Beauty Tip: Toothpaste Zaps Pimples

You've heard it before — don't pop your zits! I suggest applying a bit of toothpaste to a pimple before bed and washing it off with warm water when you wake up in the morning. They say that toothpastes draws impurities out of clogged pores and dries the skin with shrinks the pimple. Opt for organic toothpastes rather than gel toothpastes which don't work as well.

Beauty Quiz: Find Your Signature Lip Gloss

My list of guilty pleasures runs the gamut from the tame to the wild. Taking beauty quizzes falls somewhere between eating cronuts for breakfast three days in a row to wearing glitter eyeliner during the daytime. Assuming your vices are similar, I'm presenting a highly scientific quiz today to help you find your signature lip color. Read through and tell me your answers – no need to feel an ounce of guilt afterwards.

1. On a Saturday night, you’ll most likely be found:

A) Getting cocktails at your favorite spot

B) Relaxing on the couch with a glass of wine and magazine

C) Shopping with girlfriends, of course

D) Who knows – your Saturdays are never the same

E) Checking out the buzzed-about secret speakeasy that just opened

2. Your favorite style of handbag is:

A) A timeless tote bag

B) A versatile cross-body

C) A cute satchel

D) Anything with studs or tassels

E) A sleek envelope clutch

3. When you go out, you feel prettiest wearing:

A) A LBD

B) Your favorite vintage dress

C) A lace dress and pumps

D) A patterned top and flirty swing skirt

E) Leather leggings

4. You tend to date men who:

A) Are courteous and gentlemanly

B) Are easygoing

C) Treat you like a queen

D) Can make you laugh easily

E) Introduce you to new things

5. Your nails are usually:

A) Red, gray or navy

B) Bare

C) Sporting a French manicure

D) Bold and bright

E) Flaunting a half-moon or textured mani

6. You like to start your mornings off with:

A) Eggs and toast

B) Oatmeal or a bran muffin

C) A yogurt parfait

D) Last night’s leftovers

E) A green juice

7. Your fashion icon is:

A) Marilyn Monroe

B) Alexa Chung

C) Audrey Hepburn

D) Zooey Deschanel

E) Victoria Beckham

8. Your guilty pleasure:

A) Champagne

B) 2AM carb overload

C) Chocolate

D) Wearing leggings as pants

E) Staying out until the sun rises

9. The artist you can never get tired of listening to:

A) Mozart

B) Fleetwood Mac

C) Katy Perry

D) Spice Girls

E) Solange Knowles

10. The most–read book on your bookshelf is:

A) Gone With the Wind

B) A Lonely Planet Guidebook

C) Martha Stewart’s Entertaining: A Year of Celebrations

D) Fifty Shades of Grey

E) Anything by Haruki Murakami

Results:

Mostly A’s: Red

Classic, sophisticated and timeless – your signature lip color is red. You stick to what you know works, and know you’ll look fabulous doing it. Crazy trends and diet fads? You’ll pass. But heaven forbid people mistake you for a square – you’re not afraid to go bold for the right time and occasion.

Product pick: Younique Lucrative Lip Gloss in Lucky

Mostly B’s: Nude

Down to earth and low maintenance, you’re the peacemaker among your group of friends and the one your girlfriends call when they need to vent. You would rather explore a new hiking trail than stand hours waiting in line at a designer sample sale, but you know how to knock ‘em dead when the occasion arises. After all, we all know the best pairing for a nude lip is a sexy smoky eye…

Product pick: Younique Lucrative Lip Gloss in Livid

Mostly C’s: Pink

Your wardrobe is filled with feminine, romantic frocks and a string of pearls is your most-worn accessory. On a weekend, you can be found sipping mimosas at brunch with your best girlfriends or shopping for dresses at the cute boutique on the corner. You have a weakness for sparkly things and nothing sends your heart aflutter more than flowers and a perfectly penned note from a secret admirer. That, or diamond earrings.

Product pick: Younique Lucrative Lip Gloss in Loveable

Mostly D’s: Coral

Sassy, irreverent and quirky – coral is your lipstick color of choice. While others may shy away from the unknown, you’re always up for anything and know not to take life too seriously. Your friends might know you as the one who’s always running late, but once you arrive, you’re the life of the party.  The key to your heart? Anything (or anyone) who can make you laugh.

Product pick: Younique Lucrative Lip Gloss in Ladylike

Mostly E’s: Plum

Getting voted “Most Stylish” in high school was just the start of your fashion trailblazing ways. You count Vogue as your Bible and start every morning with a cup of green juice in hand, clicking through all your favorite fashion blogs. While others admire trends from afar, you’re always the first to rock them in person. You jumped on the ombré obsession first and you cheered when Radiant Orchid was deemed the Pantone Color of the Year – mainly because you’ve been rocking purple lips for years already.

Product pick: Younique Lucrative Lip Gloss in Lucky

DIY Nails: Caviar-Encrusted Tips

Every now and then I crave a little bit of decadence. Sure, diamonds would be nice but gem-encrusted fingertips are a bit more affordable. Lucky for us girls on a budget, Essie is in favor of this exact type of opulence. Thanks to the new Encrusted Treasures collection, my nails are getting accustomed to the finer things in life…Someone pass the caviar, I've suddenly developed a taste for luxury.

Supplies

• Essie First Base
• Tape
• Essie Parka Perfect
• Essie Lots of Lux
• Essie On a Silver Platter

Directions

1. Paint your base. Apply base coat and two coats of your base nail color. Allow to dry.
2. Tape one tip. Take a piece of tape and place it diagonally across one side of your nail. Paint the exposed area with textured polish.
3. Remove. Carefully peel back the tape before allowing the polish to dry.
4. Repeat. Move on to the next nail, alternating polishes however you see fit.

Do the Matte

When the matte lip trend first emerged, I was a bit skeptical. I had grown close with my collection of glosses, lacquers and balms and I'm reluctant to consider another option – especially one that had the potential to make our lips look parched and flaky.  But I gave it a chance – and I'm so glad I did (a matte red lip has become a staple for our Friday night outings). So when I first heard about the resurgence of matte eye shadow, I pushed my doubts aside (“It’s boring!” “Why go matte when you can have shimmer or sparkle?” “It’ll make me look like grandma!”) and tried to give it a whirl. I created two completely different, wearable, totally-opposite-of-grandma look – and I have to say, I'm kind of in love. Read on for directions…

Light

1.) I first created a smooth base for the look by applying a foundation over your face with a beauty sponge  (I love BB Flawless Complexion Enhancer).

2.) Try to create soft frames for this matte look by using Kevin Auicon The Precision Brow Pencil.

3.) Now onto the eyes! Dust a matte off-white eye shadow like Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Innocent from lash line up to your crease. Then, take a matte taupe shadow, create a V-shape from the outside of the eye and blended it halfway into crease along the socket.

4.) To accentuate the eye shape, blend the matte off-white shadow along the lash line with a thin eye shadow brush.

5.) Back to taupe – take the matte taupe shadow and line the lower lash line with it.

6.) Finish off this gorgeous, natural matte eye shadow look with a swipe of lengthening mascara like 3D Fiber Lashes

7.) To keep the look simple and light, line lips with a nude liner and filled them in with Lucrative Lip Gloss in Livid.

Dramatic

1.) For those of you who like your eye shadow a bit more dramatic, I've got you covered.  Building on the look above, Take a dark brown matte eye shadow like Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Infatuated, swept it along lower lash line and blended it out with a flat eyeliner brush.

2.) Using the same color, apply it to the upper inner corner of each eye, extending and blending it along the crease.

3.) Take Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Beautiful, a light brown matte shadow and blend it all along the lid and the lower lash line.

4.) To finish off this sultry look, apply Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Corrupted to bottom and upper waterline. For extra oomph, trace a thin line along upper lid to give a smoky effect.

And there you have it – two fun, modern ways to wear matte eye shadow!

Do's and Don'ts of Liquid Eyeliner

Liquid liner is THE makeup essential. The good news: one sweep along the lash line and your makeup look is nearly complete. The not-so-good news: it’s a littttttle tricky. And for that reason, we’re breaking down some critical do’s and don’ts.

DO pair black liquid liner with a red lip, flawless skin and nothing else for instant and effortless beauty.

DON’T pair a strong and precise liquid liner look with a heavy smoky eye. The two effects are too competitive with each other.

DO apply liquid liner THISCLOSE to the lash line in small dashes. Go over the dashed line again in a fluid motion to smooth the line, then build up the line if you want more impact or are creating a specific shape (hello, cateye).

DON’T keep piling on more liner to mask imperfections. Instead, if you mess up, clean and perfect the line using a cotton swab dipped in makeup remover.

DO follow the curve from the lower lashline when extending liner up and out to create a cat-eye.

DON’T go out imbalanced. Check that your eyes are symmetrical. Note: one side will inevitably be easier than the other. Work to make the hard side look like the easy side.

DO choose a jet black liner for a classic look, chocolate brown or slate grey for a soft look and a bright color for a seasonal/trendy look.

DON’T use a bright color liquid unless the rest of the face is neutral.

DO use a small synthetic brush with concealer on it to edge out the perfect eyeliner shape and detail a creative shape.

DON’T run liquid liner on or along the lower lashline or in the tearline. Use pencil liner for that.

DO layer on the mascara to really pop the eye as a final step after liquid liner.

DON’T apply other eye makeup until the liquid liner has completely dried.

Brown Eye Makeup Tutorial

Brown is one of those colors that, for some reason or other, usually gets overlooked in the beauty world. Sure, it’s versatile and a great daytime hue, but it’s certainly not considered the most exciting – especially when we have colors like radiant orchid, navy and burgundy to play around with. But perhaps there’s more to brown than we know. Perhaps brown has the hidden potential to actually be…exciting? This tutorial will teach you to create a dramatic, seductive, double take-worthy brown eye makeup look – the opposite of “boring” in every way. The result? Let’s just say we’re never putting baby in a corner ever again.

Shimmery Base: Wash the eyelid with a soft, shimmery golden hue like Moodstruck Minerals Concealer in Foxy (this versatile powder is the same one used to warm up your face in the final step).

Add Dimension: Apply a cool brown eye shadow with a hint of shimmer (try Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Confident) along your socket to add a touch of smokiness. To create even more dimension, add a warm champagne shimmer like Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Powder in Heart Broken in the inner corner of your eyes and in the center of your lid. Blend with an eye shadow brush.

Liner + Mascara: Sweep a black eyeliner as close to the lash line as possible, then swipe on the best mascara 3D Fiber Lashes for full, look-at-me lashes.

For the final touch, dust on a warm, glowy powder like Moodstruck Minerals Concealer in Foxy across your cheeks, down your nose and across your forehead. You glow, girl!

Quick Tip: Tame Unruly Eyebrows

Spritz an old toothbrush or a clean mascara wand with hairspray, then brush brows and style them as desired. Even the most hard to tame brows will fall in line with this trick.