Friday, January 27, 2012

*Friday Favorites*

This is my first blog containing my Friday Favorites - where I will post around 5 of my favorite things that I want to share with you! Most of them will be beauty products, but I may throw in something else that I love...Enjoy!


1. Bliss - fatgirlslim

As Bliss calls it - A lean, mean, skin firming cream!  Which is exactly what it is! One of the ingredients in caffeine and it helps reduce the signs of sagging skin or cellulite. You apply it to where you need it and vuala! You will notice a difference in a couple of weeks, but if you start now you'll be ready for bathing suit season! Woohoo! $32-$108 - sold at Sephora & blissword.com


2. Dr. Perricone - No Foundation Foundation
An advanced anti-aging translucent foundation. Makes the skin look dewy and flawless, while also fighting against signs of aging as you wear it! Can you get better than that? It has SPF 30 for your sun protection and is great for every day! Its light formula makes it feel like you aren't wearing any product at all! $55 - sold at Sephora & perriconemd.com



3.  Santa Maria Novella - Eau de Cologne
My absolute favorite being Mughetto (Lily of the Valley), but Santa Maria Novella has over 50 different scents (lavender, rose, honeysuckle - just to name a few). Just a drop, and the scent will last all day! I purchased this in Venice years ago, but Lafco in NYC has all  of their products, soaps, talc powders, etc. $125 - sold at lafcony.com & select stores in Italy


4. XFusion - Keratin Fibers
This little bottle of keratin fibers comes in nine colors to match your hair color and makes your hair look instantly thicker and fuller. I love using it when I am styling the hair and leave a part in one area - I lightly tap some XFusion on the part so it doesn't stand out too much. Many people use XFusion if their hair is thinning and they want it to look fuller. Great product for anyone! Price varies, check at your local salon (I can purchase for you if you are interested)


5. Vintage Bottles as Vases


OK so this is not beauty related at all - but isn't it gorgeous!? I absolutely love this look! You may already have bottles similar to this, but they are definitely something you can find cheaper at tag sales or antique stores. Extremely girly and whimsical - love it and had to share!


Hope you enjoyed my first of many *Friday Favorites*!
Please comment below if there is something you want me to write about! xoxo!





Saturday, January 21, 2012

Customized Lip Stain...Easy as 1-2-3 - Thanks to #BGTutorial

Lip Stain's are all the rage when spring is around the corner. They pop up in every magazine's beauty section. However, when you purchase a lip stain from a company, sometimes it stays on too long. I mean, you want your lips to stay a color for an evening out, but necessarily through showering and breakfast the next day!

Bergdorf Goodman created these simple steps letting you take a lipstick you love and create a lip stain that will last a few hours!


What You Need:

* (BG Recommends) Hourglass Femme Rouge in Nocturnal

 * A Foundation/Blush Brush (Hourglass # 2 shown below)
* A Smudge Brush (Hourglass # 11 shown below)
* a tissue
* loose transparent setting powder


1. Apply lipstick onto brush #2.

2. Dab lipstick onto lips with lip brush.

3. Using a small square of tissue, press issue to lips. The tissue should adhere.

4. Next dust tissue (while still on lips) with loose transparent setting powder and brush #10. This transfers the lipstick to the paper and creates the stain.

5. Remove tissue paper.

6. Voila! Your lip stain is set and will last for hours!


Check it out at Bergdorf Goodman's Site

Monday, January 16, 2012

Be Beauty Product Saavy - Just Because it's Pretty, Doesn't Mean You Need it!

*Sorry it's been a while since I posted...was trying to think of something different to blog about =)


There are so many products that are created for the sole purposes that you, as a consumer, purchase them - however, they aren't necessarily useful in any sense.


I have chosen a couple examples below of products where the brand went to another level in either packaging or how the product looks, to make it seem worthwhile for you to buy it.

Dior's Limited Edition Anselm Reyle Palette ($110)


It's a purple, gray and black camouflage patterned eye shadow.
Is that necessary for anyone? Nope...especially since it's $110!

There is no way to use only one color in this palette, so you'd have to mix them all together on your brush before applying to your eye lid. The color will be a dark gray tone that has a hint of purple. As much as it is a beautiful and a fun looking palette, it's completely unnecessary. Not saying that I don't want one, I do - if I had $110 to throw in the garbage I would possibly spend it on this compact, actually I probably wouldn't.  :)

You can get the same color by mixing a few less expensive colors together that you probably already have (purple, gray and black) OR you can purchase a color that will have a similar effect, such as MAC's Trax or Satellite Dreams (and those are only $15!).

The problem with many company's is that they already have all the products that are available, so they decide to create a new looking product with a new name, that will achieve the same result.

For example, face shimmers. There are only so many face shimmers that a company can create before they start using different packaging and different names to mask the fact that you bought the same shimmer four times (which you will notice you bought once you're going through your makeup at a later date, ugh how annoying?!)

Bobbi Brown's Shimmer Bricks ($40) are super popular, and have been mimicked by many other brands.

As usual, there is too much of a good thing. Bobbi Brown's bricks come in a variety of shades so that you can use one as a bronzer, and one as a highlighter, or over bronzer, or in addition to blush, etc! But, as you'd expect, they decided to create a new shimmer compact limited for the holidays - their Party Shimmer Brick ($40). It's a compact that has gold shimmer on one side and silver on the other and has the imprints of a drink shaker and a martini glass - to make it fun, which it is! However once you use it, the color is extremely similar to their Beige Shimmer Brick that is in their regular makeup line. Now, if you don't already own their beige shimmer brick, but you happen to love shimmer like I do - I'm sure you own a compact that can replicate the color.

The MOST common product that is purchased in the same tones and colors from different brands is lip gloss. Oh, stop it, you know it is true! If you have a lip gloss color you like, you probably own it in atleast 3 different brands - maybe each is a different price point? I knew it!

I don't even need photos to prove this point, and company's don't even need to change the packaging to get consumers to purchase colors that are almost exactly the same. You do this all on your own.

You find a color in a department store you love, now all you do (without even realizing it) is look for other brands that have the same color, and you purchase those too! You probably didn't even finish the first one you purchased; you probably didn't happen to lose it either - it is right in your bag - you most likely take it out and compare it to the one at the store to make sure they are similar, then you make your purchase. You are happy for a day, and then you realize that you just spent $15-$30 on a lip gloss that looks exactly like the one you already purchased a month ago. Oh dear. It's ok. I do it too.

The more variety a brand has with colors, the more likely they will have colors that are very similar to each other. To save money and be product saavy, purchase what you need and will use. Remember products do eventually go bad - yes even powders and glosses go bad - you don't want to overpurchase just to throw it away down the road.



**Please comment or email me at makeupbyheathera@gmail.com if you have a topic you'd like me to write about or have any specific questions! I would love to know what you'd like to hear! Thanks for following! xo!





Monday, January 2, 2012

2012: Lets Toast to a New Year!

I hope everyone had a fantastic beginning to 2012!

Health and Happiness to All!!!





New posts will be coming shortly.... xoxo!