Glamour Doll Eyes Customer Appreciation Sale!

Today thru Tuesday, August 10th you can get full jars for 50% off!  Use the code "lovegde" and it will give you 50% off. This includes full jars of eye shadow, twi-shadows and eye lights. Your purchase total must be $48 and after the discount, it would be $24 (8 full jars). If you are looking into getting a few samples and a few full jars, as long as your cart total is $48 before the coupon, you may use the code, however, only the full jars will be discounted!

She will also throw in a free Glamour Gloss with any order of $42 or more (after discounts). Hurry and get your orders in now!

~HG

Paul & Joe Autumn 2010 Collection

This collection makes me feel so delicate and pretty. I will more than likely buy some of these products when they are available in the US market if only because of the packaging. I mean really, how could I resist putting on lipstick that is shaped like a kitty? Gotta love it!

Lip Stick C:

066 Clair de Lune/067 Over the Moon/068 Moon Shadow

Face & Eye Color CS

067 Silvery Moon/068 Paper Moon/069 Blue Moon

Face Color

001 Luna/002 Harvest Month/003 Pagan

Pencil Eyeliner WP

01 Black/02 Cafe/03 Bronze/04 Angel/05 Aubergine/06 Navy

Checkout Paul and Joe Beaute to find out where you can pick up these gorgeous products.

LOTD: Neutrally Yours

Face:

Bobbi Brown Natural Finish Long Lasting Foundation in Almond 7 mixed with my daily moisturizer
Young Blood Hi-Definition Powder
MAC Mineralize Powder in Dark

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
MUFE Aqua Cream in 28702 - lower lid to crease
MAC Brown Down E/S - Crease
MAC Kid E/S - Blend out crease up to brow bone
CSP, black shadow - line eyes
Voluminous Mascara

Lips:
MAC  Lipglass in Totally It
MAC Lipglass in Crazy Haute

Cheeks:
MAC Blush in SuperDuper Natural
MAC Raizin Blush

~HG

Tarte Cosmetics Sale!

Tarte Cosmetics is on sale for 50%+ off on the Gilt Groupe website. Need an invite in a hurry? Let me know and I'll get one to you. Hurry, sale ends January 24th at midnight.

~HG

A Very Important Announcement

For the past few months since, or maybe even before, The Makeup Show NYC, I've become a sluggish blogger. I went from posting two-three times a week, to sometimes not posting at all. I felt horrible. People would email me questions and it would take me weeks to get back to them. I promise you that this didn't occur because my love for this blog, makeup, and helping (as well as learning from) others died. Far from it! I'm just as passionate today. However, life is always surprising and exciting, throwing us curve balls out of thin air and this curve ball was totally unexpected. I'm preparing to be a...

That's right! Hubby and I are expecting our first precious little one. While I absolutely adore the journey of pregnancy so far, I would be lying if I said it didn't kill my energy. I'm absolutely exhausted all day everyday. On top of that I'm suffering from heartburn and migraines. This makes it difficult to stare at a computer when it's not necessary. I don't update the blog, tweet, and I rarely return emails. However, the good news is that I hear this should all be coming to an end now that I'm entering my second trimester.

So readers, please forgive me if I take a break from updating every now and then. I'm currently baking :~)

~HG

Makeup for the Lighter Complexioned Beauty

An old friend of mine emailed me the other day inquiring about makeup to match her complexion. I must admit this was a bit hard for me as most of my clients are either a nice dark chocolate tone, or a very pale, creamy white complexion. So I searched high and low for products that I thought would be fab for her. Here's what I came up with:

EYES

Liner
When you are just starting out wearing makeup, I think it is important to get products that will give you the most bang for your buck since you are initially experimenting with them. Why spend $20 on a product you are just learning to use, and may very well hate? For that reason, I usually introduce beginner makeup clients to NYX Jumbo Eye Pencil's

The reason I love these liners for the beginner is because they are a two in one product. They are obviously used to line eyes, however, they can also be used as eyeshadows! Hate the jumbo feel and need a slimmer stick to line your eyes? Try NYX's Slim Eye Pencil.

Mascara

I really heart mascara! I believe it can make or break your whole look, so finding the perfect mascara is necessary, yet a hard thing to do. It really is one of trial and error. However, the two mascara's I could not live without are L'Oreal's Voluminous and DiorShow Iconic.

L'Oreal Voluminous offers you dark, luscious lashes for just $7! It's a great mascara to keep in your bag for an everyday look.

Want more drama? Try DiorShow Iconic. I'm talking theatre stage long, thick dramatic lashes that constantly whisper "come hither" whenever you blink *heart pounding*. I truly lust after this mascara! It's the only one that makes me feel like I'm wearing falsies everytime I put it on.

BLUSH

In the summertime you want to achieve a nice, healthy glow. You don't want colors that look too thick or heavy. For that reason my new favorite summertime blush is MACs Get Away Bronze Blush.

It gives your skin a nice sunkissed glow without being too dramatic.

LIPS

I love pink when it comes to summer time lips (who am I kidding, I love pink year round) and I really think your lips will pop with a color like MACs Pink Poodle

It will make your lips stand out looking lovely and luscious, but they won't be on overkill. Just enough color so that you don't blend in with the crowd.

FACE

I just wanted to give a word of advice when it comes to your face routine. In the summertime we all tend to get hot and sweaty, so I would put the foundation in the back of your makeup drawer for now. Instead opt for a tinted moisturizer (Bobbi Brown makes a great one!) with a little bronzer. Now-a-days I wear MACs mineralize skinfinish in dark over my favorite moisturizer. Remember, the idea is to keep it light, especially with the triple digit temps the East Coast has been hit with this summer. Oy vey!

~HG

Product Review: Model Model Human Hair Deep Bulk

Above is the curl pattern of the Model Model Human Hair Deep Bulk braiding hair. I saw it and fell inlove. Two weeks later, I'm completely out of love. In fact, this hair reminds me of a fly that keeps buzzing around my head and just won't die already!

How is it possible that I've only had this hair in for two weeks, and it's already napping up? The ends are dry and frizzled. I have to keep cutting away and dry little balls in the hair. Ugh. This is disgusting. I can already see that I will have to buy more hair and try again next month.

My advice? If you walk past this hair and fall inlove, please recognize it as a con artist and keep on walking. It's not worth your money at.all. I can promise you that.

~HG

Stewed Oxtails and Butter Beans

INGREDIENTS
Stewed oxtail with butter beans - about this recipe
3 lbs oxtail
1-2 cups Flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 slices of bacon
1 large onion, chopped
2 cans of butter beans
salt/black pepper/cayenne pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Rinse off oxtails and season with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper
2. Put flour in a bowl and dredge the oxtail pieces, knocking off any excess flour
3. Heat the oil in a dutch oven and brown the oxtail pieces on both sides, doing a few at a time so the pan stay nice and hot
4. Add the bacon, and onions to the pan and sauté for 3 minutes
5. Add the oxtail
6. Cover the oxtail with water and bring to a boil. Cover the pot and turn the heat down to low, simmering for 3 hours
7. After 3 hours taste your liquid; season to taste with salt and pepper
8. Add the butter beans and simmer for another 15 minutes

*Note* If you would like flavorful rice to go with your stew, add more water than needed to the stew when filling the pot to boil, atleast 2 cups more. When the stew is done cooking and before you add the butter beans, use the liquid from your stew to cook the rice in. This makes for very yummy rice!
~HG

Product Review: So She Cosmetics

I was super duper uber excited when new cosmetics company, So She Cosmetics, Inc., a company based in Chicago, IL, presented me with the opportunity to review their products! What a treat! Here's what they sent:

Velvet Veil - $15.00 - Velvet Veil is a super soft and light face primer. I was really impressed by the smooth texture of the product.  According to SSC you can use Velvet Veil on your boy and on your hair for extra shine and silkiness. Although I didn't try it on my hair I did try it on my face and I can promise this will be the next primer I buy. It contains Vitamin E, Vitamin C, and Licorice.

Gold Lip Sparklette - $12.00 - The consistency of this gloss is really nice. It doesn't leave your lips feeling gritty or sticky. However, my one beef with this product is that you have to reapply constantly. When paying $12 for a gloss, I'm use to it staying on through me eating say, a piece of fruit. As soon as I finished eating my peach, the gloss was finished as well. For the price I would like to have some staying power. The color is a great everyday color though, and I can definitely see myself wearing it with any makeup I want to enhance with a gloss that has a sparkly gold tone to it.

Gold Candle Glow Bronzer - $11.50 - I really like this bronzer! The texture is so light it feels non-existent on the skin. It's not oily or heavy, just a great creamy texture. I truly did not think the color would go with my skin tone, but it did! It gives me a nice, subtle glow, not over-powering or heavy at all. I would definitely buy this product for my kit because I think my clients will love it.

Gold Bronze Eye Shadow - $12.00 - This loose shadow is a nice pigment, not too light, not especially heavy. I think my one gripe with it is you definitely should order samples before buying it. Depending on the lighting, this shadow came off really light gold for me, not bronzy gold. Also, although it's a pigment, so not oily at all, it kept migrating to my crease, so definitely wear a base under it. I'm also a little disappointed in the color selection. Most of them seem to have a bit of a frosty texture to them, and I am not a fan of frosty eye shadows. I look forward to So She Cosmetics coming out with new colors for me to try and play with. The verdict is still out on this one.

Overall I think So She Cosmetics is on to something really good. With a few tweaks they could have something really great! As the company grows and acquires new products I really believe people will naturally gravitate to their cosmetics.

~HG

LOTD: Hot Pink and White

Face:

Bobbi Brown Natural Finish Long Lasting Foundation in Almond 7 mixed with my daily moisturizer
Young Blood Hi-Definition Powder
MAC Mineralize Powder in Dark

Eyes:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance
Coastal Scents Palette #78, 4th section, first column, 3rd pink down - all over lid up to brow bone.
CSP "", 5th pink down/3rd section, first column, last red - mix the two colors together and place from lower lid to just above the crease
CSP, 4th section, first column, first color - brow bone
MAC Shroom E/S - brow bone
CSP, 4th section, first column 4th pink down - lightly blend between brow bone and crease
CSP, black shadow - line eyes
CSP, 3rd section, first column, last red - line under lower waterline


Voluminous Mascara

Lips:
MAC  Dazzleglass in Baby Sparks

Cheeks:
Mehron Cheek Cream in Berry Blush
MAC Blush in SuperDuper Natural

~HG

Wella Professionals Color Discovery Tour

Ladies, this event sounds like a great time. I'm hoping to make it on Sunday since I've recently been contemplating coloring my hair. Let me know if you decide to go!

This summer Wella Professionals is hitting the road to offer free consultations to help women discover their best haircolor. Wella will provide women across the country with inside access to professional colorists who will help educate and inspire women to discover their best haircolor while also offering them discounts to local, participating salons. At each tour stop, the on-site experts will offer free, personal recommendations to attendees as well as discounts to participating Wella salons and complimentary products.
The Wella Professionals Color Discovery Tour will visit eight cities throughout the summer including New York City, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Miami, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Details for the DC event is as follows:

Date: 7/10 - 7/11

Time: 11AM-6PM

Location: The Shops at Georgetown Park

3222 M Street Northwest

Washington, DC 20007

Salons: PR at Partners Salons

RSVP on Facebook!

Can’t make it? Wella is offering women nationwide the chance to win a trip to have a celebrity haircolor transformation with a top stylist in New York City. One lucky winner and a friend will fly to New York for the weekend and enjoy an A-list treatment! Sweepstakes details can be found on Wella Professionals’ Facebook page.

Friend Friday: Summer Travel

It's Friend Friday! This is part of a blogger group with Modly Chic. If you're a blogger that would like to participate, go to her blog for the details.

1. Are you going anywhere this summer that will require a suitcase?
Oh, how I wish. We were suppose to go to the Dominican at the end of this month, but finances are keeping us state side. I will eventually venture to Charlotte, the eastern shore, and NYC, but that's about it. Sad, I know. If you would like to contribute to my vacation funds, I'll gladly accept!
2. What are your 'must-pack' items?
Seeing how Charlotte is guaranteed to be hot, I will definitely pack my Mehron No Sweat Prep to try to keep the rolls of sweat at bay as much as possible, my L'Oreal HiP Color Presso in Chic, and some lashes.
3. When it comes to makeup how much of your collection do you pack? What do you take? What do you leave behind?
If I'm going away for a real vacation, I pack everything. When you're gone for 7+ nights at a time, you never know what look you're gonna want to wear from day to day, so I just take everything. For short trips I pack my favorite gloss at the moment, my favorite liquid foundation and moisturizer so I can make my own tinted moisturizer, mascara and/or lashes and bronzer!
4. Do you have any travel packing advice?
Honestly I love zip lock bags. If anything happens to uncap itself, there won't be a mess at the bottom of my suitcase. Nothing worse than getting pure pigments all over your gorgeous clothes!
5. What one item should every woman pack when going on a vacation?
Sunscreen lotion AND bronzer!

~HG

MAC In The Groove Collection for Summer 2010

Lipstick ($14.00 U.S. / $16.50 CDN)
Call My Bluff Mid-tone creamy coffee (Cremesheen) (Limited Edition)
Jazzed Bright coral pink (Cremesheen) (Limited Edition)
Creme de Nude Pale muted peach beige (Cremesheen) (Permanent)
I Like It Like That Deep blue pink (Cremesheen) (Limited Edition)
All Styled Up Bright yellow pink (Cremesheen) (Limited Edition)
Go For It Mid-tone blue purple (Cremesheen) (Limited Edition)

Cremesheen Glass ($18.00 U.S. / $21.50 CDN)
On the Scene Light Coral beige (Limited Edition)
You’ve Got It Dirty silver grey (Limited Edition)
Going Casual Sheer lilac (Limited Edition)
Fashion Whim Light Beige (Limited Edition)
Right Image Mid-tone blue pink (Limited Edition)
Chillin’ Light white blue (Limited Edition)

Mineralize Eye Shadow (Trio) ($19.50 U.S. / $23.50 CDN)
Love to Love Satin beige/Pearly Bronze/Satin Brown (Limited Edition)
In the Groove Satin green/Pearly burgundy/Satin coral (Limited Edition)
Making It Easy Satin red brown/Pearly beige rose/Satin dark beige (Limited Edition)
Togetherness Satin lavender/Pearly purple/Satin grey (Limited Edition)
Style Influencer Satin silver/Pearly deep blue/Satin deep mauve brown (Limited Edition)
Soften the Mood Satin light brown/Pearly rose/Satin light blue (Limited Edition)
Fresh & Easy Satin pink/Pearly burgundy/Satin grey (Limited Edition)
Calm, Cool, &Collected Satin deep green/Pearly green/Satin beige (Limited Edition)
Blue My Mind Satin light blue/Pearly deep teal/Satin black (Limited Edition)

Powerpoint Eye Pencil ($14.50 U.S. / $17.50 CDN)
Stubborn Brown Deep Rich Brown (Permanent)
Permaplum Deep plum with pink shimmer (Permanent)
Navy Stain Royal blue with shimmer (Permanent)

Zoomlash ($13.00 U.S. / $15.50 CDN)
Zoomblack Rich Black (Permanent)

Mineralized Skinfinish ($28.00 U.S. / $33.50 CDN)
By Candlelight Golden pink (Frost) (Limited Edition) (Repromote)
Stereo Rose Coral with golden bronze shimmering nuances (Frost) (Limited Edition) (Repromote)
Comfort Golden bronze (Frost) (Limited Edition) (Repromote)
Petticoat Pale rose with gold and amber veining (Frost) (Limited Edition) (Repromote)

Mineralize Blush (Duo) ($23.00 U.S. / $27.50 CDN)
Happy Together Satin caramel/Pearly beige (Limited Edition)
A Little Bit of Sunshine Satin light brown/Pearly beige (Limited Edition)
Hang Loose Satin bright pink/Pearly lavender (Limited Edition)
Band of Roses Satin blue pink/Pearly light plum (Limited Edition)
New Vibe Satin deep rose/Pearly bronze (Limited Edition)

Brush ($42.00 U.S. / $50.50 CDN)
187 Brush A large full circular brush used for lightweight application and blending of face powder or pigments. Use to create soft layers or add textures. Made from a soft blend of goat and synthetic fibres.

~HG

New Product Review: L'Oreal HiP Color Presso Glosses

Hello gorgeous! To know me is to know how much I love a great gloss, so when I was given a bunch of L'Oreal HiP Color Presso glosses at The Makeup Show NYC, I was kinda excited to try them. Kinda because we all know I'm not a fan of drugstore beauty products, however, a gloss is a gloss and I'm always on the hunt for a better one.

What I love about this gloss is that it is very glossy and nicely pigmented. It doesn't feel sticky or greasy, yet leaves my lips feeling moisturized. Gotta love that. So what don't I like about this gloss? The fact that after a couple of hours the gloss factor is gone :~( You must reapply several times throughout the day. Boo to that.
The one featured in this post is Chic. I think it's a nice everyday shade for myself. One side is a light pink grapefruit tone while the other is more of a ruby grapefruit tone. The other great thing about these glosses is that you can choose to wear one color or the other, or squeeze both sides to mix them together to give you a kind of red grapefruit look.

The left color

The right color

Combined

You can purchase L'Oreal Hip Color Presso from Target for $10.99. Not bad for a 2 in 1 gloss.

Product: 8/10
Pricing: 8/10
Packaging: 9/10

~HG

Hair Update

So as most of you know, it has been hot as Hades on the East Coast and I just can't take it. I can't take having hair anywhere near my neck I just want it away! So I've decided to put microbraids in my hair for the remaineder of the summer. Mind you, I don't go to get my hair braided; I have too many traumatic memories from my childhood. Hair pulling, scalp puckering, bumps forming all along my hair line, oh the horror! I learned at a fairly early age how to braid my own hair, and I'm very thankful for that. I'm not really hoping for a certain amount of growth or anything while doing this, I just want my hair to be safely put away while I sweat this summer out. I've noticed that it's gotten thicker more than longer, and I can appreciate that. So here are some pics of my hair now

Hopefully by September it will be even thicker, and healthy!

~HG