I’m sure you have all heard that getting 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night is optimal for your health. Sleep is our bodies’ way of renewing itself and recuperating from the stress and the daily wear and tear of life. I honestly try to get my full 7 to 8 hours, heck, and I’d love 9 if I could manage it, but realistically women have many responsibilities that don’t always stop when the lights go off.  Between pets, kids and toys that spontaneously start *bleeping* in the wee hours, we often don’t get what our bodies need.

I recently received a letter from a busy mother of four even busier children. Becky writes,

Dear Jen,

I have a question for my friend the beauty blogger….what can I do about these puffy, dark eyes that I have? (Thanks in large part, I am sure to my beautiful new daughter! ) Do you have any ideas? I am currently using a Bobbi Brown eye moisturizing cream, but it does not seem to be doing the trick. I’d love any ideas.

I completely understand Becky, the one place that really shows the lack of sleep (and our age) are our eyes. (more…)

I am re-publishing this post today, both because I am feeling lazy, and because I just went over this technique with a friend this morning.  Actually, the REAL reason is to “ick” out Tracy because this picture looks like I am jabbing out my eye with a liner brush!  Enjoy.

Earlier this year, I mentioned one of my favorite eyeliner techniques using a flat eyeliner brush with a gel or liquid liner to create a very thin or tight line on your lashline.   The “tightline” is a fabulous technique for individuals who want to naturally enhance their lashes.

I use Laura Mercier’s flat liner brush with Bleu Marine and it stays on great and looks fabulous. If you have thin or sparse lashes this is an awesome way to define your eyes and make your lashes look thicker!

“with my Laura Mercier’s Flat Liner Brush I dot Bleu Marine eye liner above and below the lashes, to thicken my lash line and add some Oomph!  I think it turned out pretty cool, imho!  The brush in this position probably makes you cringe, and you need to be careful with it.  This liner technique just needs a steady hand and some practice.”

An excellent video to help demonstrate how to apply the tight eyeliner or “tightliner” technique in detail is found at:  http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=487834.

Kate from Megsmakeup.com mentioned that a thin eyeliner, like Tarte’s emphasEYES (that comes in chocolate, plum, green or black) is another way to create the tightline look.

No matter which eyeliner you choose, the tightliner technique is something you must try!

Elke Von Freudenberg is considered to be a Top 5 Eyebrow Specialist, and created her own specialty line, The MODEL BROW! 

1. Like Mo or DecoDiva, you can express yourself in St. Patty’s Day fashion with beautiful green color on your eyelids!

2.  You can go green by buying eco-friendly skincare or haircare products:

Like trying one (or several) of Herbaria’s green soaps in:  Triple Mint Oatmeal “Just in time for refreshment in warmer weather, we invite you to enjoy the natural menthol tingle and scent packed into this new bar,” Lime Coconut Aloe, or Spearmint Orange!

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DecoDiva created a stunning Green and Silver Eye that you could create this New Years Eve, or any evening where to really want to “knock their socks off!”  This is her step-by-step tutorial to walk you through this look.  And if you are on a budget – no worries, Aromaleigh and Meow Cosmetics offer generous sample baggies of many of their products for just $1.  Now we can all afford to get a wonderful selection of cosmetics and get a chance to try this look  for ourselves!

Start with a clean, moisturized face.

1. Put on Eye Shadow Primer.  (Eyeshadow Primer and Base from Aromaleigh in Light)

2. Put some black shadow on the outer vee area and a little in the crease. I used MAC Paint Pot in Blackground.

3. Apply some silver eye shadow all over the eye area, from lash line to eyebrows. I used Aromaleigh Fume (25% off, now $6). (more…)

When asked to create a list of favorite beauty products for 2008, both DecoDiva and Mo mentioned their love of Indelible Gel Eyeliners.  When such extraordinary makeup mavens heart such a find, one needs to pay attention!

If you are a fan of liquid eyeliners, and particularly MAC’s Fluidline, the Indelible “Gel” Eyeliner will most likely appeal to you.  Mo reviewed this eyeliner in Black Cherry from LooseLipsNY , and DecoDiva found the indelible gel eyeliner at Aromaleigh’s website.  DD noticed that Aromaleigh carried this product by customer request and that it was made by a third party (private label) company that supplies it to any company that wants to carry it, in the same colors and same formula. (more…)

From a sultry smoky blue eye to festive green and gold, DecoDiva will inspire you to create something amazing with your eye makeup this Holiday season.  The difficult part is deciding which one to attempt!   You can follow the links to see DecoDiva wearing these eye-makeup color combinations.

Here are some nice colors for that holiday purple look using Meow Cosmetics colors (full size $10.25, sample 1/8 teas. baggie, $1)

Cheers!- platinum with bright flash of red sparkle and metallic gold sheen
Sherry – pure plum with cerulean undertones
Shiraz – intense aubergine with grape overtones
Sparkling- sheer smoky cinder grey with a lavender undertone aglow with gold and silver sparkle and shine

The perfect colors to create a beautiful sapphire smoky blue eye:
Meow Cosmetics, Port – mysteriously smoky steel blue
Meow Cosmetics, Fancy Feline – ultra rich pure platinum with silver sparkle

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After reading a compelling review of Clinique’s Clarifying Makeup Clear Skin Formula from Kate at Megsmakeup.com, it led to my stopping by the Clinique counter.  After discussing the pros and cons of this particular foundation, the Clinique Beauty Advisor said that she thought the newly re-formulated Superfit Makeup would be a better match for my particular skintype (combination and almost 40 yr. old skin).  Clinique changed the formula to enable this foundation to wick away sweat and excess oil and eliminate the midday shine or the late day fadeout.  After the Clinique Advisor applied this to my face and I felt it on my skin, I was sold.

This foundation blends well into the skin and provides buildable medium coverage, but I have noticed two problems while using it.  While Superfit makeup works well on my drier cheek areas, it looks a bit too shiny on my forehead and chin.  This might be due to some added light diffusers or shimmer in the foundation.  The other issue was that the shade I purchased (Petal) appears orange-y on my skin, not a perfect match.  I have also read several reviews of the Superfit Makeup that are saying similar things.  I would expect this foundation to be perfect for individuals with warmer tones and drier skin, and I believe the Clarifying Makeup would have been a better match for me personally.  So many times finding a wonderful foundation that works for your specific skintype is a trial and error experience! (more…)

Here are my suggestions on gifts for the holidays. It’s a mix of several different brands, but all things that I think a lot of people would like, and of course, things I like!   The prices range from $6.65 to $48, and all can be found online for purchase at UrbanDecay.com, Amazon.com, Aromaleigh.com (25% off coupon code FRIDAY25 until Friday Dec. 5th), Sephora.com, Ulta.com, and SallyBSkinYummies.com (10% off until the rest of ‘08 using the “mythsallyb” coupon code).

1.  Urban Decay 24/7 Travel Size Set of Eyeliners – $29
Available in two sets.
VIP
- Zero (zealous black)
- Lucky (brilliant deep copper)
- Covet (peacock green
- Electric (bright aquamarine)
- Lust (plush purple)

Velvet Rope
- Yeyo (metallic white)
- 1999 (plum with micro gold glitter)
- Zero (zealous black) the #1 best-selling black Eye Pencil
- Bourbon (brown with micro gold glitter)
- Stash (dark green/gold)

2.  Urban Decay Sustainable Shadow Box - $36
- YDK (bronzed mocha with golden microglitter)
- Midnight Cowboy Rides Again (golden beige with bronze, gold, & silver glitter)
- Flipside (electric teal with blue sheen)
- Flash (bright iridescent purple)
- Grifter (sheer lavender with lots of silver microglitter)
- Oil Slick (black with silver glitter)
- Uzi (metallic silver with big iridescent sparkles)
- Kiddie Pool (ocean blue with iridescent glitter)
- Twice Baked (brownie brown with gold glitter)
- Half Baked (subtle, lustrous bronze).

3.  Urban Decay Urban Essentials – $39
- .55 oz Overside bottle of Primer Potion
- Goddess Eyeshadow (midnight blue with lots of electric-blue microglitter)
- Midnight Cowboy Eyeshadow (subtle golden-beige with gold glitter).

4.  Urban Decay Best of Urban Set – $32
- Baked Heavy Metal Glitter Liner (bronze)
- Half Baked Eyeshadow (subtle, lustrous bronze)
- Bourbon 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil (brown with teeny gold glitter)
- Eyeshadow Primer Potion (ultra-sheer nude eye base)

5.  Too Faced Mini The Quickie Chronicles – The Life of the Party - $15
- blush in berry mauve shimmer
- black glitter eye shadow
- silver foil eye shadow
- berry sparkle lip gloss
- golden pink lip gloss

6.  Aromaleigh Must Have Holiday 2008 Gift Set – $34.75 (on sale for $26.25)
- butterscotch eye shadow (yellow gold with red iridescence)
- allspide eye shadow (tarnished copper brown with shimmer)
- wintergreen eye shadow (neutral green with smoky undertone and red shimmer)
- mulberry eye shadow (vivid warm holiday purple with rich highlight sparkles)
- amaretto lip creme (mid-toned caramel nude with glints of mauve)

7.  Aromaleigh Create Your Own Custom Gift Set – $37.35 (on sale for $28.00)
- choose a lipstick or lipgloss shade
- choose a blush or rouge shade
- choose 3 eye shadow shades

8.  Aromaleigh Little Gems Gift Set – $28.20 (on sale for $22.56)
Choose from 8 different sets which include 2 eye shadow shades, 1 blush and 1 lip color.

9.  Aromaleigh Make Eye Colors Pop Gift Set – $27.00 (on sale for $24.30)
Choose from Blue, Brown, Green and Hazel eye sets.
Each set includes 3 eye shadows and a liner. (more…)