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My New “This Makes Me Feel Sexy” Lipstick: Illamasqua Lipstick in Box

Let’s face it, me being close to 5 months pregnant, very little can make me feel sexy these days. But, somehow the  Illamasqua Lipstick in Box ($24) broke the “My face is so full I can’t look in the mirror” spell. When I’m wearing it I feel inspired to keep checking my reflection (as you can see from the photo below), pouting my lips at my husband, and feeling like I’m channeling a film noire temptress.

How did I discover it? Actually, I didn’t. My friend Jocelyn was over at the house, sipping wine (don’t worry… I had sparkling water but why should she be punished for my bun in the oven?) and raiding the beauty room.  I love introducing friends like Jocelyn (a makeup artist and lash extension stylist) to the beauty room because they actually appreciate the masses of makeup and skincare, and I love sharing it with them!  We were rapidly filling up Jocelyn’s beauty trick or treat bag when we started going through my hoards of makeup.  She took the top off of the Illamasqua lipstick and gave me a quizzical look. I shot her back a look like, “What??”

“Janna, you’ve never used this,” she said as she twisted the lipstick up.

“Um, there are a lot of lipsticks I haven’t used in this room, Jocelyn.”

“Yeah, but this one would look really good on you. Try this on now!” she demanded as she handed me the lipstick.

There was no good reason why I hadn’t tried it except for that I probably have at least 100 lipsticks (no exaggeration) in my beauty room and in various handbags. It’s tough getting through them all! #beautybloggerproblems

I swiped on the lipstick and looked in the mirror. “Wow,” I said to my reflection. Jocelyn was right (and she knew it based on the look on her face). It made my lips look pouty and was the perfect shade of red for my skin tone and eye and hair color. Jocelyn gave me a quick I told you so in the form of, “See! This is going to be your new color!” She’s right.

If you’re ready to get your sex kitten on… the lipstick is a long-lasting matte so make sure you exfoliate your lips first and apply a balm at least 10 minutes before applying.  But once you swipe on the lipstick you probably won’t have to touch up again for the night (unless of course you’re making out for hours on end because the lipstick makes you that irresistible).

Send me photos of yourself wearing the lipstick. I’m dying to see what it looks like on other people!

E! Entertainment’s “Beauty Police” Round-Up: May 13th – 17th

It’s been a fun week of breaking down celebrity beauty looks. Luckily the celebs never fail in giving me plenty of material!

5/13: Beauty Police: Eva Longoria’s Makeup Pays Homage to the Real Housewives of New Jersey

5/14: Beauty Police: Sarah Jessica Parker, Bring Back Your Sex and the City Hair!

5/15: Beauty Police: Mindy Kaling Gets Caught in a Wind Tunnel…And We Like It!

5/16: Beauty Police: Avril Lavigne is a Punk Rock Corpse Bride in Terrifying Makeup

5/17: Beauty Police: Nicole Kidman Has a Hair and Makeup Identity Crisis at Cannes

Have a great weekend my lovelies!

Banished to the Beauty Graveyard: Benefit Cosmetics Fake Up Concealer

Once again I, Beauty Binge, have been duped by the over-enthusiastic media… If you’re an idiot like me and buy a product just because the magazines and beauty blogs rave about it then perhaps you were dumb enough to shell out $24.00 for the Benefit Cosmetics Fake Up Concealer.  I violently threw this greasy, no-good concealer into the Beauty Graveyard (AKA the trash bin) out of frustration for spending so much money on a worthless tube of garbage.  Think I’m being too harsh? Think again…

This concealer is touted by Sephora as: An ultrahydrating crease-control concealer. Cover-up goes incognito. This moisturizing crease-control concealer with vitamin E and apple seed extract hides dark circles and diffuses fine lines for a silky smooth, ultranatural look. Available in three shades, it’s proven to keep skin hydrated for six hours and won’t cake, crease, or settle.

Right… the only thing this concealer “covered up” was my good shopping sense. It goes on greasy and shiny which brings more attention to my puffiness. I don’t consider myself someone to have intense dark circles or even medium dark circles but this grease-ball in a tube couldn’t conceal even the slightest darkness.  It has way too much moisturizer to do any sort of concealing.  To put it bluntly, this product sucks.  Spend the extra 5 seconds and put on an eye cream before applying a quality concealer like Amazing Cosmetics Amazing Concealer Fair Golden ($42) or Cle de Peau Beaute Concealer ($70) which may be pricey but should last you for at least a year (if it doesn’t you’re applying way too much product!).

Bridal Skin Care Bootcamp: 6 Weeks Prior to the Big Day

Brides-to-be ask me all the time about my skincare regimen before my wedding. Now keep in mind I’m not your average beauty addict so you can imagine my regimen was a bit more involved than most brides. But why take a chance that your skin isn’t going to  look amazing on your big day? You’re spending all that money on a dress, makeup, and hair — you best put some of that budget aside for your skin! You need to start planning for your glowing skin at least 6 weeks prior:
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E! Entertainment’s “Beauty Police” Round-Up: May 6th – 10th

Ladies, please forgive me for being so late with last week’s roundup of my Beauty Police columns. I was rockin’ it out at the Bottlerock Festival in Napa, CA, and by “rockin’ it out” I mean waddling around the festival with a big pregnant belly, huffing and puffing, feeling jolts of back spasms and sore feet.  Who knew being pregnant would make my body feel 80-years-old?? We still had a great time but I’m feeling overwhelming waves of guilt for neglecting you, my lovelies! So without further ado, here are all the headlines from last week’s columns:

5/6: Beauty Police: Game of Thrones‘ Emilia Clarke Goes for Drama, Ends Up With a Makeup Tragedy

5/7: Beauty Police: The 2013 Met Ball Goes Punk! Behold All the Good, the Bad and the Halloween-Ready Looks (Make sure you click the “Check out our best and worst looks…” link at the bottom of the post to see my slideshow!)

5/8: Beauty Police: Julianna Margulies Shines in the Spotlight…But Not in the Good Way

5/9: Beauty Police: Anne Hathaway Channels ‘60s Star TrekStyle—Beam Us Up, Annie!

5/10: Beauty Police: Heidi Klum Gets a Mermaid-Inspired Makeover With Ocean Blue Eye Makeup

Have a wonderful week!

Top 5 Outdoor Event Essentials: Don’t Go to a Festival or Ball Game Without Reading!

I know all you ladies on the East Coast want to throw hail balls at me for suggesting “outdoor venues” when you’re being pummeled with rain but just remember, “It can’t rain all of the time.” Soon you will be going to outdoor concerts, sporting events, farmers markets, etc. I swear!  Here on the West Coast I’m gearing up to go to the Bottle Rock Festival in Napa, Valley (3 days of bands like The Black Keys, Violent Femmes, Jane’s Addiction, The Flaming Lips, The Avett Brothers combined with a wine and food festival) and of course I’m already planning my beauty arsenal.

Now, don’t be fooled. Just because I love makeup doesn’t mean I’m going to be slapping it on for an outdoor music festival. Nothing looks worse than melting, runny makeup and I’m going more for the Earth Mother vibe anyway. With my lash extensions, tinted sunscreen and a little lip tint I’ll be ready to rock. Here’s what will be in my bag:
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Spa Slut Finds Mother’s Day Indulgences at the Best Spas Across the U.S. (via HuffPo)

The Spa Slut came out in all her fabulous glory to find the best spots for moms to be spoiled across the U.S. for Mother’s Day.  I had SO much fun writing this piece and of course I got jealous while writing it because I wanted to be at all these spas instead of sitting at home typing in my jammies.

Read my Huffington Post “Mother’s Day Spa Indulgences Across the U.S. Article here!

The Bathhouse at the Calistoga Ranch in Napa Valley

E! Entertainment’s “Beauty Police” Round-Up: April 29th – May 3rd

I had so much fun writing for E! Entertainment’s Fashion Police this week in my new daily column “Beauty Police.” Now, keep in mind E! has asked me to bitchy so don’t strangle me if I’m too tough on your favorite celebrities.  But come on… JLo does look like a drag queen in the photo and Rita Ora shouldn’t have left the house looking like that. For copyright reasons I can’t show you the photos on Beauty Binge so I guess you’ll just have to click on the links below to see what I’m talking about!  Be sure to check out the last post “Luxe for Less” to see some of my recommendations for best beauty bargains.

4/29: Beauty Police: Jennifer Lopez Auditions for RuPaul’s Drag Race in Makeup Fit for a Drag Queen

4/30: Beauty Police: Sophia Bush Raids Her Grandmother’s Makeup Bag for This Bland Make-under

5/1: Beauty Police: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen Take Makeup Lessons From Zombies

5/2: Beauty Police: Winona Ryder’s Vintage Hollywood Glam Look Has Us Shouting, “Winona Forever!”

5/3: Beauty Police: Rita Ora Goes Full on ’80s With Big Bouffant Hair and Caked-On Makeup

5/3: PHOTOS: Beauty Police: Luxe for Less

Jenny McCarthy Owes Me $50: Her Endorsed Eyedews DO Nothing!

We all know I love to bitch about my puffy eyes…. Since I was young I’ve suffered from terrible allergies which have always given me those damn puffs.  As I’ve gotten older the puffiness has spread to my eyelids (sexy!) and before I got knocked up, my daily wine intake (did I just admit to that?) helped to kick up the puff even more.  Now that I’m pregnant and shoving pickles and pork rinds in my mouth by the dozen, the salt is making my eyes look like I got punched. So you can imagine how excited I was when I read in one of the rags that Jenny McCarthy swears by Eyedews (infused jelly eye pads) for getting rid of puffiness and fatigued eyes after long flights.

Jenny McCarthy tweeted out this pic of her using the “miracle” Eyedews

Okay now here’s problem #1: I read about the EyeDews while my feet were luxuriating in a pedicure.  Lulled by the relaxing hot stone massage on my feet I made the ill decision of not doing comparison shopping, and instead logged into my Amazon app and saw that Eyedews were “on sale” for $49.99 and were available via Amazon Prime.  Somehow in my twisted mind Amazon Prime’s free 2-day shipping meant I would be getting a great deal. Right… guess what? Eyedews are $20 for 6 pairs on their site. Okay so technically Jenny McCarthy owes me $20 and I pay the $30 in stupid tax.
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Mother’s Day Gift Guide: Giving Mom a Little Glamour and Pampering… (via Huff Po)

I thought I would create a modern Mother’s Day Gift Guide for Huffington Post this week.  Let’s face it… Flowers and gifts from Things Remembered are so 20 years ago. Be original on Mother’s Day and give her what she really wants! And for those of you who are already mommies… I urge you to forward the article to your hubbys and baby daddys… Obviously I chose gifts I would love as an expecting mother for Mother’s Day (actually for any occasion)!

Or, if you’ve already gotten Mom a gift and you’re not a mommy then go nuts and buy yourself something nice. I mean you deserve a little retail love, right? Binge on babies!

Read my Huffington Post Mother’s Day Gift Guide by clicking here!