Model Shu Pei for Vogue China January 2011

Oh I am SO completely obsessed with Vogue China!
Check out this amazing shoot with Chinese model Shu Pei and superstar photographer Regan Cameron
for Vogue China's January beauty supplement.
Styled by Katie Mossman, the story was about looks that can last from summer through winter

 fabulous and inspiring

Even her bikini tan lines look chic

New Year Skin Care - Inventory What You Already Have

On my New Year's Beauty Resolution List I talked about sorting through your skin care products.
Now that we are actually into the new year, lets break that down a bit, and get a little more specific.

At the beginning of each year you should get out all your skin care products and do a little inventory on what you have, what you forgot you had, and what you need.

 What You Already Have
Before you go spending beauty dollars on new things, look through what you already have.

Which products really are working for you and which ones really aren't? Our skin changes throughout the year as well as over the years, so chances are products that were beyond brilliant before might not be quite so great anymore.

I am a big believer in only using the products that you see discernible results with.

Which are not necessarily going to be the products with the biggest, glossiest magazine ads!

If you're not seeing the results you were expecting, it might be time to change what you're using.
Caution: buyer beware of marketing hype...

Are you using products that are ideally suited to your skin type? Your cleanser might be stripping your skin, your moisturizer could be too heavy or too light for your skin type.
If you can, go see a facialist and have her analyze your skin and tell you what types of products you should be using. Sometimes the tiniest changes can make the biggest difference, such as changing out a foaming cleanser for a cleansing milk, or an eye cream for an eye gel.

Do the products that you're using actually work together? I try to stick to one line at a time so that I'm achieving skin synergy. Within that line I make sure that I'm not using products that work against one another. Competing products can create havoc with your skin, or can cancel one another out.

Check that you're not hoarding products that have gone bad. If it looks funky, smells off, or if the product texture has changed chances are it has passed its "best by" date and needs to be thrown out.
 
 Once you've established what you already have, you can start looking at what you need.

Oh The Sheer Hawtness Of It!!!

I'm always on the look out for fabulous new lingerie.
I'm currently on the look out for some post-holiday-mania-grown-up-relief.
I'm frequently on the look out for glorious things at sale prices.
Kizmet! Looks like the planets have aligned and I'm about to hit the lovely underwear jackpot!

Imagine how thrilled I was to find that one of my absolute favorite purveyors of luxe lingerie is running a January sale?? 

Nothing is quite so empowering as knowing you're wearing a little something to die for next to your skin, hidden (or maybe not) from the world at large.

Nothing makes "No officer, I really wasn't speeding" sound quite as believable as when you say it while wearing truly divine undergarments under your jeans.
OK. I made that one up.

Fabulous underwear makes you feel so feminine

You have to check out the goings on at ea lingerie
ëa lingerie is a delicate and ultra feminine brand, a combination of romanticism sensuality and sophistication.
And ëa lingerie is having a sale.

Valentines Day is literally right around the corner, so you may just want to make sure that the man-beast in your life knows how to find his way to their website: ealingerieshoponline.com

 And if you don't have a significant other, go buy yourself something special. You deserve it!

New Year New You - Chemical Peels

There's no time quite like the beginning of a bright and shiny new year to take a good long look in the mirror, run a little inventory on what we've got going on, and resolve to make some changes.
Most of us immediately start thinking about diets and exercise, maybe a change to the hairdo, and some additions to (or subtractions from!) the wardrobe as we make our way into the year ahead, seeking out the fabulous creature we know is hidden under the post holiday season fall out.

image by Jason Christopher

This year why not lean in to that mirror and have a closer look at your skin. The more we take care of our complexion, the more fresh and youthful we look and the less makeup we need on top.
There are plenty of steps that a girl can take towards improving her skin, and over the next few weeks we will be delving in to some of them, but today we are starting with some souped up exfoliation.

The chemical peel. Sounds scary, doesn't it?
There are actually several kinds of chemical peels and each of them is recommended to treat different skin concerns.
A Chemical Peel is a treatment that smooths skin,  thus enhancing its appearance. This procedure consists in applying a chemical solution that contains a small amount of acid on the skin, removing the damaged outer layers and essentially improving the smoothness and texture of the skin, leaving you looking fresh faced and youthful, and your skin bright and vibrant.

Chemical peels come in a variety of strengths, from the super mild, over the counter do it yourself at home peel, to the medium strengths of the in salon peels, to the hardcore doctor performed super strong peels. (Not for the faint of heart.)

Chemical peels take the exfoliation process to a whole new level. They are designed to

• reduce fine lines and wrinkles
• treat areas of dryness
• reduce uneven pigmentation
• aid in the control of acne
• smooth rough dry skin
• improve the texture of sun-damaged skin
• make your skin look and feel more vibrant

Personally I love Glycolic peels. My facialist Roxanne, at the Skin & Makeup Institute convinced me to try one a few months ago, and I now have them on a regular basis.
A Glycolic Peel is a light chemical peel done with an acid in the family of AHAs (also called fruit acids) called Glycolic Acid. (Glycolic  is one of the milder peels.) It will give you a bigger result than a regular exfoliation, but isn't so drastic that you get all red faced and scaly.
And its a  great way to say hello to a new year!

How To Fix Chapped Lips

No, you didn't imagine it - your lips really have become more chapped over the winter! As the air's moisture levels plummet, the water in your skin is drawn out, and as a result you get tiny fissures, or cracks in your lips that can be both painful and hard to heal.

The first step on the road to recovering smooth, healed lips is via lip balm. Lip balm needs to be worn and reapplied all day everyday, and applied before bed each night.

EOS Evolution Of Smooth Lip Balm

Avoid longwear lipsticks, and drying matte formulations, instead choose extra moisturizing lip formulas, or utilize a great lip pencil paired with a quality balm such as Burts Bees.

Look for lip balms with ingredients such as petrolatum, shea butter, dimethicone, and hyaluronic acid to restore moisture.
Preferably choose a formulation that is viscous rather than waxy so that the active ingredients can penetrate the cracks in the lips. (if you're going to be out in cold weather, waxy formulations can help protect the lips from chapping.)
If you have severely chapped lips look for a formula that contains ceramides, which are proven to help restore the skin's barrier.




If your lips are sensitive or extra sore, avoid balms that contain known irritants such as lanolin, or those that are scented or flavored (especially cinnamon, which can be extra irritating).

As much as possible avoid licking your lips. It temporarily makes them feel better, but ultimately makes things worse.
Toothpaste can make things worse too. Avoid getting toothpaste on your lips (as much as you can), rinse them off after brushing your teeth, and apply lip balm.

The New Years Eve Outfit

What to wear on New Years Eve???

I'm a little bit over the LBD at the moment, but I found this slice of fabulosity on one of my absolute favorite blogs, The Man Repeller

Its a palazzo pant body suit by the one and only Stella McCartney Isn't it gorgeous??? What more could a girl want? Well, shoes of course!



 How about 4.7 inches of love courtesy of
Jimmy Choo Glenys in black?
Its got the height to manoeuvre the palazzo pant,
is simple enough to not compete with the fabric
but still is stylish and modern, and you can stand in it for hours...

The hairdo will have to go up in order to work the neckline of the pantsuit, and a jewelry free throat will emphasize the shoulders, neck and collar bone, so something lovely has to happen on the ears

Aren't they delicieux??
Then theres the makeup. I like a big dark smoky eye, with a super shimmer over top.

something like this, but with very groomed brows, big lashes, and really blended out through the top so that you don't see those harsh lines where the shadow stops.
A little champagne shimmer in the inner corner will brighten the eye and liven it up a little too.

Maybe more like this... (shot by Kelly Cappelli at Studio 5)

To finish it off, I would use a lipgloss from hwood.beauty.

Maui is the softest of pink glosses, a mere whisper of color, perfect for a paired down lip, or, because it is afterall party night, the dynamic red gloss Cabo.
Whats extra cool about Cabo is that you get a true color pay off, but because its a gloss, its just a hint of color, and won't compete with a big eye. It has enough blue underneath it that your teeth look superwhite, and your mouth looks fresh and lovely.

Voila! Sounds like a plan!

Happy New Year!!!

Girlfriends Guide To Glitter Eyeshadow

With New Years eve almost upon us, and an absolute slew of glitter eyeshadows being hawked to an unsuspecting public, someone's gotta be on your side and guide you through the potential hot mess of how to pull this number off. So it might as well be me.

Not quite feeling the look on Liz Hurley, but it works on Kim Kardashian

First up you need to know that when this look goes wrong, it goes wildly, madly, horribly wrong. And you've still got the rest of the night ahead of you, looking like a lunatic.

Secondly you need to know that especially if you're doing a variation on black, the hawtness that looks back at you in the mirror at the beginning of the night can wind up looking like a drugged out homicidal maniac by mid evening. So proceed with caution...

1. Choosing your glitter

Katie Perry in glitter eye makeup

Don't buy glitter from an arts supplies store. The particles are too big, can scratch your eyes and totally irritate your skin. Instead by glitter from a makeup line.
Look for glitter that has tiny (read tiny) particles. I actually prefer to use Makeup Forever Star Powders and Diamond Powders, or MAC pigments powders instead of glitter. You'll get that super high shimmer without being to "glittery"

Natalie Portman looking perfect.

2. Only Glitter one feature.
If you're wearing glitter on your eyes, don't put it anywhere else. Keep cheeks and lips glitter free. Putting glitter and shimmer on too many areas will leave you looking like a caricature of yourself.
Similarly if you're doing a glitter thing, avoid having too much sparkly bling on. You'll come in handy in a black out or a storm, but otherwise its just way too overwhelming. In an unpleasant way.

3.Build Your Base
A glittered up eye has to be balanced with a full foundation. Your summery, see through foundation wont be enough to carry off this look - it will leave you looking washed out and ill. Color correct your under eye area, and work your foundation to a smooth, luminous finish, completely evening out your skin tone.

4. Soft Cheeks And Lips
When doing a big look on your eyes, keep cheeks and lips scaled back, soft and luscious. I love cream blushes, especially when infusing subtle warmth into the cheeks. Pairing big cheek and lip color with big eye makeup can leave you looking like a clown.

5. Slow and Steady Wins The Race

Banshee Eye & Lip Safe Glitter. Note the tiny particles.

This is not a high speed, out the door in 5 kind of look, so take your time and apply correctly.
Make sure your foundation has set on the eyelid, powder a little to ensure a dry base.
*Start with a good liner such as Makeup Forever Aqualiner pencil or Makeup Forever Aquablack, smudging through the lashline, and blending up onto the lid with a synthetic brush.
*Follow with a flat black shadow, pressing the color in, rather than sweeping it across the lid. This will help build depth to your color, and staying power.
*Next press a shimmery black shadow, such as MAC Black Tied onto the lid. This will start your shimmer, and give it some good body.
*Now place your glitter very carefully on top of your eyeshadow. You want to avoid having it drop all over your face. Conversely use a Makeup Forever Star Powder. Choose a gold tone, or for a change go for an aubergine or purple tone. If you are very pale, a silver can look good, but for most people a warmer color is better.



6. Lashes and More Lashes!

Finish the look with multiple coats of a super lash building mascara like DiorShow Blackout. I put black liner in the upper inner rim of the lid to give an even deeper look. Smudge the liner under your eyes, and finish the look with a full strip of false lashes.
I particularly love these MAC lashes, but they have tons of fabulous, big, wear-it-like-you-mean-it lashes to choose from.







7. If You've Got It - Flaunt It!
If you're going to go the distance with a glittery (or preferably super shimmery) look, then wear it like you mean it! Don't let the look wear you. Bring out all the personality you've got, and strut your stuff!

Pink owns it!