New Skin Care Regime

For years I thought my skin was oily because I have visible pores in the cheeks, nose and chin. Then, I started getting red, scaly bits around my mouth, chin, nose and eyes. Turns out my skin is dehydrated and very sensitive. Who would have thought? So, I took my dermatologist's advice (Dr. Erikson, I love you) and started only washing my face when I wore makeup, or it felt like it really needed it. In the shower I use a pea-sized amount of Vaseline to massage my face -- and it has done wonders for my skin. No more scrubs for me! No more glycolic acid either. I was one of those people who did *too* much for my skin and paid the price.

But, I am a skin care and makeup junkie, so it wasn't long before I started looking for new skin care. I used to love Origins, but the fragrance irritates my skin. So sad! I even tried Cetaphil, but the sodium laurel sulfate hates me. Then, I tried Paula's Choice. So far, I'm really liking it. The cleanser is so gentle, but removes most makeup (I need extra help with mascara), and the BHA lotion evens out my skin without irritating. Best of all, the SPF moisturizer doesn't sting when I put it on! So, if you're like me and closer to 40 than you are to 30, with dry skin that still occasionally breaks out, you may want to check out Paula's Choice. She's the same woman who wrote 'Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me.' I was iffy because she reviews her own stuff (and of course says it's good!) but I'm really pleased.

FYI -- I'm not affiliated with Paula's Choice and I wasn't asked to review their products. I simply went to them as someone who needed gentle products with no fragrance and no irritating ingredients.

Dramatic Makup

Here's my gorgeous friend Amie, who let me doodle on her face for an assignment. The goal was to pick a color scheme and do the entire face in it. As you might be able to see from the background, I used gold, black and bronze for my colors.

Amie has a lovely, warm complexion. I used Chanel Vitalumiere in 40 on the face, with a MAC NW25 concealer. I brushed her brows but didn't fill them in as I wanted the eyes and lips to be the focus.

On her eyes I used micas I purchased from TKB Trading, over a base of Urban Decay Potion Primer (original). I lined the eye with Clinique gel liner and went over it with Carbon shadow from MAC. The false eye lashes are from Ardene, and I applied L'oreal Voluminous mascara to top and lower lashes.

The cheeks, forehead and sides of the nose were dusted with a bronzer. Then, I used a bit of a black eyeliner on the lips, and followed with a touch of Tarred Lip Tar from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics. Over that I pressed a bit of gold-bronze mica -- just to the center of the lip. Using the Lip Tar thinned down (I didn't shake the tube to disperse pigment) allowed some of her natural lip color to come through, adding a warmth to the lip, and kept it from looking too goth.

The tattoo is a temporary one from Temptu that I applied to the skin and then went over with an eyeliner pen and a little gold mica for added dimension and warmth.

I'm really pleased with how the look turned out!