Nailed at Night

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Guest Post: Sultry Red Eye Tutorial

Start with a clean face. Apply your foundation, cover-up, powder, etc. If you don't normally wear all or some of that stuff, that's fine. I'm mentioning it because I put it all on for this tutorial and wanted to make sure I included everything! Here is an overview of the products I'm using today.

If you want a great How-to on applying any or all of it the base stuff, Ms. MaskCara on YouTube has awesome tutorials...this one is useful for foundation and “prep”work http://youtu.be/m09CSnQd61Y

The products I've used for foundation and prep are, and in order of application:

1. Boots No7 True Identity Foundation in Light
2. Maybelline SuperStay 24 Correcteur in Light and Deep Beige ~ side note on concealers...I frequently blend 2 colors to achieve a tone that most correctly matches my skin...this is also useful for anyone whose skin varies with even the slightest amount of sun so you don't have to keep going out and buying new products every 5 minutes.
3. L'Oreal MagicLumi Concealer in Light ~ I usually dab this under eyes and on lid, pat around, wait a few seconds, then blend in. Regular concealer can give a very flat non-skin look and this product brings some dewy, reflective quality back so the area looks more natural.
4. Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light ~ I recently found this product at Sephora. It's very expensive, so I don't use it as an every day thing, but it's basically like taking the Blur tool in photoshop and dusting your skin with it! It creates a very soft focus illusion over the skin and I love the effect. Subtle, but amazing.

Then you want to add a little blush and maybe a touch of eyebrow pencil. Keep it very light and soft-handed...this look is about a nice romantic glow effect. We don't want harsh, contoured cheekbones or brows, because that would give this a cartoon-y appearance.

1. I used Wet n Wild Coloricon Blusher in Pearlescent Pink on cheeks
2. I dabbed a TINY bit of a taupe colored eye liner pencil in my brows and smudged the crap out of it just to give a slightly more defined and filled in look. Some people love the drawn on Disney villian eyebrow thing, I can't stand it. I think it ruins every look. Unless Halloween is what you are going for, I can't emphasize enough how important a light hand is for eyebrow fill! *climbs off soapbox*

Ok, so now you want to wash your hands. You're going to use your fingertips to apply the MAIN EVENT and they need to be clean from any previous makeup.

The MAIN EVENT eyecolor is by Maybelline. It's the Color Tattoo 24Hr Eyeshadow (cream) in Pomegranate Punk.

Get some on your clean fingertip. Not a lot, a little goes a long way with this stuff. You can always add more if you want.

Pulling your eyelid taut with one hand, dab the color on it. Smudge the eyecolor around, staying within the confines of your lid. Use a clean finger to clean up the edges and finish it up. It should not extend up onto your browbone unless you have very deep set eyes, then you can extend it up a little ways so it's visible.

Now, using the red crayon...I'm using Tarte LipSurgence in Swank (yes, I use lip pencil on my eyes, eye pencil on my brows...call me crazy, but I like to make my products multi-task. My only caveat is some people might find a lip product irritates their eyes, and I generally swipe the surface with a tissue to clean it before switching between lips, eyes, etc.) Line your upper lid with the red lip crayon, and gently soften it with a clean pinky so it's not a defined line. Soften it in a gentle upwards direction so it merges and blends with the Pomegranate base.

(Before Red line smudged)

(After red line smudged)

Now for the final step, you can simply swipe mascara of your choice and go, or you can apply fake lashes. This is with regular Maybelline Illegal Lengths Waterproof Mascara in Very Black.

And this is with the falsies...(again, I recommend Ms. MaskCara for a How-To for applying falsies...one can be found here... http://youtu.be/KaSajWR25MI)

I used Andrea modLash lashes in Style 21, DUO adhesive, and benefit BAD gal lash mascara.

So, there you have it! Sultry red eyes...Have fun!
~Rebecca L. Fisk~

Guest Post: Ombre Nail Tutorial

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My awesome book blogger buddy Ana @ BeachBumReads joined in on a new Monday meme (themed post) called Manicure Monday. Her ombre mani is gorgeous and I've always wanted to learn how to do it. Ana was kind enough to make us a video of how she did her gorgeous mani and even threw in some birds to complete the look.

Have you tried doing an ombre mani? I'll make sure to do a follow up post when I attempt it!

Tutorial - Konad Nail Stamping

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Several people have asked me how I get the fancy designs on my nails. I've tried to explain it. They usually give me a blank look no matter what I say, or how I gesture. I suppose it's an abstract idea until you see it in action. So here is a tutorial on how I do it. (But you may just be better off searching on YouTube).

The Tools

First you need a few tools to be able to pull this off with any degree of savvy. I may be a designer but I sure as heck can't paint intricate designs on my nails. Especially not the nails on the right hand. That's where image plates, the Konad stamper, and the scraper come in handy. In order of when they're used, here are the "tools" I used to do my nails today.

Finger Paints Polish

Seche Vite Top Coat

Base Coat

I used these first two to do the base coat. The Finger Paints polish is the dark green. And then the Seche Vite hardens/dries the polish faster so I don't have to wait as long before stamping. (P.S. I don't like the Seche Vite as much as Essie's "Good To Go" but I ran out of the Essie. I'm also not a big fan of the Finger Paints polish so I'm not providing a link to it).

Konad Stamp & Scraper

Konad Special White Stamping Polish & a Nail Buffer

Nail Buffer & Special White Polish

I actually used the pink nail buffer to buff my nails to a smooth shine before I polished them but for time's sake, I'm leaving that image out. This works just fine without buffed nails. Beneath the nail buff is the Konad Special White Polish. You can stamp with non-Konad polishes but it's kind of hit or miss on how it comes out. Plus the Konad white is the only white I've found that doesn't require multiple coats (which can't be done with stamping). Whatever you do, do NOT use any polish advertising that it dries quickly.

Konad Stamper and Scraper

The next tools are the Konad double stamper and scraper. These are a MUST.

Image Plate

I used the Bundle Monster image plate BM-215 for this. Specifically the snake skin image there on the right. You can see these are made of metal and the image is etched into the metal.

The Steps

Step 1 - Base Coat

As I mentioned above, I did the base coat with Finger Paint polish and then a fast drying top coat to cut down on the waiting time. Make sure your base coat is completely dry prior to stamping.

Step 2 - Apply Design Polish to Plate

First, be prepared to work FAST. Lay out all your tools ahead of time for easy access. Brush your desired polish over the image plate. Hurry to the next step! Note: If you're using the Konad Special Polish, I've found that you basically have to shake the bottle before each application. This isn't the case with regular polishes.

Step 3 - Scrape Excess

Using the metal scraper, quickly scrape the excess polish away from the design with one stroke if possible. Set the scraper aside.

Step 4 - Grab the image with the Stamper

Next take the stamper. Use the bigger end for whole nail designs or the small end for smaller designs. Place the stamper over the design and press. I've found that the harder you press, the WORSE this works. A quick, light press is generally the best.

Step 5 - Check The Image

Step 6 - Stamp

From one edge to the other (right to left or left to right), roll the stamper over your nail. The design will transfer to the nail.

Step 7 - Clean, Rinse, & Repeat

You'll need to wipe the plate and stamper down with nail polish remover in between each application. I use square cotton make-up pads to do this. I generally also clean the scraper and in between each application with the same square.

Step 8 - Wipe away Excess

If you like, you can dip a cotton swab into nail polish remover to remove any excess stamp design that may have transfered to your skin. I set the swab down on the excess, let it sit for a few seconds and then gently roll it.

Finished Designs

Here is the finished product. The left hand is the snake skin from the tutorial. On my right hand I did several other designs from other Bundle Monster image plates.

And that's how it's done. I hope you enjoyed this!

Beauty Tutorial Tested (sort of): faux French Manicure

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I'm so excited about this one that I can't even wait until I've cleaned the excess off my fingers before showing you my chubby digits (see left). So, uh, pardon the lil gunk around the edges there. Later they'll look better.

The Premise

So yesterday I announced to my in-house editor that I needed to find some sort of template for my nails so I could create the faux French manicure look I've seen popping up all over the place. I considered cutting semi-circles in cardboard, magazine pages, plastic sheeting, all sorts of ridiculous things -- but figured none of it would work in the end. He was kind enough to look up some things on the Internet for me. While we didn't find an answer for this, we found some other things to try when I got a chunk of disposable income. I'm sure I'll post about that some other time.

The Fix

Then my new Internet love, Pinterest, gave me the answer this morning! Self-adhesive reinforcements, the kind you buy at the office supply shop to fix those broken holes in pages you stick into three-ring binders serve as the template on your nail. It's so brilliantly simple...and best of all, cheap! And I'd just happened to find a box of them while cleaning out an old desk last weekend.

The How-to

Paint your whole nail with one color (I used Wet n Wild's Fast Dry "Teal or no Teal" because its cheap and pretty).
Let it fully dry. (15mins or so. This is important so that you're not peeling up your color.)
Apply reinforcement stickers to the nail at your preferred height.
Paint the upper portion (or lower portion if you want to create the classy half moon look). (I used Wet n Wild's Fast Dry "Sage in the City").
Let it set.
Carefully peel the sticker and then apply a top coat. Voila!

Check out the beautiful tutorial & images over at The Beauty Department blog, my inspiration for this. Also you can hit me up for an invite to Pinterest (send me your e-mail address).

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