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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Hot off the cyber-presses, tarte cosmetics is offering a 40% friends and family discount for the next five days (December 11- 15th).

Enter the code: FF08 at checkout to receive 40% off your entire order at tarte!

Be sure to notice tarte’s Holiday Value Gift Set (listed for $65 which is a $115 value, and with the 40% discount is now only $39!)  There are a limited amount of these sets which includes:

natural cheek stain in tipsy (sheer peach with a touch of shimmer)
mini glistening powder in sugar daddy (bronze shimmer) 
indelible wink in charcoal
picture perfect eyelash curler
lash hugger eco-friendly natural mascara 
vitamin infused lipstick in hatha (shimmery rose)

Please comment on any of your favorite tarte cosmetics here. This is really something to celebrate!

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…)

I idolize Ginger Rogers.  So this year I am attempting a Starlet look for Halloween.  I think I still need to kick it up a notch and possibly run to the store for some false eyelashes and a feather boa! 

Classic Starlet Features:  Precisely defined eye brows, flawless skin, dark matte lipstick, black mascara with dark top eyeliner, and beautiful cheekbones.  Its all about Glamour!

My Starlet Look:  Laura Mercier’s Bleu Marine Eye liner applied with a flat eyeliner brush, L’Oreal’s Telescopic Mascara in Black, Cargo’s blu-ray Pressed Powder (all over face and on eyelids), ECO Nvey Lipstick in Dark Ruby,  Anastasia’s All About Brows Kit, Sugar’s Blush and Bronzer duo (used extra bronzer in hollows of cheeks to emphasize cheekbones). (more…)

Now that title is a mouthful!  A weekend isn’t complete without mentioning some fabulous beauty reads from around the Internet:

• Products That Work For Every Woman! - Jami from Bionic Beauty shares her list of basic beauty items that are universally great for all women.
• Fall 2008 Trends: The Color Purple - Raging Rouge delves into several ways to go purple this season.
• Carnivore & Creme de Violet FOTD – Decorative Diva puts together another fabulous look using violet and wine red eye shadows.
• Apparently, Spoiled Pretty is a Snoozefest – I had to laugh reading this post.  Yeah Daneen, your totally rocking and wonderful beauty blog is a real snoozer! ;)
• Lash Stash is Back - Makeup Moxie reports that while the original Lash Stash had only seven mascaras, the new version now comes with ten mini mascaras for you to test out.  How awesome, I want!
• JESSICURL TOO SHEA CONDITIONER! HUMP DAY HAIR DAY! - My favorite group of beauty mavens at Megsmakeup.com test out Jessicurl, and guess what?  They love it!
• HOLIDAYS ARE HERE! SATURDAYS AT SEPHORA! - Kate at Megsamakeup.com talks about some amazing traincases filled with cosmetics that are being auctioned for charity.  Go check them out, and bid away.  
• Fitness Friday:  Don’t Skimp on Stretching – My favorite beauty gals from Girl-Woman-Beauty-Brains-Blog discuss the benefits of stretching!   
• Comments for a Cure:  This weekend Only - Face Candy gives a touching tribute to her parents and supports BCA by contributing $4 for every comment made at this post!
• lancome oscillation mascara launches today! - Jenn and Christine at Beauty in Real Life review Lancome’s newly released vibrating mascara applicator.  Does it work and tips on how to use it.

Pink Ribbon Alert!

Did you know that if you add the Total Beauty – Total Cure MySpace Page as a friend that you will be automatically entered in a giveaway sponsored by Tarte Cosmetics!?  One grand prize winner will receive a product gift set valued at $253!  The set includes:

-clean slate primer
-sunburst bronzing moisturizer
-lights, camera, lashes! 4-in-1 mascara
-picture perfect eyelash curler
-emphasEYES high definition eye pencil
-lock & roll creaseless eyeshadow duo
-tzone travel
-double dose berry boost & gloss
-cheek stain
-rest assured brightening wand
-rejuvelash declumping lash exhilarator
-fRxtion

AND, Twenty runners-up will win the ready-to-wear/prêt-à-porter palette!

Right now you can also receive 30% off your entire order at tarte cosmetics.  Just type in “luckybreaks7″ at checkout, this code is good until 11/30/08.   Thank you tarte!

Celebrity makeup artist Chuck Hezekiah shares his top 10 beauty tips on working your mascara to its full potential.

We had the chance to sit down with Chuck Hezekiah, national makeup artist for Maybelline New York, who told us how to get perfect, clump-free lashes with almost any mascara. Read on to find out exactly how your mascara can work in more ways than one to save you time, guesswork and money.

View tips

In honor of BCA month Makeup Moxie is donating $1.00 (up to $100) to the American Cancer Society for each comment on her post and asks us the burning question:

“Have you found your “Holy Grail” mascara and, if so, what is it? If you haven’t found your Holy Grail Mascara, what is it that you’re still looking for in your quest for the perfect mascara?”

Personally, I am still searching for the ultimate mascara on the market. I don’t ask for much. My requirements would be a mascara that leaves your lashes feeling soft not stiff, adds beautiful natural-looking length, doesn’t flake or smudge, and doesn’t cause my eyes to itch or tear up.

I’m still searching for my holy grail of mascaras. As for drug store brands, I’d say Maybelline’s Full n Soft Mascara, and for a department store brand mascara, I would go with either Lola’s or Becca’s, but I reserve the right to change my mind!

I should have mentioned my fabulous experience while using Marini Lash. My lashes are looking so healthy and lovely right now, I could almost skip my mascara and when I do use mascara I get ultra-great results.

Be sure to visit Makeup Moxie’s site today and comment on your favorite mascara formula. A simple and wonderful way to donate to the BCA cause. You might even find some new mascara brands to covet! Thanks Makeup Moxie, we adore you!!!

Being a hazel-green eye gal myself, I have always been drawn to the purple and plum hues. And it’s only natural to be drawn to those colors. In a basic Art 101 course you are taught the concept of the color wheel and complimentary colors. The perfect compliment to green is purple. Have you ever noticed the great contrast these two colors have in a painting or in a stripe pattern on fabric?

So how smart of Benefit to launch a new shade of mascara to compliment hazel, brown, and green eye colors: Benefit’s Badgal Plum Mascara ($19)!

Intensify your natural eye color with BADgal plum. This rich, luxurious plum mascara brings out any eye color! If you wear brown mascara, this is your new brown! It’s the same famous BADgal lash formula & voluminous brush for lavishly long lashes.

Tips and tricks: Not sure what kind-a BADgal you were born to be? We’ll help you decide. If you want to warm up & intensify your pretty peepers, BADgal plum is for you. Can’t live without your black mascara? Add pretty plum to the tips of your lashes for a sweet & sexy lash look.

And no worries for you blue-eyed beauties, BADgal mascara in plum can also compliment your baby blues! However, now you have the three BADgal mascara colors to choose from: classic black, blue, and now ze plum! Lucky brown-eyed gals can look gorgeous in any of these shades too.

And don’t forget, you can receive free shipping now with any Benefit BADgal purchase, just enter BADGAL08 at checkout! If you spend over $50 you can also receive FREE US Standard Shipping, just remember to enter the promo code PRETTY50 at checkout.