Author Archives: kristenoldhamgiordani

My Mother’s Day Beauty Wish List

Sunday will mark my first Mother’s Day ever. How weird it’ll be to be one of the women celebrated on this day. Weird, but pretty awesome.

If you’re new to the mom title, you can totally relate to the fact that it’s extremely difficult to squeeze in beautifying. You’re too busy fussing over everyone else. Showering is an accomplishment. Being able to blowout your hair, apply an actual makeup “look” and keep up with brow shaping, bikini line grooming and all of that stuff is pretty much a thing of the past. Am I right?

It’s led me to start fantasizing about beauty products and treatments even more than usual. So, here are the six items I’d treat myself with, if I were doing the shopping…

Tocca-Liliana-EDTNo. 1: Tocca anything.

I’ve been using the new Tocca Crema da Mano Luxe in Bianca, $20, which smells divine – it’s a blend of green tea and lemon – and the tube is gorgeous. But, I’m also hoping get my hands on their newest fragrance, Tocca Liliana Eau de Parfum, $68. It’s inspired by The Great Gatsby (what isn’t these days) and includes notes of Italian bergamot, gardenia, white peony and sandalwood.

Watermelon

No. 2: Watermelon Vodka-Tini Body Duo at The Huntington Spa, $190 (Regularly $240)

This delicious duo, a special treatment the spa is featuring for spring, includes a 30-minute watermelon/basil sugar body scrub followed by an hour-long massage that involves sparkling citrus cilantro lime oil. If that doesn’t sound like heaven, know that the beautiful spa is housed in the fabulous Langham Hotel in Pasadena. I might never come home if this gift comes my way.

Marc Jacobs Honey

No. 3: Marc Jacobs Honey

While this fragrance doesn’t launch until summer, I’m already adding it to my beauty wish list. How can I not. The bottle is seriously cute. Continue reading

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Filed under Fragrance, Hair, Makeup, Skin, Skin Care

Emmy Rossum’s Lace Nail Art: Recreate the Met Ball 2013 Look

Emmy Rossum Lace Nails MET BALL13

The annual Costume Institute Gala at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art brought out some of the best (and worst) in beauty. Not sure what Miley Cyrus was thinking, but at least she stayed true to the punk theme. But, the deep burgundy lips, bold hair color streaks and nail looks were so worth copying.

Take Emmy Rossum’s lace nail art. So fun and actually easy to copy. Katie Hughes, Butter London Global Colour Ambassador, created the look using scraps of lace and crystals from the dress Donna Karan designed and Rossum wore. Here’s how to recreate it:

Step 1: Apply your favorite base coat.

Step 2: Swipe on two coats of Butter London Nail Lacquer in Yummy Mummy, $15.

Step 3: Apply one coat of a quick dry top coat like Butter London Hardwear P.D. Quick Top Coat, $19.

Step 4: Gently press small pieces of lace on top of your wet polish.

Step 5: Let your nails fully dry.

Step 6: Use nail glue to secure crystals in a random pattern on top of each nail to create a look that’s “both delicate and edgy,” says Hughes.

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Filed under Celebrity Beauty, Nails

Spring Beauty Inspired by “Mad Men’s” Peggy Olsen

peggy-olsen-mad-men

If you’ve been watching Season 6 of Mad Men, you’ve probably taken note of Megan Draper’s (Jessica Paré) over-the-top mid-’60s-style beauty looks. Dark, dramatically lined eyes, erased lips, voluminous hairstyles … you get the idea. But, the makeup looks I’ve been coveting (and wanting to recreate) are those seen on Peggy Olson (Elizabeth Moss). Kinda surprising, right?

While her looks fall more on the natural side, the makeup artists on set have been having some fun with her eyeshadow colors. But, when Olsen (Moss) wears a bright blue or seafoam-colored eyeshadow, it’s applied in a way that is subtle, yet eye-catching.

Take the photo above. In this episode, when Olsen (Moss) blinked, you could see that her lids with dusted with an electric, primary blue shade (something like Nars Matte Eyeshadow in Outremer, $24). Because the color didn’t extend beyond her creases and wasn’t swept along her lower lashes, it was super wearable. Like peekaboo eyeshadow. Something we all (regardless of age or occasion) can pull off.

Nars Matte Eyeshadow in Outremer In this Sunday’s episode, Olsen’s (Moss) lids were dusted with a sheer wash of a shimmery, light greenish shade (something like BareMinerals Velvet Eyecolor in Velvet Pistachio, $14). Unfortunately I haven’t seen a great photo of the look.

Bareminerals-Velvet-Eyecolor-Velvet-Pistachio

I’m definitely going to play with wearing more color on my eyes this season. I tend to go for bold lips, but I’m ready for a change. And, Miss Olsen (Moss) will be my inspiration.

Image: Jordin Althaus/AMC

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Filed under Eyes, Makeup

Beauty Problem Solver of the Week: Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Gel

Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye GelThe Product: Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Gel, $38

Why: I’ve never been one to obsess over an eye cream. To be honest, if you’re using a fabulous moisturizer that’s loaded with anti-aging and line smoothing ingredients, you don’t really need to use eye cream. But lately, I’ve been swiping on the Ole Henriksen Ultimate Lift Eye Gel just because it looked like something that might feel amazing to slather on. Doesn’t every love affair with a product start this way?

I wasn’t necessarily expecting for this to be a magic eraser for crow’s feet or anything. I just thought I’d give it a go to see if it would make any sort of difference. Maybe my skin care routine would have room in it for an eye cream? It surly wouldn’t hurt to try it. It’s packed with ingredients like peptides, Arginine, Calendula extract and Cucumber extract after all.

After I used the blue tinted gel for a couple of weeks, I can’t say that the skin around my eyes looked any different. To be honest, I wasn’t really paying attention to that. But, I simply couldn’t stop using it. It just felt good to spend the extra 20 seconds to glide this along my eye area. Because it’s a gel, it offers a nice, yet totally subtle, cooling sensation. It’s almost like a glass of crisp Pinot Grigio for your eyes. It helps them unwind a bit after a long day. Soothing, cooling and comforting. It’s been a couple of months now and I’m still using it. That’s got to mean something, right?

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Filed under Skin, Skin Care