Edgy, Exotic Pastels for Spring

Hello my beauties & Happy "Almost End of the Week"!! In my previous post, I promised you update you at least twice a week, so today's edition is my second installment, this time focusing on makeup. This look was put together using all Motives Cosmetics, as well as our Mavens Palettes, and was inspired by my "Minty Fresh" nail art (which you can observe here). I typically never match my makeup to my nails, but there's just something about Mint that makes me wear it all over and I don't mind coordinating. I also added a dose of edge with some graphic, Arabic-inspired liner and a well-contoured face. If you like this look and are ready to learn how it's done, keep reading for the step-by-step tutorial!!

Read more for TUTORIAL, pix & tips!

Spring Beauty Trend: Pastel NailArt

Hello dolls!! Hope you're all happy and healthy on this lovely Tuesday. It's busier than ever on my end, so to keep things flowing smoothly, I'm going to implement a new blogging schedule for this second quarter of the year. My goal is to produce two blog posts a week, one focusing on makeup looks / tutorials and the other focusing on nails and/or fashion. This new set-up should organize my content and help you keep up and tune in on a more regulated basis. Make sure to follow me on Instagram & FB for sneak peeks, teasers and other content that doesn't make it on the blog. Today's Tuesday Trend is all about Spring Nails and how to incorporate Pastels into your nail art. Shall we get started? Let's go!

Read more for tips, products & how-to's!

Spring Beauty: Turquoise & Naked 3

Hello dolls and Happy First Day of Spring!! In NYC, it doesn't quite feel like Spring just yet, but I'm hoping that my enthusiasm will invoke the warm weather gods who will melt away the cold and bring some sun shine our way. Wherever you guys are, I'm sure you're already celebrating in brighter colors, lighter clothes and an uplifted attitude. I'm with you in spirit, and today, I've lined up a fun, flirty Spring-time appropriate makeup look, inspired by my fave jewelry brand, Caviar Noir and its Spring Collection centerpiece: the Rosary Hand Chain in Turquoise. This piece is equal parts feminine, edgy and exotic, therefore it's the perfect muse for today's fresh look!

Read more for makeup, hair & style tips for Spring!

Kelly Green Clovers Makeup Art for St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day my Irish beauties & cuties and all who are celebrating!! I'm going all out with this over-the-top festive makeup, featuring clovers, shamrocks, Kelly green glitter and my best "Colin Farrell" brows lol... I'm using some of my favorite products for makeup art, read below for the full list and links!!!

Who's celebrating with me?!

Spring Beauty Trend: Lavender, Lilac, Purple

Hello my beautiful darlings! Spring is almost here and I'm literally counting the days until its official arrival. Today, in eager anticipation, I'm exploring one of my favorite color trends of the season: the blooming shades of pink and purple. Spring is all about new beginnings and the fresh shades of lilac, lavender and blush pink represent this positive change to the fullest. So long winter grays, hello blossoming buds and bright floral accents!!!

Read more for deets, pics, fashion ideas, COUPONS & links!

Classic Makeup: Contour & Smoke

Hello my beauties! Happy International Women's Day -- March 8!! How are you celebrating? I hope you're all being pampered and loved on this special day and every day!!! 

♥♥♥

Where has the time gone, my loves? It's already March and I'm just getting started on my Spring Series looks and posts. Today's Classic Black Smokey Eye & Sculpted Face makeup is my wrap up of the winter season and is a perfect look for your dark winter weekend celebrations. I'm using our Motives Mavens palettes and enhancing my skin with Belletto Studio airbrush foundation.

Read more for tips, links & tutorial!

LIVE Contouring 101 TUTORIAL Tonight!!!

Hello darlings!! Tonight's the NIGHT -- I'll be doing a free LIVE Stream Tutorial on MeetOn.com teaching my contouring tips and tricks plus a matte eye look using our Motives Mavens Palettes!!! Mark your calendars and set your alarm clocks for 9 PM EST / 6 PM PST, bring your Mavens Palettes and/or your questions so I can address them all LIVE!!!

RSVP Here, C U Tonight!!!

Motives Mavens ELEMENT: "Chocolate Truffle" Smokey Eye Tutorial

Hello dolls and Happy Friday!! Firstly, I want to thank you all so much for your love and support of our Motives Mavens palettes launch. Your positive reception and feedback means the world to me and I simply couldn't have done it without you guys. I love love love you and am sending you all a bunch of hugs and kisses!!

NEWS: MAVENS PALETTES NOW AVAILABLE IN CANADA!!!

Today's look is Friday night inspired and is perfect for those of you who like to go out for Happy Hour after work. I'm using our Motives Mavens ELEMENT Palette and a bit of glitter to achieve this easy, day-to-night transformation makeup.

Read more for pix, tips & TUTORIAL!

Motives Mavens ELEMENT Palette: "Dusty Rose" Smokey Eye

Palette Photo by Marino Photography

Hello my darlings, Great news!! Our best-seller Motives Mavens ELEMENT Eyeshadow Palette is now back in stock and available for purchase!! To celebrate this, I've put together this Smokey, Romantic "Dusty Rose" date look and I can't wait for you to try it out for yourselves!!

Read more to get yours & to learn how it's done!

Runway to Real Way Makeup: "Effortless Chic" Lancome at Jason Wu F/W 2014

Image: StyleBistro

Hello beauties! NY Fashion Week has come and gone, but the Fall 2014 trends are just beginning to emerge. This past week, I've been glued to the runways, cataloguing stand-out designs and trying out new looks. As you all may know, I'm a loyal Jason Wu follower, so I was thoroughly excited for his strong Fall collection and eager-as-always to recreate his signature high-drama makeup. This season, however, Mr. Wu surprised us all as he set out on a brand new mission: Effortless Chic and Minimal Makeup. 

Perplexed? Don't be. Who needs the drama when you've got Adriana Lima and Jourdan Dunn?

Get Adriana's look below!

Motives Mavens Palettes & Contouring Tutorial

Hi beauties!! I'm back and I've got the most exciting news to share!! If you follow me on IG & FB, then you already know what's up, but in case you missed it, there's no more holding out and I'm spilling all the deets right here, right now. The Motives Mavens aka myself, Vegas Nay, Teni Panosian, Ely Marino, Ellarie and Makeup By Denise have launched our brand new makeup line at the Market America World Conference in Miami!!! This past week was absolutely monumental and we are thrilled to share our products, which were created with so much thought, passion and love. 

In this post, you'll find more pics from our events, as well as party pics, your fave celebs and my first product highlight & contouring tutorial. I'll be featuring more products and tutorials in the coming posts, so please post your requests and questions in the comments section below! Love you guys!

Read more for pics, products & tutorial!!!

Chinese New Year Nail Art & Makeup for Asian Eyes

Ni-hao my darlings!! Today is Chinese New Year and I want to wish good fortune, great health and lots of love and prosperity to everyone who is celebrating!! The Lunar New Year is a traditional holiday in many Asian countries, so to commemorate this joyous occasion, I've got a special post lined up just for you. Today's look is all about the Asian Eyes & Complexion with plenty of tips and tricks, using all Motives Cosmetics and some of my new favorite Asian cosmetic brands. As a festive bonus, I've created a fun, CNY-inspired hand-painted nail art featuring Chinese calligraphy, the yin yang and tons of glitter.

Read on for tips, tricks, TUTORIAL & Nail Art!!!

"Bohemian Fairy" Makeup for Valentine's Day

Hello my beauties!!! Hope you're all happy and healthy. Continuing with my Valentine's Day Countdown, today's look is romantic & bohemian, inspired by blooming flowers in anticipation of Spring. The last few weeks in NY have been absolutely frigid and I'm so eager and ready for the warmer days. Good thing, I've got a trip to Miami right around the corner, which I literally cannot wait for!!! This trip is going to be a memorable one and I'll be sharing more details soon :)) For now, here's a clue: today's Maven's Makeup look was created using the one and only Motives Cosmetics!! hint hint*

Read more for deets, tips & step-by-step!

LOVE, Studded & Smokey: Makeup & Nail Art

Hi dolls!! It's Mani-Monday and I'm BACK with another hand-painted nail art created by moi for my special Valentine's Day countdown. I'm not usually the one to brag about my own designs, but this one has got to be my all-time favorite personal creation and I'm really proud of it. Plus, it's the perfect message for today's Martin Luther King commemoration: Spread LOVE, not hate!!!

Read more for MORE :)

"Pretty in Pink" in Naked 3

Hello my beauties!! Yesterday was my Lucky 13 year anniversary with Mr. Maquillage and today we're officially less than a month away from Valentine's Day. This season, I'm following last year's schedule and counting down to February 14th with V-Day looks, nails, hair styles and many more romantic and date-appropriate fashions and features. To jump start the series, I've put together a soft "Pretty in Pink" look using the coveted Naked 3 palette from Urban Decay and some of my favorite new products from Motives Cosmetics and HB Beauty Bar. 

Read more for tips, pics & deets!

"Wintry Exotic" Arabic Makeup Tutorial

Hi beauties!! The winter holidays are over, but the season is only beginning to unfold. Today, I'm inspired by Arabic makeup and I'm re-interpreting it using cool, frosty shadows and luscious cruelty-free mink lashes to fit the winter theme. Arabic makeup is truly one of my all-time favorite styles for any occasion -- it's always graphic, bold, edgy and so exotic!! My version of this look is using neutral pigments and shadows from Motives Cosmetics, as well as incorporating pieces from new jewelry lines and my new fave lashes.

P. S. Maryam Maquillage is THREE YEARS OLD!!! Happy Birthday Bloggy <3

Read more for deets, tips & tutorial!

"Russian Opulence" Makeup & LANCOME Giveaway!!!

Bonjour mes belles!! First and foremost, I want to congratulate all the winners of my three previous giveaways: Allee K. (winner of BK Unique Hair giveaway); Cecilia C., Catalina O. & Francette C. (winners of Missha giveaway) and Diana C. & Jennay G. (winners of Belletto Studio giveaway) -- enjoy your prizes girls!!!

Today's dramatic ensemble is inspired by my favorite winter theme "Russian Opulence" and is in turn introducing my next giveaway prize: Lancome "Joyeuses Fetes" Holiday Collection (used to create this makeup look). The Russian theme is very near and dear to my heart and what better way to celebrate it than with an awesome International Giveaway for you guys. Read more for details & giveaway raffle at the end of the post!!!

Good Luck!

Beyonce "Fire & Ice" Transformation Makeup

Hello my beauties & Happy New Year!! I'm back with my first post of 2014 and this pretty one's self-explanatory. I aimed for something fun, different and costume-y, so I went ahead and re-created Beyonce's features and makeup worn to her recent album release party using my fave brands like Makeup Geek, Motives Cosmetics and Too Faced. I also experimented with some hair extensions to change up my look and try something radically different. It's been a while since my last avant garde look or transformational makeup, so I decided to ring in the new year by bringing back one of my most beloved challenges: celeb transformation makeup. This look was created for a costume party and mainly just for fun, simply because it's a new year and I'm going for it!!! Wishing you guys all the best in 2014!!

Read more for details & tutorial :)

"Disco-Ball" Glitter Makeup for NYE!!!

Hello my beautiful flowers!!! (<-- new name I thought of that is so much nicer than followers lol)...

Today's glittery look was created for NYE and my inspiration for the occasion was none other than a literal disco ball. New Year's Eve is one of those special days where More is More, so I decided to go all out with this one. I'm rocking BIG Hair, BIG Earrings, and BIG Sparkly, Gold-n-Glowing Eyes a la Diana Ross in her prime -- for this day, I say, it's only appropriate :) 

I'm wearing my fave eye products from Motives Cosmetics, as well as Belletto Studio airbrush foundation (check out my current GIVEAWAY to win yours), plus a few goodies from great hair and jewelry companies!

Read more for Deets, Tips & Pix!

The Month of Giving Aways #3: Belletto Studio Airbrush!!

Hello my beauties!! Hope everyone is having an amazing holiday season :)) As the third giveaway of my "Month of Giving Aways" series, I'm presenting one of my favorite Airbrush Systems: Belletto Studio HD Skin Secrets Starter Kit ($400 value). This system is so easy to use that even a newbie can pick it up in no time, and the result is absolutely perfect, flawless, "professional"- looking skin!! There will be TWO WINNERS, so make sure to tag your bestie and share the good news :))

Read more for details & GIVEAWAY raffle!!!