Lately, I’ve been watching quite a few videos by Australian YouTuber, Schellea Fowlwer, on her fabulous50 channel. She focuses on tips and tricks of applying makeup for those who are older. I’m not 50 yet but I have hooded lids and lines around my lips, and she shares tips on how to work with these aspects. There’s almost nothing I love to watch more on YouTube, and she just gives me the most useful tips and they are easy to replicate.

Her '5 Biggest Makeup Mistakes On Mature Eyes Tutorial Over 50 by Fabulous50s' was my introduction to her and I've referred back to it a few times. Since gravity is already working against you to drag the outside corners of your eyes down, her whole point of this video is that you should always look for ways to bring the eyes up in that area and not down. I was doing a few of her "don'ts" so it was nice to see what they were and why some are not flattering. 

Pull away tips:

• A thick line of liner on the mobile lid will make your eyes appear smaller. Tighlining the top lid is better.
• Black liner on the bottom water liner can make eyes look more almond shaped.
• Don’t follow nature when applying shadow! Don’t bring the shadow all the way down on the outside.
• Neutral or nude eyeliner pencil can open up the eye look.
• Eye primer is a must!
• Only apply a highlighter in the middle just under the brow, not all the way across.

Since I’m loving the new PIXI BEAUTY Eye Reflections Shadow Palette in Natural Beauty ($24 @ pixibeauty.com) I thought I’d try it out using some of her tips. The palette has both mattes and shimmers in it so this sole one can be used to create a whole look.

Click the link to see how I did it and what I used!

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I think I’ve been around the liquid lipstick block a few times now and with the latest ones I’ve tried being on the indie side, I have some more observations. It seems that just about every brand is coming out with their own version these days, which is great, but not so great when you kinda know what formula works for you, and you don’t get it when you open the tube. If you’re on the liquid lipstick (will abbreviate to LL) bandwagon, do you know which form you like best? I think I do, now that I’ve tried quite a few different brands:

Chanel, Wet N Wild, Tarte, Buxom (part of BareMinerals), ColourPop, Motives, Cailyn Cosmetics, L’Oreal, Make Up For Ever, Stila, Laura Mercier, Merle Norman, NARS, Lime Crime, Ofra Cosmetics, Fyinnae, Maybelline, Ciate London, L'Oreal, Napoleon Perdis, Houglass Cosmetics, CoverGirl, LipSense by SeneGence, Giorgio Armani, Sephora, Kat Von D, MAC, Makeup Monster, LA Splash Cosmetics, Caked, Beauty Bakerie.

Brands on my list to try: The new ones from Smashbox, Anastasia Beverly Hills (I know, I know, I'm like the only one on the planet but I've read mixed reviews), Jeffree Star, Milani (drugstores are always out of the Amore Mattes!), Lonely Planet.

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Do you strobe? Have you tried it yet? It’s the opposite of contouring and it’s sure having a moment right now! And it seems easier than contouring too. Simply think of where light naturally hits your face like the top of the cheekbones, down the nose and middle of the forehead and apply the product there. It's such a refreshing touch to add to your look!

Here are some products that can help you get in the strobing mood:

1. WET N' WILD MegaGlo Highlighting Powder - $3.99 @ wetnwildbeauty.com and drugstores nationwide

2. PUR Moonlight Glow | Strobe/Highlight Palette - $34 @ purminerals.com

3. JEFFREE STAR Skin Frost: Ice Cold - $29 @ jeffreestarcosmetics.com

4. ELF Illuminating Palette - $6 @ elfcosmetics.com

5. LAURA MERCIER Matte Radiance Baked Powder in Highlight 01 - $40 @ sephora.com

Unlike the trend of highlighting and contouring, or HACing, the trend of liquid lipsticks is pretty doable for anybody. With HACing, you really have to have some kind of idea of what you’re doing, what you want to bring forth or set back, blah, blah, blah. And yes, I don’t have it totally down either, just parts of my face.

With the liquid lipstick trend, it’s basically lip color on steroids so if you can apply lipstick or lip gloss, you can apply liquid lipsticks!

It seems to have started out as just a handful of brands a few years ago with MAC (I even have theirs in my Hall of Fame), Korres, Addiction NV (who I don’t think is around anymore), Make Up For Ever and L’Oreal and it wasn’t even called liquid lipstick; not even sure when the name liquid lipstick started surfacing with these.

I’m a fan of all the aforementioned brands but just in case you were wondering, I think the OG liquid lipstick brand has to be LipSense by SeneGence. Thoughts?

But now, this seems to be a full-on trend with whole brands being built just on it like Jeffree Star’s new collection, Pretty Zombie Cosmetics and I’m sure others I just haven’t caught up with just yet.

So just what is liquid lipstick anyways? Click after the jump to find out!

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Each year, when I’m trying to think of new ways to get my house ready for any holiday, I try to keep each of the 5 senses in mind and what appeases each when I think of that holiday.

• What I see
• What I hear
• What I smell
• What I taste
• What I touch

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It's a foundation showdown between Laura Mercier and IT Cosmetics! Two that seem to be very similar but one may have something a little extra, so who will take it? See the details on each below!

First up -- 

LAURA MERCIER Smooth Finish Flawless Fluide ($48/1oz @ sephora.com and lauramercier.com)

What It Is: A 12-hour wear, oil-free foundation that blurs the appearance of imperfections for a smoother-looking complexion. What it does:Laura Mercier’s lightweight foundation leaves skin with a natural-looking matte finish. It works on all skin types, visibly evening skintone and minimizing the appearance of pores. Infused with Hydro-Brilliant Technology, featuring reflective waters and natural silica that create brilliant color-true shades, it is humidity-proof, sweat-proof, and water-resistant for longer, carefree wear. Available in 24 shades. 

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There’s nothing more classic and understated than the nude lip and nail. It’s polished, looks unintentional and goes with everything. LAURA MERCIER just came out with some called the Summer Nudes Collection – 6 Nail Lacquers and 6 Lip Glacé ($24 @ sephora.com, nordstrom.com) lip glosses.

Let’s look closer at two of the lippies.

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It’s officially bath season and I wanted to start it off with a bang so I poured in some of LAURA MERCIER’s new Ambre Vanillé Honey Bath in the last few I've taken. I simply adore honey and vanilla so the two combined in a sweet bath elixir is heaven.

This one foams up a bit and also softens skin with Shea Butter, sweet almond and oat proteins, and pro-vitamin B-5, so the skin will surely benefit. And the scent of this one is laid out like a perfume with layers:

• Top Notes: Tangerine, Coconut, Almond
• Middle Notes: Tiger Orchid, Milk Flower, Heliotrope
• Base Notes: Amber, Vanilla Beans, Brown Sugar, Sandalwood

Have you ever used a honey dipper with a bath product before? This one comes with it, so let the baths begin! $40/12oz @ neimanmarcus.com.

And also be sure to check out this scent in the Scrub and Soufflé Body Crème versions.

The LAURA MERCIER line just came out with some new lipsticks called Crème Smooth Lip Colour and I’ve got one here that I reviewed and swatched. The color shown here is Pink Dusk ($26 @ nordstrom.com) and I just can’t get over how much I’m loving this shade, as well as it being super moisturizing. Could that be the vitamin E inside it? I got about 3 hours of weightless wear of this and I’m excited to try some of the other 18 shades offered.

Wanna see more pictures and swatches? Click after the pic!

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It’s not often I come across a totally non-greasy yet moisturizing hand cream but that’s just what we have here with LAURA MERCIER’s Almond Coconut Milk Hand Crème from the new Almond Coconut Milk Collection. Maybe it’s the essential oils of Jojoba, grape, sunflower and olive that just sink into the skin. Not sure but what does make this one also stand out is the rich scent of sweet almond and coconut with the hint of vanilla and sugar. It’s almost overpowering and could easily be if it’s competing with a strong perfume. $15/2oz @ sephora.com.

Disclosure: Samples of these items were provided for review purposes.