After the Roaring 20's, makeup-- much like lifestyles-- became much more low-key. Barely-visible liner replaced thick kohl. Soft brown eyeshadow replaced heavy black lids. And women started to wear Vaseline on their lids to make them shine. The only drama that remained was in the lashes; women continued to prize thick, black lashes.



Products used:

Kat Von D Tattoo Concealer in Light
Manly Palette 64, 65, 71
Sephora Nano Liner in Chocolate
Stila Major Lash Mascara
Vaseline Lip Therapy

Welcome to my first theme week: decades of makeup! Normally, I'll start theme weeks on Sundays, but I went out today and really wanted to do something dramatic.

Now, I absolutely love vintage. I've got a collection of hats, jewelry, clothes, shoes, gloves, etc. from the 1920s to 1950s. While the '40s and '50s were my favorite era for fashion, the Roaring Twenties are my absolute favorite years for makeup!

This is a look I learned from the Make Up For Ever Academy (eyes & lips). I'll go through this one step-by-step.








Complexion

A 1920's complexion was matte, pale, and flawless. The makeup of the era was inspired by what the stars of the silver screen wore-- pan cake foundation. My face is unfortunately only one of those three (pale) so I got some help from a few of my favorite products. I dabbed a bit of Pores No More in the T-zone areas where my pores are enlarged, and mattified/primed my entire face with the Clear Prep FX. After that, I concealed. Benefit Lemon-Aid takes care of the dark circles under my eyes, while the two shades of Kat Von D concealer take care of slight redness and acne scars. To create the flawless look, I used Cover FX cream foundation, which is what I love any time I need full coverage, and perfected the face with Smashbox Halo and then a light dusting of Make Up For Ever HD Powder.

Eyes

Eye makeup in the '20s was dark and smoky. Steps to recreating a '20s smoky eye:

1.) With a concealer brush, cover your lid in Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream in #2 (Gray). Blend up slightly past crease.

2.) Lift up on your brow and, with an angled eyeliner brush, apply a thick line of Make Up For Ever Aqua Black at the lash line. Smudge the edges of the line with a round smudge brush in circular motions to soften.

3.) Using the product left over on the smudge brush, line the bottom of the eye. Start in the outer corner and work inward to create a soft look.

4.) Go back and intensify with Aqua Black. Rim the entire eye, including the waterline, using a diagonal downward motion. Blend in with a regular smudge brush.

5.) With a blending brush, take a small amount of NYX Ultra Pearl Mania in Purple Pearl and gently apply a thin veil on the outer edge of the crease for a slight purple shimmer. Hold the blending brush horizontally and parallel to the lid, and sweep on gently.

6.) With a small, natural-hair eyeshadow brush, apply Make Up For Ever Eyeshadow #307 directly on the upper lash line. Blend up to the edge of the purple shadow. Also apply to the lower lash line.

7.) With a heated lash curler, curl your lashes. (If you don't own one, use this trick: heat up your regular eyelash curler by holding your blow dryer to it.) Apply two coats of Stila Major Lash Mascara to the top lashes. Layer one coat of Urban Decay Lush Lash mascara over the top. On the bottom, apply Stila Major Lash Mascara with a concealer brush.

Lips

The Make Up For Ever Academy has a five-step technique to perfect lips. Before lining the lips, I plumped and conditioned my lips with Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Lip.

1.) Line center of top and bottom lips to establish symmetry (I used Make Up For Ever Aqua Lip in 8C).

2.) Establish width. Line up the corners of the lip with the irises of your eyes. A 1920's lip can be narrow (early in the decade) or filled in to the corners (later in the decade.) I chose the latter to make the look more wearable.

3.) Starting in the outer corners, draw in one motion from the outer corner to top center, then bottom center.

4.) Fill in the entire lip with pencil.

5.) Apply lipstick (I used Make Up For Ever #43, Moulin Rouge) with a square-tipped lip brush. Don't press the outer edge of the brush to the lips; drag instead.

To add volume, you can apply a darker shade of lipstick in the center and create depth by lining the outer corner of the lip. The educator recommended using Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes in 0L (black) and blending; I dabbed just a bit in the center of my lips, and contoured on the outer edge as well.

What do you think? Which decade are you looking forward to seeing?

So last night, I found myself watching an episode of Doctor Who ("Midnight," to be precise) and subsequently had a dream about travelling in space. So, this morning, when I woke up, I decided to see if I could achieve something like a spiral galaxy on my lids. Success? I think this is something that could be played with.



Products used:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Urban Decay 24/7 Eyehadow Pencil in Clash and Delinquent
Avon Big Color Eye Pencil in Night Glisten
Buxom Lashliner
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Long day, quick post. Most of my looks have been vivid, so today I went natural. I broke out my new Stila palette for this one.



Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Stila In the Light Palette
Buxom Lashliner in Suede
Stila Smudge Pot in Bronze
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

This morning, I was running late, so I went back to a technique I've just learned this month: the crease wingtip. In retrospect, I wish I would have blended the black of the crease into the green of the lids. The tutorial I followed didn't recommend any blending-- I like the look of it with open eyes, but I think it looks better blended. That's what's nice about this project-- it's a learning process for me, too!



Products used:

Sephora Nano Liner in Pure White
Manly Palette 1, 13, 43, 44
Lorac Front of the Line Pro in Black
Urban Decay Lush Lash

Word is spreading about my 365-day challenge, and I'm getting suggestions from people (which I love-- it would be tough to come up with 365 ideas on my own!) A friend of mine challenged me to create a look with white eyeshadow, and this is what I came up with. As a bonus, I got to wear my favorite lipstick today, which usually stays shelved because I wear such bright and bold eyes!




Products used on eyes:

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Eden
Sephora Nano Liner in Pure White
Nyx Ultra Pearl Mania in White
Manly Palette #65, #71
Lorac Front of the Line Pro Eyeliner in Black
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

Products used on lips:

Make Up For Ever Aqua Lip in 8C
Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense in #43 Moulin Rouge

This morning at 5 am, when everyone else was still slumbering peacefully, I was getting ready to work. I'm decidedly NOT a morning person, so I sacrificed 30 minutes of getting-ready time for some much needed sleep. The result: a quick, low-key natural eye with just a splash of color.



Products used:

Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Pure White (base)
Lorac Starry-Eyed Baked Eyeshadow Trio in Movie Star (the light gold color)
Lancome Colour Focus Palette in 4Style
Make Up For Ever Eyeliner in #4
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

I get a lot of people asking me for an eye look that will take them from day to night. Usually I do a nice natural look with a subtle splash of color, or a light smoky eye that they can add drama to later with a bit of eyeliner.

And then I thought: what if the phrase "day to night" was taken literally?



Sephora Nano Eyeliner in Pure White (base)
Manly Palette 10, 2, 3, 17, 15, 100, 101, 86, 43
Buxom Lashliner in Leatherette
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

A client asked me today how I get my shadow so precise. The trick is to use an eyeliner brush to apply shadow when you want detailed and precise application. So I don't wear out my eyeliner brush, I keep two on hand: one specifically for eyeliner, and one specifically for shadow.

Today's eye is pretty ironic, considering that here in "Minnesnowta," there's not a flake on the ground. It was forty-eight degrees today in my neck of the woods, and sixty in the southern part of the state, which are record highs. Golf courses are open. I didn't wear a coat today. And perhaps most disturbing, there's no pond hockey being played. So I thought I'd bring a little winter of my own, with a lot of help from Buxom.



Products used:

Sephora Nano Liner in Pure White (base)
Buxom Stay There Eyeshadow in Husky, Chihuahua, Sheepdog, and Bulldog
Make Up For Ever Aqua Black (which I mixed with Bulldog for the crease)
Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream #2 (used in the inner corner for eyeliner on the bottom)
Buxom Lash Liner in Leatherette
Urban Decay Lush Lash Mascara

It's no secret to those who know me that Too Faced is one of my favorite brands. (In fact, the only brand I love more is Make Up For Ever.) I always look forward to Too Faced's holiday palettes, and I'm always waiting to get my hands on their latest collection.

For spring, they've launched the Natural Beauty Collection, a collection of seven mostly new products for a natural face. The three I'm most eager to get my hands on:

1.) Natural Face Natural Radiance Face Palette, $39



Ah, Too Faced palettes <3 Their powders are always so wonderfully selected, and this is no exception. The range of colors is neither too pink nor too golden, ensuring that the shades will work well on almost any skintone. The palette packs a punch, with seven products: bronzer, cream blush, powder blush, concealer, luminizer, and brightener. At $39, it's an amazing price for a kit full of face essentials. For anyone just starting out with makeup, this palette paired with a foundation is going to start them off on the right foot. For seasoned makeup junkies, this is a great palette to travel with. Not to mention, it's got the great Get The Look cards we all know and love, with three different complexion strategies.

2.) Natural At Night Sexy & Sultry Neutral Eye Shadow Collection, $36



Another palette! I love these clever little boxes. They come with nine shadows in three prearranged combinations, and a card which tells you how to apply each combination.

The other thing I love about Too Faced eyeshadow is the texture. It's velvety and decadent and oh so blendable. The shades in the new palette are a bit darker than the shades in their current Natural Eye palette, and I like a little drama, so I'm looking forward to this one!

3.) Tinted Beauty Balm Multi-Benefit Skin Care Makeup, $32



Historically, Too Faced has some pretty cutting-edge makeup. Their Primed and Poreless powder is unmatched when it comes to erasing pores, and the Tanning Bed in a Tube is a head above most other self-tanners. So, with their track record of excellence, I am excited to see them jump on the BB cream bandwagon.

Too Faced tells us that this adds tint and radiance; prevents sun damage with SPF 20; moisturizes with oil-free hydration; soothes and nourishes with vitamins A and E; helps prevent aging; and can be used as a primer or a complexion perfector. Whew!

Chime in: Which spring item are you looking forward to?