A vitamin by any other name...

I've had some requests to discuss retinols. Since you can't really do the Reader's Digest version of this, it's going to be a multi-day blogging process. So, I'll start by saying this; Retinols are a derivative of Vitamin A. They do multiple things, but the 2 that they are know for is cell exfoliation and repair and regeneration of collagen. Both things make for creating younger looking skin. The trick is to find the right retinol for you. What is your skin type? How sensitive is it?

These are some of the questions I'll be going over in the next few days and making my recommendations from there.

Oh, and I wouldn't leave you without a tip for today. When you're applying your undereye moisturizer in the morning, be sure that it's not a heavy cream (you should be using a gel) and that it's completely absorbed before you start applying any kind of makeup. Otherwise, all that hard work you put into your eyeliner and mascara and undereye concealer is just going to be sliding down your face before you know it.

Quick tip today

If you are using ANY kind of anti-acne product on your face, absolutely positively avoid your eye area and lip area. These areas are prone to dryness anyway and adding a drying product can do some damage. So, I put my undereye moisturizer on first, then apply my benzoyl peroxide moisturizer to the rest of my face.

Get thee to Hautelook!

www.hautelook.com is having a great sale on 2 of my favorite beauty brands! Butter London nail polish and 3 Color Custom Cosmetics! The prices are fantastic so jump on it NOW! Not a member of Hautelook yet? Send me an e-mail to toobeautylicious@yahoo.com and I'll send you an invite. But, act fast! These sales are only on for 48 hours!

I need my makeup to last all day! Help!

There are a lot of occasions when you're literally going to be out of your house ALL DAY. And, you need to look clean and polished all day. How can you make your makeup last?

The easiest answer for that is layering. Whate exactly do I mean? Well, you all know how much I love primer. Even if you're not going to use primer, make sure that you have a skin appropriate moisturizer on (oil absorbing, ultra moisturizing, etc.). Then, after the primer or moisturizer dries, apply your foundation and/or concealer.

When your face is nice and evenly covered, time to move onto your cheeks. This is one of my favorite tips- use either a cream blush or a cheek stain and blend into the apples of cheeks. When that is done, then lightly dust powder blush on top and along your cheekbone!

Same thing goes for eyes- you can either apply a very light layer of concealer or an eyelid primer to your lids to keep that eyeshadow firmly in place. And honestly, if you want mascara that's going to stick around all day, go for waterproof.

Just a gentle reminder from your beauty guru

I genuinely hope that wherever you live, you are experiencing the GLORIOUS weather that we are having in my neck of the woods. The plan is to be outside as much as possible this weekend. Should your plans sound a lot like ours, please remember that you have to first and foremost take care of your skin. Slap on a layer of sunscreen and feel good knowing that you are protecting yourself from so much harmful stuff. And this means ladies of ALL skin tones. At the very least, you're slowing down the aging effect the sun can have on you. At the most, you're staving off skin cancer!

The good news is that there are so many options out there for all skin types. I will be using a "dry touch" type on my oily skin. I can honestly say that Neutrogena has some of the best sunscreens on the market. They are recommended time and time again by dermatologists and are affordable and accessible. So, run, don't walk, to the drugstore tonight on your way home and grab a tube. Then, you've got some for all the lovely warm weekends ahead!

Get thee to...

http://www.eyeslipsface.com/ because their entire line of "SugarKiss" products is 75% off with the code "EGSK75". Just pick out a minimum of $15 worth of products, stick them in the cart, and voila! Insta-savings with your code.

Spring polish

4 days until spring...4 days until spring...

I just keep repeating that to myself. Like a little mantra. Of course, a visual always helps, too. I am looking down at my perfectly polished lavender nails and that is certainly helping. Lavender polish is popping up everywhere from magazines to runways for THE spring nail color. The good thing is that you can only apply one coat for a sheer, sweet, pastel look. Or apply 2 -3 coats for a more intense pop of color. Some shades that I love?

Essie- Lilacism

Essie- Neo Whimsical

OPI for Sephora- Handpicked for Me

OPI for Sephora- Call Your Mother (this would look great on darker skin tones)

OPI Hong Kong Collection- Meet Me on the Star Ferry

Orly- Lollipop

Orly- Bonbon

Soooo pretty!!!

It really is purr-fect!

Go to http://www.stilacosmetics.com/ right now. Go to the "What's New" section. IMMEDIATELY purchase the "A Pair of Kittens" set! First of all, the eyeshadow and the lip gloss literally look good on EVERYONE! It's this cool goldy-pinky-beigey color that somehow also manages to look different on everyone. I wear the Kitten lip gloss all the time. It just literally goes with anything.

Did I mention that it's only $16 for the set? That's ridiculous. So, you have no excuse not to get a jump start on your spring makeup!

Kind of a cool little extra

This might not be quite as much of a beauty tip as just an accessorizing tip. Spring is sllllooooooowllyyy crawling towards us. The temperature may not say so, but I promise- it's on the way. A fun thing to try to feel a little more springy? Tie a vintage scarf in your hair, either as a headband or a head wrap or tied around your ponytail. The best news? You can get vintage scarves in antiques stores, at yard sales, and on Ebay! That means it will be a nice little shot in the arm for your look without breaking the bank.

Happy Friday, lovely ladies!

And I am WHIPPED UP today! I just got this great coupon code for Smashbox Cosmetics. (Did y'all know Smashbox was started by Max Factor's grandsons? True story!) Anywho, if you enter the code "nextsbx" at checkout, you're going to get 20% off your total order and free shipping. Did I also mention that you get 3 jumbo sized samples and a regular sample sized item at checkout? WHAT? That's crazy!! Go to http://www.smashbox.com/ and take a gander. I'd recommend perusing the "last call" section. It's items they aren't making anymore and most of them are 50% off or more!

Make it stick

Do you like darker eye shadows? Eye shadows with sparkle? But don't particularly like it when they travel during the day to under and around your eyes? Good news- M.A.C. makes this cool stuff called Prep and Prime Eye. This light cream can be applied all over the eyelid to even out skin tone and help hold your makeup in place. My favorite use is to apply it after I've put on my eyeliner and mascara. I wait till all that is dry and then apply a very light layer to each lid with my pinky. Then, I use a little sponge applicator if my shadow is particularly dark or sparkly or a small brush if it's not quite as dicey. The result? A more dramatic look that stays on for the long haul.

An oldie but a goodie

Yesterday I was digging through my eyeliners trying to decide which one I was going to use. How happy was I that I stumbled upon my Ulta Waterproof Automatic Eyeliner??? Um, VERY! Here's the deal- I am ROUGH on eye makeup. Even the best eyeliners tend to fade on me by the end of the day. But this stuff was fantastic. I used this never-needs-a-sharpener pencil on my upper and lower lids and it stayed all day! Even under my eyes which is usually gone in about an hour.

Want to know the best part? When I washed my face, it came right off! No extra eye makeup remover required. So, get thee to http://www.ulta.com/ and go the Ulta Brand section to their eye makeup. All the color options are great and so wearable.

I'm such a sucker

Ooohhhhh, there are few things I love better than a tee-tiny fabulous print. If it's a floral print, even better. If it's a retro floral tee-tiny print, forget it. I'm done. Hence why I LOVE M.A.C.'s newest line where they've paired up with the uber-cute Liberty of London (see the lipstick above. How cute is that case????). http://www.maccosmetics.com/ The colors are so 1960's perfect, but very wearable. The good thing is that they offer very soft neutral shades for those who like to stay on the safe side. For people like yours truly, there are some "notice me" colors, too!!!

Too recommends the following from the collection:

Tinted Lipglass in Perennial High Style

Lipstick in Peachstock

Eye Shadow in Bough Grey

Nail Laquer in Blue India

Monday tips

Hello lovely readers. Did we all watch the Oscars last night? Wow! Lots to see and think about.

A few Monday goodies- You can save 15% on all skincare at http://www.philosophy.com/ with the code "skincare15". I recommend the Purity Made Simple face wash or The Micro-Delivery Weekly Peel.

Ulta will give you 2 free Urban Decay eye pencils with any $20 Urban Decay purchase on http://www.ulta.com/. Loving that!

Sephora has these super cool headbands made from wig hair (see above photo). It's a great way to pull your hair back and have it look really natural and sort of hippie-chic. They come in a pretty big range of colors and are affordable. I think they are a great addition to any spring wardrobe! Go to www.sephora.com to the Sephora Brand section and look under the 2010 Hair Trends section!

Orly

Who knows what that is? Anyone? Orly?

Well, if you answered a pretty cool nail polish brand, you are correct. These guys make a great product that is free of the 3 bad guys (DBP, Formaldehyde, and Toluene). The quality is right up there with OPI and Essie and they have some unreal colors!! Check out their website at http://www.orlybeauty.com/. The best part about this brand- you can get it at any Sally Beauty Supply! You can also get them at drugstore.com. I recommend the following colors: Glam Rock, Ginger Lily, Wandering Vine, and Pixie Dust!!

Multi-tasking

I'm pretty much sure that if you are a female reading this, you have mastered the art of multi-tasking. We all do it. We all HAVE to do it. Otherwise, we'd get no sleep. Not that we're probably getting that much of it, anyway.

I digress. Why would you not buy products that multi-task as well? You know, so that you can save a step (or 5) and maybe have 5 seconds for yourself!!!

Some of my favorite multi-taskers are:
1. Tinted moisturizers or foundations with SPF
2. Moisturizers with SPF or anti-aging qualities
3. Body lotion with SPF
4. Lip balms/glosses/sticks with SPF
5. Concealers that hide blemishes and help heal them because they have salicylic acid or other zit drying ingredients.
6. Body Lotion that contains self-tanner
7. A shampoo/conditioner/body wash
8. Body soap/wash that has an added exfoliant

Any of these sound like they'd make a difference in your daily life? The next time you're in the market for a beauty product staple, make sure you find something that can pull double or even triple duty. It will save you time in the long run and make life just a tad bit easier.

PS- Interested in any of the above products? Leave a comment or send me an e-mail at toobeautylicious@yahoo.com and I can tell you where to find any of them!

Let's break it down

I read articles all the time about how to figure out if you should buy high end fashion. For instance, if you find a coat that you love that's $500, you need to think about how many times you're going to wear it to decide if it's worth the money or "affordable", if you will. The math goes like this- The coat is $500. But, if you are planning on wearing said coat an average of 20 times in a month, that coat will cost you $25 each time you wear it in that month. But, if you live where it's cold and you're going to wear that coat 3 or 4 months, that's only $6-$8 each time you wear it. So, you pack your lunch the days you wear your coat and eventually, you break even. See how the math works?

Anywho- the same can be said for beauty products. Sometimes, we can be tempted to buy a more high end product. Just apply the same logic. Is this something that you're going to wear/use everyday? Or is this something that you're specifically buying for an evening out or something like that? If I am going to buy a bottle of foundation that costs $30, but I'm going to wear it 30 days of the month and a bottle lasts me 3 months, that's 33 cents a day. TOTALLY affordable and justifiable. But, if I buy a $20 lip gloss specifically for a party and I'm not really planning on wearing it many more times, that's definitely more expensive in the long wrong.

So, the next time that you're in the market for a beauty product, just think about how often you're going to wear it when you're weighing out if it's worth the cost. In today's economy, it never hurts to do a little extra work to be sure that you're getting the most bang for your buck!

Well, isn't that cool?

I'm sure most of you have heard of Biore. You know- they pioneered making those nose strips that we all used in the late 90's to get rid of our blackheads. Well, they also have an entire skin care line. And I just heard about their new "Steam Activated Cleanser." This stuff sounds so cool! It actually uses the steam from your shower to help get all the gunk out of your pores! Makeup, dirt, oil, whatever! The steam actually helps provide a deeper clean. This would be great for someone who regularly works out and takes a shower either at the gym or at night. That way, you can get rid of your makeup and workout sweat in one fell swoop.

The good news? It's available at local drugstores/super stores/grocery stores. Or, you can get it at drugstore.com The better news? It's like $7-$8. Thank you affordability!!