Want a hair professional’s advice, but don’t want to pay the high salon price? No need to shell out the big bucks for a classy coiff — the ladies from fab NYC hair salon Butterfly Studio gave us the blow-by-blow(dryer) on scoring styling tresses when you don’t have the time or money for a salon visit. Here’s advice straight from the salon’s hairstyling professionals:
Kattia Solano on how to create va-va-voom volume:
First, apply a volumizing product on damp hair.
Then flip your hair over and dry it upside down, which is the key to creating volume at the roots. At first, it will look a bit out of control, but you can set the hair with Velcro rollers or smooth out with a curling iron.
If you use a roller set, blow dry with heat for a few minutes and then finish with cool air.
Remove rollers and brush or run your fingers through hair. If you use a curling iron, then you can set the curls in place by spraying 2 inch sections with hairspray and curling.
Dana Vuljevic on reducing oily buildup in hair:
“If you have oily buildup: add a 1/2 teaspoon of dishwashing liquid, such as Palmolive or Dawn, to your shampoo.”
Nicole Descoteaux on ditching hairspray buildup:
Shampoo hair as normal to prepare.
Create a paste with baking soda and water.
Work the paste into hair. Comb through and leave on for five minutes.
Rinse and condition for optimum results.
Kattia Solano on making hair grow faster:
“Brushing your hair 100 times a day will not make your hair grow faster.It simply stimulates the scalp, but it will cause breakage. To help your hair grow faster, simply massage the scalp for five minutes at a time. This will also stimulate the blood flow and will NOT cause breakage.”
Forbes Magazine named Jennifer Lopez the richest person of Latin American descent in Hollywood — and with her work as an actress, singer, dancer, producer, and fashion designer, she’s worked hard to earn that title. Here’s a step by step guide to scoring one of Jennifer’s sultry makeup looks with heavily lined eyes, sculpted cheeks, and glossy nude lips:
STEP I: FACE MAKEUP
Jennifer starts by creating a clean canvas, so apply liquid foundation as needed.
Use a small amount of foundation to cover any undereye circles and create a base for the eyeshadow on the eyelids.
To achieve Jennifer’s look, makeup contouring is key. Apply a peachy-pink blush to the apples of cheeks for a natural-looking highlight. Then, blend bronzer from cheekbones toward the area just below the cheeks’ apples to give more shape to the face.
STEP II: EYE MAKEUP
Accentuate the eyes with bronzed, metallic tones and dark eyeliner.
Begin by applying a neutral-toned eyeshadow as a base from the lash line up to the eyebrow.
Use a dark reddish-bronze eyeshadow (I actually use a blush shade: Pur Minerals Marble Powder in Spice) for the crease area. Apply to the crease from corner to corner, then use the skinny edge of your eyeshadow brush to smudge the same shade across the lower lash line.
Line the eyes using black liquid eyeliner along both the upper and lower lash lines all the way from the inner corner to the outer corner.
To finish, line the lips with a natural-looking shade of lipliner (try THEVI Automatic Long-lasting Lip liner in Mauve or Heather) just outside the natural lip line to give the appearance of a fuller lip. Keep this very subtle and match the color very closely; we don’t wanr to look fake, just super sexy!
Top lips off with your favorite super-shiny pink lip gloss.
Aside from beautiful satiny hair, smoky bedroom eyes and a shared show on E!, what do to Kourtney, Khloe and Kim Kardashian all have in common? The answer: when it comes to hairstyles, they all almost always go for a strong center part.
Why? Celebrity hairstylist Pearson Knight explained to Glamour’s Andrea Pomerantz Lustig why the center part is such a good idea: the simple hairstyle flatters every face shape by making it seem more balanced and symmetrical. Plus, because it makes your eyes and smile easy to see, the style gives off a confident vibe.
Here’s how to Kardashian-ify your ‘do with a strong, sexy center part:
Use a fine-toothed comb to make a precise part on wet hair, then style as usual.
Finish by adding a little gel or hairspray to tame flyaways and to keep the part on the straight and narrow.
Check out these gravity-defying hairstyles on celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Fergie and more
Most celebrity hairstyles garner praise and admiration, but these crazy updos left us scratching our heads. Why would A-list celebrities like Angelina Jolie and Fergie take the risk of sporting one of these crazy hairstyles? Probably to stand out in the crowd, right? I guess it worked — just not in a good way!
Yikes! Went a little crazy with the tweezers, and now you’re stuck with brows that resemble Mr. Bigglesworth? I’ve got bad news for you, chickadee: once plucked, your eyebrows can take months to eventually grow back.
Luckily, we’ve got a little procedure to help cover up and fill in your sparse eyebrows. Here’s what to do:
Find an eyebrow pencil in a shade that matches your brows (or what’s left of them) as closely as possible. TIP: You can go slightly darker if you have naturally light brows like I do; just make sure it stays true to the tone of your hair color (that is, warm or cool tones).
Don’t have a pencil on hand? Try an eyeshadow that matches your brows. You can fill in color with shadow, although it may not look as realistic as pencil; try applying it wet if the effect is too powdery.
Use a brow stencil like Anastasia Beverly Hills’ Classic Stencils to ensure you draw your brows in a realistic shape; if you don’t have a stencil, just use a photo to draw an outline of the brows with a brow pencil, then fill in from there.
Pick up clear eyebrow gel at any drugstore. No need to spend a lot of cash on this product, though we do like the ones by Victoria’s Secret and Anastasia Beverly Hills.
Use the gel to smooth down and even out brows; it can also help to smudge excess brow pencil or shadow evenly through eyebrows and spread the color to those nearly bald areas without a too-intense effect.
Keep brows in place with a spritz of hairspray applied to a toothbrush. Brush your brows into place with the toothbrush or an actual eyebrow brush, if you’ve got one.
Next time, get brows professionally tweezed, waxed or threaded — or just read my post on how to pluck your eyebrows rightfor some tips on getting better results!
Want a Halloween costume with an uber-feminine, playful punch? Then there’s no better way to go than the original girly girl: Barbie! Tons of Barbie inspiration hit the fall runways this season since the original Queen of Plastic celebrated her fiftieth birthday this year—but she still doesn’t look a day over 21, the wench.
Here’s how to DIY Barbie’s makeup look and score major points at your Halloween fiestas:
Step I: Barbie Eyeshadow
To steal Barbie’s signature vapid-chic makeup look, start with those big, empty, saucer-y eyes. Barbie eyeshadow can be done two different ways, with either warm-toned or cool-toned eyeshadow colors. Here’s a guide on each eyeshadow style:
For cool-toned Barbie eye makeup: dust a light, shimmery silver eyeshadow over the whole lid from lashes to brows. Add an extra dab to the inner corners right by the tear duct to highlight. Sweep purple-gray shadow in the crease, continuing only 1/4 of the way up the brow bone (after all, this is Barbie — we’re not going for sultry, we’re going for bubbly and slightly ditzy).
For warm-toned Barbie eye makeup:think pink! Coat lids in a light carnation pink color, then hit the crease with a darker, more intense magenta pink like what Barbie’s wearing on the left. Continue about halfway up the browbone.
For both shadow styles, blend eyeshadow one shade lighter than your natural skin tone (preferably with some shimmer) under the brows and slightly downward to highlight.
Step II: Barbie Eyeliner & Brows
Keep brows simple and in a slight semi-circular shape, like a very wide upside down U. No severe arch here! It’ll take away Barbie’s signature innocence.
Apply black liquid eyeliner all the way across the top lid, narrowing the line at the inner corners. Fan the line very slightly up and out toward the temples on the ends to mimic those big, exaggerated Barbie eyelashes.
NOTE: If you have trouble with liquid liner, celebrity makeup artist Brett Freedman has a quick and easy way to master it: Use a felt-tip eyeliner and lightly dot on the lid, staying as close as possible to the lash line. Go back over the lid once more, and this time, press the felt tip firmly onto the skin to connect the dots.
Finish off your pastel eye makeup look with bright pink cheeks – anything that looks sickeningly sugary on you will do.
For lips, choose a frosted bubblegum lipstick or gloss if you chose cool-toned eyeshadow. Try a true magenta pink shade of lipcolor if you chose warm-toned shadow, like Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss in #573.
Wear a long, platinum blonde wig — or, if your hair’s naturally long and blonde, consider crimping. Barbie can be so ’80s like that.
Slip on a tight pink minidress and get your boyfriend and little sister to play Ken and Skipper, respectively. (Or they could switch it up, I guess…but that might be awkward.) Your night of trick-or-treating will be extra sweet!
Loving the iron-deficient looks of those gorgeous Twilight girls, but not sure if their looks will work for you? Here’s a neat online treat just in time for Halloween and the debut of Twilight: New Moon in theaters (okay, it’s not till November 20, but close enough).
Halloween is fast approaching and for beauty junkies like myself, there’s no Halloween makeup look more appropriate than that of the original queen of makeup, the female pharoah famed for bringing kohl eyeliner into vogue: Cleopatra.
The inimitable Elizabeth Taylor embodied the Egyptian queen’s spirit in the epic 1963 film Cleopatra with a bold makeup look that was both regal and exotic. Here’s how to copy this classic, daring look at home so you can steal the show and stand out in a sea of costume-in-a-bag Marilyn Monroes at your Halloween party this year:
Prep your skin with foundation and powder. A little glimmer won’t hurt with this look if you have products with some shimmer to them, but don’t go overboard — with eyes this heavy, too-shiny skin will make you look a little too dirty and not remotely noble.
Be liberal with bronzer (an appropriately exotic choice: Global Goddess’ Goddess Glow South Pacific Shimmer) — looking regal is all about the cheekbones! Dab bronzer at the base of your cheekbones and blend forward.
Pluck & shape your brows into a high arch so that the pique falls directly above the middle of your upper eyelid. Fill in with a dark pencil, emphasizing the stretch closest to your nose. Draw the back bend of the eyebrow in a thin, straight line at a 45-degree angle from your forehead. (Need help? Reference that picture on the right.)
Now the fun bit: apply blue eyeshadow from lash line to brow, making sure to hit the space beside your nose on each side. Violet, turquoise — any blue’ll do, as long as Christian Siriano would call it fierce.
Dab a teeny bit of sparkly cream-colored highlighter in your inner corners, but make sure to stay above the lower lash line.
Oh yes, it’s liquid liner time. Pull the top lid taut and apply in a thin line from the inner corner outward, thickening to about 1/8″ width at the middle of the lid. Line all the way across the bottom lid in a thin line, then as you reach the outer corner simply continue the line upward to meet the outer edge of your brow.
Begin a new line connecting with your existing liner at the outer edge of your bottom lid, tracing along the bottom edge of the line you just drew up to your brow. Curve the last 1/4″ of the line down, then connect the two bottom lines with a sharp swoop of liner coming down from the end of your brow.
Finish with black mascara and a nude lipstick (my current go-to for nude lips: MAC Lipstick Lustre in Close to Real). Braid in some beads and go walk like an Egyptian!
Oh, the joys of moving! I was subjected to them myself this past weekend, and I have to say it’s one of those life events in which looking gorgeous isn’t likely. Still, we all want to look as fab as we can whenever we can — and what if you happen to be helping a cute new boyfriend move?
Here are a few tips for staying at least moderately stylish through the harrowing experience:
Pull your hair back — moving can be a sweaty experience, which very rarely creates a flattering look, plus your hair will probably get mussed anyway. Put your hair in a ponytail if it’s long enough, or if you have short hair like I do, wear a headband.
Don’t bother with liquid foundation – you’ll sweat it off anyway. Instead, opt for mineral powder foundation like Pur Minerals to keep looking smooth.
Keep eye makeup simple, and go for waterproof mascara. You’ll thank me later.
Use a colored lip balm instead of lip gloss or lipstick to keep your lips from getting chapped and dry in the weather.
To keep any makeup, moisturizer and what-have-you from sliding around in the heat, use Skindinavia makeup finishing spray. Trust me, it’s amazing. I couldn’t live in Houston without it!
All it takes to transform a blah hairstyle into a hot trend is a different position
Take a nod from celebrities on the red carpet by sporting a side-swept style. The hottest looks right now, whether they’re updos, left down, or adorned with a jeweled accessory, are sexy side-swept looks. See how celebrities like Carrie Underwood and Miley Cyrus successfully pulled off the trend!
Want a hair professional’s advice, but don’t want to pay the high salon price? No need to shell out the big bucks for a classy coiff — the ladies from fab NYC hair salon Butterfly Studio gave us the blow-by-blow(dryer) on scoring styling tresses when you don’t have the time or money for a salon visit. Here’s advice straight from the salon’s hairstyling professionals:
Dana Vuljevic on reducing oily buildup in hair:
Aside from beautiful satiny hair, smoky bedroom eyes and a shared show on E!, what do to Kourtney, Khloe and Kim Kardashian all have in common? The answer: when it comes to hairstyles, they all almost always go for a strong center part.
Yikes! Went a little crazy with the tweezers, and now you’re stuck with brows that resemble Mr. Bigglesworth? I’ve got bad news for you, chickadee: once plucked, your eyebrows can take months to eventually grow back.
Want a Halloween costume with an uber-feminine, playful punch? Then there’s no better way to go than the original girly girl: Barbie! Tons of Barbie inspiration hit the fall runways this season since the original Queen of Plastic celebrated her fiftieth birthday this year—but she still doesn’t look a day over 21, the wench.
Loving the iron-deficient looks of 
Halloween is fast approaching and for beauty junkies like myself, there’s no Halloween makeup look more appropriate than that of the original queen of makeup, the female pharoah famed for bringing kohl eyeliner into vogue: Cleopatra.
Pluck & shape your brows into a high arch so that the pique falls directly above the middle of your upper eyelid. Fill in with a dark pencil, emphasizing the stretch closest to your nose. Draw the back bend of the eyebrow in a thin, straight line at a 45-degree angle from your forehead. (Need help? Reference that picture on the right.)
Oh, the joys of moving! I was subjected to them myself this past weekend, and I have to say it’s one of those life events in which looking gorgeous isn’t likely. Still, we all want to look as fab as we can whenever we can — and what if you happen to be helping a cute new boyfriend move?