Beauty and Fashion Tech

May 16, 2012

Makeup Shopping, Where and How

May 16, 2012 By Carleenp Leave a Comment

Makeup can be purchased in many locations. Drugstores and big box retailers have many affordable makeup options, while department and specialty stores offer mid to high end products and normally allow testing of the products in store. Online stores often are a great way to shop in order to price compare and view many different products and sometimes have nice bonus items, but they do make it harder in terms of testing products before purchasing. Today we provide our favorite places to shop, along with some shopping tips.

30 Days of Beauty Day 15, All About Shopping for Makeup

Before getting into shopping sources, what should you look for in makeup when shopping? Mara Moss: from Makeup By Mara Moss gave us these great tips:

When shopping for makeup , I find it useful to walk around with the makeup on for a while before purchasing it. I like to do this because I have noticed two things often happen after the makeup is on for longer than a few seconds.

(1) The color may change a little. (And/or your perception of the color may) Just like when you have a manicure and the polish oxidizes and becomes darker a day or two later, makeup often takes a little while to “settle” on your face. For example, what first looks like a bright red may be less bright after it acclimates to your lips for a little.

(2) The makeup may appeal to your senses in a different way than you originally thought.

a. Feeling – The lipstick you thought was moisturizing may become more matte and drying the longer it is on. Or the mascara you thought was very heavy feeling, just needed to dry and settle on your eyelids, and now you no longer notice it is there.

b. Smell- some lipsticks have a heavy perfume to them. You may like the smell at first and then after a few minutes find it bothers you. Or just the opposite, you may love the smell/taste and find that you keep rubbing your lips together or are too preoccupied.

(3) While the makeup looks beautiful in the case and on your lips, it is does funky things five minutes after you walk away from the counter. For example, every time you turn around your long hair gets stuck to the high performing lip gloss you just tried on.

Meanwhile, Alicia Mohr from Things to Cherish gave a great beauty savings tip: “Stock up on high end beauty brands during the holidays. Brands that often don’t offer discounts during the year offer sets a great values during November and December.”

Related to Alica’s tip, we often recommend buying MAC brush kits at the holidays. It can be a great way to get some quality brushes at great prices.

The Best Makeup Brands and Where to Buy Them

While it would be impossible to list every single quality makeup brand, and any brand tends to have both hit and miss items, here are a few of our favorites across several price points, along with favorite stores.

Best Drugstore Makeup Brands

When shopping for bargain cosmetics, several drugstore brands stand out:

Wet and Wild: This super affordable brand tends to pack decent quality into their eye shadows, and they provide many color options.

Milani: For pigment packed shadow and blush this is go to brand. Milani also makes excellent mascara and nail polishes.

NYX: This is another ultra affordable brand with surprisingly good quality for the price.

Sally Hansen Natural Beauty: The Natural Beauty line has great primers and foundations along with some lovely lip colors.

L’Oreal: Although L’Oreal is on the pricier end of drugstore cosmetics, it provides super pigmented items in its HIP line, quality mascara and eyeliners, and has a wide range of foundation shades.

Favorite Department Store and Specialty Brands

MAC: MAC is a perennial favorite among bloggers and makeup addicts for its reasonably priced, super pigmented, high quality products with a great selection of shades. You rarely will go wrong if go with MAC, especially for eye shadow.

Urban Decay: Urban Decay is another great choice for super pigmented shadows and overall high quality.

Make Up For Ever: Yet another brand with high pigment and high quality items. Make Up Forever is especially known for their waterproof and water resistant items and high definition makeup. Their aqua eyes liners are also some of the best around with a huge range of shades.

Laura Mercier: For top notch foundation and primer, look no further. Laura Mercier also often offers some nice makeup items and palettes.

Bobbi Brown: Our top choice for anyone who wants a natural look. Bobbi Brown puts out more neutral and natural looking products than just about anyone else and the items are all high quality.

Chanel, Dior, and YSL: These three are pricey but always wonderful. We particularly love Dior’s five colour shadow palettes and Chanel and YSL’s lip products.

Estee Lauder: Estee Lauder is one of our favorites for basic skin care products and creamy lipsticks.

Lancome: Lancome also offers particularly nice lip products and is a favorite for mascara.

Where to Shop Online

Below are our favorite online shopping sources, some of which also have physical stores.

Beauty.com: A good selection of products, often accompanied by nice sale prices or particularly good bonus offers.

Drugstore.com: Great for locating hard to find drugstore brands or for online ordering of them.

Strawberry Net: Our favorite cosmetic discounter. Look for good savings on both current and discontinued items here.

Folica: Our go to source for hair products and tools! They also offer some great top ten product lists.

Nordstrom: Perfect for getting any of the department store or luxury brands.

Sephora: Sephora offers the widest range of makeup brand choices and gives free samples with each order. Sephora also has a liberal return policy for when you get the wrong makeup shade.

Ulta: Ulta is nice for shopping for both higher ends brands and drugstore brands at the same time. They also often have particularly good sales an bonus offers.

Yes Style: Our favorite source for Asian brands. If you love BB Cream look here! also great for Asian fashion, handbags and shoes with easy US shipping and excellent prices for quality items. Yes Style is an all around great online store for finding unique items.

Tomorrow: Day 16, Use the Right Makeup and Beauty Tools.

Filed Under: 30 Days of Beauty, Makeup, Shopping lists Tagged With: 30 Days of Beauty, Makeup, Shopping

May 15, 2012

Get Beautiful Nails

May 15, 2012 By Carleenp Leave a Comment

Many people say that they can judge a person’s health by their hands, so if your nails are dull and constantly broken, what does that say about you? If you want beautiful nails and you are tired of going to a manicurist, make sure that you take a moment every day to care for your nails yourself. Regular nail care can make a huge difference to the appearance of your nails and to how others see you.

30 Days of Beauty, Day 14, Tips For Great Looking Nails

Try these tips to keep your nails looking great.

(1) Start by stashing your nail clipper. The problem with nail clippers is that they subtly splinter your nail by apply pressure before they cut. While this is a fast way to even out your nails, it causes more damage and splitting in the long run. Save a nail clipper for times when you have a snagged nail. Instead, use your emery board to shorten and to shape your nails. A good emery board can help you keep your nails looking lovely no matter what kind of damage you have to get out.

(2) Condition your nails. Just like your hair, your nails can get dried out and split. Take a small amount of natural oil and rub it into your clean nails. Do this right after a warn shower so that the oil will soak in. Not only will this keep your natural nails shiny, you will also find that it keeps your nails more flexible. This in turn prevents breakage. Some oils that you can use include vegetable oil, coconut oil and olive oil. Vitamin E is perfect for conditioning your nails, and if you take it orally, it can also strengthen your hair.

(3) Remember that any kind of color or gloss on your nails damage them. While you don’t have to forgo nail color entirely, simply take care to ensure that your nail coloring doesn’t hurt your nails too much. For example, when painting your nails, put down a clear coat first. This prevents the color from staining your nails. Similarly, after you use a nail polish remover, condition your nails with oil as described above. Nail polish remover dries out your nails a great deal and causes more damage later on.

(4) Another tip that can save your nails is that you need to be mindful of them. Plenty of people use their nails for tasks that are better suited to other tools. If you want your nails to look nice, you need to treat them well. For example, if you need to open a letter, use a knife or a letter opener. Do not use your nails to perform this task as it can damage them by putting pressure on the nail bed. Similarly, do not use your nails to pry things open or to split seals on condiment bottles. Just reach for a tool instead!

(5) Kelly from Vampy Varnish provides this tip:

“When painting your nails, thin and slow is the name of the game. Make sure your coats are thin because thick coats tend to bubble or peel quicker. Work slowly, allowing a few minutes in-between each coat for drying time. This will ensure your manicure will not bubble, dry quicker and last longer.”

(6) For cuticle clean up, both Kelly and Stephanie Louise Telford of Stephanie Louise- All Things Beautiful recommend using a small brush. Pictured below is the brush Kelly uses. She says:

“Post nail polish painting clean-up can be a pain! One way to clean up a messy cuticle area is to buy an inexpensive, small paint brush (you can find them at a craft store for $1-3). Dip it in remover after your manicure has dried and slowly clean up the mess. This works much better than those nail polish remover pens!”

Stephanie suggests this:

“Love painting your nails but hate the mess afterwards? Use an angled eyeliner brush or paint brush dipped in pure acetone for cleanup. Rub gently to remove excess & wipe the brush against a clean towel to avoid buildup. Work slowly & with a small amount of the acetone to avoid flooding the cuticles. “

(7) Stephanie also gave this tip for treating your cuticles right:

“To heal dry or damaged cuticle reach for a moisturizing lip balm. The best way to treat them is by rubbing a cuticle balm into your nail bed & cuticles nightly. You can also use my personal favorite which is petroleum jelly mixed with a bit of cocoa butter. Rub it in well & in the morning it will rinse off in the shower.”

With just a little bit of time and care, you will find that caring for your nails is simple. Take some time to care for your nails every day, and chances are good that your nails will look better than ever.

Tomorrow: Day 15, Makeup Shopping and Organization.

Filed Under: 30 Days of Beauty, Nail Care, Nail Products Tagged With: 30 Days of Beauty, Nail Polish, Nails

May 14, 2012

Hand and Foot Care

May 14, 2012 By Carleenp Leave a Comment

Hands and Feet are often the most neglected body parts when it comes to a body care routine. The soles of the feet are rich in nerve endings and even a simple foot massage every day can keep them in great shape and health. Foot care does not have to be an ordeal. Simple things can ensure that your feet look and feel great. You no longer have to live with rough heels, aching soles or corns.

30 Days of Beauty, Day 13: Caring For Your Hands and Feet

Actress and Model Emma J takes good care of her hands and feet

Foot Care Tips

It is important to follow both comprehensive preventive and curative maintenance schedules for one’s feet as well! Below are some feet for keeping your feet in top shape.

• Washing feet should be done carefully and deliberately. More often than not, we assume that feet simply get washed when we bathe every day. But it is important to wash feet specifically and dry them off thoroughly as well, especially between the toes.

• Change socks everyday – whether you have worn them for a short time or for the whole day. A fresh pair of socks is a great way to keep your feet healthy.

• In terms of footwear – choose the material and the fit extremely carefully. Leather shoes may look suave but if you ignore the fit and comfort then you may end up placing undue stress on your feet. .

• It is good to see a foot care specialist if there are persistent problems, like corns, fungal infections and warts.

• Foot massages are great not just for relaxation but also for taking care of your feet everyday. You can either go in for a foot massage every now and then or do a foot care routine at home. Soak your feet in warm water for some time. Use a scrubber to scrub away the dead skin, especially from the heels. Dry thoroughly. Sprinkle some foot powder and then put your feet up and relax for some time. If you sit in a chair which allows you to cock your legs then place your left ankle on your right knee and gently press your knuckle into the soles of your feet. Do the same for your right foot as well. Apply moisturizing lotion or oils and enjoy the feel of clean, healthy feet! You can add your favorite essential oil to the warm water for that extra boost to your foot care routine.

• It is extremely important to choose the right footwear for your exercise routine as well. Well-cushioned and the right shoes for the sport or physical activity of your choice is crucial.

• Do foot exercises through the day. This is even more important if you have a desk job. Even as you are sitting at your table, you can rotate your ankles, flex your toes in and out and even wiggle your toes inside your shoes.

• If you have the opportunity, kick off your shoes in the office too. Removing footwear occasionally allows the feet to breathe even better! Giving yourself a tiny foot rub in the office is also a good idea if you can find the time and space to do so.
The key to good foot care really is hygiene and comfort. While your feet may be enclosed in a pair of shoes and are not visible to the world, having great looking feet will make you feel good about yourself.

Beauty Blogger Tips

Jennifer Sesta from Raging Rouge notes the importance of hand care, stating:

“My #1 anti-aging tip: Never forget the hands! The products I use on my face and neck are now also used on the tops of my hands and fingers, and it’s the ultimate anti-aging trick! Start off with a physical/chemical peel, then slather on an awesome moisturizer and slip on some moisturizing gloves for the night. The hands look younger and more healthy in no time!”

Emma J from The Journey of an NY Actress (photo above) also pays close attention to her hands and feet:

“Living in Manhattan means a lot of walking, as a result my feet need extra pampering. I start by having a pedicure and manicure about every 10 days. I make sure to moisturize my feet daily and I use a body scrub throughout the year. I also love to get my feet massaged, I find it helps the circulation as well as the other endless benefits of massage. As an actress and model I am expected to be well groomed and nothing shouts unpolished more then poorly kept hands and feet. I use cuticle balm while on the go, which really helps.

I use Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream by Burt’s Bees. It is especially good for traveling and the tiny tin gets through airport security (and I’m always on the lookout for products that I can take on the plane).”

Ever wonder what the key product might be for hands and feet? Stephanie Louise Telford of Stephanie Louise- All Things Beautiful has this to say about a product easy obtained at any local store:

“Use Vaseline around the skin of your nail prior to painting. The Vaseline will “repel” the polish which means less clean up if you are a bit messy. This also works great for nail art.

Also apply Vaseline to the areas prone to damage from new shoes. This helps to prevent chafing from rigid backs of new heels or moving sandal straps that can often dig into skin or blister.”

Tomorrow: Day 14, Get a Manicure!