Jah Provide The Bread

On Thursday I did Corinne Bailey Rae's makeup for her performance on The Tonight Show. Check it out!

(Makeup by me, Hair by Christian Marc.)

I get a lot of requests for makeup and beauty tips for women with darker skin tones, so here are some notes on the products I used to create the look.

For the complexion I used Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in #9 with a drop of #11 to keep the color warm.

I highlighted the apples of her cheeks with NARS Blush in Lovejoy

Her bold shadow shades were from the Chanel Eye Shadow Quad Murano

I lined her eyes with MAC Eye Kohl in Smolder

I then coated her lashes with MAC Opulash mascara, which is one of my new favorites...

On her lips I used NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Bahama

and topped it off with Chanel Hydramax + Active Lip Care to keep the lips hydrated and slightly glossy...

I finished off the look with a light dusting of MAC Prep + Prime Transparent Finishing Powder along the t-zone to prevent shine, but keep the skin looking fresh!

Hopefully these ideas inspire you with your own looks!

❤
Amy

Try Me On... I'm Very You

When I get asked about make up, the question I get asked the most is "what's your favorite mascara"? Sephora has come up with a great way for you to discover for yourself what mascara you like best!

Sephora Favorites Lashstash Mascara Deluxe Sampler

For only $39 you get to sample some of the best mascaras out there! The set includes large sample sizes of :

- Anastasia Lash Lifting Mascara
-Tarte Lights Camera Lashes
- Sephora Atomic Volume Mascara
- Stila Multi Effect Mascara
- Benefit Bad Gal Mini
- Bare Escentuals Buxom Lash
- Too Faced Mini Lash Injection Pin Point
- Smashbox Bionic
- Lancome Cils Booster
- DuWop Lash Venom
- Korres Provitamin B5 and Rice Bran Mascara

The set is only available while supples last, so don't miss out on this amazing opportunity to sample all of these great mascaras!!!

<3
Amy

I Came So Far For Beauty

Dior has been blowing my mind with their amazing make up products lately. Back in November I was lucky enough to get my hands on their Night Diamond Luminizing Powder and I've been obsessing over it ever since.

It adds a gorgeous glow to the face/collar bones/arms/legs.... and the packaging is totally cute!

I've been singing the praises of their Pro Cheek cream blush for awhile now

The colors are rich, and the cream stays in place nicely.

Lately, I've totally gotten in to their Diorshow Blackout Mascara

I love the big chunky brush for creating a dramatic look, and the color is deep black... it doesn't dry out to be an ashy grey!

Now I just got an advance of Dior's new Harmonie De Blush in "Rose Brazilia". Oh my gosh, it is so beautiful I can't even stand it!  It's a combination of peach, pink, and dusty rose with a shimmery gold laced through. I can't find a picture online yet, and the pic I tried to take did not do it justice. When this hits the counter, it is a must have! It's so gorgeous I don't even want to use it!

<3

Amy

P.S. I've added some new features to the side bar of my blog. --------->
You can now follow me on Twitter, and I've made a playlist of some of the music I'm listening to which will be changing up from time to time. You can also see what users are following my blog, so be sure and check out their lovely blogs as well. Let's get interactive!

Born Bad

Benefit Cosmetics is coming out with a new shade of Bad Gal Lash mascara... PLUM!

I've tried it already, and it's AMAZING! PLUM is the new BLACK.

<3
Amy

Good Vibrations

I know I have a lot of boi's reading this blog these days, but seriously... back to the make up!  I'm totally freaking out right now.  Anyone who has read this blog for awhile knows how much I love Lancôme's Hypnôse mascara... Well, this fall, Lancôme is introducing Ôscillation... Ôscillation comes with a vibrating brush that will give a 360 degree coat of mascara around each and every lash!


I'm definitely a lash girl, so I am ALL ABOUT this! No release date just yet, but I will keep you posted!

In other news, July is already shaping up to be a really great month for me! I will fill you in on that later!

<3
Amy

Getting Prettier... (Part Three)

And now for the brows... Brows are very important, but often overlooked. The brows frame the face, so make sure they look beautiful! Would you hang a beautiful piece of art on your wall with a tacky, busted up frame?  Of course not!  Do those brows!

I'm a serious believer in NOT over plucking, but having a clean, nicely arched brow.

First step... tweezing. You MUST have a great pair of tweezers. As far as I'm concerned, nothing will ever beat a set of Tweezerman Slant Tweezers.

Check out the fun designs they are coming up with!

Next, it is time to fill in, and define the brows. For awhile now I have been using Stila Brow Set with a slant brush.

And then setting the brow with M.A.C. Brow Set in clear, using a disposable mascara wand.

I have also recently found a new brow product that I am really loving. It is the LORAC Take a Brow (tee hee).

Not only does each kit come with two brow powders, it comes with a really cool brow wax that I am loving right now! Carol Shaw does it again!

Now for eye colors... I don't want to get too detailed with this, because honestly, I could go on forever and ever and ever. I'm a big fan of eye make up. You're eyes are supposed to be the window to your soul, so accentuate them!

I will tell you a few things... I don't believe in priming the eye lid with foundation. I think, if anything, this causes more creasing. Prime the lid with a nude shadow, it works much better.

My favorite kinds of eye shadow, in no particular order are...

Chanel

M.A.C.

Stila (although you have to be very careful with them, as they tend to break)

Nars

Tarte

and

Urban Decay

My favorite eye liners are...

Chanel Automatic Liquid Liner (A favorite of Lily Allen and Paul Starr.  I would also nominate this for a Nobel prize for make up, if such a thing existed...)

M.A.C. Eye Kohl (I love how BLACK the color "Smolder" is, and I love the texture of this liner. It is soooo blend-able!)

Lancôme Le Stylo Waterproof (again, very blendable and has a great powdery texture)

And last, but certainly not least... M.A.C. Fluidline (great colors and can also be used as a shadow if you're feeling adventurous)

Open those eyes!  Curl those lashes!

I recommend the shu uemura lash curler.

The M.A.C. full lash curler is pretty great too!

As for lashes, my favorite individual lashes are shu uemura flare lashes.

At $15 they are pretty pricey. If you're not willing to spend that much, the Ardell flare lashes are nice too.

As far as strip lashes go, I prefer the cheapies! My favorites are Ardell #116.

All of the Ardells are pretty great though!

Now for mascara... If I've ever done your make up, if you've seen me do make up, if you've just been in the same room with me, you know what I'm about to say... Lancôme Hypnôse!!!!

I love it, I swear by it, I stand by it, it's the best... what more can I say? Of course there are other great mascaras... this is my favorite!

To be continued...

<3

Amy

These are a few of my favorite things...

At the moment anyway...

City Lips!!! (www.citycosmetics.com)

This is a miracle product.  I'm not even exaggerating.  It is a lip plumper that really works and DOES NOT sting!  It actually stimulates your lips to produce more collagen. If you want the deets on exactly how it works, go here.    

I suggest using the clear gloss in the am and pm.  My trick is to exfoliate my lips with my toothbrush when I brush my teeth and then apply it afterwards.  I've never tried the colored versions of the gloss, but they look cute!

Something I'm always digging is Lancôme HYPNÔSE mascara (in black, of course)...

It gives your lashes such a dramatic look.  People ask me all the time if I'm wearing fake lashes, but it is really just the mascara!  A ton of my celebrity clients have fallen in love with it.

For an extra dramatic look, I like to use CILS BOOSTER XL under the mascara...

It works just like anything you paint... if you put a white primer on first, the color comes out much more vibrant!

The latest issue of W magazine:

There is a great piece on Marc Jacobs' art collection with some really stunning pictures of his home. 

Speaking of Marc Jacobs, I'm also loving his new fragrance Daisy:

AND he has a new home fragrance that has kept my house smelling lovely for the past few weeks and it isn't at all overbearing.  Loves it!

I know I'm totally late to the party on this, but... I finally checked out the Marc by Marc Jacobs store on Melrose and it is the greatest place! They have a ton of cute gift items that are totally affordable! Can the man do no wrong?!

Now if only he would make his vans in my size! :(

Speaking of men who can do no wrong...

How about Tom Ford?  He's a genius.  When he teamed up with Estee Lauder for a make up collection, magical things happened.  It was a very limited collection and is now discontinued, but I recently got my hands on a brand new Tom Ford for Estee Lauder eye gloss.  

I haven't tried it just yet because the packaging is so beautiful that I can't bring myself to use it...  I will keep you posted on that.

Other things I'm living for at the moment:

Kanye West's awesomely random blog, and his Terry Richardson press photos...

The new cover of Paper magazine that my good friend Dan Monick shot...

Woo Hoo!  Daft Punk!

The latest photo zine by my good friends Jeremy and Claire Weiss (aka Day 19)

and this girl's nail polish!

Image via The Cobra Snake, obvs...

What do you bet it is Suvi by Zoya?

<3

Amy