The Macy's Glamorama Report from Fab Over 40's Kari (And Starring Our Very Own Alex Sanchez!)

Have any of you been to a Macy's Glamorama event? It's a fun mix of fashion shows, beauty events and more that take place in Minneapolis, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. (The SF and LA shows are taking place in September.) Each fashion show benefits a different charity, from the Children's Cancer Research Fund to local HIV/AIDS organizations. One of our favorite bloggers, Kari at Fab Over 40, took part in the festivities in Minneapolis and filed several reports. You can check out the fun fashions worn by the attendees and see the backstage action, led by makeup artist Alex Sanchez.



Alex, as many of you know, is one of our national makeup artists and an amazing person who gives a lot of time to charitable causes. He did some makeup sessions as part of the Glamorama festivities and taught a class that Kari was able to attend. She got her makeup done and picked up some good tips. (Kari, love your hair by the way!) She shares them on her blog, but here are two of my favorites:



When applying blush, use a flat-tipped brush and tap the blush in 3 places along your cheek and then blend. This of course after tapping out the blush in your hand first. [KD: This is a great tip. I wish I had known this years ago. This will prevent all your blush being concentrated in one place.]



Apply mascara BEFORE liner. I’ve never tried this one before. If you apply your mascara first, you need less liner. And of course no pulling your eye to get a straight line. Look at a mirror placed below your eye and dab the liner between lashes. [KD: Never thought of this either! I always thought liner then mascara for some reason. I'll have to give it a try.]



Thanks to Kari for letting me use the pictures above. Make sure to check out her blog. She's always got great product info and some fun giveaways.



Have a great weekend. Talk to you next week!

Eve Asked, We Answered: How to Get Arlenis's Blush Look. And Who Won the Arlenis Giveaway?

Blog reader Eve asked about Arlenis's blush in the picture from the Arlenis makeup.com interview post earlier this week. (The picture is a behind-the-scenes shot from the new Teint Idole Fresh Wear ad.) Alex Sanchez, one of our amazing national makeup artists whom you might recognize from the videos he did with Arlenis (that's them above, obviously!), provided a step-by-step guide to getting the look. If anyone has followup questions, just leave them as a comment and I'll get Alex to answer. As for the winner of the Arlenis product giveaway...congratulations to Poley! Check your inbox for an email from me. Thanks to everyone who left a comment.



From Alex:



In the Arlenis photo, her glowing skin is the focus. To make the fabulous contours of her cheekbone pop, a highligher and a deeper countouring blush was used.



Highligher

No need to purchase a separate highligher when you can use eyshadow to achieve a similar effect. With Large Eyeshadow Brush #17, use a touch of pink, peach or golden pearlized shadow (according to skintone) to brighten the area around eyes.



Fair complexions--use Color Design Eyeshadow in Gaze

Medium complexions--use Color Design Eyeshadow in Vue

Dark Complexions--use Color Design Eyeshadow in Bikini Golden



Apply the shadow in a C-pattern on the high planes of the face with the #17 brush.



Bonus Tip: You can also apply the highlight down the center of the nose to refine the shape and touch just above the cupid's bow of the mouth to create a fuller, more sensuous lip contour. Just remember a little product goes a long way and as with all professional makeup...blend, blend, blend.



Contouring Blush

In the photo, Blush Subtil in Bronzed Rose was used.



To recreate the look on fairer skins, you can use your bronzer as a contouring blush. Just make sure that you use a matte bronzer to achieve the most depth. Tap the bronzer into the hollows of the cheek with Precision Cheek Brush #8 [Kerry's note: My favorite brush ever!] for a chiseled cheek.



Bonus Tip: To recreate the chic neutral monochromatic effect that Arlenis has you can use your bronzer on your eyes as eyeshadow.

A Bottle of "Trésor In Love" Goes To...? And Beauty Bye-Bye Alert: Color Design Blush :(

Let's start with the bad news. Color Design Cream Blush is being discontinued. As a big fan of CD blush in Petticoat Pink, I'm very sad. I know there are tons of fans for this shade, and for the Freeze Frame highlighter shade. Especially among makeup artists. And our MUA Alex Sanchez did such a beautiful job with the Model Mocha shade layered under powder blush in the Arlenis "Chic Cheeks" video they did together (above, but watch on YouTube! The right side of the video is cut off for some reason on the blog...). The CD blush and our foundation brush are two of my favorite beauty duos. They were like magic together. Sigh.



So if you love CD blush and you're near a Lancôme counter, stock up! You've been warned. The good news? When we discontinue something, it usually means something even better is on the way, so stay tuned.



I know a lot of you live in fear of your favorite products being discontinued because you've said so in the blog comments. The lancome-usa.com website has a handy tool called "Beauty Bye-Bye" that tips you off to things that are limited edition and almost sold out, or discontinued. Another thing to look for on any product page is a sentence that says "last call item." I hope that's helpful.



Much better news? The winner of our Trésor in Love giveaway is...Mel! Congrats, Mel. You'll be smelling sweet in no time. Please check your email. Thanks to everyone who commented. I'm happy to so many of you like theTrésor in Love ad. It's really charming, thanks to Miss Elettra. And Toussled Kitten, hope your neck is better!