Makeup Muse: Lauren Conrad

Apparently so many of us are loving Lauren Conrad’s make-up look. So, I’m going to break it down for you! The best thing about Lauren Conrad’s makeup is that it’s always pretty and put-together yet very natural.

Follow this guide to get Lauren Conrad’s natural make-up look!

Lauren Conrad Makeup

1. Prepare your canvas by applying a lightweight mineral makeup foundation such as Maybelline Mineral Powder liquid makeup. Wet a sponge, squeeze out excess water, and apply foundation for a dewy look.
2. To add a sheer, shimmery color to the cheeks, try Clinique Blushing Blush powder blush in Precious Posy, a shimmery coral. I love that this shade gives a luminous look to the cheeks with a sheer dose of color.
3. Carefully apply a liquid liner with a pointed sponge tip such as Lancôme Artliner in Brown. Stop halfway in on the bottom lash line. Brush brows into place with a clean mascara wand or baby toothbrush. Set with a bit of Vaseline or clear hair gel.
4. Apply generous amounts of a good, lengthening mascara like CoverGirl Lash Blast in Black.
5. Moisturize and shine your lips with Blistex Silk & Shine lip balm. This balm gives a light shine to the lips, perfect for a natural make-up look.

Facial Toners - Frappelattes Skincare Guide

It seems that toners are often neglected when it comes to pampering the skin. Are you one that cleanses your face then skips straight to applying moisturizer or even a skin serum without using a toner? All you need is a good toner to compliment your skin type, and cotton balls or pads to apply the toner and lift away dead skin and makeup grime left behind after cleansing.

There are toners to compliment all skin types. Who doesn’t want glowing, beautiful skin? If your skin is on the oily side, look for a toner with mattifying powders settled on the bottom – just shake to mix the skin toning ingredients and apply this toner to your T-zone and other problem shine areas. If your skin is dry, quest for an alcohol-free toner with moisturizing properties. You can find my top toner recommendations below:

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Drugstore Drama: Cool Blues & Frosty Pink Lips

I did a mini drugstore haul and feel like it’s the best money I’ve spent on make-up in a while! I ventured to try a drugstore mineral make-up product, my first mineral make-up tryout. Maybelline foundations such as Dream Matte Mousse and Age Rewind Foundation had always satisfied me in the past. So, I picked up Maybelline Mineral Powder Liquid Foundation. Luckily my skintone is just simply dark so Maybelline Dark 3 is usually always a match for me.

Tip for picking out a drugstore foundation that matches your skintone: First, go to the shades that match the depth of your skintone: light, medium, or dark. Next, if you have pinkish/red undertones (check the inside of your wrist), pick the hue that is most red. If you have yellow/gold undertones, pick the hue that is most yellow.

For this eye look I picked up L’Oreal HIP Eyeshadow Duo in Showy and Wet ‘N Wild Liquid Eyeliner in Black. I also applied Covergirl Lash Blast Mascara in Very Black. To prep my eyes for drugstore make-up, I did use Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion. As the base shadow I used Lancome Color Design Eyeshadow in Optic (a pearl bone shade, what is on the browbone and inner corner). I believe using the Primer Potion and Optic shadow as base lent a hand to the excellent color payoff in this look. I used the light blue shade in the Showy duo across my lid then applied the dark blue shade in the crease, building intensity. I’m brushing up on my skillz so hopefully I will get better as I do more dramatic looks!

On my lips is Almay’s Whipped Gloss in #30, a cool, frosty pink. I’ve been touting this gloss since high school and remember fondly wearing it my first day of senior year. I thought I was the shizz with my “Black Barbie gloss”!

You can read my review of Maybelline Mineral Powder liquid make-up here, but as you can see it covered quite nicely!

Makeup Muse: Kerry Washington

Get cat-eye glam by donning actress Kerry Washington’s pretty peach look:

1. Apply a creamy foundation such as MAC Studio Stick Foundation. Dampen a makeup sponge, draw a few small streaks on your face, and blend well with the sponge. This technique will give you Kerry Washington’s dewy complexion.
2. Using a felt-tipped liquid eyeliner such as Lancôme Artliner in Noir, line your top lid thickly and extend the line for a cat eye effect. Felt-tipped liquid eyeliners are perfect for fun precision application! Use a black pencil eyeliner to lightly trace your lower lash line.
3. Ardell Fashion Lashes come in several different styles to suit your occasion. Pick one that matches the eyelash look you’d like to achieve. If you’re stuck on how to apply false eyelashes, read this Specktra guide.
4. Revlon Cream Blush in Just Peachy is perfect for this apricot peachy glow! Apply with your fingers or a sponge and it dries to a sheer powdery finish.
5. Apply Revlon Colorstay Lipcolor in Sheer Coral for sheer lip color that does not budge.

Makeup Muse: Hayden Panettiere

When I’m not going all out with metallic eyeliners and long false lashes for a glam night out, my next favorite makeup look is “naturally pretty” with bronzed cheeks, shiny lips, and lightly smoked eyes. Hayden Panettiere’s make-up look here is the fair-skinned version of my “naturally pretty” night-out makeup, perfect for dinner and drinks.

Get Neutrogena cover girl and singer/actress Hayden Panettiere’s pretty summer night make-up look:

1. Start out with a fresh, clean face. Blend your favorite tinted moisturizer with a bit of Revlon Skinlights Face Illuminator Lotion and apply to your face, blending down to your neck. This will give you that glowing, bronzed complexion.

2. Apply a burnt orange blush to the apples of your cheeks, blending back toward your ears. If you’re digging mineral makeup right now, try Cover Girl TruBlend Minerals Blush in Shimmering Sands (use your own blush brush rather than the one that comes in the package for easier application).

3. Sweep a shimmery bone-colored eyeshadow on your browbone and a rich brown shade in the crease such as found in Clinique Colour Surge Eyeshadow Duo in Butter Pecan. Line your bottom line with more of the taupe brown.

4. Layer on tons of volumizing mascara. My favorite right now is Rilastil Volumizing Mascara in Black. It gives my lashes so much depth!

5. Finish off with a moisturizing lip gloss like Neutrogena MoistureShine Lip Gloss in Dizzy. Yum.

Next week: Kerry Washington

Reader Poll: Do You Apply Eye Cream?

There’s something so feminine about dabbing on eye cream. I have two small jars in my skincare arsenal and I also carry one around in my purse. In the morning, mid-day, mid-afternoon, and before bed I’m dabbing on eye cream.

Trent wrote a post about the benefits of wearing eye cream. “Touch up those wrinkled bags!” I love his beauty blog humor. Looking to buy wrinkle cream?

When you’re 40+ you’re using eye creams to erase the lines. At 30 you’re trying to prevent those lines. But when you’re 20-25 and have already begun using eye cream, you’re right on board to prevention.

In a following post I plan to review my favorite eye cream. It’s even pink! And, it works wonders. In the mean time:

Do you use eye cream? What made you start? Which one(s) do you use and what are the best results you’ve seen?

Reader Poll: Is Your Guy Metrosexual?

Is your boyfriend or guy friend beauty savvy? Does he have his own arsenal of hair and skin care or have you caught him dabbling in your stash?

When I was a Beauty Advisor for Lancome years ago, I would invite my guy friend Trent in to demonstrate to my BA friends how to do “makeovers” on guys with skincare products. Women aren’t the only ones that need to take care of their hair and skin. Men are learning that there are products out there tailored for them that can repair their own hair and skin woes. Such products include Origins Save The Males daily moisturizer and Clinique Skin Supplies For Men. These lines know that marketing is key to get men to buy these products, whether by all-black packaging or “manly” product names. Just know that guys can use “our” stuff too… the ingredients are pretty much the same!

Check out my guy’s metrosexual blog. He finally did it!