Lorac

Lorac Cosmetics founder Carol Shaw created Nicole Kidman's Grammy Awards makeup look, and now she's given us a complete breakdown of what she used. So to find out more, just keep reading.

Bronzer can be a great asset, but it's also a tricky beast. We've done stories before on selecting bronzer for deep, medium, and fair skin tones, but once you've actually got a compact with the right shade in it, you'll also need a few tips to apply it correctly. It's easy to do, and if you keep a few things in mind, it can really enhance your features and skin tone. Here are five solid tips to help you get golden the right way:

• "The best way to apply powder bronzer is with a big powder or blush brush," says makeup artist Carol Shaw of LORAC Cosmetics. If you use a smaller brush, you may not get diffuse enough color, so you end up with streaks instead of soft contouring.
• Build up your bronzer instead of sweeping it on all at once. Layering on until you get the color you want is best because, as Shaw points out, "it's easier to add color than it is to take it away."
• The easiest guide for putting bronzer on right? Sweep it from your forehead down to your jaw in the shape of a figure "3." It'll accentuate the areas light usually strikes your face for the most natural look.
• For a less dramatic look, use a bronzer without shimmer in it. The matte texture looks natural and isn't as attention grabbing as the sparkly stuff.

Here's an excerpt from OnSugar blog Beautopia:

LORAC Double Feature ($24) is a multi-tasking complexion perfector with an interesting design. The product comes in two parts; the swivel-up concealer stick and the doe-foot wand style vial of highlighter.

The twist-up stick is a creamy and pigmented consistency and it covers well with minimal creasing as the day goes on. It sets well with powder and is easily blended out with a finger or sponge. Included in the packaging is a "blender ball," which is a roller-ball such as you might see on some lip glosses or eye shadows, but it is clean and is meant to be used to smooth the concealer out and blend the harsh lines. The ball is somewhat effective, but I found better results using both my fingers and a wedge sponge. The inherent flaw in the blender ball, in my opinion, is that I don't find it to be very sanitary. You can wipe the ball off with a disinfectant wipe which might degrade the ball in time, or use a wet cloth, but then the moisture will get in below the ball and that might cause blending problems with it later. I think that while the blender ball is fairly superfluous, the concealer is pretty light in feel with heavy-duty results.

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Right now at LORAC, there are a couple of kits on special that are jaw-droppingly cheap for what you get. The 3's a Crowd Set ($19.50) has trios of lip polish, Glam Rocks, and lipstick, making it cheaper than buying drugstore brands. Plus, its Everyday Eye Collection ($22.50) has nine shadows and a liner and a makeup case. If you or someone you're buying for is a LORAC lover, I'd say these are deals not to be passed up.

Debra Messing got high marks from the majority of you for her look at the Emmys last night, and it's no surprise, as Carol Shaw, Lorac's founder, did all her makeup personally. Lucky for us, I've got the complete how-to on re-creating Debra's soft, smoky eye and creamy-nude lip. To find out how you can get the look for yourself, just keep reading

You know what's stinky? When beauty brands hawk a package of goods for a low price and promise a huge value, but then dish out tiny sizes of the original products. Not such a great deal — and not the case with this bargain. LORAC's VIP Starter Set is a true steal, packing up 10 items for a total of $18.50. That's $160 worth of goodies for less than the cost of popcorn, soda, and a movie. OK, so the bronzer is smaller than usual, but the rest of the cosmetics — three eye shadows, two lipsticks, two lip polishes, eyeliner, and a double-ended brush — are full-sized. Since the shades are pretty neutral, they'll be flattering for most people. Toss in a collection of cheaply priced closeout cosmetics and you'll be able to score a lot of LORAC for very little lucre.

I do indeed feel like a very important person right now, or at least a very satisfied one, given that Lorac has put 20 of its products on sale for deep discounts. There's everything from polishes to the cheek stamp, which I've taken a look at in the past, but I'm most excited about all the palettes on sale — the Maui Wowie kit is usually $37, but right now you can swipe it for $10. That's high end for drugstore-cheap, my friends. The best part? It's all online, so if you don't have a Lorac seller in your area, it's no biggie. I'm an armchair shopper extraordinaire, and at these prices, I'm pretty sure I'll find several things I just can't live without.