The Physician’s Formula All-in-1 Custom Nude Palette for Face and Eyes ($15.49 at CVS with $4 Extrabucks back in my location) promises to be a bronzer, blush, highlighter, eyeshadow, and eyeliner. I got very excited about the prospect of only needing tinted moisturizer under eye concealer, this palette, mascara and lipstick/lip liner. This one small palette could replace five products- perfect for travel.

I found this palette to be very low quality. The contour was not blendable, the blush was the wrong color, the highlighter was too heavy, the eyeshadow was passable, and the eyeliner was too light, even after a few applications.

Usually, I love Physician’s Formula, but to say this was disappointing would be an understatement. I plan on returning it and continuing my search for an All-in-1 product.

In this day and age, round brush blowdrying has become ubiquitous. For whatever reason, round brush straightening is not a thing. I find the stereotypical hair straightening process results in too straight hair which only draws attention to split ends or damaged hair. I also think overly straight hair looks severe at times. With round brush straightening, after you straighten, you set the hair with a round brush, resulting in volume and slightly curled ends. While waiting for the hair to set takes time, the results are worth it!

A few weeks ago, I did my sister’s hair using round brush straightening. Her hair looked like it was professionally blowdried. The round brush added volume and her ends were not too straight. Round brush straightening results in shiny, voluminous hair every time. I highly recommend this technique.

Confession: sometimes when I am out at say dinner or a bar, I rub my eyes and my eyeliner/eye makeup smears. I have to find a bathroom and clean it up with a paper towel. Now, with Neutrogena Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes Singles, I will always have a towelette handy. This product is also extremely useful for after the gym, traveling, a hike, work, sleepovers, basically anywhere on the go. The single is so small it can fit in even a very small purse. It is $7.99 for 20 singles at CVS, I recommend it to everyone. It could not be more convenient.

Please comment below if you have tried it.

Picking out lipstick is overwhelming. When I see the rows of tens of lipsticks at the drugstore, I do not know where to begin. The only way to get the right lipstick is to get help from a professional and try out a few colors.

A month ago, I got my makeup done at a Lancome counter. I first let my makeup artist know the lipstick was for an every day look, as opposed to an evening or special occasion. Second, I let my makeup artist know what color family tends to look best (pink, red, nude, berry, coral, etc) and the makeup artist picked a few berry lipsticks. After a few tries, my makeup artist picked out the perfect lip pencil (Lancome Le Crayon Contouring Lip Crayon) and lipstick (Lancome L’Absolu Rouge). Even though lipstick and lip pencil cost $55, with my purchase I received an amazing free gift which includes the following: mascara, mascara primer, an eyeshadow palette, an overnight hydrating mask, a cleanser, a night cream, and sunscreen sample.

In summary, to find the perfect lipstick/lip pencil, I would recommend getting your makeup done at a makeup counter when there is a free gift with purchase. In addition to receiving the perfect lip color, you will have new makeup routine!

Walgreens has a sale on moisturizers. Their Hydrating Antioxidant Moisturizer SPF 30 is on sale for $4.49 for 4 ounces of product. Garnier’s Clearly Brighter Anti-Sun Damage Daily Moisturizer is $17 for 2.5 ounces of product.

Both products have similar ingredients and the same consistency. They absorb into the skin the same way and leave it with the same smoothness. While I have used Garnier’s Clearly Brighter for years, I am going to switch over to the Walgreen’s brand.

I will follow up after I see long term effects- the short term effects are identical for a fraction of the price!

I recently got my makeup done at Lancome. The makeup artist taught me all about products and techniques. He said not to get the Lancome pencil-the NYX Eyebrow Pencil is the best of all time. I immediately bought the pencil.

The NYX Eyebrow pencil comes with a little brush on one end and a pencil on the other end. Trust me, the shape of the pencil is identical to the Tom Ford Brow Sculptor. Both products have similar ingredients. The pencil wears great all day.

The real secret behind perfectly arched, full eyebrows is the technique. Begin by brushing the eyebrow hairs. Next, fill in the thickest part of your brow. Then, draw in the tail. Here is the most critical step: go back and fill in the arch in the direction of the hair (for me, the hair is sideways pointing downwards). This step creates the most beautiful arch.

I can assure you the NYX Eyebrow Pencil beats any expensive brow pencil or product. I have found having perfectly defined and arched brows have not only framed my face, but have given me a polished look.

Comment below if you try out my technique or the product!

To purchase see here:

https://www.amazon.com/NYX-Professional-Makeup-Eyebrow-Pencil/dp/B002S8Z660/ref=sr_1_5?hvadid=78134097816206&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvqmt=e&keywords=nyx+eyebrow+pencil&qid=1566601674&s=gateway&sr=8-5

I work from home full time. After years of using call-in numbers, my company recently bought the software for videoconferencing for remote work meetings. It became apparent my boss wanted to talk with me via videoconference when he moved the meeting invite from a phone number to the Skype site. This posed a real challenge for me: how do I do my makeup for a videoconference?

My first step to videoconference makeup was testing out the camera when I had free time before the meeting. I set up a meeting (with just myself) and enabled the camera to see how I would look. First, I found I had to put my computer on top of a stack of books to get a good angle. Otherwise, I am always looking down. Second, I looked extremely pale and tired, even though I was fine in person.

As for the makeup, I brought all my makeup to my desk and applied it using my desk mirror for consistent lighting.

I found I had to use significantly more makeup for the camera:

-I used significantly more under eye concealer and highlighter to really brighten my under eyes. The dark circles were much more noticeable on camera.

-I needed apply, reapply, and reapply again the blush and contour to get the full effect on camera. One application was not noticeable. The extra blush and contour was not too much- it still looked very natural on camera.

-I did very basic eye: a light eyeshadow with some dimension and shimmer in the center of the lid. I did a thin layer of eyeliner only on the top lid. With the camera, I found I needed a light eyeshadow to brighten my eyes- a dark color would not translate.

-Ordinarily, I wear a gloss- this does not translate well on camera. Instead, I layered a nude with a liquid lipstick and blotted. The slightly darker lip looked natural, yet polished on camera.

As you can see, doing makeup for a videoconference is very different than doing makeup for an in person meeting. I hope this helps you do your makeup the next time you have a videoconference, FaceTime, or Skype!

Comment below if you have tried any of these techniques.

“The future of beauty is here. Bringing virtual reality technology to the beauty industry, Sephora’s makeup app uses facial recognition to empower customers to try on products anywhere. ” Sephora’s Virtual Artist brings technology to the beauty world, with an App, a website, and in store display.

I went shopping with my Mom yesterday at Sephora and we discovered the Sephora Visual Artist (shown above). Unfortunately, the Visual Artist is limited to eyes, lips, and cheeks- it does not show how foundation will look. In addition to product try on, the Visual Artist even shows you tutorials on your own face- the Visual Artist determined my face shape is square and showed me exactly where I need to apply contour and highlight. The best part is you can take a Sephora Selfie and send it to yourself, friends, or family via text message!

Tonight, I uploaded a photo to Visual Artist on the webpage: https://sephoravirtualartist.com/landing_5.0.php?country=US&lang=en&x=23.253.173.143:mfapi-705141-840879-804348&skintone=&currentModel=-1. . Through the App and Webpage, you can try out different brands- the Visual Artist in store only shows Sephora Collection.

I have been trying out new products from the luxury of my bed now for twenty minutes. The Virtual Artist allows me to try on hundreds of colors in minutes. I have always found picking lipsticks challenging. I believe I have found a the perfect pink lipstick I would like to try in store- Lancome 331. I have also found a Sephora Collection Blush palette for $20 that looks promising. These are both products I would not have tried if not for the Virtual Artist.

Sephora Virtual Artist gives women a launching off point for trying new colors and products. While I love trying products on the comfort of my home, I still firmly believe I need to go to the store and try out the products. When I have time tomorrow, I will try out the lipstick and blush palette and report back if the technology works!

After a long day at work yesterday, I needed some retail therapy. As usual, I spent about half an hour browsing the beauty aisle at CVS in hopes of finding a great new product. I was not looking for anything in particular.

In my search, I stumbled across the ELF Eyeliner and Shadow in Smokey. The stick eyeshadow reminds me of the $29 Laura Mercier shadow stick in Tuxedo. The gel eyeliner is surprisingly good for a $4 double use product- it applies similar to the Marc Jacobs Highliner Gel Eye Crayon for $25. What is amazing about this product is you do not need any brushes to create the smokey eye- I just smudged it out with my fingers.

The only disadvantage to this product is that it only offers one color. If you want more dimension or more colors, you will need to use a palette. Pro tip: be careful with the black eyeliner- sometimes I find it looks too heavy and/or severe. You do. not want to over do it.

If you want an inexpensive, no fuss, quick smokey eye, this is your product. I am going to buy the Brown/Taupe color online soon for a day look and will update this post once I have tried it out!

As a disclaimer, I have not bought either of these products. I will buy my sister the Neutrogena color for her color correcting/blush/lip needs when I see her next.

As a Deepica fan, I have been very excited about the Live Tinted Huestick. The Huestick claims to be a first of its kind product that is “an eye, lip, and cheek multistick that also balances out dark circles, dark spots, and hyperpigmentation.” This product is only available online and therefore I am hesitant to buy it, despite the excellent reviews.

I am going to keep it real: this product is essentially a lip crayon for multiple uses. Save your $17: get the Neutrogena Moisture Smooth Colorstick either at CVS/Walgreens/Rite Aid where you can return it if you do not like it!

The following Neutrogena colors align with the Hue Stick:

1. Huestick Origin-deep red- for serious color correcting designed for deeper skin tones. Same as Neutogrena in Classic Red
2. Huestick Rise-coral/orange- for serious color correcting designed for medium skin tones. Same as Neutrogena product in Fresh Papaya
3. Huestick Perk-nude- for lighter skin tones – Same as Neutrogena in Pink Nude

Many other companies make lip crayons- I found the Neutrogena is the most affordable with the same type of consistency and versatility as the Huestick.

Hopefully this saves you money and fills your all in one needs!