Bobbi Brown Heart Truth Bronze Shimmer Brick Set

For the fifth year in a row, Bobbi Brown is proud to be a sponsor of the The Heart Truth’s Red Dress Collection 2010 Fashion Show. The show, which brings some of Hollywood ’s leading ladies together on one runway, will be taking place on February 11th during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at “The Tent” at Bryant Park.

This year Bobbi created an exclusive, limited-edition Bronze Shimmer Brick Set in partnership with The Heart Truth campaign and its annual Red Dress Collection Fashion Show to raise awareness about women and heart disease. Ideal for creating a warm, bronzy glow, the set includes Bobbi’s iconic Shimmer Brick in Bronze and a Mini Face Blender Brush. Only 500 of these limited-edition sets, which feature a specially designed package and the tagline “Listen to Your Heart,” will be available from www.bobbibrown.com for $40 each.

13 New Ways to Use Old Beauty Products

13 New Ways to Use Old Beauty Products

Save money and re-use old products with these "off-label" tricks

Have a ton of old beauty products that you don't use anymore? (Let's face it -- we don't always throw that stuff out, right?) But now, instead of just letting them gather dust, put them to good use with these MacGyver-like tricks. See tips

22 Top-Rated Facial Cleansers

22 Top-Rated Facial Cleansers

From foamy to creamy, these cleansers left readers with squeaky-clean faces

Nobody likes to see leftover dirt and grime on their toner-soaked cotton ball after washing their face, right? That's why readers' rave about these cleansers, they do what they claim to do -- cleanse. See cleansers

Coral Eye Look Using MAC Spring Colour Forecast Eye Shadows in Perky and Hot Hot Hot

Here's an eye look using some of the beautiful eyeshadows from the MAC Spring Colour Forecast collection. I don't have MAC shadows similar to these colors so I was really excited to get them. They look good worn together.


I used Nanogold from the same collection to highlight.



To deepen the crease, I used Tempting and Dark Edge shadows from the Tempting quad.



I also used the dark brown from the MAC Inter-view mineralize eyeshadow trio for this look.



I used MAC Spaced Out blush from the Neo Sci Fi collection, one of my favorite coral blushes ever.



I also used MAC lipstick in Warm Me Up from the Warm and Cozy collection, topped with Cha Cha lipglass (see photo above).

Here's a step by step. All eye products MAC unless otherwise stated.


Apply Urban Decay primer potion all over lid and lower lashline. Using a fluffy shader brush, apply Perky paint pot on lid.


Using a stiff shader brush like the 239, apply Perky eyeshadow on the lid.


Using Sonia Kashuk blender brush, apply Hot Hot Hot on the crease.


Using the same brush, apply more Hot Hot Hot and blend using the 224.


Using the same brush, apply the dark brown side of Inter-View on the crease.


Add a little Tempting into the dark brown and blend using the 224.


Apply Dark Edge on the crease using the Sonia Kashuk blender brush.


Blend using the 224 brush.

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Orly Nail Lacquer in Gumdrop and Nail Art Water Tattoos

I bought these super cute nail art water tattoos on Ebay for cheap. Each packet has 20 water tattoos, and I got 20 packets with different designs (mostly dainty flowers) for only $13 including shipping. I don't like the regular decals that you can buy at beauty supply stores because they are thick and are raised when you apply them on the nails. I like images that are completely flat on the nails like Konad nail art. These nail art water tattoos are not only flat, they're so easy to apply; yes, even easier than Konad. At the back of every packet are instructions on how you apply them:



Easy as pie, right? It is actually very easy to apply. As long as the image is wet, you can manipulate it over the nail to place it on your desired position. Using a tissue or paper towel, soak up the excess water on the nailbed, then blow dry it to weld it on the nail bed. I applied Seche Vite top coat over the water tattoo and it's perfect!



I love it. The best part is that it's completely flat and not annoyingly raised!







I used my new Orly nail lacquer in Gumdrop from Orly's new spring 2010 collection (the Sweet Collection). I bought this at my neighborhood nail supply store for only $3. They're so cheap I bought the entire collection! More swatches of the Orly Sweet Collection in an upcoming entry. I used Konad m73 image plate and China Glaze polish in Passion.

Hot Celebrity Hair Trend: Textured Styles

Hot Celebrity Hair Trend: Textured Styles

See how to get this messy, tousled look all the celebs are rocking

The votes are in -- the bedhead 'do is the hottest style to try. Follow these steps to learn how you can copy this messy-but-pretty red carpet trend. See styles

Konad Nail Art Using Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear Polish in Wet Cement

 



I finally got a hold of Sally Hansen Xtreme Wear nail polish in Wet Cement for only $2 something when it went on sale at Walgreens this week. I like these kinds of grey creams. This is my first time to try SH Xtreme Wear and to tell you honestly I didn't like the formula. It was way too thick for my liking, and the smell was - err, odd. I had to add five drops of thinner to get the product achieve a consistency I like. Anyways, that was the only snag in the application, but everything went pretty smooth. It was easy to apply and the wide brush was a godsend. It looks so pretty on the tips. I added some Konad art to give it some oomph.



SH Wet Cement reminds me of MAC's On the Prowl from last year's Hello Kitty collection. In the photos, it looked like On the Prowl is lighter, but Wet Cement is actually a tad lighter in the bottle, but they look identical on the nails. If you're looking for an On the Prowl dupe, you might want to check out Wet Cement.

How to Diffuse Curly Hair -- the Right Way

How to Diffuse Curly Hair -- the Right Way

Follow this step-by-step guide to get frizz-free, defined curls

Curly hair guru Ouidad shares the exact steps you should follow to get gorgeous curls. She covers the products to use, the temperature of the blow dryer and even exactly what to do with your hands. Pretty sweet, huh? See guide

Ditch Dandruff With These Top-Rated Shampoos

Ditch Dandruff With These Top-Rated Shampoos

Our readers said sayonara to flakes after using these products from Pantene, Head & Shoulders and more

If you're itching to get to the root of your dandruff problem, check out these winning shampoos. They'll let you finally introduce black tops back into your wardrobe. See shampoos

No. 8: Garnier Fructis Fortifying Anti-Dandruff Shampoo, $4.29

TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 8.5

"I had a touch of flakes but didn't want to ruin my color, this was gentle and effective and …"

No. 7: Herbal Essences No Flakin' Way Anti-Dandruff Shampoo, $4.19

TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 8.6

"This shampoo has a delightfully fresh and fruity scent. It leaves your locks moisturized …"

No. 6: Head and Shoulders Intensive Treatment Shampoo, $5.89

TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 8.8

"This is the best dandruff shampoo I have used and believe me I have tried them all! I always …"

Want to see what other shampoos made the list? Click here!

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 4 (Beige and Bronze Cluster) Swatches and Review

NOTE: Check out other Spring Colour Forecast swatches and reviews:

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 1 (Pink Cluster)

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 2 (Coral Cluster)

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 3 (Purple Cluster)







Eye Shadow x4 - Colour 4 Quad

I honestly thought this last sub-collection would be the group I would like the least, but I was wrong. I didn't even glance at the eyeshadow quad twice, but when I tried the colors, wow, I was amazed. Pigmentation was amazing. The MA applied the colors on my skin using a brush, so you can imagine that these were not swatched heavily, and yet the colors shone through. They are very nicely pigmented, and the colors are something you can wear everyday.

Manila Paper is a frosted white gold. It is very shimmery as it is frost in formula. This one reminds me a lot of Nylon.

Flip is a bronze gold that is a frost. This would make a nice lid color.

Aztec Brick is one of my favorite colors in this quad along with Creole Beauty. AB is a beautiful frosted true copper in the veluxe pearl formula. Amazingly pigmented and rich, this would be a good outer lid or crease color.

Creole Beauty is a frosted golden brown. I like that it is not a flat brown but has shimmer in it. This would make a very nice outer lid color.



Lipsticks:

I want to get the lipsticks too! They look amazing in person, the swatches don't do justice to these.

Beigeland is a frosted light pink beige, while Bronzilla is a frosted mid-tone yellow brown. I honestly can't decide which one is better, though, because both of them are very attractive. This would make for nice neutral lips with shimmer.

Lipglass:

I am partial to Almondine, a pale gold with pearl. I love lighter lipglasses to wear over darker lipsticks to tone down the color and to lend a luscious sheen to the puckers. Bronzilla is a frosted mid-tone yellow brown that might be similar to an old lipglass that I have named Poetique. Love both of these colors.

Blush Ombre:

Springshine is a neutral suntan that would work great as a bronzer or a contour powder. It has very subtle shimmer so it would work great for both jobs. I have way too many contour and bronzer products so I am skipping this.

Nail lacquer:

Abalone Shell is a light creamy warm beige that looks way too wrong on my skintone. No swatch of this but I will skip this.

All in all, I recommend the Colour 4 quad and the Beigeland and Bronzilla lipsticks for this sub-collection. I love the bronzes and how they complement my warm complexion.

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 3 (Purple Cluster) Swatches and Review

NOTE: Check out other Spring Colour Forecast swatches and reviews:

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 1 (Pink Cluster)

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 2 (Coral Cluster)

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 4 (Beige/Bronze Cluster)







Spring Colour 3 is a nice little sub-collection, part of the greater MAC Spring Colour Forecast mega collection.  It is a predominantly purple palette, and since I love purples, I am eyeing several items in this group.

Eye Shadow x4: Colour 3 Quad

My top pick from this cluster would be the quad.  I love purples, and this was the very first thing that captured my attention during the unveiling.  It has four coodinating shades of purple and pink. 

Mink Pink is a neutral soft pink that is veluxe pearl in finish.  It is nice as a highlight or a lid or inner corner (tearduct) color.

Bruised Plum is a midtone dirty mauve that would look great either as a lid color, a blender color (to soften dark crease colors) or a crease color itself.  It is my favorite color in this collection; a rather unusual hue.

Black Tulip is another beauty, a frosted dark grape that looks amazing as a crease color.  Love it!!

Jungle Moon is a matte blackened deep eggplant that reminds me of Shadowy Lady.  Would make a nice liner or crease color to smokify the eye look.

Lipsticks:

I am not too fond of the lipsticks, maybe because these are not my colors.  Radicchio is a sheer mid-tone blue mauve which I might like if I get to try it on my lips since I like mauves.  I have Hang Up and it's a deep berry cremesheen that is quite dark.  I don't wear it that often, because I don't use too much deep berry lipsticks.  This would look great for special occasions, holidays, or just when you want to give some oomph to your lip color.

Lipglasses:

Lavender Wind is a lavender lipglass with pearl.  This reminds me so much of an old lipglass that I have named Perky and is still a favorite of mine.  In fact, I have it in my purse and use it regularly.  I might get Lavender Wind to stock up since Perky was also a limited edition lipglass.

Purple Rage is a dark berry with pearl.  Same with Hang Up, except that this is in liquid form. 

Vintage Grape Blush Ombre:




Oh please do not judge it based on the picture above!  In person, it is very beautiful and delicate.  I swatched it rather heavily, so it came out looking like a bruise.  When applied using a blush brush, though, it is a pretty mid-tone violet pink that would suit a lot of skintones.  I like this a LOT better than Azalea Blossom blush ombre.  Seriously!  Give Vintage Grape a try (and a chance).
Nail Lacquer:

Imperial Splendour is a pretty deep creamy violet.  While I love purple nail polish, I skipped this because I already have too many similar looking polishes in my stash.

All in all, I would recommend the Colour 3 Quad, Vintage Grape blush ombre, and Lavender Wind lipglass.  These are my top choices for this sub-collection.

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 2 (Coral Cluster) Swatches and Review

NOTE: Check out other Spring Colour Forecast swatches and reviews:

MAC Spring Colour Forecast 1 (Pink Cluster) Swatches and Review

Spring Colour Forecast 3 (Purple Cluster) Swatches and Review

Spring Colour Forecast 4 (Beige/Bronze Cluster) Swatches and Review





I think Spring Colour Forecast 1 and 2 are my favorite groups, but I love the Coral cluster the best. These are some of the prettiest corals, peaches and oranges I've seen. I used to not like corals because I feel that the warm tones clash with my already too-warm skintone, but I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was not the case. In fact, it complements my skintone perfectly. Even those with cool to neutral undertones will find something in this group, as there are soft light salmon or peach colors that are flattering on most skintones.

Lipsticks:



Colour Me Coral is a frosted light coral. This is not very pigmented as this is a frost, but it gives a pretty shine on the lips with a tinge of coral.

Victorian is a frosted light golden pink that most women with cool or neutral skintones can pull off perfectly.

Fresh Salmon is a sheer bright pink orange frost that I am drawn to. I love salmon colors and this is no exception.

Rose Maiden is a frosted light berry that I really don't care very much for. I am not a fan of this color, but would look great on the right skintone.

Lipglass:



Chacha is a super cute mid-tone pink with gold pearl. I purchased this as this is so pretty and very wearable. I can see myself using this almost every day.

Ember Glow is a creamy light apricot that reminds me of my favorite orange lipglass in Orangedescence, but Ember Glow is a cream (no shimmer or pearl) and is a bit lighter than Orangedescence. However, I really like it and reminds me of those orange shakes, kinda like when you combine orange syrup and milk.

Kumquat is a frosty tangerine that is a stunner. I might not be able to pull it off but it is a non-apologetic bright orange lipglass.

Eyeshadows:










These are some of the best eyeshadows from the entire collection, in my opinion.  I just love these coral babies! 

I just had to have Perky, a light salmon pink.  It's satin, so it is not shimmery but gives a soft smooth look on the lid.  I wore it on the lid with Hot, Hot, Hot on the crease the other day, and it was really a great combination.

Straw Harvest is a frosty light yellow orange in the great Veluxe Pearl formula.  I didn't get it because I thought it would be similar to some of the colors I have in my stash, like Evening Aura and Gold Mine.

Hot Hot Hot is a must-have.  I don't have any MAC shadow that looks exactly like this.  I thought it would look like Firespot or Sunplosion, but Hot Hot Hot is a mid-tone coral that also has some pink/red tones, and it is a very beautiful color.  A definite welcome addition to my collection.

Nanogold is a repromote, a sheer yellow beige that I already have.  It's a lustre so it's kinda chunky in texture and in application.  It is pretty though because it's more of a duochrome to my eyes.

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MAC Spring Colour Forecast 1 (Pink Cluster) Swatches and Review

NOTE: Check out other Spring Colour Forecast swatches and reviews:

Spring Colour Forecast 2 (Coral Cluster)

Spring Colour Forecast 3 (Purple Cluster)

Spring Colour Forecast 4 (Beige/Bronze Cluster)





As I mentioned in a previous entry, I attended the MAC Spring Colour Forecast unveiling party, and it was a blast. I liked the colors because MAC really has an all-encompassing collection this year. There is a gamut of offerings covering a wide range of shades and color palettes. The first cluster is the pink one called Spring Colour 1. I will be doing a review of this group in this entry. Check out other entries for the remaining Spring Colour Forecast palettes.

Lipsticks:




No flash

Phlox is a sheer light pink which is in the glaze formula. To tell you honestly, I am not a fan of glaze, and the very sheer and light pigmentation of the product hardly showed up on my skin.

Bubblegum is a light lavender pink. Even though it's also a glaze, I like this a lot better than Phlox. I am drawn to light, lilac lips and this one is a favorite of mine.

Laugh a Lot is a mauve pink in the lustre formula. I have a lot of mauves so I might skip this one, but it is also a very pretty, wearable shade.

Pink Burst is a clean bright pink with pearl. It's a frost, and I am usually not drawn to bright fuchsias, but this one is such a pretty, happy pink that I am just enamored. I will probably get this one.

Lipglasses:



Cultureclash- I'm pretty sure this is a repromote from a previous collection. This is a frosty clear baby pink with multi-dimensional pearl. This is the kind of lipglass I usually wear. I like the multi-dimensional pearl because it is very light-reflective; it makes the lips look super moist and luscious. Love this.

Electric Fuchsia is a blue-based pink. I like it because of the blue pink base. This would look amazing with Bubblegum lipstick because of the purple undertones.

Hush Hush Rose looks watermelon to my eyes. I may be wrong, but this is a warm shade. I am not very fond of this, but it does look pretty on the right skintone.

Crushed Metal Pigments - Stacked! 1:

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