Glossy, useful, tempting to try - the cookbook for Asian beauty

Makeup is like cooking, directions like recipes - toss together all the right ingredients as basic as tomatoes & basil, or pricey and seasonal as fresh truffles, add a dash of pepper there, a sprinkling of cheese here, all for a spicy, sweet, or decadent result.

Gathering all the ingredients could be a bother, and the cooking less tempting when the recipes are on bland white paper, alas the genius of Nigella Lawson & Martha Stewart. With beautiful, enticing, homely pictures and easy 1,2,3 steps and ingredients for how to achieve the look, the feel, the lifestyle...

Now, the makeup "cookbook" for the Asian face is finally here!

Complete with mimic-able-looking images, straightforward directions and accessible ingredients to create everything from daily looks to costume makeup, Asian Faces by makeup artist Taylor Chang-Babaian is the new powder room goddess.

Three of my favorite looks from the book below! On a side note, I am not copying out her directions here but you can learn how to achieve these looks and many more, if you get, and every woman should have, the book here.

Look 1: Pretty in Pinks
Using pinks, shimmery cremes and salmon tones on eyelids, cheeks and lips, Taylor creates a defined, yet romantic, look.

Look 2: Smoldering
Perfect for evening soirees or if you're just the smoldering type & love to show it. This is my personal favorite NYC night look.

Look 3: Ganguro
A how-to for the toned down version of the over the top Ganguro fashion trend from Tokyo (created by high school girls) - bleached hair, dark tanned skin, pale lips, white accents - the ultimate bold statement for a girl who loves contrasts and standing out.

xox

Flash back to Teenage years - Mass market individualism

My personal fashion statement, which tended to change daily along with my teenage angst, started with the flick of a gooey, lacquer-dipped brush.

When Hard Candy hit counters with bright punchy colors, subdued pastel blues, shimmery purples and vampy goth crimsons, nails became the palette for incorporating Prada orange into daily looks at the price of a mere $7.00. A luxurious habit for a 13 year old perhaps, but an irresistible buy for fashion fanatics...with an empty Chloe wallet.

So when Chanel's beauty team started making their lacquers an essential part of their runway look - of course the beauty tribe followed.

Starting with Black, A/W '06 shows. The silver/gold from S/S '07. Now the crimson, shimmery dark reds of A/W '07 (seen here) is the top "must" color in every, ten pound September issue of Glamour, Lucky, you name it.

Even if you don't regularly check out the awesome resource that is Style.com for the latest runway news (heads up! S/S '08 is hitting NYC in September!) at least take a look at the detailed shots of the Chanel show to decipher what colors will be sold out by next season.

You'll be way ahead on the beauty color forecast radar which:

A: Allows you to come off as a fabulously adventurous soul that couldn't care less about the current big trend - that's old anyway!

B: When the color hits all the magazines and everyone starts wearing it, they'll realize that you are at the cutting edge of beauty trends - YOU DID IT FIRST

xox

a-ha! Beauty Trick #4: Fickle & Easy Scent-to-Go

I'm the type that carries make-up, trinkets, candy bars or fruity mints with me at all times. I hardly ever manage just a small clutch or slender pouch when I step out of my apt - even for late nite ventures.

I've gradually managed to cut down on my tote-age via ways like dipping sponge eyeshadow applicators eye shadow at home and carrying the sticks in a thin mirror compact or using a folder-over mini eyelash curler (a must for my straight, short asian eye lashes!)

But, my absolute favorite one so far is the to-go, completely flat perfume strips! Cheap, yes, but a lot easier for clumsy or slipperly hands and definitely more fun since you get to try a different scent each time according to your mood!

1. Flip through any women's magazine and find a perfume advertisement strip.
2. Without opening the fold, tear the folded strip part off so you have a long folded rectangle.
3. Tear the strip in three equal parts & put in wallet or clutch or back jeans pocket.
4. Later, for a little pickup boost, use the middle strip to rub on neck (it has the most fragrance), and the two side parts for your wrists & maybe even some for your hair!?

Just watch out for paper cuts!!

Dumb, yes, a little bit, but infinitely fun~ will probably help you decide which perfume to purchase for next season too!

xox

PS. The wooden clutch on top is one of my obsessions from the Emilio Pucci Fall 2007 shows!

A-ha! Beauty Trick #3: Your most flattering brow shape

Brows are difficult and usually best left with a professional to tweeze and wax. Even then, is there an ideal brow shape for everyone?

I always suspected those kitch brow stencils since my asian eye shape and placement of my brows in accordance to my eye was so visibly different from caucasion girls and celebs. So, is there a universal shape? A formula??


Christine Chin, new york city's (and maybe the world's??) top facialist known for her thoroughness, cunning advice and amazing skill at crafting the perfect brows on any face, instructs, "follow the eye bone." Straight, arched or bow shaped, as long as the brows frame the eye bone perfectly, it looks good on everyone. Penelope Cruz, Rachel Weisz, Hilary Swank, Kimora Lee Simmons are some of Christine's fans!

So take a good look at your facial structure today and see if you or your go-to person did a good job. Are your brows wiggling happily on top of the bone? If not, lay off the tweezers and let it grow back...it only takes 6-months to get your original shape back...oye! and then go see "Mean Christine".

xox

A-ha Concealer Trick #1 - Tips so obvious I forgot to mention it until now...

I've decided to start a series that might end up being few in number, or surprisingly numerous...depending on how many, "Oh yeah..." light bulb moments I have during my spacing out moments.

The first one -> the unfailingly, perfectly matching concealer:

Practically impossible is the task of matching the concealer to the skin tone and then matching that concealor to the foundation...and even if that happens miraculously because of pure genius (and a great bathroom light), to blend well enough so that the concealer-ed spots don't appear darker or more layered than the rest of the face is utterly time consuming.

Easy way out?

Use the bits of foundation that has collected and thickened at the rim of the liquid or creamy foundation bottle or even, pump - you know, the bits that dripped down and stuck on the side? That layer of smudge is creamier and more condense, like the texture of a really soft, easy to use concealer formula, and what more, is the same exact shade & formula (which means they dry the same color and texture).


Try it, works like magic and much better than layering the sheer liquid foundation over and over. Next time, "accidently" spill a little or leave a thin layer around the edges so that it'll be ready the next AM!

xox