Beauty

Cross Over to the Darkside with Tarte for True Blood

June 20, 2011 at 5:41 pm , by chandrajohnson

True Blood fans have less than a week to go before the June 26th premiere of season four, and in honor of the event, Tarte Cosmetics will be launching a limited-edition collection that was (very obviously) inspired by the show.

Brigette Myre-Ellis, head of makeup for the show and Anna Paquin’s personal makeup artist, teamed up with Tarte to help create a series of vampy, character-evoking looks. The packaging alone is, um, to die for—there’s a lace-up corset-adorned palette, for starters—as are the contents:

Tarte for True Blood Collector’s Palette, $52
This eye palette packs 17 delicious shades, a primer, a mascara, and an eyeliner. Myre-Ellis also helped create four signature looks to try, each of which comes with instructions. For Sookie Stackhouse’s sparkling doe eye, try the Not Your Average Waitress colors. Or throw caution to the wind and try the Vamp Glam colors.

Natural Cheek Stain, $30
You know that flush you get from watching Sookie and Bill (or Eric? Or Alcide?) Recreate it with this natural, blood flow-mimicking stain.

LipSurgence Natural Lip Tint, $24
Though it can’t quite grant you a thousand-year lifespan, this reddish tint is spiked with anti-agers. Lip-plumpers, too.  That—plus the mint infusion—leaves you ready for your Bill Compton close-up, which is no doubt coming any minute.

Available June 22, 2011 at Sephora.

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Beauties We Love: Sofia Vergara

May 16, 2011 at 11:35 am , by Nykia Spradley

We just can’t seem to get enough of Sofia Vergara, and there are plenty of reasons why. For starters, the Latin bombshell knows how to consistently make us bust-a-gut each week in her role as Gloria on Modern Family. She’s also effortlessly become a new beauty icon. From flattering makeup choices (few people can pull off wearing coral lipstick as well as she does) to her glossy lush locks, sassy style, and authentic accent (yes, it’s real)—even on her off days, she’s on.

In our May issue Vergara’s colorist, Debby Kaplan of the Nick Chavez salon in Beverly Hills, dished on how the Columbian beauty keeps her brunette hair color vibrant. The trick is choosing a brown shade with a warm base and copper tones. The red from the copper flatters most complexions.

While you’re checking out our May issue for more DIY color tips, we’ll be on the lookout for more beauty inspiration from Sofia. We’re looking forward to seeing more of her when she makes her debut as the new face of Covergirl cosmetics next January.

In case you’re still not convinced, it looks like we’re not the only ones getting hooked on Sofia, The New York Times named her one of 2010’s Faces to Watch, and she was also featured in People magazine’s “Most Beautiful” issue. Yep, she’s definitely heating things up.

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Travel Beauty Essentials

April 18, 2011 at 12:52 pm , by Nykia Spradley

Happy Monday, ladies! I’m the new associate beauty editor here at Ladies’ Home Journal and the newbie here in The Ladies’ Lounge. I’m really looking forward to sharing some of my beauty obsessions and expert recommended tips—and most importantly, hearing from you! I have a weakness for pretty packaging, skin secrets for perpetually clear skin, and any product that will help get me out of the door faster in the morning. For my first post I’d like to focus on something that I can’t seem to get off my mind…vacation. Enjoy!

After a pretty brutal winter, and a summer that won’t seem to come fast enough, I’m beyond ready for a getaway. Although warm days are right around the corner, I can’t stop thinking about blissful spring breaks. These days, a quick trip will more than suffice. It’s also a good time to put my streamlining packing skills to the test.

If a weekend escape from temperamental temperatures is on the horizon for you, you’ll want to pack light without forgetting your most important beauty essentials. Here are some of my favorite travel companions.

Sedu Revolution Pro Shortie Mini Styler Iron ($60, folica.com)
If my time away doesn’t include afternoon pool dips, I prefer to keep my strands straight. A mini flat iron takes up minimal space, but doles out enough heat to keep frizz at bay.

H. Gillerman Organics Natural Rest Travel Remedy ($48, hgillermanorganics.com)
Road trips and time zone shifts are a little less uncomfortable with this roll on blend of oils that help ease jet lag and travel uneasiness.

Japonesque Beauty Fixations Tinted Lip Conditioner ($5, beautybar.com)
It’s no secret that poor air circulations on airplanes can wreak havoc on our skin (yes, even in two hours). These dab and toss swabs are pretty genius—just snap, swipe, and trash the tips.

Yes to Blueberries Brightening Facial Towelettes ($30, yesstocarrots.com)
Blueberries and Coconut helps wipe away the day’s stresses, for a quick refresh with age reversing benefits to boot.

Chris Notti Chain Reaction Sleep Mask ($20, bonanotti.com)
Let the world around you literally disappear by slipping on a sleep mask. Go ahead, treat yourself to some much-needed Z’s.

What are your beauty travel essentials?

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Monday Beauty Bargain!

March 14, 2011 at 9:30 am , by ekaufman

I don’t usually get excited about Mondays, unless there’s a beauty bargain to score. Today I’m in luck because one of my favorite brands is offering a big one: Tarte’s 8th World Wonder, a seven piece beauty kit (a $175 value), is $48.36 today on QVC. The clock is ticking though; after midnight, the price goes up to $58.

I love this deal because the kit comes with everything you need to look amazing for spring, including shimmery pink blush, lipgloss, eyeliner, foundation, mascara, eyeshadow and a luxe powder brush. And you can use the chic makeup bag to hold your new goodies! I may even use it as a cute clutch for a night out with my friends.

If only everything in life could be this practical, and come in such cute packaging!

For more spring makeup ideas, check out our April story about Makeup Ticks for Grownups.

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Gift Guide Giveaway: Win These Fashion & Beauty Gifts

November 15, 2010 at 6:00 am , by Ladies' Lounge

Give a little pampering and holiday sparkle to the stylish ladies in your life (or the gals who need a bit of an update… hint, hint).  One lucky reader will score all of these lovely fashion and beauty gifts. Want to know more about each item? Check out our Stylish Gift Guide.

Enter to win by posting a brief comment below telling us why you’d like to win one of the holiday gift packages. Comments must be posted by 11:59 ET on Monday, December 20. We will randomly select one winner. Read the full rules here. Good luck!

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The Botox Diaries

September 16, 2010 at 1:20 pm , by Amanda Wolfe

Check out this video of LHJ Photo Director Clare Lissaman, who got the celebrity treatment from dermatologist to the stars, Dr. Fredric Brandt. Clare was such a good sport and let us film the before (and during!) for the whole word to see. (Yes, there is a needle if you’re squeamish about such things, but it’s just shown for a second, we promise!) Check out Clare’s fun and funny first-time reaction to getting Botox.

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A Curly Girl’s Best Friend

August 12, 2010 at 12:02 pm , by Jennifer Castoro

My general method of styling my kinda-curly, kinda-wavy, straight-in-random-spots hair is to throw in some mousse, scrunch and go. I know I should diffuse it or use more products or do something more involved than washing it and sleeping on it, but I just don’t know where to start. (That’s me at right, with my “before” curls – sorta frizzy, kinda fluffy, a bit long and generally meh.) So when I got the chance to take a lesson in curly-hair management from the masters at the Ouidad salon in NYC, I was stoked. Most every other cut I’ve gotten has ended with a time-consuming and ultimately pointless blow-dry, in which the helpless stylist expends maximum effort getting my stubborn hair to lie flat and succeeds until I leave the salon, when it shrinks up until back to its normal state of pouf. But my talented and super-friendly stylist, Mirsada, styled my hair in glossy, bouncy swirls after the cut and taught me how to recreate the look at home, on my own (see the “after” by clicking on Read More, below). Ouidad’s philosophy is that you shouldn’t fight your curls, and I appreciated the lesson in curl-styling since no one’s actually done it that way before! (Aside from the hairdo I got for my prom, when I instructed the stylist to go curly and I left resembling Marie Antoinette.) Mirsada also sent me on my way with a step-by-step styling guide (complete with illustrations, in case I was really challenged) that all clients at Ouidad get, too. The process:

1. Wash (with gentle shampoo, since my curls aren’t coarse) and condition (with a daily conditioner). Easy!

2. Spray with botanical leave-in conditioner, so curls don’t frizz or tangle.

3. Apply frizz-busting gel to hair in four separate sections, one in back, one on each side of my head and one on top. Mirsada taught me the Ouidad rake-and-shake technique, which basically consists of coating the hair with gel, dividing it up with your fingers and wiggling it till the natural curl of your hair takes shape. (Check out the much-better description, with pictures, here.)

4. Scrunch hair with towel and air-dry naturally or use a diffuser to speed it up.

5. The next day (Ouidad recommends shampooing 2 to 3 times per week), refresh curls with leave-in spray.

Click through for the results…

Read more

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