Tag Archives: make-up

Beauty on a Shoestring: Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse

I’ve gushed long and often about my love of Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation. But for all its greatness, it does have one fatal flaw: the price. Thanks to a lifetime of dental drama that had another flame-up last year, 2013 may see a record number of “Beauty on a Shoestring” posts as I tighten the belt on my beauty budget.

When my bottle of Luminous Silk dried up late last year, I was forced to find an affordable alternative for a daily foundation. Sad, I know. But this beauty tale has a happy ending. I’m ecstatic to report that I have found an outstanding drugstore brand foundation that has exceeded all my expectations. Let me tell you about Maybelline Dream Liquid Mousse Foundation. Continue reading →

Look Glamorous with GloMinerals

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My friends at Westlake Dermatology and Iderma.com asked me to explore their products for Beautypendence. I was interested in learning about and trying GloMinerals make-up, so they generously sent me the GloMinerals Deluxe Kit. It’s a fun collection of just about everything you need to pull together a glamorous evening make-up look. Here’s the skinny on what’s included in this $85 kit. Continue reading →

GUEST POST: The Beauty of Love

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Editor’s Note: This guest post is from Austin-based professional matchmaker and relationship expert Julia McCurley of Something More. Julia and I recently met at an event, and I was instantly drawn to her firecracker personality. I’ve invited her to write this guest post on Beautypendence. All opinions shared below are her own.

I know about love… and beauty. Often they are intertwined. Here, I’ll let you look into my makeup drawer to see my favorite products that I use – as well as recommend to my clients. Continue reading →

Beautypendence Turns One: 10 Favorite Posts

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It’s hard to believe it was a year ago that Wendy and I were launching a new beauty blog. Lots has happened in the past year, and I couldn’t be more proud of Beautypendence. The most wonderful, unexpected outcome has been the new community created in my world around beauty. There’s a long list of generous beauty-based businesses and professionals I’ve worked with in this first year, but mostly, I send a big virtual hug to you, the readers!

To celebrate, I thought I’d share 10 favorite posts, in no particular order, from Beautypendence’s inaugural year. It was tough to narrow it down from the 91 total posts on the blog (what? wow!), but I think you’ll find some gems here.

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Here Comes The Bride: Tonya’s Wedding Hair & Makeup

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Sometimes dreams do come true. My very close friend Tonya found her prince, Ted, and they were set to marry the weekend of Cinco de Mayo. I was flattered when she asked me to do not only her wedding make-up but also her hair. Wait… yikes! You want me to do your hair?? Um, sure I do my own hair for events plenty, but I haven’t done a lot of updos on other people’s heads. However, Tonya has naturally curly hair, which I knew would make the updoing a lot easier. I told her she could count on me.

A few weeks before, Tonya came over for a run-through so we’d have a game plan the morning of the big day. We had already been pinning hair and make-up inspirations on Pinterest for months, so we had good starting points. Tonya and Ted’s wedding was Mexican-themed, and she wanted to wear big, colorful flowers in her hair. For the make-up, we would go classic but bold enough for the photographs.

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Judicial Review: COOLA Face SPF20 Mineral Sunscreen

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For a while, I had been hunting for good sun protection for my face. Let us not forget that even in the winter (or Austin’s weak interpretation of it) you need to wear some kind of sun protection on your face. EVERYDAY.

I was specifically looking for a physical sunblock, which is typically sensitive skin friendly. (If you’ve ever wondered what the difference is between “sunscreen” and “sunblock”, or “chemical” and “physical” sunblocks, read this.) The problem with sunblock formulas, however, is that they can leave a white cast on your skin due to the minerals used to do the sunblocking action. It’s not a good look.

I had first seen the COOLA Suncare line at a trusted local beauty store, so I went online to further investigate their self-proclaimed organic products. And then when Wendy and I went to Travaasa, their spa sold COOLA Face SPF20 Mineral Sunscreen, so I bought it in hopes that it would become my go-to daily sunscreen. Continue reading →

Jenn’s Ten-Minute Face: Winter Edition

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Back in September, I wrote a post about my five-minute make-up face. Now that the heat has FINALLY gone away, I can tolerate wearing a little more product. For winter, I’ve been wearing foundation everyday and have punched up the color on my lips. Here’s my go-to make-up look when I want to quickly get out the door but still look put together.

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Judicial Review: Dior 5 Couleurs Lift Eyeshadows

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Last week, I told you about the Dior Event that Wendy and I attended at Neiman Marcus. Dior National Make-up Artist Jeffrey Sanchez created a dramatic smoky eye look for me that I loved, but as far as what to purchase, I wanted something more suitable for a daytime, office make-up look. With some consultation from one of the Dior make-up artists, I ended up with this:

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Fun at Neiman Marcus: Christian Dior New Look Event

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A few weeks ago, Wendy and I each received surprise FedEx packages from our friends at Neiman Marcus. Inside was a Christian Dior black pouch with sample products and this invite to an upcoming Dior event. We made appointments right away.

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Beauty on a Shoestring: Babe on a Budget

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Last Friday, I was a bridesmaid for the first time in my dear friend Katy’s wedding. It was a BEAUTIFUL wedding, and I’m fairly certain we were the hottest bridal party ever.

Jessica Alba Revlon ad

During the course of bridesmaid-hood, fellow bridesmaid Lindsey A. (not to be confused with bridesmaid Lindsey H.) asked if I could help her with her wedding day make-up. Like me, she was on a tight budget and looking to economize. However, since I’d be doing my own hair and make-up, I knew I wouldn’t have time to also do her make-up day of. What I did do was help her plan out a make-up strategy and aid in a make-up shopping extravaganza.

As with any event prep, I told Lindsey to start by pulling make-up looks for inspiration. She tore out various magazine ads, and the one that emerged as the top candidate was this Revlon ad with Jessica Alba. We were all wearing floor-length gowns, so it was totally appropriate to wear a more evening make-up look. Lindsey especially liked the eye make-up in this ad. It was a great choice, because Lindsey has similar skin and hair coloring as Jessica.

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