Have any of you tried white eyeliner? It’s my new fave for spring right now.
It wasn’t long ago that I was searching for something new to do with my look. Confession: I did get the highlights, and some of you also encouraged me to try white eyeliner—and I love it!
My fear was that this would look weird, basically. And it does a little. But good weird. Like a little surprise, but a pleasant one. I’ve been really into white shoes as well, so I feel like these pops of white could be part of my current uniform. The older I get the more drawn I am to the idea of a uniform, anyone with me?
But back to the liner. Jane Iredale is my go-to when it comes to natural liners, so I was very excited to try their white. It did not disappoint. What brand of liner do you wear?
I’ve tried it a few ways:
1. Inside liner. I don’t know that lining the inside of one’s eye is ever really the best idea, natural or not, but I still do it on occasion. This is a fun daytime look, as opposed to the inside black line which always screams night out. In this pic it’s done a bit more extreme than I do it, but a lighter touch is almost imperceptible while still looking fresh.
2. Cat eye line. This is a fun, modern take on this back-in-vogue style. Again, what I really like about going white here is that it’s great for day (though nice at night too, because the white really jumps when it catches the light). I wear mascara when I do this, otherwise it can get a little washed out.
3. Lid shadow. This one is probably the easiest to pull off. I’ve tried just using the liner on my lid and then smudging it a bit so that it’s a matte, blended white. But I’ve also mixed it with RMS luminizer which looks more like this pic. Highly recommend!
What new makeup tricks have you been trying? And is white liner in your repertoire?
Here we go again. Ever since Siobhan asked how everyone’s preparing for the heat, my brain’s been on a one track loop that goes: highlights highlights highlights…
It’s a serious conundrum for a clean girl this whole hair dye thing, one we’ve talked about here and here and here (and about ten other places). There are many reasons not to do it of course. Par example, much like nail polish, there’s just no such thing as a totally clean dye.
Specifically for moi, getting highlights means: 1. some toxic exposure; 2. getting my hair washed and living with the subsequent frizz for a month; 3. feeling like a bit of a hypocrite. On the plus side the place I go to is sorta-natch, the highlights I get don’t touch my scalp, and freaking-A, they’re pretty!
A bit of a late bloomer on this, highlights were something of a revelation when I finally tried them last spring, lightly painted on in places where the sun would naturally lighten (if I surfed, like everyday). For a thick mop like mine, a little caramel color can go a long way in making my head look like less of a curl-helmut, as I’m sure some of you can relate.
And while I know I’m a grown woman who can make her own decisions and all that, S and I have really taken to asking you guys for your (strong, ahem) opinions and advice! So let’s hear em.
More interesting still: What do you do with your hair? Highlights? Au naturelle 4life? And how weird is this picture choice?
I’m having a small case of the beauty blahs and I don’t know what to do… I want to feel fresh and new for spring but I’m a bit stumped on ideas. Who has done something totally drastic—but not totally chemy—in the last little while? Hair cuts, new makeup colors, awesome discoveries?
Here are my ideas so far…
1. White eye liner. Has anybody tried this? Word is that it really makes eyes pop.
2. A bold new lip color. Maybe coral? Suggestions?
3. More semi-natch highlights. Do I? Don’t I? I’ve trimmed off a lot of my golden pieces from last summer, but can I put myself through all that hair washing again?
One thing I’ve never gotten into at all is eye shadow. Maybe it’s time. I know there are some really fun colors right now, even among naturals. I just feel like shadow looks a little silly on me—even though I often love it on others. Is there a trick to wearing? Help!
Last week my sweet Siobhan bared her soul, telling you guys about the dirty products still in her medicine cabinet—and then she signed me up to do the same! It’s funny: some of you seemed surprised by her honesty but I’m not sure why: We’ve always maintained that women shouldn’t sacrifice their absolute favorite products, especially if you don’t use them daily, and most especially if they bring you pleasure. Because pleasure is a big principle here, in No More Dirty Looks land.
But here’s the thing about my list: Other than waterproof mascara (Laura Mercier), which I’ve mentioned in the past, and my new sorta-natural highlights (update: I love them SO much, and my hair is getting dirtier by the day!) my cabinet is clean. It’s not out of any obligation though: I did have this amazing Bobbi Brown concealer a little while back, but once I discovered the Jane Iredale Active Light one I forgot about it.
But not one to leave my friend alone in her confessions—and besides, we’ve got a nice circle of trust going here—I’m going to reveal some other dirty secrets of my own.
For us, health and beauty are synonymous. And we all do things that we shouldn’t if we want to look our best. Maybe you skimp on sleep, suck back martinis, work on the weekends, or binge on sugar. So let’s have at it, shall we? And just to prove that no vice is too vicey, I’m going to come forward with my absolute worst:
1. I think I’ve made it pretty clear that sometimes I drink too much. This generally wreaks havoc on my face in the form of pimples and/or some patchy redness. But here’s the real doozy, and I can’t even believe I’m copping to this, but in the name of transparency, here it is: Sometimes when I’m tipsy I’ll have (ahhhhh, the shame, the shame) a cigarette. As vices go, it doesn’t get much worse for your health or your skin. The irony isn’t lost on me, of course, and the sheer guilt of it is probably doing some damage too. How often does it happen? I’m not great with consistency, but it’s only been about a month since my last slip.
2. I often forget to take my omegas. Sounds like nothing after my first admission, I know—but seriously, omegas are the truth.
3. I probably drink too much caffeine, but since it’s not keeping me up at night, literally or figuratively, I’m going to let this one slide for now.
OK, you’re up. I implore you not to leave me out here in the cold.
You guys, something pretty major happened last week. Yes, Osama’s dead, relations with Pakistan are fraught, and Michelle Obama’s dougie almost outshone her husband’s own stellar moves (in case you missed him on 60 Minutes)—but also, I got highlights. Don’t be mad!
Here’s what happened: Remember how a few weeks ago I was musing about a spring makeover? Well, that longing for a physical change grabbed me by the girly bits in a way that became distracting—nay, completely consuming!—and it just wouldn’t let go.
And the more pictures I saw like the one above—of beautiful women with gorgeous and golden-tipped locks (now known as “ombre” highlights)—the more convinced I became.
Here’s how I justified it: 1. I would find a natural-as-possible salon to do it at. 2. I would only do my ends, so the dye would never touch my scalp. 3. If I didn’t like it, or it looked too fake for my dark hair, I’d just give my mane a much-needed chop.
So I headed down to NaturalMind, a cleaner salon in Silver Lake that I’d heard great things about. And to my total delight the founder, Arnaud, who arrived on the L.A. hair scene by way of 20-years-at-a-fancy-salon-in-Paris knew exactly what to do with me. He touched my coarse curls and told me he would never use foils on them—never! And in a thicker-than-butter French accent, he said: “You came to ze right place. I‘ve been doing zis balayage technique in Paris forrrever. We make it a little bit surfer, yeah?”
Mmhmm. That’s exactly how we make it, Arnaud—like I spent a week on the beaches of St. Tropez, s’il vous plait. And with an artist’s skill—and an almost-odorless-and-heavy-on-the-natural-oils dye—he painted my highlights with the subtlety of the sun itself. And I love it!
But here’s where my story goes a bit south. My new favorite hairdresser also convinced me to wash my hair. Granted, with an ostensibly natural shampoo (I say that because even with the best intentions, one can never be sure at the salon), but a shampoo nonetheless. It felt like heaven and it smelled like lavender but…
Until last week, shampoo hadn’t touched my hair in two and a half years.
And there’s a reason for that. Not washing it, I realize now with even greater clarity, had given my hair something it never had: predictability. It also eliminated my need for product—aside from a tiny bit of conditioner and some Intelligent Nutrients spray for special occasions.
But now that it’s clean I’m back in the maintenance game. It’s not a total horror show or anything—it’s just really fluffy, puffy and frizzy. Mostly, it needs product. And the ends look dry. And the curl doesn’t hold in the same way. And, and, and—I just miss those natural oils I’d worked so hard to harness!
But, like a big girl, I’m not going to cry over my clean hair. I’m going to throw on my favorite natural products, follow Siobhan’s summer hair advice, and let time and my scalp do their thing. In a way, the wash is as much of a “new look” as the color—so there’s that. Maybe it will even become an annual spring-cleaning tradition of sorts. Or not.
Got any salon disasters or success stories to share? You know the drill, ladies.
