Officially Fall.

Well, my friends - Fall has officially arrived. And it seems that I am in the minority because I hate the fall. I hate the cooler temperatures, the days getting shorter, all the leaves and acorns - just about everything about it. The only bright spot in the shorter, darker days is that I am able to start wearing new Fall makeup. And new Fall makeup means darker shades, browns, and berry's.  I turned over a new leaf this week and started with the Fall multiple seasonings of color.

On my eyes, I have been loving all the three brown shades in Benefit's Weather Girl Palette.  They are a bit frosty, but just perfect for my hazel colored eyes.  And topping that is Bourjois Metallic Eyeliner Pencil in a beautiful copper called Feuille De Cuivre. I use the eyeliner, which is just so easy to smooth on, over the shadow and it highlights the  frostiness in the shadows with the metallics in the eyeliner.  Stunning.

On my cheeks I have been loving Tarte's Mineral Powder Bronzer in Hotel Heiress. It is not too bronzy, just a bit of bronze with a hint of a ruddy pink it in. It does not look that way at all in the compact, but that is what it does to my cheeks - and it is just perfect. If I am looking for more color, I have just discovered MAX Factors Satin Blush in Peach Spice. If NARS Orgasm Blush is a tad too light for you, try this shade. It is just a tone deeper, and perfect for even my now pale complexion.

Okay - the lips. I swear I have been trying a new color everyday. A few of my favorites so far are DuWops Anti-Venom Satin Lipstick in Bamboo, a sheer wash of berry; MAC's newest Viva Glam VI, a plum with a pearl finish; Bobbi Brown's Lip Shimmer in Candlelight, the perfect gold to simply wear along or over one of Fall's berry lip shades; Clinique's Full Potential Lips (their lip plumping lipgloss entry) in Blackberry Bloom, a sheer yet rich berry shade; and Benefit's Color Plump in Hey Sailor, a glazed berry with their Big Magic 2 Lip Gloss over it.

That is all I have gotten to so far this Fall. What are some of your new Fall favorites?

Back to School Beauty - Hide the Red!

So, you have been out partying a little late have you? Or is that red blemish got you scrambling through your makeup bag to find yet a better way to hide it?

Either way, I have found the best red concealing agent from Tarte called Yellow Mellow!

Please, don't let the lemon yellow color scare you, as it does it's job of hiding even the most hard to cover redness.

This dandy duo features a yellow based cream concealer and yellow loose powder. It is simple to use by taking your finger and dipping it into the cream concealer. Make sure to dab it on all blemishes and blend it out over larger red areas. Then you take the great little kabuki brush (it is included!) and swirl that into the powder, and gently sweep the powder over your face.

For spot coverage, I just take a bit of the powder and pat it over the blemish that I already used the concealer on, and dab the powder over it. It sets it, blends it, and never looks cakey or dry.

Yellow Mellow truly is a dream for those of us who have to deal with redness in any way. And where else can you get a great concealer, loose powder, and kabuki brush for only $25?

Note to Tarte: we would love to see this combo in regular concealer shades too!

Summer's Best!

Lest we not forget that it is still Summer. With all of the info I have been reading about what is hot for the Fall, I remind myself - it's August and it's 90 something degrees. And I am tan (mostly from my love of self-tanning) and want to stay that way!

So, here are my favorite products I have been using this Summer.
 
To keep my face feeling moisturized and looking tan while at the pool or beach, I have been using XEN-TAN Face ($22). It is a facial self-tanner with a daily dose of treatment. The Face lotion contains Vitamin E for awesome antioxidant benefits while the blend of gentle fruit acids smooth my delicate facial skin. And the instant olive based color looks perfect when applied - and it helps make sure that I didn't miss any spots as well.

To keep my Summer body smooth and moisturized, I recently discovered Cake Beauty's Desserted Island Creamy Body Buffer ($24). This wonderful smelling (like vanilla frosting with a hint of coconut cream - yum!) cream is mixed with some of the world's finest ingredients: Apricot Seeds, Jojoba Beads, and Shea Butter. The Apricot Beads are finely ground and are used an a natural exfoliant, while the pink Jojoba Infused Beads use Jojoba Oil to gently moisturize and exfoliate, and the rich Shea Butter is added for it's regenerative emollient and protectant properties. While the directions say to use it 2 - 3 times a week, I am addicted, and use it in my shower daily.

While on the subject of my body, I hate to admit it, but I do miss a spot in my self-tanning ritual now and then. To remedy this, I turn to Benefit's Jiffy Tan ($24). Jiffy Tan is NOT a self-tanner, it is a tinted body lotion - think of it as a body bronzer, that instantly evens out self-tanning mishaps, or leaves pale white skin tan in  - you guessed it - a jiffy! I use this on my legs daily. It evens everything out and give them the darker color I crave. And it lasts, only coming off with a few minutes of scrubbing gently with soap (for this I suggest their Wonder Mitt). And be sure to wash you hands well after using too.

As far as makeup goes, I use different products for day and evening. 

During the day, I keep a minimalist approach in the high heat. Tarte's Rock Royalty Palette  ($30) does my entire face. The palette includes a mineral powder bronzer, which I apply first, over my forehead, chin, cheeks and nose, then a bit swept across my eyelids. Then I apply the powder blush on the apples of my cheeks and blend over my eyelids too. Then I take the gold high lighter and apply that on my brow bone. Whoola! Now a quick lip is easy with Benefit's Color Plump ($20) in Yoo Hoo, a perfect natural honey color. And the extra little plumping you get from this pencil (yes, plump from a pencil) is a great bonus - it makes my lips look a bit fuller and healthy! And eyes are simply complete with a quick mascara application. I am really liking Bobbi Brown's No Smudge Mascara ($20) in black for a natural look - with the benefit of it not running or smearing from the heat and humidity.

In the evening, when I am apt to wear more makeup, I have been using a few products faithfully, while mixing in color now and then. As I use no foundation in the Summer, I start out using XEN-TAN's Perfect Bronze  ($28) powder bronzer to enhance my natural (self) tan. It is silky smooth (never cakey or dry looking) and is best applied naturally where the sun would tan you more: swept over the forehead, then down over the nose and chin, then swept from side to side over the very tops or the cheeks and across the nose again.  I simply top this off with a light dusting of MAC's Studio Fix ($24) in NC40, my perfect Summer tan shade, to set it while it helps even things out just a bit more. On my eyes I vary the colors by outfit or event, and I have been using a lot of Bourjois, especially their new Intensely Luminous Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow ($13.50). They have long wearability, and the light reflecting pigments really catch the light at night. Parme Electro, a beautiful violet and Rose Disjoncte, a real pure pink are my favorites. Eyeliner is a must for me at night, and I have been picking shades from my Smashbox Cream Eyeliner Palette ($32). They are full of pigment, and the cream formula makes application a cinch and they last all through the night.  To top off my eye look, I am loving DuWop's Lash Lacquer ($18) in Carbon Black. It is a two step product, making it easy to first add long and thick lashes before using the second coat to top the lashes with an orange oil that adds gloss and makes the lashes waterproof. For the lips, I am a gloss queen in the summer. Lipstick need not apply!!! My favorites are MAC's Tinted Lipglass and Ligelee ($14) in various shades, Estee Lauder's High Gloss ($16) in Honey, Flamingo, and Bronze, and my newest favorite YSL's Golden Gloss ($25.50) in Simply Gold and Golden Pink. YSL is a bit expensive for a gloss, but these glosses actually contain real 24K gold in them - and they are about the most beautiful glosses with any hint of gold I have ever used.

Please do not forget that Summer is still here, and keep using your Summer's Best!