BellaSugar

Julie Haus Is in the House

BellaSugar — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 00:03:26 PDT

Being a "Haus frau" is a very good thing. Just ask Leighton Meester and Molly Sims, who showed up for Julie Haus's first-ever New York runway show. The intimate affair featured bright colors, bold prints, and a few cute dresses that I wouldn't mind wearing in the hot sun right now.

The hair and makeup were fresh and fun, with a hint of rebellious streak thrown in for good measure. "It's a little messy, yet kind of neat," said Dwight O'Neal, who created the makeup look for The Balm. "It's the everyday woman doing her makeup. We didn't want anything too dramatic or too perfect." Check out the lips to see what he means; to get the look, O'Neal's team dabbed Prom Queen Stainiac on the center of the lips, then filled in the remainder of the lips with Plump Your Pucker gloss in Cocoa My Coconut. Instead of using a brush to spread the color, makeup artists used their fingers - easy!

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To find out how to recreate this hairstyle at home with some tips from Oscar Blandi, read more. Lead stylist Oscar Blandi worked with Haus to create a beautifully natural look for the models. "The whole idea is that the girl has her hair done, goes out and has a good time, and it’s the day after," he explained. To get this look, he sprayed Protein Mist on wet hair. After applying a volumizer to the roots, he then covered the ends of hair with Acqua Marina to provide hold. After a quick blow-dry with a diffuser, he curled the hair, directing each piece a different way. Here's my favorite part of the look: Oscar and his team made small, thin braids (you can see them in the close-up shot above) and wrapped the irons around them to create more texture. A little teasing at the ends and you're good to go. Source

I'm in Love With This Shady Lady

BellaSugar — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 11:00:31 PDT

Greetings from New York, my friends. (Does that make me sound like John McCain?) While packing for the trip yesterday morning, I decided to pare down to only the essentials. Keeping two weeks of travel down to one carry-on suitcase made Fab's jaw drop, but here's my secret: Wear black dresses with different accessories, bring flat sandals that take up very little room, and think small when it comes to beauty.

Obviously, it makes sense to decant certain lotions and creams into travel-size containers - you already know that. But here's my makeup secret weapon: The Balm Shady Lady ($38). Instead of packing a bunch of individual shadows, I have everything I could need in this nine-shade eye shadow palette. The shadows have great pigmentation, a gorgeous but not bling-y level of shimmer, and colors for both night and day. (Unlike some palettes, this one doesn't have any "meh" colors that I'll never use.) And since some of the shadows double as liners, I didn't need to pack separate eyeliner. Easy!

As it turns out, guess who was on the same flight as me and Fab? Marissa Shipman, founder of The Balm, and her adorably chubby-cheeked baby, Lucas. If that's not a sign that I packed well, I don't know what is.

BellaSugar's Top Five Mascara Picks

BellaSugar — Wed, 28 May 2008 09:00:18 PDT

Over the past year, I've talked in great detail about many different types of volumizing, lengthening, curling, separating, and glossing mascaras. There's even a new one from Besame that smells just like gingerbread. I've tried them all, and while most of them are great at the beginning, I find that they generally don't live up to the hype about remaining clump and flake-free for more than a month.

That's why I'm partial to these five mascaras. I know that I can always turn to them to separate, define, and darken my lashes and make them look flirty and fluttery in the most natural-yet-enhanced possible way. What's your tried and true mascara?

Lancome Courbe Virtuose ($23) helps gives lashes that extra curl they need to look longer and sexier. The brush is amazing, it never clumps, and the color isn't too light nor too dark.
Lash Blast by Cover Girl ($6.99) is awesome. It's inexpensive and it effectively gives you a sexy, false-lash look.
The Balm Two-Timer ($19) is great because you can use the fine brush for a natural daytime look and the thick brush for a dramatic, curled, and elongated evening look.
Mirenesse Secret Weapon ($27, but deals abound) separates and lengthens lashes like crazy. It doesn't look too over-the-top, and although it stays all day, it comes off with just a bit of warm water.
Beauty Addicts Lash Galore ($22) is silky, rich, conditioning, and volumizing. It creates full, separated, long lashes with a touch of glamorous shine.

New Product Alert: The Balm Read My Lips Lipstick

BellaSugar — Fri, 23 May 2008 14:00:52 PDT

Extra, extra! The Balm is full of news. Not only have they just launched a set of six new lipsticks called Read My Lips ($16), but I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate Marissa, the matriarch of The Balm, on the birth of her baby! These media-inspired lipstick shades have cute names such as Letter to the Editor, Gossip, and Classified.

The texture is sheer and shiny, and since the lipsticks include olive oil and jojoba, they glide smoothly right over your lips. Also, as opposed to having a traditional lipstick-glycerin smell, they are infused with mint and vanilla. You'll feel a little bit of tingle at first, but don't worry, it's not a lip plumper that's just the mint. Lastly, all of the packaging is eco-friendly since it's made from secondary forests and recycled paper. I'm really into Smut, a pretty shimmering plum. To choose your favorite color, click on the images below for a close-up peek.

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For a brief description of all six colors, read more.

Classified is a beigey, natural nude.
Letter to the Editor is a bronzed berry.
Wanted is a strawberry red.
Smut is a shimmering plum.
Gossip is a shimmering Barbie-pink.
Scoop is a coral rose.

Coming Soon: Bahama Mama Bronzer From the Balm

BellaSugar — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 14:00:54 PDT

The Balm is getting ready to launch a new matte bronzer called Bahama Mama ($18) in May. I've got pretty pale skin naturally, so this bronzer is great. It's sheer and it has a soft, gentle bronzing effect, which makes for a fabulous, natural-looking transition product before I have any trace of a summertime (real or fake) tan.

I love that there is no shimmer to it and it doesn't make my face look dirty or muddy like other matte bronzers can. Also, if you do begin to build a tan, it can always be layered for a deepened effect. It's formulated without parabens, there's a giant mirror on the inside for portable and easy bronzing. Plus, it looks amazing combined with Hot Mama, a universally flattering orgasm-colored blush, for a warm, beachy glow.

How-To: Madonna's "4 Minutes" Makeup Look

BellaSugar — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 15:00:57 PDT

Madonna's skin looks insanely smooth for someone her age in her new "4 Minutes" music video. We've all heard gossip about her supposed plastic surgery, but I think it's pretty obvious that she's gotten some type of lifting and toning treatments at the very least. Her face is extraordinarily smooth with minimal lines around her eyes and lips. Of course, this definitely has something to do with a talented makeup artist, custom lighting, and yes, computerized touch-ups.

FACE: Begin by prepping your face with a serum, moisturizer, and eye cream. Then add a primer and medium-coverage firming foundation such as Estee Lauder Resilience Lift Extreme Ultra Firming Makeup. Finish with a creamy concealer and an eye brightener. Tip: use a cosmetic sponge to ensure that everything is well blended.

To find out more about how to create this makeup look on your own,

Coming Soon: The Balm Kiss MS Goodbye Lip Gloss

BellaSugar — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 13:00:42 PST

March 10th marks National Multiple Sclerosis Education and Awareness Week, and makeup maven Marissa Shipman has created yet another charitable beauty product for the occasion. Kiss MS Goodbye Lip Gloss is her best-selling shimmery, sheer peach Balm Shelter Lip Gloss called Girly Girl, but throughout the month of March it has new packaging and 20% of sales will go to the New York City chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

The gloss contains SPF 17, it has a banana-strawberry scent (you guessed it, I'm a big fan) and it costs $18. During Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, we saw a wide variety of beauty brands create products whose proceeds helped fund cancer research and outreach programs. I only hope this trend will catch on and we start to see charitable creations within the industry more frequently.

New Product Alert: TheBalm To the Rescue

BellaSugar — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 08:00:22 PST

Nothing gets my beauty-loving heart aflutter more than products that support a good cause. That's why I was so excited to find that TheBalm To The Rescue Lip Treatment ($14) is donating all net proceeds to Pug Rescue, an organization that rescues pugs from euthanasia and helps find loving homes for them. As if that wasn't enough to tug at your heartstrings, the product is also certified vegan, so it's friendly to the rest of our furry friends as well.

The lip balm itself is formulated with jojoba and shea butter, as well as rapidly dissolving exfoliating micro-crystals to soften your lips. It goes on minty fresh and lightly tingly, and it leaves a nice glossy sheen. It comes in a pretty silver compact that opens up with a mirror on the inside-a very useful feature that I think brands should incorporate into more of their products.

I know that proud pug owners Tori Spelling, Jessica Alba, and Denise Richards will be excited about this product. What about you?

New Product Alert: The Balm Two-Timer Mascara

BellaSugar — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 14:00:23 PST

Yay, The Balm has just launched a mascara called Two-Timer ($19). I'm so happy to finally share this with you because I've been harboring this dirty little secret since my interview with CEO Marissa Shipman in May. And lucky for me, during a recent visit to The Balm offices, I was given the chance to test it out. Here's the scoop:

What makes this mascara stand apart from the crowd is that it's actually designed to be used within the three-to-six month life-span of a mascara. And although it has two sides to it, what you're actually getting is the same formula in two mini tubes with two different types wands to create two distinct looks. The coolest part of all is that if you prefer one brush over the other, just flip them and you've got a whole new tube!

The left brush (aka Marcus Lashalot) has a twisted spiral shape with a dip in the center to collect extra product and create voluminous and vixen-like lashes. The right brush (aka Johnny Finetune) is made from a flexible brush with thin bristles to define, separate and lengthen lashes. I like to think of it as Johnny by day and Marcus by night - oh, we girls can be so bad!

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Make-You-Laugh Makeup: Suggestive Names

BellaSugar — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 09:00:16 PST

Part of the fun of shopping for makeup is checking out some of the creative, sexy and funny names that companies come up with for new products. While something like Thrrrob is outwardly sexy, some names are more discreetly suggestive. These in particular made me laugh, so I thought you might enjoy them too.

The Balm Plum Your Pucker Lip Gloss in Squeeze My Lemons ($14) is a translucent and gentle lip plumper made from folic acid, menthol, vitamin C and just a slight touch of Maxi-Lip plumper to help increase blood flow to the mouth.

All of the glosses from The Balm are cutesy, but I happen to think the name of this one in particular is adorable. We totally get what it means and can laugh about it without it feeling gross whatsoever.

For two more suggestive makeup names,

read more Urban Decay Matte Eye Shadow in Yeyo ($16). When I saw this I gasped out loud. I am not sure what other meanings this word has, but from what I understand it's a pretty perverse and direct way to talk about cocaine. I imagine that I'm not that far off base considering the description for the color is matte white. That's just poor taste, guys - think of the kids.
Ramy Whipped Liqui-Air Color in Room 369 ($19) is a weightless and whipped liquid cheek color. Think of it more as a sheer cream blush than as a foundation. It glides on smooth and can be worn on your eyes as well. It dries instantly and will last long so unlike a cream blush, you can't smudge it off. I love the subtlety of this name. Ramy, keep 'em coming - your clever names always give me a good chuckle.