Bright Lipstick In The Office...Yay or Nay?

Russian Red by MAC Cosmetics

So...a few weeks ago, I headed to San Francisco and met one of my girlfriends to hang out for the weekend. She actually lives in the NYC area, but she was in San Francisco for work and asked me to come join her for a weekend of shopping and sightseeing...I was all in! I'd never been to San Francisco, and I certainly need no excuse to do some extra shopping. I hopped on a plane Friday night and I was out!

On that Saturday, my friend and I made a beeline for the shopping areas. And there were plenty of areas to see! We "stumbled" onto the Westfield San Francisco Centre Mall and "tripped" over to the MAC Cosmetics counter at Nordstroms. Somehow, we started trying on lipsticks...I was looking for a "shocking" red lipstick, and my friend happened upon a hot pink-ish color. I completely fell in love with my Russian Red lipstick and the accompanying Night Moth lip liner, but my friend was a little apprehensive about purchasing the hot pink lipstick...even though it looked AMAZING on her! Like me, she's a lawyer, and she had some pause about where she would wear such a bright color. I immediately responded that she could wear it anywhere outside of the office...now why did I instinctively go there? The truth is that I had no intention of wearing my new red lipstick in the office. In fact, I am not a fan of wearing any bright, outstanding makeup in the office...but especially not a bright lipstick. Not surprisingly, my friend agreed.

Which brings me to my question for you Divas. In a professional, office environment, is it appropriate to wear bright lipstick? What about bright makeup in general? Does your answer vary depending on one's profession? Or one's office culture? What say you?!

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Fall Makeup Inventory!

Greetings Divas! Summer has passed, and Fall has emerged. As the seasons change, I like to take an inventory of the items in my makeup bag and purge those products that have expired. I firmly believe that maintaining a fresh and clean makeup bag is a must. As such, knowing the shelf life of those products in our makeup bag is extremely important. Worst case scenario, old and expired makeup may have devastating effects on our skin and eyes (the worst offender by far is old mascara). 

In the spirit of maintaining our health and youth, we should all take regular inventory and toss out old makeup that may be damaging to our skin and eyes. I use the changing of the seasons as my reminder to look through my makeup, and I suggest you select a reminder point that works for you. Once you toss out your old makeup, make a list of the replacement products you need and head out to your favorite department store and/or pharmacy to snag them. Finally, make a note of when you purchased the new product and give it an expiration date based on its shelf life. Let's get to it Divas! 

For your convenience, I have listed the shelf lives of the most common types of makeup. Enjoy!

 

Foundation (Oil Free) – 1 Year

Foundation (Cream or Compact) – 1½ Years

Concealer – 1 Year

Powder – 1½ to 2 Years

Blush – 1½ to 2 Years

Eye Shadow – 1½ to 2 Years

Mascara – 3 Months

Eyeliner – 1½ to 2 Years

Lipstick – 1½ to 2 Years

Lip Liner – 1½ to 2 Years

Lip Gloss – 1½ Years

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Professional Diva Must Haves...

Mary Kay's Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover

Divas, how many times have you come home from a night out, and you were too tired to even think of taking off your makeup? So you don’t, and what results is a face full of clogged pores and makeup stained pillows. I have been here more times than I can count. I love wearing makeup, especially when I'm at work or out at a special event. I especially have a sweet spot for eye makeup of the waterproof variety. You know the kind I’m talking about right? The extra black waterproof mascara…the mineral eye shadow guaranteed to stay on through a night of partying…the black kohl eyeliner that makes your eyes pop…you’ve been there…I know!  

The problem with this is that quality eye makeup is often difficult to take off with your average face wash. Here's where Mary Kay's Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover comes in handy. This remover is oil-free and hypoallergenic, and it gently removes all types of eye makeup...including the stubborn waterproof makeup that looks so good in those Facebook pictures. I personally use this product to remove my eye makeup. It is easy to use, and doesn't leave a greasy residue like many other removers. It also removes eye makeup gently, which is perfect for preserving the delicate skin around your eyes…double win!

If you are interested in learning more about this product, check out my website HERE! In the spirit of sharing…..!

Have a great week!

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Sephora Trend Report: Spring 2011

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Sephora How To's: Get the Perfect Smoky Eye

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