natural.
These days, I still wear bright eyeshadow and bright lipsticks, but in a more classic sense. I have, however, changed the way that I look at foundation,concealer and powder. For the longest time, I didn’t feel like I needed these items in order to complete my look. I still don’t feel it is something that I need, but I know that my dark circles can be hidden with concealer, foundation can even out my skin tone and powder can brighten my face..
So when a nice representative approached me at Nordstrom about trying Bobbi Brown makeup, I was pretty hesitant. As a former glitter-lover, the color pallette choices didn’t do much for me. And on an even more superficial note, the packaging never jumped out at me. Well, this lady was not about to take no for an answer and persuaded me to sit down and at least try the concealer.
She was right. The concealer blended right in with my skin tone and the dark circles were drastically diminished. Before I could stop myself, I yelped out, “I’ll take it.”
A few weeks later, I was looking for a new foundation and I immediately went back to Bobbi Brown’s counter. The representative suggested Bobbi Brown’s Moisture Rich Foundation and applied it to my face. The foundation felt weightless, went on smoothly and blended in for a very natural look.
Needless to say, I’m now a Bobbi Brown convert. All of these years, the line has been in existence and I’ve walked right past the counters. I didn’t give it a chance. Or maybe I just wasn’t ready.
Finding the right makeup to match my skin tone has always been something of a challenge. Sure, there are plenty of lines out there, but it has always been something of a trial and error process to find which lines work best for me and my medium brown skin tone.
So whenever I hear about a makeup line that is geared specifically towards women of color, I’m immediately intrigued. This was definitely the case for Thevi Cosmetics, which was founded in 2008 by wife, mother and entrepreneur Thevaki Thambirajah. Here is a bit of info about their inspiration:
THEVI was created in 2008 to celebrate color influenced by our ethnic lifestyles and traditions. We embrace color in all aspects of our lives. Color is empowering and sensual.
Ethnic cultures of Asian, South Asian, Hispanic, African, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean influence the color palette of the THEVI collection. These cultures express color in all aspects of their lives – food, home, spirituality, fashion, and femininity.
Thevi Cosmetics is a simple vibrant everyday color collection for women to whom “Natural look is colorful.”
Thevi Cosmetics gave me the chance to review one of their products and try it out to see how it would work for me. I decided to try the Mineral Pressed Powder SPF 8 in Mocha since I still haven’t found a mineral powder that I’m completely in love with. I applied the powder over a bit of moisturizer and concealer before work and I wanted to see how it kept during the day. Here is my picture (note: please remember that I took this before work and I’m in no way a morning person and it’s a Wednesday morning! Plus, yes, my brows need to be touched up. Eep. ):
What I thought: Overall, this product works really well. I felt there was a lot of coverage, but it didn’t feel heavy at all. I felt the mocha worked just right for my skin tone and made my skin look more even.
Would I Buy It: Yes. For $20, and for the “just right” coverage, I think it’s a good buy, especially for the summer. The biggest sell for me is that it is Hypoallergenic, oil-free, talc-free and fragrance-free, so I don’t have to worry about how it will work with my sensitive skin.
Now, I’m anxious to delve even further into the line and try out more of their products.
Who said that good beauty products have to cost a fortune? For me, it doesn’t when using Mario Badescu products. I posted awhile ago about skincare products I was using and Mario Badescu’s Chamomille Night Cream was on my list. Recently, I bought a few more products and I’ve been using them to find some great results! Plus, it helps that I could get three-four products for the price of one of the more expensive creams on the market. Here are my picks:
I always dread whenever I feel my face is about to suffer from a mini breakout. I can feel the oily skin and the itchiness along along with an emerging bump that will subsequently become a pimple. This drying lotion has worked wonders for taming the redness and reducing the size of the pimple overnight. I apply to a clean face before I go to bed only on affected areas.
At first, I wasn’t sure of the purpose of the buffering lotion if I’d already bought the drying lotion. The sales clerk kept trying to convince me that they were two separate entities and had different purposes, but I wasn’t buying it. She gave me a sample to take home and told me to use the buffering lotion in the day if I used the drying lotion at night. Now I understand her when she says that they are separate. I use the buffering lotion during the day on areas that are affected instead of night like the drying lotion. It has a more calming and soothing effect than the drying lotion while still working at getting rid of the breakout.
I also use this mask once a week when my face is in breakout mode for the soothing and calming aspects. Even when my face isn’t breaking out, I use this mask because it’s pretty light and great for sensitive skin. Especially if your skin is just recovering from a breakout, it’s a great mask that won’t feel like it’s clogging up your pores again.
I use this Aloe Moisturizer everyday under makeup or alone and it does a great job. It blends in well and it’s it’s not greasy at all, while my skin feels hydrated and moisturized. It has also worked really well with all of the above products. The only thing I don’t like is the SPF 15 since I usually try to wear a moisturizer with an SPF of at least 30.
If you’re looking for some great skin care products that wont’ necessarily break the bank and are effective, I’d say Mario Badescu products are pretty good. Especially if you have acne-prone or sensitive skin, you will definitely find something for you.
I’ve always been interested in the contents of one’s medicine or beauty cabinet. I’m always curious to know what products someone uses on their hair, skin, and face. When I first saw this picture of Sofia Coppola’s medicine cabinet in French Vogue, I thought, “Whoa”. But then again, who am I to talk?
I took this picture after cleaning out my my drawer of hair products. Mind you, these are just the styling/leave-in products. The shampoo and washing conditioner stay next to my shower. For some reason, I couldn’t bare to throw any of these products away. For myself, and probably plenty of other women, a product promises dramatic results if you use it and you are automatically stuck on the idea. Even if it doesn’t initially work, you still keep it around in hopes of what might happen someday. That is the true essence of successful advertising and the reason why the hair/beauty industry–especially for women of color–is booming. Here I am, keeping it alive and well.
Do I really need all of these products? Nope. I should only be keeping about 3-4 at the most. Most of the products have the same functions, but on any given day, I might decide to switch it up with another product. I kept them because they are so far my “tried and true” items, but I’m thinking I can still stand to lose a few if I’m not in love with them.
And I’m not even going to start on my beauty/makeup case…
If there is one facial feature that I always strive for perfection then it’d be the eyebrows.
I’m a part of the school of thought that believes the appearance and shape of the brows transform the rest of your face and raggedy brows just aren’t a good look.
Plus, I’ve got something of a wonky left brow that leaves estheticians puzzled when I walk in and they spend countless minutes trying to tame the wild brow. The hair sticks straight up and no amount of coaxing can make the hair conform.
I have friends that pluck their own brows, but I never could quite get the arch I wanted with plucking. In high school, I’d get my brows overly waxed into a pencil-thin arch that was so laughingly unrealistic that I cringe when I look back at my pictures. .
One day, I was reading an article in Vogue magazine about eyebrow threading. I’d never heard of threading before, but I was desperately trying to find a new, inexpensive avenue for finding the perfect arch. What further piqued my interest was that the author tried a salon here in Chicago, Dilshad’s Hair Design, and said the cost for a perfect arch would be $5.
Needless to say, I made the trek across town and went to Dilshad’s very soon after. There was pain and discomfort, but the arch was great. Two weeks later, my brows were thicker with a great arch. The total cost for this was $7, with tip.
Now, I’ve been getting my brows threaded for about 5 years and I’ve yet to have a bad threading job as I’ve had with waxing or plucking. I suppose it’s all a matter of preference, but the threading is a bit more painful than waxing in my opinion, but the results are great. Threading is able to grab hair at the root so that there are no strays left behind.
Here is a picture of my freshly threaded eyebrows while out on Saturday night:
I guess it’s more like eyebrow, since you don’t get to see most of the other side, but I thought this would be a good example nontheless. I especially wanted to highlight this particular brow because it’s my “wonky” brow. It’s not the best job in the world since the arch is usually a bit higher and more defined when I go to my usual lady, but I think they will grow out nicely.
If you haven’t tried threading yet, I’d definitely say give it a go. It’s cheap, effective, and the results last way longer than that I’ve experienced with waxing or plucking.
Feeling adventurous? You can try to thread your own eyebrows, too! See Eily311’s awesome how-to video on threading below:
That’s right, Eva Herzigova, Monica Bellucci, Sophie Marceau, Charlotte Rampling appear in French Elle with no makeup or Photoshopping. It’s shot by Peter Lindbergh and the women are already completely gorgeous as is, but I still say it’s a refreshing view from the insanely airbrushed covers on US stands.
And to quote, Shine’s author, Jennifer Romolini, it’s once again a sign that the European mags have taken steps leaps and bounds ahead of their US counterparts:
And, honestly, French Elle’s April ‘09 issue is not the first time our women’s mags have been out-classed by the Europeans. Last year–in protest of the serious lack of diversity on catwalks, ads and in women’s magazines–Italian Vogue published an all-black issue featuring models of color from around the world. It sold out in days.
But I digress. Would women be open to seeing beauty represented at face value without all of the tricks and manipulation? Or is the escapism and fantasy that we may feel when we look at a dolled up model/actress what we want to see, because hey, it is Elle/Vogue/Bazaar, ya know.
Lately, I have been obsessed with having clear and beautiful skin. I recently went to my local Nordstrom spa and got a facial from a outspoken esthetician. She lectured about my skin and was able to conclude that my diet was poor, I’m stressed and whatever products I’m using just ain’t working for me. She gave me a peel to help calm the breakouts and she evaluated my diet and told me about some vitamins that should always be on my “always” list–that is, they should always be taken, no matter what. Afterward, she recommended some products to aid in rejuvenating my skin.
Since my friend was the first one to recommend this spa and this particular product, I decided to give it a try:
Thalgo Cocooning Cleansing Milk. $34 from the Nordstrom Spa and my new daily cleanser for day AND night. I told the esthetician about my Shu Uemura Skin Purifier and how ecstatic I was about the oi cleansing method and she had me throw the idea out the window. She told me that the oil was just clogging up my skin and not moisturizing whatsoever. I’m still not 100% ready to give up on the Shu Uemura oil yet. However, the Cocooning Cleansing Milk is paraben free and very gentle on the skin. I’ve noticed a very (positive) difference since incorporating it into my regimen.
Lerosett Clay Mask. Made by Gunilla of Sweden, this mask is organic and only has two ingredients: naturally organic clay and distilled water. Once the mask is on the face, it feels, as one reviewer put it, “like the oil is just being sucked out of your face”. You end up with a fresh and clean feeling face. Any zits you might have on your face, also seem to either go away or feel much smaller within the next day or so.
And this is the next product on my list to try out:
Mario Badescu skin care is supposed to be very gentle and pretty affordable. Since I’m gracefully aging, night creams are becoming an important and necessary part of my regimen. This Chamomille Night Cream is supposed to be a bit ligher and better for sensitive skin. I was previously using L’Oreal Hydra-Renewal, but my face would feel extra-greasy.
The best thing I can do for my skin? Water. Lots and lots of water.
My plan? To turn the state of my skin around in the next 6 months and see a noticable difference. I’ve already seen a slight difference so far with the changes I’ve incorporated, so I am very enthused.
In my teens and earlier twenties, I never wore blush. Unless it was for prom, I just didn’t understand the purpose. I knew what it was for, but I just didn’t think it would enhance my look anyway. That was, until I discovered Nars Orgasm blush.
The picture above is a rough picture of my hand to show how the color shows up on my skin. I know I’m late to the party here, but I love it and how it positively makes me glow. I’ve seen the blush on all complexions and I haven’t seen it look bad on one person. I know it’s a cult favorite and everyone and their mother has co-signed on this blush, but I just had to throw my hat in the ring with an endorsement. Now? Perhaps on to the lipgloss?
As I am getting older, I’ve been paying attention to details in my lifestyle and beauty regimens and what I need to do to better take care of myself. This includes one of my biggest peeves: under eye circles. There really isn’t anything I can do about them since they are genetic. My father has them and his mother had them. I think her mother had them them as well. It’s just something that I’ve (unwillingly) inherited. Throughout the years, I’ve spent countless dollars trying to find the one under eye cream that would work for them. Of course, some creams declared that they got rid of the dark circles forever. Others only promised that they could fade them, but when I tried it, my circles were still there and sometimes even more prominent than before. Or else, I’d wake up with dry and itchy eyes.
Now I’m at peace with my cream that attempts to reduce the appearance of the dark circles. It is Boscia Enlivening Amino-AG Eye Treatment. The price is right and the appearance of the circles has been reduced. I also love how the products are preservative-free and the cream has no scent. This also means no dry and itchy eyes!
Sofia Coppola’s medicine cabinet. Source: TFS
Thalgo Cocooning Cleansing Milk. $34 from the Nordstrom Spa and my new daily cleanser for day AND night. I told the esthetician about my Shu Uemura Skin Purifier and how ecstatic I was about the oi cleansing method and she had me throw the idea out the window. She told me that the oil was just clogging up my skin and not moisturizing whatsoever. I’m still not 100% ready to give up on the Shu Uemura oil yet. However, the Cocooning Cleansing Milk is paraben free and very gentle on the skin. I’ve noticed a very (positive) difference since incorporating it into my regimen.
Lerosett Clay Mask. Made by 
