I’m glad that Leesha brought this to my attention via Twitter!

As most of you know, Make Up For Ever has recently released their HD line to the general public, make up that is specifically formulated for HD television.  They have an HD loose setting powder, which is made up of primarily 100% silica (silica is a silicone, it both absorbs oils and leaves skin smooth and is slightly water repellent).  You can purchase a .35 oz jar of HD setting powder from Make Up For Ever for $30!  It’s naturally transclucent, so of course there’s only one shade of it.

You can buy the Make Up For Ever HD Powder at Sephora.com!

Then, we have the Coastal Scents silica powder, which you can get a 1 oz jar for just $4.  A considerably better deal, right?  It’s nearly identical to the MUFE HD in both ingredients and texture!

You can buy this powder at Coastal Scents.com!

I think we all know which is a better deal!  I recommend if you’re interested in the HD powder to definitely give the Coastal Scents silica powder a shot!

I think we’ve all had the issue of either coloring our hair at home, or going somewhere and getting a sloppy colorist, and getting colorall over our faces/neck.

First, if you’re doing it at a salon or hair school, make sure that your stylist gets the color off your face and neck.  It’s not that difficult to do.  If you’re doing it at home, or your stylist can’t seem to get the gusto to get it all off, here are a few suggestions for you!

First, go to your local supply store!  Like, salon supply store.  Not one where you need a license, but something like Sally’s.  They have all sorts of products to remove color from skin!  Find one (even ask a Sally’s employee) that you think would suit your specific needs.
Next, hit up Target, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, CVS…. Something like that.  You know those Olay exfoliating face wipes?  Grab a package.  (I always get the generic.  They’re dry, then you just add water and scrub your face.)  Once you’ve picked up these two necessities, head home!
In your bathroom, get your exfoliating face wipe wet, and apply some of the color remover you got from Sally’s.  Scrub away!  This helps to get the color off your face by both removing it from fresh cells, but also getting the dead skin cells that it adheres too off your face.
You may still have some color left.  We have vellus (tiny, white, virtually invisible hairs) all over our bodies, and even on our faces (the more hormone filled meat you eat, the more you have), and yes, they will color too.  My recommendation?  Shave it off for the time being.  It will grow back virtually invisible like it was before.

Otherwise…. The best thing to use to remove color, is color!
Take some of the extra color and put it on a towel.
Gently wipe away excess color from your face by massaging in tiny circles.  This works great if you’re coloring your hair at home, or have a well-trained stylist on your hands.

I hope that helps some of you — I know that it can be the biggest pain, and embarrassing to walk around for a day with color all over you (hopefully you at least got caped up so that you don’t have it on your clothes!  Speaking of, while you’re at Sally’s, pick up a cape for when you do it at home on yourself.  Protection!).

I just wanted to share my love and support for Quest Crew from America’s Best Dance Crew!  These guys are amazing (how could they NOT be, some of the members were top 10 on So You Think You Can Dance, where I used to watch Hok and Dominc!), very talented, and very experience.  They deserve to win this season!  Watch the show on Thursdays 10pm est, 9 pm central.  And don’t forget to vote!

It looks like I may be getting a digital SLR camera soonly, which means that I’ll FINALLY post some of my work and tutorials!  I just want the pictures and color to be accurate to what it really looks like, so you can adequately see!  I can’t wait to hear what you have to think of my work.

This is probably one of the most common questions encountered by a new make up user.  To shell out the money and get an eyeshadow base, or not to.

I highly recommend an eyeshadow base, you’ll get some massive benefits from using one.  Including:

Your eyeshadow is going to last considerably longer.  Many eyeshadow bases are waterproof, or infused with silicone (giving it waterproof-like properties), which also helps create a barrier between your shadow and the oil that naturally comes out on your eyelids.
Your eyeshadow is going to be brighter as well as long-lasting!  The color is going to be much more vibrant, and true to the color you see in the pan (or jar).  Eyeshadow bases have some great pigment-binding properties, clinging your eyeshadow to it to give you some great color payoff.
You can use your eyeshadow base (at least most of them) in OTHER areas on your face as well.  Like, the edges of your nose where your foundation wears off.  Or underneath your eye, for those of you who wear eyeliner or eyeshadow underneath your eyes, or have that issue of your mascara running into those itty bitty fine lines!  It will help to prevent that, fab, right?

There are many different eyeshadow bases at your disposal, so everyone will be able to find one that they like.  My personal favorites are Urban Decay Primer Potion, and Too Faced Shadow Insurance.

Both products are very similar, in texture, performance, and ingredients.  The biggest difference would be the packaging (and $1 in price).

Buy Urban Decay’s Primer Potion at Sephora.com!

Meet Urban Decay’s Primer Potion (0.34 oz) I love this product and have been using since 2005 as my #1 eyeshadow base.  I love the texture and the color payoff I receive from using it.  I’ve worn this through hot summer concert festivals I’ve worked, and it’s definitely done the job!  The only quam I have with it is the awful packaging.  See that biiiiig round part up by the top?  Well, you can’t get the product out of that area, or out of the very bottom thanks to the wand that you use to get it out (this would have been much better in a squeezy tube).  You literally have to cut the bottle in half to get the product out, and when I learned this and did it…. The bottle I thought was empty, still had about half of the product left!

Apparently they’re working on a new package.  It’s going through different stages of testing right now, so I can’t wait to see what their creative team has come up with!

Buy Too Faced’s Shadow Insurance at Sephora.com!

Too Faced’s Shadow Insurance (0.35 oz) is nearly identical to the Primer Potion (literally, I checked the ingredient list!).  I receive the same benefits, only with MUCH better packaging.  I love it, though I’m really excited for the new packaging from Urban Decay.  Looks like a duel here, ladies!

Of course, there are other options as well.

MAC Paint Pots — these aren’t really intended as an eyeshadow base as much as a cream eyeshadow.  I haven’t used them, nor heard the greatest regarding the lastability of the eyeshadow using them.  I do like that you can get them in colors, which will add pigment to your eyeshadow getting more color.
MAC Cream Colour Base — I love that these come in colors, but they’re very emollient rich.  If you’re going to use them, I do recommend using a real base underneath just to achieve some staying power, or you will crease eventually during the day!
MAC Shadesticks — they’ve phased out a lot of colors, unfortunately, but these really did hold eyeshadow on and the colors made your eyeshadows POP!
MAC Paints — these as well are being phased out due to the new Paint Pots, but I preferred the paints.  They dried to a matte consistancy, similar to the Too Faced and Urban Decay bases, only they had pigment.  It’s such a bummer they’re being discontinued.
Benefit Boi-Ing Eyeshadow Base/Concealer — I think this creases more than the others, so I’m not a huge fan unfortunately.  It does work for some.
Lancome Aquatique — I really like this, however the color is kind of dark, which I don’t feel works well with my brighter eyeshadows, or my increasingly pale skin.

Of course, there’s even more, but those are the most popular in my experience.  Try my favorite two!  I hope I helped answer some questions dollfaces.

I’m just in the mood for sweets, so I thought I’d share with all of you my recipe for my all-time favorite cookie! (You should probably avoid this recipe if you’re allergic to cinnamon, it is a necessity for a snickerdoodle!)

INGREDIENTS

* 1 cup shortening
* 1 1/2 cups white sugar
* 2 eggs
* 2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2 tablespoons white sugar
* 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the shortening and 1 1/2 cups of white sugar until smooth. Stir in the eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Combine the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt; stir into the batter until blended.
3. Roll the dough into balls the size of small walnuts. Roll in a mixture of 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned, but still soft.

Personally, I don’t recommend baking cookies at a temperature higher than 350 — you want them to stay soft and not get too crispy!

What’s your favorite cookie/dessert?