I'm A Lucky Gal

HAPPY ST PATRICK'S DAY EVERYONE!!

I love all holidays because they usually give you a reason to decorate and dress yourself up in some sort of garb appropriate for that holiday! And St. Patrick's Day is no different. St. Patty's Day around my house is full of shamrocks, green sparkles, pots of gold (fake of course), and green clothing so we don't get pinched;-) I used to be slightly bratty back in grade school and high school because on St. Patrick's Day I would purposefully NOT wear green so people would try to pinch me, and then I would get onto them by saying I had "green" in my last name (my maiden name was Greenhaw) so I was always wearing green and Irish!!

I also like to think we have a "little bit o luck" floating around our house. I feel I am lucky to have a doting and talented husband, two beautiful & spunky children, a nice comfy house, wonderful parents and in-laws, and of course a wonderful creative outlet/job ( I hate to ever call what I do, a JOB, because it's more fun than work!). We are also VERY LUCKY to be adding another little angel to our family this coming fall!! The more the merrier, right??!

Just thought I would share a couple things from my lucky day. My boys had a great day at school (obvious from the smiles above huh?) and made leprechaun hats, shamrocks, and pot of gold posters with rainbows. The only thing green I couldn't get them into today were green vegetables!

And of course, I had to be a bit cheesy and go green on my eye makeup!! The best way to pull off super green eyeshadow is to tone it down by pairing it with a little bit of brown or taupe shadow. I used Rimmel's Spark It Up eye liner in color "peridot" ($4) along the upper lash line. I then followed that from lash line to crease with Bobbi Brown Bright's Palette ($70) color "shamrock" (how appropriate) then just blended MAC's "soba" ($14.50) in the crease only.

"Luck O The Irish' to you all and drink some green beer for me since I can't in my prego state!!

Cut Your Makeup Time in Half

Most of us who are strained for time in the morning- I'm sure that would be about 99% of you- need a makeup product that does two things at once. And I'm also sure that most of us would like to find that duo product in a product that we ALREADY own, without having to buy another expensive product.

I was feeling creative-and thrifty- yesterday and was sifting through my lipstick drawer (yes, I have a bathroom drawer devoted specifically to lipstick and glosses) to find a color that could work on my cheeks as well as my lips. I was super bored and tired of using the same 3 blushes all the time...can you tell??!

So I came across one of my fave colors that literally goes with almost everything I put on, Estee Lauder's Pure Color lipstick in "Sugar Honey" ($22). It's the perfect combo of a brownish rose color with a hint of gold in it.

So I thought to myself, "if this is my go to color whenever I put on a t-shirt or a dress, then why shouldn't it work for my cheeks as well?" That's how I knew I had a duo product. This color is not too dark, not too light, not too matte, not too glossy, just creamy enough to mimic a cheek stain. And best of all, I don't even need a blush brush to apply it! I used it directly from the tube for both lips and cheeks, and just rubbed it in real good with my finger when doing the cheek thing.

Check out my photo of me wearing my new/old lipstick as cheek color too- turned out pretty good huh?? So my advice to you if you want a new quick look, but don't want to go pay for one, sift through your makeup drawer and play around with this idea.

Let me know what color you find does "double duty"!!

Lady Gaga Does Good With MAC Viva Glam

I am a sucker when I go to the MAC counter. It's kind of like when I go to Target, I cannot get outta there with only one item.

I went specifically to only buy another tube of Russian Red (blog on this fab red color to come) ($14), when I was sucked into adding on a tube of the new pinky Lady Gaga Viva Glam lipstick ($14)! When I asked the girl at the counter if she thought I could pull off this white, lilac based cotton candy pink with my fair skin, she said "of course you can- and it's easily changed around by the use of different liners." I'm a sucker- SOLD. And when she said all 100% of the proceeds go to the MAC Aids Foundation, I figured, I could do some good while looking good- what a fabulous combo!

Here's my photo of me in my new Gaga lipstick, what do you think? It is very moisturizing and creamy which I love. I wore it over my already red lipstick when I left the counter, and it turned my red into a bright raspberry- cool. Then this picture is me wearing it later on in the night with my hubby along with simple black liquid liner and Tarte cheek stain in "flush" ($30). If you want a natural subtle pink, this color is definitely NOT that- it's obviously theatrical but completely cool and edgy.

I mean, with a campaign that includes two of the hottest rocker chicks on the planet, Cyndi Lauper and Lady Gaga, why wouldn't you want to have a piece of their coolness?? "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" with makeup, right?! Ha, couldn't resist...

The Key To Pulling Off Smoky Eyes In The Daytime

I cannot believe it's taken me this long to figure out the key to wearing and pulling off a smoky eye during the daytime.

Are you ready for this big reveal, humongous secret, major makeup trick that I'm about to bestow upon you??!! The key to not looking too crazy and made up during the daylight hours, but still looking extra sexy and sultry, is to NOT WEAR EYELINER with your smoky eye!!!

Ah Ha-Genius!!! Yes, I've been doing this makeup thing for a reaaaally long time, and wearing the smoky eye look for just as long, but this just dawned on me. And since I don't personally care about looking too "made up" because hey, I'm a makeup artist and that's my gig, I know a lot of other women want a more low key version of the smoky eye that can be worn throughout the day and not just for special occasions or in the night hours. So that key is to skip the eyeliner part.

**Another key element is to NOT wear black shadow or dark browns, which can appear too harsh. That's why I chose a smoky purple and grey color, since you're smudging these colors all around your eye, you want them to be on the lighter side so as not to appear too heavy.**

So here's my daytime smoky example I wore the other day. I think it turned out pretty great. I literally only used 2 shadows:

• 1. Kat Von D's True Love Palette in color "skiba" ($34)
• 2. Smashbox eyeshadow in color "obsidian" ($16)
• 3. Oh, and my Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($17), just to make the colors pop more. You loyal readers know I don't apply eyeshadow without this stuff!

It was super easy since I didn't bother with any eyeliner step. Simple tutorial: I just put the purple "skiba" from lash to crease, then the "obsidian" just along my upper and lower lashes (it's the darker smoky grey color and basically acted like my eyeliner), two coats of mascara on both lashes and voila, a sexy but subtle smoky eye!

Who knew a smoky eye could be soooo simple?? You can thank me later;-)

Temporary Tattoos By Chanel, Not Just Childs Play

There is something fun and exciting about putting temporary tattoos on. I don't know if it is because of:

1. the rebellious feeling you get by looking tough like you endured hours under a tattoo gun OR

2. just because it takes you back to your childhood when it was fun to adorn your skin with kooky and colorful artwork that made you feel like you just came back from a fair or the circus!

Either way, I know my kids (and I!) love applying temporary tattoos just for the sheer fun of it. Even though I have a real deal tattoo, I still love the fake kind that can be mixed and matched and removed.

So when I came across some photos of the Spring/Summer 2010 Chanel runway shows that had all the models adorned in fancy black and grey temp tattoos , I thought, "that is a brilliant accessory!" Instead of lots of jewelry, makeup, stockings, gloves, fake tans, they just used tattoos to decorate their skin. The global creative director of Chanel, custom designed

these tats to include the signature CC logo, oriental cherry blossoms, chains, and birds. These were placed all over the models bodies, from the backs of the legs (being shown in summer mini skirts, very sexy!) to the shoulders, across the collarbones, and around their wrists.

These little pieces of body art are available to the general public for a pretty penny- $75 for 25 designs in 5 sheets- but what do you expect- it's Chanel, not the Gap. And although $75 for

anything with the Chanel name on it is probably considered a steal, I don't know if this

something I could sink my teeth into. I think my money is better spent on Chanel makeup brushes or a bag that will last more than a few days! So even though I may not have money to rush out and buy these little pieces of art, I still think they are cool and a brilliant runway idea.

What is your take on these designer temporary tattoos??

Oscar Worthy Makeup From Zoe Saldana

I don't have the statistics of how many people tuned into the Oscars last night, but I know I sure did, and this year it didn't disappoint! The stars turned out in fancy Hollywood form and the women and men for the most part really glammed it up this year and didn't play it too safe. I mean, it's the Oscars, why wouldn't you just go for it instead of wearing a black dress?

Now when I mention the Oscars, I mean I enjoyed the hour of red carpet rundown before the actual program. Because let's face it, the actual Oscars is ah-hem, slightly boring! But I do love watching the celebs walk down the red carpet and seeing what they wear for wardrobe and hair and makeup.

And my JennySue Oscar for "BEST MAKEUP" on the red carpet goes to, Zoe Saldana, from the movie Avatar! Not only did her makeup look flawless and classic, but it was simple enough to go with her out there gorgeous Givenchy purple frock!

This dress was sparkly on top and flowy and layered on bottom, and reminded me of the

beautiful spring Violas in my backyard! The purples and lilacs of her dress complimented her skin tone so well, as did her glossy lilac lipgloss and taupe and lavender eyeshadow. (If you want sheer lilac lips like this, try Maybelline's Wet Shine Diamonds gloss in Luminous Lilac ($4). )

Crazy out there glamorous dress + simple pulled back hair + fresh faced makeup = Perfect Red Carpet Equation! Way to go Zoe- you were the epitome of Oscar beauty in my opinion last night! I like a girl that knows how to balance her look.

Timeless Nude Lips

The nude lip is a tried and true, classic, and timeless look. EVERYONE can wear and work a nude lip and it can be worn with dramatic smokey eyes, soft neutral lids, shiny and glossy, or matte and creamy. It's a no boundaries look!!

So I got lucky during a trip to my local Target when I passed by the cosmetics area and saw a sale on the Jemma Kidd line- SCORE!! I obviously cannot pass by the makeup aisle without trying on or buying something, and today was no exception! Today I found a new nude lipstick I've been on the hunt for!

One of my favorite all time nude lipsticks (although the company describes it as "beige," which that description kinda turns me off, but whatever!) is "Totally Nude" by Too Faced Cosmetics ($18). My closest Sephora is over an hour away, so it's not the easiest for me to get my Too Faced lipstick. So when I saw Jemma Kidd's Classic Couture lipsticks on sale, I figured I would search for something close to my fave. Drumroll please, da da da dum, I found a new replacement shade and it's called "Muse" ($16). This color was supremely creamy and moisturizing and has the perfect amount of lustre without being too shiny like a gloss. It's perfect and I followed it up with my Urban Decay 24/7 lip pencil in "naked" ($17) to finish it off (I apply my liner on top of my lipstick so that it's not too sharp of a line, and creates a softer look.)

The beauty of this shopping trip though, was that my Jemma Kidd lustrous lipgloss was on sale for only $4!! That's right- I was shocked when I checked out- you can't get Bonne Bell lipgloss for that price! So go get yourself some cheap lipstick that feels expensive!

Oh, and check out my other great find I received last week from Overstock.com (another online retailer I'm a big fan of!)- my killer new black bling watch!! It's a men's black Geneva watch, and is lined in rhinestones and gold, which makes me feel super fab- and it's reeaaally big which I love! Got this gem for only $20 bucks and free shipping. If you're searching for anything, go on Overstock.com and I'll bet you'll find it! From bedding to blingy watches, they've got it all at super prices. And you know JennySue loves some bargains;-)