This blog is dedicated to my husband who sees my imperfections and doesn't mention them.
I love trying new beauty products. Place me in a Sephora or Ulta store and I feel I am in paradise. For hours I can pleasantly entertain myself looking at the plethora of different shampoos, facial washes, makeup and perfumes, envisioning myself as a size 0 with glowing clear skin, no split ends, and being stopped by every man in America asking “What’s that scent you are wearing? (Ok, maybe not EVERY man)
One of my downfalls , as my mother will readily tell you, is that I am a sucker for cool packaging and intriguing ingredients. That inclination has resulted in trying hundreds of different products over the years – good and bad. Some products I have used ever since I was in college and I would rather exit the house with no makeup and hairy arm pits then see my fav end up on the proverbial chopping block. Others I have readily discarded vowing never again to be duped by flowery ingredients which deliver zero results.
Because of my “beauty product love”, I probably have more knowledge roaming around in my head than Wikipedia. So I decided to start this blog to share my adventures with you on the quest for beauty, giving my recommendations and warnings so your money can be well spent. The subject matter may be a tad vain, but ultimately every woman has an innate desire to look and feel her best and there is nothing wrong with that. Happy reading, and if you don’t come for my daily blabberings at least drop by for my contest giveaways that I hope to do every other month.
One of my downfalls , as my mother will readily tell you, is that I am a sucker for cool packaging and intriguing ingredients. That inclination has resulted in trying hundreds of different products over the years – good and bad. Some products I have used ever since I was in college and I would rather exit the house with no makeup and hairy arm pits then see my fav end up on the proverbial chopping block. Others I have readily discarded vowing never again to be duped by flowery ingredients which deliver zero results.
Because of my “beauty product love”, I probably have more knowledge roaming around in my head than Wikipedia. So I decided to start this blog to share my adventures with you on the quest for beauty, giving my recommendations and warnings so your money can be well spent. The subject matter may be a tad vain, but ultimately every woman has an innate desire to look and feel her best and there is nothing wrong with that. Happy reading, and if you don’t come for my daily blabberings at least drop by for my contest giveaways that I hope to do every other month.
Minimalism was the name of the game when it came to the makeup in Milan this past week, with many looks that can easily be worn off the runway. Here, the five best ones you'll want to appropriate for yourself, as chosen by our beauty editors. 
1. Gorgeous cat eyes at Gianfranco Ferré. It's not very often that we gush over a makeup look as we much as we did for the thick liner and pretty pink cheeks at Ferré. "It's rock 'n roll, with a '60s reference on the eyes," makeup artist Peter Philips said. The chunky lashes were created with three coats of Chanel Inimitable Waterproof Mascara, combing through between each. The liner was actually a black powder applied with a wet eyeliner brush—Chanel's Professional Eyeliner Duo in Noir-Lame, that was traced from the inner corners to the outer corners of the eyes and lifted up ever so slightly at the end. "There's no hook to the line," Philips explained. Next, he applied mascara onto the bottom lashes by dragging the wand vertically across them, and drew three short strokes of eyeliner below them. And, to round out the look, he swiped a touch of pink blush over the cheekbones and up to the temples and left the lips looking natural. "There's an undertone of sexiness to it, but it's not va-va-voom," Philips said of the finished look. We especially liked how the liner followed the natural curve of the eye, creating a bedroom-effect that is softer and more feminine than the angular, graphic liner we've seen in season's past. 
2. Blushing beauties at Versace. Minimal and perfect—this is exactly how we want our makeup to look every time we walk out the door in the morning. And that's the look makeup artist Pat McGrath created at Versace. To do it, she first went to town with a rose-colored cream highlighter, sweeping it on with a brush over the upper cheekbones, the bridge of the nose, at the inner corners of the eyes, and in the cupids bow to give the skin a beautiful sheen. She followed with a rose-colored powder blush all along the cheekbones and up to the temples, and filled in each model's brows with a mix of powder and pencil. For a gentle smokiness around the eyes, she dusted the lids and crease with taupe shadow, while the lashes were given a soft, fluffy look with Cover Girl's new NatureLuxe Mousse Mascara (out in July). The look is so gorgeous and easy, we may just start wearing it every single day. 
3. Glossy black-cherry lips and nails at Gucci. We had major dejà vu as we walked backstage for Gucci's fall show. The slick hair, bold lips, and matching nails were surprisingly similar to last season. However, this time around, the overall look felt more feminine, even with a vampier lip color added in the mix. McGrath swapped spring's bright cherry-red lips for a blackened burgundy shade (it was actually a custom-blended combination of three lipsticks topped with a high-shine gloss) and added Twiggy-like lashes. "Last season, the Gucci girl was powerful, but now there's a much more luxurious sensual feeling," she explained. We love the juxtaposition of the strong, sexy mouth with the soft fluttery lashes for fall, but are really dying over the matching nail polish that was used—Chanel Le Vernis in Rouge Noir—a color only available in Europe. Good thing Paris Fashion Week starts tomorrow—we're asking our editors to pick us up a few bottles! 
4. Monochromatic mauve at Marni. The color mauve doesn't necessarily scream "modern," but the master of color and all things makeup, Tom Pecheux, was able to create an all-mauve look that was totally cool. His secret? "We're not using any brushes—the only tool we're using is our fingers. When you do that, it doesn't feel like makeup anymore, it feels like a part of you, just soft, natural and casual. It's a grungy, pretty look, but also very dewy." Pecheux's first step was to rub a purple eyeliner pencil directly onto his finger and then smudge it along the lashes for a smoky look. "We put it all over the eye, especially underneath the bottom lashes and following the natural shape of each model's eye," he explained. On the cheeks, he dabbed dusty-rose lipstick in place of blush, which gave the skin a rosy color, but in a very natural way. On the lips, he dabbed foundation, then topped it with the same violet-colored pencil as used on the eyes. 
5. Boudoir-inspired makeup at Giorgio Armani. All-over nudes and black liner never looked so good as they did at Giorgio Armani on Monday. With a piece of peach/fleshy-colored fabric in hand given to her by the designer as a reference, makeup artist Linda Cantello blended together two light mauve lipsticks (shades 105 and 518 from the Rouge d'Armani line) over both the lids and lips, while the lips were topped off with a light brown pencil and matching gloss as well. For the rest of the eye makeup, the inspiration came from a picture Mr. Armani showed Cantello. "It was of a model with thick, black liquid liner on top and bottom, with her hand slightly pulling her eye taught. He liked the two lines, and the languid look they created," she explained. To replicate the image, Cantello closely rimmed the top and bottom lashes with a cream liner, going over it with a wet brush dipped in black powder shadow. The top line was extended past the outer corner about a quarter-inch, while a second line was traced underneath the bottom lashes, starting in the middle of the lash line and extending outward. 
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