post + photos by amy nadine, graphic design by eunice chun
I love streamlining anything and everything. One of my proudest accomplishments is traveling with a client and minimizing my kit to a small doctor’s bag (revisit my SurprEYES Tutorial here for fitting foundation and cream blush in the smallest of clutches). So I’m super excited to bring you today’s little gem! I know I haven’t convinced everyone to bump it up to false lashes for parties and nights out on the town yet (even with our Quick Tips for Lash Strips Tutorial showing you just how easy and foolproof applying them is!). But I know a lot of you have made the leap and are having a lot of fun with it! So how do you store them? In mint tins of course! Here’s how: READ MORE…
Oh my! Sometimes you spy something so cute, you’ve just got to share. This is definitely one of those times. So in LOVE with these little macaron trinket/pill boxes! I thought it would be a great idea to get your girlfriends one of these colorful confections and pair it with a bottle of your favorite hair growth pills. They’re gorgeous and could obviously be served alone as a very chic way to carry whatever tiny things a lady might need.
photo by kristin ess, graphic design by eunice chun, post by amy nadine
A couple months ago you got to know our lovely Kristin Ess, who creates all the hair + nail tutorials, when she popped out to say hello here! I’ve been meaning to as well but you know how things go… anyway, here I am! I’m Amy Nadine and the other half of The Beauty Department. I create all of the makeup tutorials and have so much fun doing every single one of them that I have to pinch myself. I love teaching as much as I love makeup, so co-founding our little blog has been heaven for me. I grew up in a political family just outside of Washington DC and loved public service, but mostly loved studying the many different faces that greeted me when we campaigned door to door. I think faces are the most fascinating and inspiring creations in this world, with all the different eye shapes, lip sizes, skin tones, freckles, noses, cheekbones and expressions… I could go on and on but having faces as canvases for me is what keeps me so in love with what I do! And why I’m obsessed with bringing out each person’s unique features with a light hand and not creating a mask with a heavy hand. When thinking of new tutorials for you, I read every single email that you write in and try to think of fun and new techniques that simplify everything and make it less scary. Or for those of you that are very comfortable with makeup, I try to create pretty looks that will inspire you to change things up a bit every now and then. And I love reading your comments and feedback! It’s truly been an amazing journey so far!
You can get to know me a little better in this video with Lauren Conrad on the Wendy Williams Show showing how to do winged liner and make your lipstick last longer:
And in this video tutorial on how to re-create Taylor Swift’s cat eye and red lip from this year’s VMA’s!
post + photos by amy nadine, graphic design by eunice chun
Another oldie but goodie, this trick is your best friend for many reasons… it creates a sharp line, it has a lifting effect and it takes the pressure off you to even worry about applying it perfectly. And all you need is a baby wipe. Sold! Here’s how:
Before you apply foundation, start with a smoky eye. Hold the wipe from the side of your nose to the end of the brow. 99% of the time, this is the perfect angle for lifting and winging your shadow. If your eyebrow is on the shorter side, use the angle of the outside corner of your lower lashline to determine where you place the wipe.
Place your finger on the wipe directly to the side of the eyeshadow as seen above.
In one quick swoop, pull the wipe by dragging your finger from your bottom lashline to your brow.
Remove the wipe and you’ll see a perfect + clean edge!
Perfect the top corner by slightly rounding it out with a Q-tip.
You can end it there. Or… for even more drama, go back with a black kajal liner like the Physician’s Formula Shimmer Liner that I used on Sophia above (or a black liquid liner) and draw an exaggerated winged line using the edge as your guide.
