On the Quest for Beauty: Are You Wearing Too Much Makeup?

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.

Justin Bieber is too young for us—and for you, Kim Kardashian! (A joke, she's clearly not dating him, people—and People.) But when we read a quote from a recent interview about his preferring a natural beauty look, we took notice. Said the singing haircut: "I don't like girls who wear lots of makeup and you can't see their face. Some girls are beautiful but insecure and look much better without the makeup, but decide to put loads on."

Biebs has a point: If you're overdoing it, you're suffocating your natural beauty. But every time a male celebrity claims that he prefers a woman without makeup, we have to wonder: Does he even know the difference between minimal (or just well-applied) makeup and none?

Either way, a natural look can be beautiful done right. Try these tips from Allure's book Confessions of a Beauty Editor:

Exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate. Even the best makeup in the world will look like dirt if it's applied on top of skin that is dry, dull, or flaky. Regular sloughing, whether with chemicals (like glycolic acid home peels or nightly application of retinoids) or a gentle, grainy scrub, will make skin more naturally radiant—and allow you to wear less makeup.

Prime—or at least moisturize. Some makeup artists believe it's heresy to apply foundation directly to bare skin. They say makeup primer creates a remarkably smooth surface. If you don't want to add an extra step and a new product, just massage moisturizer onto clean skin. Makeup will then seem to melt into the face rather than sit awkwardly on top of it.

Finish with powder. The famous rule about getting ready, then removing one accessory before you leave the house applies just as well to makeup. After you've done your face, turn away from the mirror; then quickly turn back. You might be surprised to see that your blush suddenly looks too bright, or the shimmer on your eyes is more disco than dazzling. A light dusting of powder will tone it down.