“Makeup Your Mind, Express Yourself,” is brand new beauty book by acclaimed makeup artist, photographer, and makeup brand owner, Francois Nars (yes, he owns NARS, the makeup brand). His gorgeous hardcover book is my new “beauty bible,” with gorgeous glossy before and after photographs of real women given makeovers. To find out what the layout of this book is, how he shows the makeovers, and to see some previews of the book, watch the video look-book above.

Purchase this book from Amazon: http://amzn.to/iNzzoc

Birchbox is a fantastic beauty product sampling program that allows you to sample several products via a box sent to your doorstep each month! You can test out high-end products without breaking the bank, and if you fall in love with a product, you can even purchase the full-size straight through the Birchbox website, which will earn you loyalty points for special rewards. Watch the above video for my thoughts on Birchbox, details on how to order, price, and see what is inside my past two Birchboxes that I bought. NOTE: Video will convert to HD.

Also, there is a small bit on multiple sclerosis, in honor of my dad, and all of those who have MS out there, so be sure to check it out.

Jennifer Lopez’s new music video for “I’m Into You,” shows off how fantastically gorgeous her skin and facial features are. In terms of makeup and hair, it is a beauty lovers heaven for inspiration. In the scenes where she is on the beach with the guy, she has on this beautifully sheer, glowing makeup with a chocolate smokey eye, highlighted cheekbones, and peachy pink lips. I actually filmed this entire tutorial today, and when I went back to edit, I saw my lighting needed some major help! I added a clip on lamp to the right side of my face (your left), so that I look fully illuminated in my video’s for now on, and everything is clear and concise. I will rerecord the tutorial for you tomorrow, and upload here, but in the meantime, here is a preview of the gorgeous makeup she has in the video, and my interpretation of it.

See you all tomorrow…thank God it’s (almost) Friday!

Subtle chocolate smokey eye

Notice the shadow on the right side (your left) from lack of lighting!

After hearing incredible things about Fyrinnae, a new, small-owned makeup company online, I decided to order several products and see if they lived up to their reputation. Since so many people are ordering from them, and they only have one person doing all the work, they often have their shop closed until they can catch up on orders. They finally reopened a couple of weeks ago, and I jumped at the chance to snag four eyeshadow pigments and a loose blush. For the record, all you are going to hear me say in this post is “gorgeous,” “beautiful,” “incredible,” and “amazing.” Their loose pigments are everything I expected and more, and they are ridiculously pigmented. To see photographs and swatches, read more…

Gabriel Cosmetics has a line called ZuZu Luxe, and their products are all vegan, cruelty-free, fragrance free, and allergy tested. All natural cosmetics make me feel good because I know I am supporting a brand without chemicals, as well as helping myself by not exposing myself to anything dangerous. ZuZu The Gloss is a lip gloss that has shea butter and jojoba oil in it, making it super smooth and moisturizing – never sticky! To see a beautiful mauve-pink shade called “Mischief,” read more…

One of my all-time favorite hairstyles is Victoria’s Secret inspired hair…think sexy, loose, voluminous, windswept curls that have beautiful movement. Achieving this look is incredibly easy with a few simple tools that you probably already own, and anyone with shoulder length hair or longer can rock this bombshell look. To see photographs of everything you’ll need, as well as a tutorial and more pictures of the finished hair, read more…

The busier my life gets (and I’m sure yours, as well), the more you search for simple, fast eye makeup looks you can achieve, while still looking fresh and pretty. The Urban Decay Rollergirl Palette is a gorgeous set of four eyeshadows, and it is a great example of how to wear pink eyeshadow without looking like you have an eye infection. Again, this look is not meant to be extremely complicated, and is something the average woman can achieve in less than ten minutes flat. To see photographs and how to get this look (you can use any similar shades in your collection as well!), read more…

I recently reviewed and swatched the Maybelline “The Brightside” 8-eyeshadow Palette. It contains eight gorgeous shades of bright punchy colors, and I wanted to create a wearable, simple-as-pie daytime look using the two colors that reminded me of a sunrise (or sunset). To see photographs, read more…

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Balm is brand new for summer 2011, and is out in all of their colorful summer displays. I was excited for this product because I love their Super Lustrous lip glosses that they released this past season, and I was expecting gorgeous peachy coral color out of this product. Want to see photographs, swatches, and my thoughts on this product? read more…

I have had so many requests to do a review and post on the Sally Hansen Salon Effects Nail Polish Strips which have been out in drugstores nationwide now for almost a couple of months. I purchased Girl Flower because its totally my style and personality…the peace-loving hippie inspired print. Since this was my first time applying these, I wanted to apply them, and soak in all the details of the product, from how to apply them, tips and tricks, as well as my own personal review on them and how long they last. This post is going to essentially be photograph swatches of this particular print, and some quick thoughts, whereas next week I will feature a video tutorial on how to apply these, and get into greater detail after seeing how long these wear for. To see photographs and swatches, read more…