Single Girl's Survival Guide To Valentines Day, Day 3

Single for Valentines day?
Flowers and chocolates not coming your way? Well heck. Guess we better find some fun to get into to make up for the lack of romance.
Instead of eating yourself into a sugar coma (which you're only going to regret later anyway) shop yourself into a shoe coma! Its like the gift that keeps giving. Men come and go, but a great pair of shoes is forever.
Or something like that.

Anyway, lets entertain ourselves with some of the new seasons delectables, and indulge our (my) inner shoe fetish...

We'll pretend there's no Valentines day, and instead plan a  fab outing for Easter. No sensible shoes allowed, the gratification only works when we lean to extremes.

First up, the closest thing to sensible is a platform Tory Burch sandal.
This one is a lovely blend of height and comfort (the two don't always ride together)
The strap will make your ankle look edible, and will burn that fool man who let you go.
Or didn't snap you up.

Gucci's Mira sandal is gorgeous with pants that have movement in the lower leg, gorgeous with capris for spring, gorgeous with a skirt that moves. Gorgeous with pretty much anything.
Put it on the "cant go wrong with" list.
You'll wear it for years.

 

While we're at Gucci, lets look at the Kelis sandal. Nothing sensible about this one, but the gratification is extreme.
 Easter Sunday will be so much more fun with these on! They look like they'd hurt, but then love hurts, doesn't it?

Now lets add a little excitement to the equation with some spring love from genius Nicholas Kirkwood. Not for the faint of heart, this man is all about height. Towering, sexy slingbacks, perfect for leaning against things in, or sitting down in. Aren't they fabulous???

Still with Nicholas Kirkwood, lets bring a little crazy to Easter (or Valentines Day) with these:

Aren't they amazing??? I'm sure over at The Man Repeller they would call these, um, Man Repellers, but so what? Its high fashion meets single girl, and it works soooo well!

Saving the best for last, I die a thousand glorious deaths over these

Christian Louboutin (I whisper his name in reverence) Toutenkaboucle.
Brings tears to my eyes.
Honestly single girls, if you have to choose between a man and a shoe this Valentines day, take the shoe.
There are not enough words to describe the ecstatic paroxyms this shoe sends me into.
Just looking at it makes my heart race. Who cares if they cost as much as a house payment??
Oh the fun to be had in this shoe!!

Single Girl's Survival Guide To Valentines Day, Sweet Tips

We all know how lovely it is to receive chocolates and flowers, especially on Valentines Day.

If you happen to be meandering through a dude-free spell in your life, or maybe like my friends, you are suddenly single, and hurting, the lack of said flowers and chocolates can leave a wide, gaping hole in your day.
Traditional wisdom would say "Go buy your own" . Corinna's wisdom says "chocolate consumed during moments of misery goes straight to your thighs. And stays there."

My twitter friend @Immachocoholic has a whole different spin on the food category, and its really quite fabulous...

The following has been (quite liberally) lifted from their website Gourmet Healthy Chocolates.com

Chocolate is good for you

“Chemically speaking, chocolate really is the world’s perfect food.”  (Michael Levine)

Chocolate is good for you and I am NOT talking about the ‘candy’ that has chocolate in it. Many people associate chocolate with candy and most do not know the difference. Chocolate candy contains refined white sugar and other fillers including wax. Chocolate in its truest form is a nutrient powerhouse that really is good for your body.

 

Chocolate contains several minerals and vitamins. Dark chocolate is higher in cacao content and contains magnesium which helps muscles relax, aids nerve conduction and energy production as well as bone and teeth development. Women who lack magnesium experience greater PMS (premenstrual syndrome) symptoms. Dark chocolate also contains Copper that is directly involved in the chemical processes of the body. And, dark chocolate is also high in potassium that is vital to your cardiovascular health.

I've never tried this Xocai stuff, but they have it on their website

 Dark chocolate is also high in fiber! A diet high in fiber contributes to lowering cholesterol, is beneficial in lowering colon cancer, and improves metabolism  Studies on dark chocolate have shown that it is very high in antioxidants and prevents oxidation of the ‘bad cholesterol’ that implicates your cardiovascular health.

Chocolate Facts:

 

 It is estimated that approximately 1 billion people eat chocolate every day. The average American consumes 12 pounds of chocolate a year.The average European consumes 15 pounds of chocolate a year.

Nine out of ten people love chocolate.
Fifty percent of the population cannot live without chocolate every day.
Chocolate is known to increase serotonin and dopamine.
The topic of chocolate is universal.
Chocolate in its raw form is the highest antioxidant food on the planet.
When chocolate is processed or heated 60-80% of the beneficial antioxidants are killed.
Gourmet healthy chocolate promotes a healthier body by helping it come into balance naturally.
Chocolate that is not processed is a whole clean food that contains beneficial compounds called Flavanoids.
Theobromine is a natural ingredient that is a safer alternative as compared to caffeine.
It is a vasodilator which opens the blood vessels that helps reduce blood pressure and may even help with high cholesterol.
Chocolate helps curb your appetite and has been proven to help you lose weight.

I am so excited about any chocolate that helps you lose weight!
For fun and interesting tips on chocolate follow them on twitter @Immachocoholic
For more makeup fun follow me @Corinnamakeup
Check out www.gourmethealthychocolate.com for some Valentines Day chocolate options.
At least that way if you're going to do some chocolate damage this Valentines day, you'll be doing it the right way :)

And as for flowers? 

I found this fun item on "What His Flowers Really Mean..." 
Just between you and me, I never thought they put that much thought into it??? 
 

Single Girl's Survival Guide To Valentines Day, Day 2

So here we are on day 2 of our Single Girl's Survival Guide to Valentines Day.
And there is no day like Tuesday to talk about lingerie.

One of the biggest lingerie mistakes women make has nothing to do with the size or the fit, but everything to do with the reason for buying it.
I hear girls saying "why should I buy it if I have no one to show it too?"
I can't even tell you how much that messes with the Tao of Me.

Girls should always buy lingerie for their own pleasure, not for anyone elses. Buy it because you love it, buy it because it feels good, buy it because it makes you feel good, not because some dude might like it.
Wear it for the luxury, feel fabulous in it, and if some bloke catches a glimpse - well lucky old him.

And face it, if he sees you in granny pants he's probably going to be all kinds of happy, because afterall, he's just seen you in your undies.

Now, with men out of the shopping equation, lets look at some options that will make the single girl's Valentines Day a whole lot more fun.

One of my favorite lingerie stores is Faire Frou Frou in Sherman Oaks California.


From Faire Frou I found this
Maison Close gartered bodysuit
worn under a fun little spring dress (or winter one if you live in colder climes), much fun to be had!

Also from Faire Frou Frou, bring some power to your power meeting,
wearing a hot little number like this Lascivious Lila bra and Milla bodysuit under your business suit.
I personally am convinced that sales calls go better when you're wearing these.














There is alot to be said for wearing a corset, although perhaps not so much on days where you have tons of driving to do...

Almost virginal in white  
(I did say almost),
this Forever Yours white corset is really
very inexpensive.

It even has removable shoulder straps to help
hold you up if you have weightier boobs.



















Pink is fun. Kinda sweetly sexy too.

Its amazing what you can find if you just google "Valentines Lingerie"
This girl looks pretty empowered in her "Night of Seduction" set from 3Wishes.com
It would totally work under virtually anything you could possibly want to wear.

And lets face it - nothing says "howdy" quite like a peek-a-boo bra

 peekaboo bra in leather

or peekaboo bra in what ever this is...

 I can't really imagine this girl feeling sorry for herself on Valentines Day, can you? Probably because her bra is all support and no, um, coverage. She's having all kinds of fun.
I found this one at 3Wishes.com

So the moral of the story is, so what if you're single for Valentines Day? Go buy yourself something fun or fabulous, naughty or nice, something that you would feel completely lovely in, and buy it with yourself in mind, not the fool that just left you, or the one that didn't snap you up.

Chin up girlie!

Single Girl's Survival Guide

A couple of my girlfriends have recently gone through completely devastating break ups.
You know, the kind where you can barely get out of bed in the morning, you just don't know how you'll ever live through it, the ones that leave your soul bleeding.
You know how bad that feels.
And if you don't, then you either haven't lived enough yet, or haven't ever loved hard enough.

Anyhoo, I also have a bunch of girlfriends who are single. (some of the most 'single' girls I know are married, but that's another story), and the common thread seems to be a dread of facing Valentines Day alone.
As such I decided to create the Single Girl's Survival Guide To Valentines Day.
Its a simple day by day plan to get you through this week.

DAY ONE:

One of the best distractions is to change up your look. Do something you've always wanted to, but never tried. Go against the grain and try a look you never did before, because his lordship didn't like it.
Live a little.
Here are some ideas for you:

1.) Change your brows
A simple change in your eyebrows is the easiest way to completely revitalize your look.
Find a brow specialist in your town, and if nothing else have a consultation. A brow expert will reshape and re-groom your brows to optimize the shape not only of your eyes, but your entire face.
Sometimes even just tinting your brows to their perfect shade is all you need to make your eyes look wide awake and vital.

2.) Try Injectables

This one comes with a caution.
Some of the most spectacular faces I ever work with have been artistically enhanced with a needle here and another there... Anything from knocking out a few wrinkles, to filling in marionette lines, the change injectables can bring to a face are nothing short of amazing. The caution comes in your choice of administrator - really, really do your research, and find a doctor who's work is spectacular, and who will leave movement and expression in your face. (you don't want to be walking around for the next 3 months with a perpetually freaked out look on your face!) And don't go doing anything too drastic...
The one that I would absolutely love to try (but am far too scared to) is under eye filler. When performed by an absolute genius this is quite possibly the most drastically fabulous thing you can do. Most doctors won't go near it though, which to me, is warning enough.

Celebrity hairstylist Kim Vo, looking gorgeous!

3.) Change Your Hair
 Not a drastic change though. Do something subtle. A softly side swept fringe is totally alluring. Add some highlights and low lights to create new dimension to an already fabulous cut, or maybe splurge on a truly fabulous cut from a bona fide hair savant.
Depression somehow isn't quite so depressing when you look great (and know it)









4.)Try A New Foundation
There are some truly gorgeous new formulations on the market, designed to make your skin look luminous and radiant. When your foundation is fabulous, the rest of your makeup follows suit, whereas you can do the absolute most sensational eyes ever, but if your base looks icky, your whole look suffers.
If there is a Sephora near where you live, go have them find a good foundation fit for you, have them put it on you and walk around in it all day before you buy it. You don't need any more remorse in your life right now, especially not buyer's remorse...

Add caption

5.) Try Something Bold

Try out one of the new season's bold lip colors.
My absolute favorites at the moment are MAC Something New and Cover Girl Spellbound. Both are hot, vibrant, exciting fuchsia. They instantly make you look a live and
vibrant, make your teeth look white, and are so totally pretty.










Just make sure that whatever you, you do it for all the right reasons. Do it 100% for you, and you alone

Best of This Week's Red Carpet

I am so loving this! 20 year old actress Jennifer Lawrence on the DGA (Directors Guild Awards) red carpet on Monday.

The Winter's Bone star looked sensational in a white, off the shoulder Prabal Garung. I loved the minimalist look she went for with her makeup and hair. Perfect, perfect, perfect.
But she lost me on the shoes. To me anyway, they look to heavy for the dress, and pull the eye away from all the fabulosity she was rocking everywhere else.

Sexy Sofia Vergara looking sensational again, this time at the Entertainment Weekly SAG Nominees event at the Chateau Marmont on January 29th (this one slipped by me last week).

 

I've no idea who she's wearing, but honestly - who cares?? She looks amazing.

As does Helen Mirren, seen here at the London premiere of "Brighton Rocks", in gold Jacques Azagury, and on a scooter, no less! (reminds me of tooling around Paris on vespers a lifetime ago...)

I love her hair color, love her makeup. Doesn't she look fresh and glowing and gorgeous??

Choosing Serums

I'm always talking about adding serums to your skincare regimen, and loads of readers are asking me how to choose, what to choose, so I'm going to tell you about some of my favorites, and what they do.

Different serums work different tasks on the skin, which means you need to understand what they are intended for, and see if they are right for you.

I've already told you about stressed skin serum from skynICELAND, now here are some others:

Right now with freezing storms hitting North America and Europe, many of you will be feeling the effects via super dry, sometimes even stinging skin, as the humidity is taken out of the air. If that's whats happening to your skin you should add in a hydration serum.
 Peter Thomas Roth viz1000

This is an extra super concentrated hydration boost. It has an amazing 75% hyaluronic acid complex that attracts and holds 1000 times its weight in moisture. It also has Sodium PCA which binds the moisture to the skin, even in the very driest of climates.
It also has a potent cocktail of honey, algea and minerals Zinc, Copper, Manganese, Iron and Silica to smooth out rough texture almost immediately.
I am all about products that give you a result you can see instantly, so this is absolutely one of my favorites.
Its fabulous under makeup too, as it will help even the most moisture stripped complexion to look luminous and fresh.


NUDE Advanced Cellular Renewal Serum

This one is a treatment serum. Its job is to repair DNA damage, restructure facial counters and restore skin health. It is a silicone free overnight treatment, which penetrates the skin instantly and is designed to specifically support the skin during its nighttime cycle of repair and renewal.
Formulated with the highest concentration of Probiotics, NUDE Advanced Cellular Renewal Serum  has been proven to stimulate cellular renewal up to 70% and reduce cellular damage by up to 50%

Perricone MD Serum Prep

Perricone MD Serum Prep is a unique face lifting serum containing high levels of DMAE that helps to firm and tone skin, while dramatically diminishing the appearance of deep lines and wrinkles. Also formulated with Phospholipids to hydrate and help repair more damaged skin.
It is fantastic for more mature skin that needs help with firming and lifting. I love it under makeup when working with mature skin, as it significantly helps to create a smooth, firm canvas to work on.

                

New Lips From Nars

I seem to be talking a lot these days about Nars products, but I love them, so why not? I use tons of Nars both on myself and in my professional makeup kit, so they are easy to talk about!

Here comes another new product from Nars, Velvet Gloss Lip Pencils.

The pencils take everything we loved about their ‘Velvet Matte’ counterparts, and swap out the formula for a glossy lip instead of a matte one.
Iris Strubegger models the collection’s gorgeous ad campaign. The new pencils give a non-sticky luminosity to lips, while featuring a lightweight formula enriched with Vitamin E.

Taking lips to new heights in six beautifully buttery born to shimmer shades, it just doesn't get more alluringly glossy than this!
The shades are:
Baroque - raspberry sorbet
Happy Days - pink coral infused with a gold shimmer
New Lover - gold infused strawberry pink (my favorite)
Frivolous - iridescent seashell pink
Hopi - honey beige
Club Mix - sheer grape



Here's a cool little movie about them, featuring subtle and beautiful makeup by Diane Kendal. Fabulous.