Get Crazy...Be Bold...Why Hold Back?

Hollywood Blvd Christmas Decor

I love the holiday season as I have said since I started this blog, but I feel like the day after Thanksgiving is the day that I can start doing things with my makeup that I normally would not do during the rest of the year (with the exception of going to Hollywood or going dancing.)

First, I break out everything that SCREAMS glitter.  Urban Decay and TooFaced cosmetics make some great glitter liquid eyeliners and shadows.  I have the liners in silver, gold, and an iridescent version.  I love taking the iridescent liner and going over bright colors like Urban Decay's Ransom or Graffiti. I use the silver and gold to go over darker liners like black or navy.  I also love the way gold glitter looks over brown liner.  Especially with a brown smokey eye.  Think Jennifer Love Hewitt's look from Ghost Whisperer with a touch of glitter.

Second, I take my "night time" smokey eye look and amp it up to something that would be worthy of a Jerseylicious status type smokey eye. I blend the heck out of it...but I use blacks, silvers, vibrant blues and purples.

Third, I go all out on the highlighter.  Especially at night.  Why hold back, right?

Fourth, I tend to usually always wear a version of a nude lip except for hot summer days...but during the winter I really love that smoldering look of a dark smokey eye, a very contoured face, some glitter, a really great highlighter and muted, glossy lips.

Fifth, on New Years...all rules go out the windows. Go CRAZY...be BOLD.

I can say that some makeup looks I am inspired by are from my days in junior high and high school, from watching my older cousin's do their makeup back in the 80's, and even watching my mother and grandmother getting ready for nights out. The women in my family love glamour...and I am so glad that they gave me the confidence to take risks with beauty.

In school, we always double lined the lower lash line and now I have added that extra step of glitter. One of my best friends and I had made a tradition of going to the Hollywood Christmas Parade after another friend took me there about 13 years ago.  That is an amazing time to draw inspiration. Hollywood Blvd sparkles during Christmas...it might be the only time it is clean and sparkly but it does sparkle!

My Seester and I ran into one of our cousin's on New Years Eve at a club a few years ago and she looked amazing.  Why you ask?  She owned her look!  She had painted glitter stars near her eyes, and if I remember correctly even on her shoulder...her makeup was bold and she wore it with confidence and that made it not only fun but beautiful and memorable. No, she wasn't a teenager...she was in her mid 30's and she rocked that look.

I am not saying to walk around looking like that woman on Drew Carey, but I am saying take advantage of the holiday season.  Walk into a craft store and see how everything sparkles....get inspired to change it up a bit or be experimental.  I will say this, don't spend a bunch of money on something you won't wear except for one or two months out of the year.  At night, grab one of the glitter liners, do a bolder smokey eye, go a bit nuder on the lips.  Think MOD meets TINSEL. Wear your false lashes, put on some highlighter to make your cheek bones and eyes stand out and OWN IT!

Love yourself...be different!
xoxo
Dani

UPDATED & ADDITIONS: Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Holiday weekend sales

Hey everyone!  Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you all have had a wonderful day with family and friends celebrating.  I spent the morning at the movies with my sister who I refer to as Seester, seeing Breaking Dawn.  The makeup in that movie was exquisite.  We also had to go to Michael's Arts and Crafts in the afternoon for some supplies my Seester needed. Finally, we got back and had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with our family.

My makeup today was barely there.  I knew I would cry at the movies so I just put on some tinted moisturizer, The Real Deal Concealer, Balance & Brighten and a little bit of Bronze and Brighten.  All products by Laura Geller.  I used her retractable brushes and I will be doing a review on those for you soon.  Did you do any fun Thanksgiving looks?

I hope you all had a great holiday!  How many of you are already hitting the sales right now?  I know several  of my friends are hitting the big box stores as I type this.

As promised, below is a list of companies (both stores and websites) that are having deals on Friday and some through the weekend.  If you know of additional sales, feel free to leave them in the comments below.  Also, please do not forget to support small businesses and your local businesses at this time of the year.

LaynieBug Designs

Holiday Beauty Bargains for Thanksgiving Weekend

This list will be continually updated as I see offers come in, please keep checking back. Some additions and there are some extensions and changes in offers.

• Beauty Bridge-Up to 30% off top sellers (no code mentioned)
• Bath and Body Works-Take 20% off your online order by using the code 20HOLIDAY11 good thru 11/27
• Benefit Cosmetics- A free mini high beam with a $35 order, using the code HLDYMINI. Or get a full-size Thrrrob w/ $90 order, using the code HRTTHROB. Expires 11:59pm PST on 11/27
• Boscia-Skincare.  Giving away your choice of one of two kits with a $35 purchase.  See their website for details
• Jewel Mint-Jewel Mint has several offers and they seem to be updating them frequenetly.  If you are a registered on the site you are getting more offers.  I recommend following Jewel Mint on twitter @jewelmint or registering for their website.  You can also use this code for $5 off 5JMINT.  However, there are better offers if you are a member or planning to purchase more than 1 piece of jewelry.
• LayniebugDesigns-Handmade hair accessories. The company will be having specials throughout the weekend.  When requesting this business on Facebook, please put the word “Glitter” in the message. See the image above for Layniebug Design's Friday offer.
• Laura Geller-20% off everything through November 28th
• MAC-bringing back Black Knight Lipstick for one day on Black Friday
• Mally Beauty-Will be on QVC offering "Bulletproof Fierce" makeup deals you can also find Mally here and Bendels in NY
• Migi Nail Art- 20% off your order, free shipping & a free Santa’s Secret Pen using the code MigiHoliday
• Origins-$10 off $25 or more online and free shipping using the code TENOFF
• Philosophy-Sale on Website up to 56% off
• Sephora-$10 items (I heard the site is having problems and quantities are limited)
• Sigma Beauty-10% off your order using DEC2011
• Sigma Beauty-Worldwide Free Shipping from 9am-5pm CST ONLY using the code BF2011
• Stila-Sale on website also new members who sign up for a newsletter get 20% off coupons
• Tarte-Holiday kits on website
• The Body Bakery-35% off thru Sunday using the code THANKS35
• Too Faced-Value kits on website, Vintage Makeup Sale 50% off, and use the code Black11 for free shipping.  All orders over $75 receive a full size Shadow Insurance.
• Ulta-Free shipping over $25 on website and coupons for the store.  See website for current catalog
• Urban Decay-$20 off of the Book of Shadows IV pallet on website 

Personally, I find the most exciting sales to be from Sephora (if they have anything left), Sigma, Tarte, Too Faced, and Urban Decay.  Sephora has great deluxe trial sizes and Sigma has quality brush sets for gifts.  Tarte, Too Faced, and Urban Decay have great deals going on and those are probably my three favorite brands at any given time.  While they aren't the most expensive, they are good quality, cruelty free and some really have ingredients that are good for your skin.

Happy Shopping!

xoxo

Dani

The Alcohol Experiment-Time Lapse

It is 8:50 pm on Wednesday night, and I realize I need to clean my big foundation brush for tomorrow's big day --Thanksgiving!  I like to use my Tarte Amazonian Clay foundation for pictures and it only seems to work well with the big brush that it is sold with. This is one brush that I find hard to spot clean with my Sephora Spray.  I do it, but it is the one brush I like to deep clean every 3 uses or so.  I digress, so I decide to try the alcohol method to see if I can get the brush to dry any faster. For this experiment I tried using 99% alcohol.  Next time I might try a different percentage depending on the outcome and after doing more research.

My understanding of alcohol cleaning is as follows:  take a shallow dish or cup and pour a small amount of alcohol into the container. Then swirl your brushes in the solution until the pigments are in the water and your brushes look clean. 

I filled a small white dish with a minimal amount of alcohol (only enough to clean the tips/hair of the brushes.) I would then swirl the brush several times until pigment came off in the water and wipe gently on a clean towel.  (I keep a few towels set aside that are clean but cheap or old enough to not worry about having makeup stains.) I repeated the process of changing the alcohol for the eye brushes, the blush and stippling brush, the kabuki brush, and the large foundation brush.  For the dense brushes I had to squeeze out the excess and repeat the process a second time. Oddly, the F60 from Sigma held more product than the Tarte brush.  Perhaps it could be the type of foundation I use with that brush.

For the record, I use Hourglass Tinted Moisturizer with the F60 and I use the Amazonian Clay Full Coverage foundation with the Tarte brush.

*I will do this experiment again because my brushes that were stained with black shadow and bright pink blush are nearly back to their original color*

Sigma Brushes (Pink and Black Kabuki) and Tarte Brushes (Bamboo)

The photo above was taken just following finishing the brush cleaning.  Next time I will include a before picture as well as a picture of when all brushes have dried so you can see how well the alcohol gets rid of the stains on the lighter brushes as well. My stippling brush was bright red from using Tarte's Natural Beauty Amazonian Clay blush.

At 9:00 pm I sat down with the brushes you see above and began by cleaning the smallest brushes first as they didn't have as much product on them. I was able to wash a few before having to change the alcohol.  I then proceeded to finish by size.  I was surprised to see that the Sigma F60 foundation brush held a lot more product (foundation) than the Tarte brush I set out to clean for tomorrow.

At 9:47 pm I checked the brushes.  Eye brushes are dry.  Blush brush and stippling brush are wet.  Foundation brushes soaked. Kabuki brush is almost dry on the outside and the center is wet. (I hear my Coco Beau brush calling my name...glad I have some backup brushes at this point.)

At 10:57 pm The stippling brush is about about  is drier, but not quite half way dry, the Kabuki brush is still damp in the center, and the large foundation brush is damp but not soaked.

At 11: 50 pm The stippling brush is a little more than half way dry, the center is wet.  The Kabuki is dry around the perimeter and damp in the center and the foundation brush is slightly damp on the outside and top of the brush but also damp in the center.

It is approximately 55 degrees outside and I don't have the heater on. I was under the assumption that the alcohol evaporated quickly, ergo, leaving your brushes to dry much faster.  Hopefully the rest of the brushes will be dry by morning. (Note to self...purchase the Sigma Dry & Shape)

Update:  As of 9am this morning brushes were completely dry.  

Happy Thanksgiving!
xoxo
Dani

Updates:Tarte Holiday Sets

Tarte is having a 30% off same but many items are selling or have sold out.  Check and see if you can still grab any of their holiday kits.  You really can't go wrong with Tarte!

It is no secret that I have been converted to a Tartlette.  I love many brands, but I feel as if at this moment, Tarte is taking over my collection.  There are many reasons for this, including: they are all natural "good for you ingredients", they are relatively free of harsh chemical ingredients, they wear well and most of all they feel good while looking good.

When the holiday sets of the Smolder Eye Pencils and Lip Surgences were released, I knew I had to have them. I love the chubby crayon liners for creating a smokey liner.  The Lip Surgence crayons appealed to me because I had two that I liked a lot.  They feel like a lip balm with color and help keep my lips moisturized.  Recently QVC had a special that included 6 of Tarte's Waterproof color wands.

The Lip Surgence,  Lip Service Kit has pencils come in 5 shades. I will say that while I like this set quite a bit, I was disappointed that the color descriptions were a bit off.  I thought there would be more pink shades, when in truth there is a nude/beige pink, a baby pink, a berry, a light red, and a very orange based coral. I would say there are two cool shades, two warmer toned shades, and one neutral shade.

Neutral Shade: Glintzy is the nudish/beige pink color with slight sparkle
Cool Shade 1: Perky is a light pink tint with sheen
Cool Shade 2: Flashy is a brighter pink berry color with some sparkle
Warm Shade 1: Swanky is a light red tint with sheen
Warm Shade 2: Dazzled is a light red color with a lot of shimmer

This set costs a mere $29, when one Lip Surgence crayon retails for $24.  To my knowledge these are also limited edition shades. You can still get this set at tarte.com, qvc.com, and Sephora.

Lip Service Set

The SmolderEyes Set contains limited edition jumbo eye crayons that can be used either as liner or shadow.  On the end of the pencil is a rubbery sponge that easily blends out the product. A free pencil sharpener is also included with this set. I love all of these colors, but I think the Smoke would be my favorite for a quick, easy out the door look.

From Left to Right the Colors are:

Golden Beige: A very sparkly peach champagne with some glitter

Moss: A shimmery/metallic natural green

Violet: An electric purple that is slightly metallic

Expresso: The most neutral color, a basic brown with a slight sheen

Silver Black: Comes off as a light black or dark charcoal with silver micro glitter

Smoke: A gunmetal shade that leans to the bluer side of gray than to the blackish side

This set retails for about $39 and can also be found on tarte.com, qvc.com and Sephora.  I do not know if these are limited shades, but I have not seen these particular colors any where else.  I do have Fig and Charcoal from Tarte kits.

SmolderEyes Set

Finally, we come to my absolute favorite holiday kit by Tarte which is sold exclusively at qvc.com.  This is a limited edition set of Waterproof Color Wands. I believe this set also retails at $39. I received a bronze "shade stick" or wand in a discovery package and I loved the staying power on my lids as well as the ease of blend-ability.  When I saw this kit and the colors in it, I knew I had to have it.  It is a great set of neutrals. These can be worn as shadows or liners.  There is about 30 seconds of blending time and then these are set and don't budge.

The colors included are from left to right: 

Champagne: A beautiful, true champagne color that is great for the inner corners & highlight

Moss A neutral green with gold shimmer (not glitter)

Charcoal: a gray that can be blended into a one step smokey eye that is wearable for anyone

Taupe: This is a darker taupe with a bit more brown than purple or gray 

Bronze: A true bronze, and the same as in the Sephora discovery kit

Plum: a muted purple that would be great paired with the violet liner from the Smoldereyes kit.

Eye Candy Wand Set

  

I highly encourage you fans of Tarte to try one of these products at the very least. I also think beginners and anyone who likes "easy breezy makeup" would like these kits.  I think the most exclusive is the Eye Candy set as it is only sold on QVC.  However I also  recommend the Smoldereyes.  The Lip Service Set  may not have been what I expected based on descriptions but I still got 5 full size gorgeous colors (better than in the Tarte kits) for the price of 1 basically.

These would be great holiday gifts and you could split them up and give people one eye pencil and one lip surgence.  If you are feeling really generous you can throw in a coordinating Eye Candy Wand as well.

Share the Love November (Friends Edition)

There are so many wonderful people in the beauty community and over the past several years I have had the pleasure of getting to know many of them personally.  Some vlog, others blog, and some use social networking to interact.  Regardless of their methods of communication, we have formed bonds online and off.  We have done swaps, sent gifts, been there for each other during hard times as well as happy times.  As DonnaShorts1 says, "lipstick is a universal language" and it is with that in mind that I write this blog.

I first started getting involved in the beauty community when my sister moved away.  As my best friend, partner in crime, and makeup buddy...I was really missing her and having someone to share all of this with.  She was really busy with college and her new job.  I started watching a ton of different gurus each with so many have different attributes and styles.  Some gurus I watch for hauls, others for tutorials, and yet others for chit chat and off beauty subjects.

Below is a list of some of the people who have really touched me and given me either great advice, ideas for new products, great conversations or even just friendship.  Some names will be coded for their privacy.

• Jalapena2007-Reviews, Hauls, Tutorials, couponing, Scentsy
• JG-Can find anything, has many interests, and a real love for cosmetics and skincare
• MeMe-New to the beauty community and learning very quickly. Specialty is haircare
• Lirpagall-Hauls, Reviews, Tips, and deal finder. (Official MAC MUA)
• ImaCraftyNurse- Hauls, Reviews, Tutorials, Chit Chat videos
• Sethakins7-Hauls, Reviews, Tutorials, Inspiration and my personal consultant for special events lol
• Rosenliebe Hauls, beautiful graphics, wealth of knowledge about various European brands
• EmilyNoel83 Hauls, Reviews, Tutorials and Em's World 
• Donnashorts1 A true artist. Her videos are more than hauls, reviews and tutorials
• Lisasz09 Hauls, Reviews, Face of the Month, deal finder
• PBmommyPL Hauls, Reviews, Tutorials, Comedy and dancing

The group of people above keep me laughing on a daily basis.  I feel like we share in each others life through the universal language as Donna keeps telling us..."lipstick."

There are many more Beauty Vloggers and Bloggers I will be telling you about in future posts, for now, I thought I would introduce you to the ones I call friends.

xoxo
Dani

The Cities Collection plus a Sigma Discount Code for 10% off

Today, Sigma Beauty launched their new limited edition, "The Cities" collection.  These are travel brush sets that are color coded to represent the themes in which they are named after.  Some of the most popular brushes from the Complete Set (like the Make Me Up sets) and the Professional Set (which I will show you later in its entirety) are in this kit.  I was so excited when I saw the brushes that come in these limited edition sets. 

I am in love with the London kit because it is so unique with the 18 karat gold plated ferrules that represent that refined and sophisticated look of London.  I also adore the Paris set which was created in red because Paris is considered the city of romance.  The Tokyo collection has bright pink handles and ferrules while the New York kit is classic with its black handle and silver ferrules. 

The brushes come in a color coordinated barrel case that can be opened to provide two brush holders.  Again, these barrel containers are the best thing I have ever used to carry my brushes in. They are hard and protective to ensure your brushes never get damaged.  Yet they also open up to become storage for when you are at home.  In this kit you get all the brushes you need for your eyes and face, including my favorite eyeliner brush and the perfect shadow brushes for a great smokey eye!

Your code for a 10% off discount at the checkout is: DEC2011

London

Paris

Tokyo

New York

My Everday Makeup Brushes and Cleaning Tips

People are always asking me what my favorite brushes are.  I have high end, mid range and low end brushes.  However, the brushes I reach for on a day to day basis come from this Make Me Cool Kit by Sigma.  The name signifies the color which has aqua blue handles and a blue/green duo crome metal ferrules.

I have had several brushes that were high end that either shed, the ferrules came loose, or the bristles irritated my skin.  When I tried my first Sigma brush kit which is the same kit (please refer to my 2010 favorites) in a pink brush roll, I was amazed at how soft yet functional these brushes were. This is a basic starter kit that can take you from foundation all the way to the best eyeliner brush ever created in my opinion.  You get several face and eye brushes with this kit that allow you to complete whatever look you are going for like a pro.

When I got the Make Me Cool kit, I realized how functional the new barrel container was.  Not only does it act as a brush holder when I am at home, but it is very sturdy and makes traveling with your brushes even easier than a regular brush roll.  Particularly if your bags are getting tossed around.  This past summer I took a road trip and everything in my trunk seemed to get smashed or bent...but this brush barrel really kept my brushes in great form.

The one brush in the kit I would say I was getting the least use out of was the eyeliner brush.  Now it is my favorite. One day I was watching a tutorial by Michelle1218 and she mentioned that she got her eyeliner perfect everytime by using the E05 which comes in this kit. I have used it with Mac Fluid Line, Tarte Clay Pot Liners and Bobbi Brown's gel liner and each of them go on quick and easy with this brush. 

Prior to this discovery, my favorite two brushes in this kit were the F50 Stippling Brush which I use for highly pigmented blushes (Like Tarte's Flush or Nars' Mata Hari and Desire), or the F40 Large Angled Contour which I use primarily with matte bronzers to contour, but I have used it for blushes as well. 

I never put foundation on with my hands and haven't since I was a teen for fear of transferring oils and bacteria even from freshly washed hands to my face.  I was reading an article the other day that said even primers should be put on with a brush or sponge as well to prevent "balling up" and breakouts.  I believe I will use the F60 Foundation brush for this moving forward. All of the brushes mentioned are in the Make MeUp kits found here. There are four colors to choose from; black, purple, coral, or aqua (like mine).

I want my brushes to last, be in good condition and ready for use at all times.  I do a spot cleaning every time I do my makeup using Sephora's Brush Cleaner for spot cleaning (I can't remember the exact name...but it is not the shampoo).  For deep cleaning which I do every 1-2 weeks to make sure that I am not putting any bacteria on my face that can cause breakouts I use baby shampoo.  Originally, I was using regular Johnson & Johnson's original formula.  Then I found a Johnson & Johnson's baby shampoo with lavender in it.  It may be my imagination, but I feel as if the lavender version makes my brushes softer.  I plan on trying the alcohol brush cleaning method as soon as my Sephora brush cleaner runs out as well.

I hope this helps you to look at basic brushes for every day use and gave you some information on how to clean your brushes.  When it comes to brush cleaning, everyone has their own preferences regarding frequency and products to use. Sometimes it is a process of trial and error, but the most important thing is to make sure you are only getting the hairs/bristles of the brush wet and that no water is getting into the ferrules.  As with any type of brush whether it is makeup or a paint brush, getting water into the ferrules is the quickest way to ruin your brushes as it will loosen the glue.

I wish you all a happy Sunday Funday!

xoxo
Dani