More Makeup Stuff from Audrey

OK, I'm a bit behind in providing some updates from the makeup-loving side of Audrey. So here we go!

1) A few months ago, I emerged as a budding freelance makeup artist! I have a lot to learn but I've been having so much fun in the meantime.

2) I have lots of new homes on the web in support of my makeup artistry "biz"

- Model Mayhem Profile: Model Mayhem is a really great networking site for photographers, models, hair stylists, makeup artists, etc. I find most of my "gigs" through this site
- Makeup by Audrey: Just my own personal Makeup Artist site. Looks nice, right? :) Made it for free using wix.com
- Facebook Fan Page: It feels weird to say I created myself a fan page but it's basically a more accessible way for my friends to see what I've been up to. I pretty much post all my pics here which includes several that don't make the other websites.

3) In addition to my personal twitter, I also have a separate, public one strictly for makeup talk :)

Follow @makeupaudrey on twitter!

4) And finally, I did another guest post for the Makeup and Beauty Blog. My first post was back in May and I was thrilled to be able to contribute again. Click the pic below for the post!



Hope you guys like the stuff I've been working on!

And now a funny clip of Rob...

Fun Taylor clip

Well obviously I'm Team Edward, but I thought this was pretty cute. Plus I found out Taylor is a fan of the Michigan Wolverines. Smart kid!



(Sorry, there's a short ad in the beginning.)

I'm pretty sure he can take him

Yeah, yeah, back to New Moon. I don't know about you, but I've been eating up all the New Moon press tour footage.

Anyway, as I've mentioned before, I'm really impressed with what they've done with the wolves. But this kind of made me laugh.



Now I'm pretty sure the books imply that if there was an Edward vs. Jacob battle, Edward would win. And I think RPattz confirmed the same in an interview. But looking at the film interpretation... c'mon! Jacob could totally tear apart Edward! How strong and fast could Edward possibly be compared to wolf boy?

Anyway, I am very excited for next Friday.

Making the most of my palette

So it has come to my attention that perhaps not all of my readers are as anxious as I am for November 20th to get here and actually aren't all that interested in Twilight. (the horror!!!)

And since I did declare this to be both a pop culture and makeup blog, I should talk some makeup, right?

As most of my friends know, I am a MAC addict. Although I am an equal opportunity "product whore" (stole that title from a biz card of another makeup artist), I have a special place in my heart for MAC Cosmetics.

Especially their eye shadows... I have two eyeshadow palettes both completely filled plus a bunch of their other eyeshadow compacts from some of their various collections (I realize this actually isn't that bad compared to most other MAC junkies). I recently picked up three new shadows with no home for them. I could buy a new eyeshadow palette but 1) why spend the $$$ and 2) why add one more thing to lug around in my already busting to the seams makeup bag(s).

Below is my cool/color palette. (The other one has my warm/neutral colors.) As you can see, there is currently no room at the inn.



I decided to copy some of the Youtube makeup people I follow and just take the tray out of my palette like so. It wasn't too tricky, you just have to be careful not to break the whole tray in half when snapping it out.



And voila! Now I have room for my three new shadows plus a whole bunch more :) For now, I organized them by splitting the shimmery shades from the matte ones but I'm sure that will change as I pick up new colors.



As you can tell from the pics, my new additions to my collection are white, yellow, and orange - all mattes. I got them for a look I did today which I am absolutely thrilled with! My best creation to date, if I do say so myself, heehee! See if you can guess what kind of look it was (except for those who are privy to what shoots I have this week!) and I'll reveal a pic in a later post.

Definitely bringing tissues to New Moon

SPOILER ALERT: The entire break up scene from New Moon



*sniff, sniff* I feel like someone just broke up with me.

And, by the way, the wolves are looking good!!! Definitely more scary and not as cuddly as I thought before.

PLEASE tell me you are watching Glee!!!

Because if you're not, you are missing out on some laugh out loud television. Last night's episode was a particular winner, as they did a fantastic job with utilizing Beyonce's Single Ladies in a really funny football storyline.

You can check out the final scene here - it is sooooo hilarious! (And adorable)

If you want to cut to the musical number, skip to 2:30. Don't miss Kurt's winning kick - I love the way he prepares for it!



(Nice to see Mike O'Malley guest star as Kurt's dad. My sis and I used to watch his old show "Yes, Dear" as filler TV, i.e. nothing else is on so let's watch this. They had a touching moment when Kurt came out to him.)

Yay for more Edward in the *new* New Moon trailer

Updated with full trailer:

So jealous of Ellen...

Trailers for new seasons of The City and The Hills

The City

MTV Shows

I love Whitney, I think she is adorable. But I can not stand Olivia! She is so infuriating. And based on this trailer, it looks like she almost gets equal time. What about that cutie Erin? Can't we follow her instead? I can only hope that Olivia gets put in her place by the people at Elle which is the only thing that would redeem her presence this season.


The Hills

The Hills - MTV Shows

Are we supposed to believe that is Kristen's home in the opening shot of the trailer? OK. And who is she smooching in the end?

This could be an interesting season although I think Kristen's antics will probably get on my nerves. You know, the whole creating drama just for the sake of creating drama bit. And Heidi needs rehab? What? And oh Spencer... seriously, what is up with your Urban Cowboy hat?


What do you guys think about these new seasons?

Sephora Candy Color Look

So... It's been awhile since I've done a makeup look on this blog. I feel my makeup skills are getting a little rusty (out of practice these days) so I'm going to try to do these more often.

There's a look I've been wanting to do for awhile so here it is finally! It is the "Candy Colors" look from the recent Sephora mailer. As soon as I saw it, I thought, ooh I want to try it. I noticed a lot of other Youtube makeup gurus had the same thought. You can see some other really well-done interpretations here and here.



And here's my version. Yes, I cheated and only did half my face. It wasn't intentional. I didn't like the light blue shadow that I originally applied on the first eye so I tried a different one on the other eye. I liked that one better and just kept rolling with it. Plus I didn't go out with this look so why waste that extra makeup, right?



As usual, the eyeshadows are a bit more vibrant in person than in these pics but I'm happy with how these came out.

Here's what I used:

EYES
Too Faced Eye Shadow Insurance
NYX Milk Jumbo Eye Shadow Pencil
MAC Steamy e/s (blue-ish color, applied with Shroom on top to make it more pastel)
Urban Decay Ransom e/s (purple)
MAC Shroom e/s
MAC Brule e/s - under brow
Bobbi Brown Black Ink gel eyeliner
MAC Spiked eyebrow pencil
Andrea Modlash #33

FACE
Mary Kay medium coverage foundation in Beige 400
MAC Stark Naked blush

LIPS
MAC Subculture lip pencil
MAC Angel lipstick
MAC Love Nectar lustreglass

The correct translation is...

Oh... Jacob's last line was actually "DON'T get me upset." Oooh... scary... kinda like the Incredible Hulk (whose TV transformation scared me to death when I was a kid.)



This will probably get taken down, too. Oh well.

80's style fashion...

I recently read some nice John Hughes remembrance pieces on Entertainment Weekly online and this one specifically interested me.

It was written by Lea Thompson talking about her time working with Hughes on the film, "Some Kind of Wonderful". (Click the picture for full article.)



Her commentary was interesting, but my eye specifically caught on the picture. See her button up shirt accented with the very decorative pin? I used to do that. Yep. I can't remember if this was common but I definitely know I was into that look.

Here's proof. This is me, circa 1989:



Yes, I know this is a horrible photo of me blowing out my birthday candles but it was the only one I could find of me sporting my brooch fashion statement.

Often I'm embarrassed by things I've wore in the past (whether it's years ago or last month), but how bad can this be if Miss Amanda Jones wore the same look?

On a side note, around this time, I think I also liked wearing suspenders. I think it was a Debbie Gibson influence. Unfortunately (or fortunately?), I can't find any pics to prove that.

What crazy things did you wear in the 80s?

Updated New Moon Trailer - in French!!!

OK, before I begin, yes, I know I am way too old to be this obsessed with Twilight. Just wanted to get that out there.

So I don't know if this is the new trailer they are planning to show this weekend, but it looks like the French already got an updated version and let me tell you - it is good!!! Click here for the video (scroll down) and here for the French translations. Keep in mind, some of the comments are actually made by Taylor in an interview form. (Note: It's possible the video might be taken down as the original version I had linked has already been removed.)

(Another video and translation is here.)

UPDATE: This version has subtitles.


Now there are a lot of blink-and-miss-it moments (I know, b/c I missed several in the first viewing) so as a favor to all of you (and myself!), I took some screencaps of some of the new things you can expect to see in this trailer, such as...


Some closeups of that kiss in Italy


The Wolf Pack


Jane


The Volturi


Drowning


Victoria


Edward vs the Volturi


And if all you really want to see is that kiss, someone already turned it into an animated gif! Hopefully this doesn't make your eyes go cross-eyed.

Kathy Griffin and Levi Johnston??? WTH!

So I tweeted about this last night, but if any of you wanted to see the awkwardness that I was referring to, here you go:



I know most people can't stand Kathy Griffin, but I'll admit it - I think she's hilarious. And I find it funny when she pretends to come on to these guys. (Did any of you watch last season when she went on a series of set up dates with a wide range of characters, most notably Nick Carter and Ron Jeremy!!!) Although I really don't understand why Levi would go along with this. I mean, he just looks like an idiot.

Urban Decay is having their 30% off sale again

August 10th through 20th, save 30% on all of your favorite Urban Decay products. Just use coupon code FNFF1 at checkout at urbandecay.com.

Not sure what to get? Check out Audrey's Favorite Urban Decay Products.

New Teaser Trailer for New Moon

Kristen Stewart looks really pretty in this new teaser trailer. And Taylor Lautner looks even more ripped here - geesh! He's just a teenager???



And although I liked the indie look of Twilight, I'm getting excited to see the more polished version of New Moon.

On a related note, I refuse to sit through Bandslam to see the new extended New Moon trailer. Yes, I know it's surprising, but there are actually some cheesy teen flicks that even I won't spend my $$$ on.

You know it will all be on Youtube later anyway. I personally enjoy the bootleg videos since those have the added entertainment of the screaming and squealing of the camera operator and her nearby friends. Makes me feel less like a tool when I am screaming and squealing while watching it from the comfort of my home.

Five Minute Face

How long does it take you to do your makeup? I know I definitely cannot do 5 minutes. Maybe if I skip the eyeliner part because that seems to take the longest.

This YouTuber, Emily, decided to take on the 5 minute challenge based on a book by Carmindy from "What Not to Wear". What I found even more impressive was that she managed to convince her boyfriend to participate in helping her with this challenge. What a man!

As a side note, Emily is a local newscaster which she alludes to in her video.



Can you guys do the 5 minute face? I might try it but if I do, I might replace the highlighter step with filling in my brows. That's usually something I do everyday.

(500) Days of Summer - See it!

I really loved the film (500) Days of Summer. It's one of those quirky kind of romance films but as the film's narrator states in the beginning, "This is not a love story."

Well, there are definitely romantic moments and a lot of humorous moments as well. The film has an indie feel to it and uses a lot of different styles in telling this story, kind of like the movie, "Amelie". The main character is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt (who was such a cutie in "10 Things I Hate about You").

You know what else I loved? Zooey Deschanel's wardrobe! In general, she looks beautiful throughout the entire film but her clothing especially has such a fun, classic retro style. Maybe 50's era? She's so cute.

And the music soundtrack is really good, too. Well, with the exception of the humorous use of Patrick Swayze's song, "She's Like the Wind".

Check it out - it's a fun summer film!

Friday night look

Random, insignificant comment - sometimes, I like to match my eyeshadow with my accessories.

OK, this was the first time I did it.

And I liked it.



Yay for crazy bright colors! I think it was actually more obnoxious in person. This pic was taken at the end of the night.

The main color is Steamy from MAC and was part of my loot from the recent 25% off sale.

Twilight Drama! The Re-Casting of Victoria

I'm still in shock that Summit suddenly decided to re-cast Victoria right before production is supposed to begin.

After reading all the press releases / statements regarding this huge change, I can sort of understand both sides... it's all a huge bummer, though.

I know there are some petition efforts going on to bring back Rachelle Lefevre but it sounds like Summit is PISSED so I doubt she'll be re-hired.

And to be honest, I wasn't all that impressed with her performance in Twilight. When I first saw the movie, she was one of the main casting choices that I wasn't crazy about. I didn't find her as scary or intimidating like I did with Cam Gigandet (James).

But from what I can tell from interviews and Twitter, she seems like a really sweet person that is very dedicated to the Twilight fans and to the films. And now not only was she booted from this role, now she has to deal with this big old mess.

Of course, I also feel bad for Bryce Dallas Howard (the new Victoria). She's probably thinking, "What the &*( did I get myself into?" I don't think I've seen any of her films but hopefully she will do a great job in Eclipse.

Anyway, just my random thoughts... were you guys as shocked as I was?

Foodie Report: Citizen Cake Patisserie and Bouchon Bakery

If you follow my blogs, you know I'm a big fan of TV, makeup, and running. You know what else I love? Baked goods! I am a sweet tooth freak. Cookies are my favorite with cupcakes being a close second.

So I'm going to do a slightly different post this time with my very first Foodie Report.

While my friend Pam (remember her from the smokey eye look?) was in town, we visited some amazing bakeries and they were both delicious experiences!

First stop:


Citizen Cake Patisserie
San Francisco, CA
Chef Elizabeth Falkner

We were both familiar with this place from Chef Faulkner's appearances on the foodie shows. Most recently, Pam and I caught her on an episode of Top Chef Master's.

On a side note, the first time I visited Citizen Cake was with my friend Kirby where we had cupcakes and coffee at the bar. Chef Faulkner made an appearance while we were there - with a camera crew! I think they may have been shooting background footage for the Top Chef show. Just a guess. Alas, we did not make the final cut.

Anyway, check out our feast! We shared two delicious cupcakes with our Cafe Au Laits.



Signature cupcake:


Rocky Road cupcake:


Both were very yummy but I think we agreed that the chocolate cake in the Signature Cupcake was better - more rich and moist, I think. Although the marshmallows in the Rocky Road cupcake were heavenly, as well.


Later that weekend, we found ourselves in wine country and through Pam's clever research, we discovered this place.



Bouchon Bakery
Yountville, CA (near Napa)
Chef Thomas Keller

Now I won't pretend to have known who Thomas Keller is, however I had heard of his fancy schmancy restaurant, The French Laundry. So naturally we were excited to go to one of his places that we could actually get into - haha.



It's a cute place however no seating area inside. I felt like a kid in the candy store though... everything looked so wonderful and I just couldn't choose. I just randomly started picking out things when it was my turn to order.

Some of my goodies: Hazelnut Macaron, Madeleine, TKO (which I think stands for Thomas Keller Oreo)


And an eclair!


The TKO seemed to be a popular treat as I overheard a lot of other customers order it as well. I thought it was just OK. It was kind of dry, which I suppose is like an Oreo. The Madeleine was also good but I think I actually prefer the much lighter kinds you get in those 3-packs from Starbucks. (Is that blasphemy?) The hazelnut macaron and the eclair were my favorites - just perfect!

I loved both places - check them out if you are in the area!

My thoughts SYTYCD's 100th episode (inc Katie Holmes performance)

Like many others, I was left with sort of an "eh?" reaction after seeing the long-awaited Katie Holmes performance. I mean, she looked fabulous BUT compared to the dancing we are used to seeing on the show, her performance was just OK in my book. But I blame a lot of the "Katie backlash" on the show because they teased her performance way too much. I actually wasn't expecting much anyway because when I heard she was doing Judy Garland's "Get Happy" routine, I looked it up to see what it was like.

You can see it below, but basically Katie's rendition was pretty faithful to it. Judy's version also featured her doing a lot of prancing around with most of the real dancing being done by the dudes.



So actually when compared to the original, Katie's version is a bit more flashier.



But yeah, I guess most of the fans were quick to diss her and Nigel himself finally got fed up and reprimanded them via Twitter (@dizzyfeet).



In general, I think they teased this show too much overall. I was expecting it to almost be like the Idol Gives Back special. Yes, I loved seeing that Ramalama routine - especially with Wade Robson joining them (how amazing was he!!!) - but it left me wishing for more. I wished they did one of the Ivan and Allison routines or one of the Benji and Donyelle routines. I also would have loved if they interviewed past contestants so we could learn what they've done since the show and stuff.

What did you guys think about the show?

Kelly's New Video

Kelly Clarkson looks so beautiful in her new video for "Already Gone"! Love the glamour/retro beauty look she is sporting here. I actually just downloaded this song recently. I was watching the SYTYCD results show and I really like the song they use for the eliminated girl's goodbye song and I was so surprised to learn it was a song from my girl Kelly!



Update: OK, I just read the article about how "Already Gone" and Beyonce's "Halo" use the same track. I had downloaded both recently and never even picked up on that! They do sound very similar but it's interesting how the overall songs have such different feels. Weird!

Sooo excited for New Moon now!

After seeing the two new clips for New Moon, I am super excited for the film to come out in November. Ok, I always have been but I was left with kind of an "eh" reaction when I first saw the teaser trailer. These two new clips were really well done and I think the film is going to be amazing!

I added clip descriptions courtest of Rotten Tomatoes. What do you guys think? Chris obviously knew what clips would get the fans most excited since we got a Jacob ab shot in one and an Edward ab shot in the other. (Of course, one might be more airbrushed than the other, but whatever!)

Clip 1

Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) are bent over an antique light blue motorcycle. Jacob wears jeans, a brown t-shirt, and his hair is long. As Bella sits on the motorcycle, Jacob guides her hands (touching!) over the handles. "Brake. Clutch. Gas," he reminds her. Bella revs the engine. "Slowly release the clutch," says Jacob.

Suddenly, Bella sees the translucent apparition of Edward, a concerned look on his face, standing in front of her. We can see him, but also see through him. Bella takes off on the bike.

As she zooms down the road, Bella gains speed. She zooms by another apparition of Edward, standing in her path. She speeds by another. Losing focus, Bella swerves and falls from the bike, hitting her head on a rock.

Jacob speeds over to Bella on his own bike, coming to a stop with a flourish. He hops off the bike and rushes to Bella's side. She is bewildered, and blood gushes from a gash on her forehead.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Jacob asks. Bella apologizes for the blood, but it doesn't bother Jacob.

He takes a step back, the camera following his every move. Jacob strips off his shirt, revealing a six-pack, and bends down to dab Bella's wound with it. Their faces come very close.

"You're so (sorta?) beautiful," she tells him. Emotion flashes across his face.




Clip 2


Alice and Bella are winding through the streets of Volterra, slowed by massive crowds of townspeople in red robes, celebrating the festival. Bella jumps out of the car.

"You're the only one he can't see. He'll be under the clock tower. Go!" says Alice.

Bella races through the crowded city. We see her at times in slow motion.

She fights her way through the crowd, stopping at the fountain in the middle of the square. In slow motion, she looks up to see Edward, slowly unbuttoning his shirt just moments away from revealing himself in the sunlight. He opens his shirt to expose his pale chest.

Bella screams out to Edward. "Stop! Stop! No Edward, don't!"

He takes a step forward.




Aren't you guys dying for November already???

New Moon Comic-Con Panel: If you can't be in SD...

Although I would have loved to have been in San Diego today, this will have to do...













(This is all that was posted at the time of this blog entry, you can check their YouTube channel page for any updates.)

Although no obvious "Robsten" sparks, there were still a lot of cute moments. I particularly liked how warm and witty Chris appeared to be which goes along with what has been said about him by the cast. He seems to be somewhat of a "father figure" with these young actors and it was quite endearing. I also liked that he played along with Rob's heartthrob appeal, for example when he discussed all the challenging stunt work that Taylor had to do and then adding at the end that Rob also did a good job of standing there looking good.

Let me know what you thought about all of the CC coverage. It made for quite an entertaining Thursday!

Also, what do you think about the random tie-ins? i.e. the Nordstrom clothing line, the Hallmark paper products (i.e. New Moon-themed paper plates and napkins), the Burger King Team Edward and Team Jacob crowns, etc.

Friend Makeover Time: Smokey Eye Look

My good friend Pam has been in town this weekend and she mentioned that she loves the smokey eye look that Gwyneth Paltrow wears. She agreed to play guinea pig and let me try to recreate the look on her!

Here's the inspiration pic:


And here's my interpretation with "before" and "after" pics:


Doesn't she look fab? I tried to keep the smokey/smudginess to a minimum so I didn't scare her. (heehee) Pam also said she preferred a nude lip vs the pinkish one that Gwyneth wears.

Here's what I used:

EYES
MAC Blackground paintpot
MAC Gorgeous e/s (from 2008 Smokey Eye Holiday palette) - lid
MAC Carbon e/s - crease
MAC Shroom e/s - highlight and inner tear duct
MAC Smolder eye kohl - lower lash line
Bobbi Brown Black Ink gel eyeliner - upper lash line
MAC Cork e/s - brows
Loreal Voluminous mascara

FACE
Mary Kay medium coverage foundation in Ivory 104
MAC Stark Naked blush

LIPS
MAC Love Nectar lustreglass

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for letting me play, Pam! :)

Hopefully I will be posting more makeover looks soon...

All About Eyeliners

Eyeliners... I personally think it's the trickiest thing to apply when it comes to makeup but also makes the biggest dramatic impact from looking dull and bleh to polished and well, awake! :P

If you're looking for some helpful tips, here's a great video by YouTuber MakeupbyTiffanyD that breaks it all down for you from using pencil eyeliners to liquid liners to gel and cream-based liners. (In general, I'm a big fan of all of her make-up videos so if you like this, you can see more on her YouTube channel.)



For my upper lashline, I personally like using the gel and cream-based liners and I bounce around between ones from Bobbi Brown, MAC, and Clinique. I think I like the ones from Bobbi Brown the best because they seem to glide on easier and are rich in color. (They're also the most expensive, too, unfortunately.) As for brushes, I used to use the MAC 266 angled eyeliner brush but am now using a teardrop paint brush I got from Michael's for $3-4. I haven't tried the bent brush like the one used in the video so I may give that a try as well.

For my lower lashline, I always use a pencil eyeliner, typically one of the MAC Powerpoint pencils but I like the ones from Urban Decay as well.

What are your favorite eyeliner techniques?

My MAC F&F Order!

Remember that MAC 25% off sale? Well, my order arrived today! Look at all the fun stuff I got:



I got a couple of lipsticks, a blush, a mascara, another 239 brush, and a whole bunch of eyeshadows! (Can you tell eyeshadow is my favorite?) I'm excited because I got a good mix of both neutrals as well as bold colors. I'm most excited to try out Steamy (the bluish one) and Sumptious Olive. If I come up with any good looks with my new purchases, I'll post them here.

SYTYCD: Thoughts on Top 16

This is for you Alisa!

I thought tonight's performance was definitely a step up from last week's dudfest where I struggled to pick any favorites. If you follow me on Twitter, you already know that I am not a fan of Toni Basil as a SYTYCD judge. She rambles on and on and none of her commentary is interesting or entertaining. I miss Adam Shankman, however, he won't be back to SYTYCD until the finale per his tweets.

Anyway, out of the 8 performances, here are my top 3 favorites:

1) Phillip and Jeannine - Broadway by Tyce Diorio

I am always a fan of the Broadway routines and this one was super cute. Nigel was somewhat harsh with Phillip, but come on! He leaped (leapt?) a 6ft couch *and* ripped his pants on national TV!

(Audio disabled - let me know if you have a better link)


2) Randi and Evan - Contemporary by Mia Michaels

The butt dance... very slinky and smooth and sensual... different and fun! And I have to say, Randi is really growing on me - she's really fun to watch.



3) Janette and Brandon - Hip Hop by Dave Scott

This was a toughie... I also liked the Rumba but ultimately Brandon won me over with his hip hop skills! You would never have known that was not his traditional background.



Honorable Mentions:

• Melissa and Ade - Rumba by Tony Meredith
  I also liked them because I love the Destiny's Child version of Emotion, heehee
  
• Kayla and Kupono - Viennese Waltz by Jean Marc Generaux
  Side note: I love Jean Marc, he always cracks me up in rehearsal footage
  
• Caitlin and Jason - Paso Doble by Jean Marc Genereaux
  I was surprised Jason got the harsher critiques as I didn't feel Caitlin danced it as "sharp" as he did

So that means my bottom two are:

• Karla and Jonathan - Hip Hop by Dave Scott
  
• Auska and Vitolia - Jazz by Mandy Moore

My guess is that Jonathan will go home for the guys but it's a toss up between Karla and Auska for the girl.

What did you guys think about the show?

This cat just kills me!

OK, kind of random... but this cat just cracks me up! He/she is so playful *and* chubby, a great combination, haha.



Whenever I see this, I laugh out loud:


See more of Maru's adventures here.

Heehee - Pranks on Twitter

Saw this on Ashton Kutcher's twitter...


the best prank ever - Watch more Funny Videos

I was literally laughing out loud when watching this, but part of me was thinking... geesh, these guys are kinda creepy! Luckily, they only pranked men. If that was me, I would have been crying for my life!

Anyway, are you on Twitter? If so, follow me!



(FYI - I have to approve all requests first.)

MAC Friends & Family Online Sale ends today!

Today is the last day of the MAC Friends and Family sale - 25% off everything, online only, with the exception of the Viva Glam products.

Offer code is SAVE25 with free shipping of orders of $60 or more.

Not surprisingly, I went a little crazy with this sale, despite the fact that I definitely do NOT need any more of this stuff. But I can't resist a good sale!!! Ah well...

This info is a little late, but if you were thinking about getting some stuff, here are some suggestions below. These are some of my favorite neutral shades that should go with anyone's coloring.

Audrey's MAC Picks

Eyeshadows:











These were actually the first MAC eyeshadows I bought and I often see these on other people's "must have" lists. I typically wear Shroom & Satin Taupe together and Ricepaper & Woodwinked together but you can always mix them up. And if you want it more dramatic or more of an evening look, I'd add some Carbon in the outer corner. You could also use Carbon with a liner brush to line your eyes instead of eyeliner.

I also prefer buying pans vs pots - pots on the left, pans on the right.



Then I would just buy a palette to store the pans and I find that easier to manage and tote around. Plus it's more economical. A pot eyeshadow is $14.50 and a pan eyeshadow is $11. A x4 palette is $3.50, so a pot eyeshadow is the same price of a pan e/s + the x4 palette and you'd still have room for three more pan eyeshadows. If you think you'll be collecting more, there's also a x15 palette.

Lip stuff:

Bare slimshine lipstick


Love Nectar lustreglass (like a lip gloss)


I'd also recommend the Viva Glam V lipstick but that is not included in the sale, but still worth checking out.

Brushes:

These are my two favorite eyeshadow brushes.

The MAC 239 brush is a flat shader brush and is really great for packing on color on the lids. Because it's thin, you can also use the edge to line your eyes with shadow.



The 217 is more of a fluffy brush and is good for putting color in the crease or the corner and just blending out the color for a softer look. You can use it with either creams or powders so I have one just for eyeshadows and one that I use to blend out my concealer.



OK, those are my main recommendations for now... do you guys have your own favorites? Please share!

The Return of So You Think You Can Dance

YAY! I'm so happy that So You Think You Can Dance is back on the air. I always look forward to the end of American Idol for this reason alone, haha.

The Top 20 had their first performance show last night... loved it! So great to see all those familiar faces again. Plus Adam Shankman is one of my favorite guest judges.

Here are my favorite performances of the night:

Jeanine & Philip: Ne-Yo / Tabitha and Napoleon piece
I *love* Tabitha and Napoleon's choreography... this had a similar feel to their "No Air" and "Bleeding Love" routines, hip hop with a storyline. It was awesome to see Phillip in his element in a choreographed piece and he and Jeanine both did such a great job. The choreography seemed so intricate!




Caitlin & Jason: Bollywood / Jai Ho
Nice to see they brought Bollywood back this season. I can't imagine them ever going wrong with this style since the costumes alone are always so gorgeous. Great piece!




Ashley & Kupono: Crash Test Dummy / Wade Robson piece
Sometimes Wade Robson routines are hit or miss for me but I really liked this one. Their movements were so fluid and you really believed they were crash test dummies!




Melissa & Ade: Right Here Waiting / Mandy Moore piece
This one is really beautiful and romantic.



All in all, it was a great show. It will be interesting to see which ones get the boot tonight. I'll guess Paris and Tony for now.

And how crazy was it that Louis Van Amstel is now choreographing for the show? I'm used to seeing SYTYCD alums on DWTS but not vice versa. I'll be honest, he was one of my least favorite professionals on that show, but I liked what he brought to the show tonight. I know everyone was raving about that final samba number. It was good, definitely, but not one that I wanted to watch again.

Which ones were your favorite? Who do you think will get voted off tonight?

Loving The Cosmetics Company Store...

If you've been following my blog, you'll know that my interest in make-up started with watching YouTube make-up videos (tutorials, reviews, hauls, etc). That's pretty much where I learn everything (for good and for bad) and one of my favorite discoveries through YouTube is this wonderful place called The Cosmetics Company Store. (I'd link a website, but they don't appear to have one.)



This is a chain located at various shopping outlets. (You can find all their locations here.) I guess they primarily sell the Estee Lauder line which includes not only Estee Lauder but their other brands like Clinique, Prescriptives, Bobbi Brown, and my personal favorite - MAC!!!

The beauty of this place is that not only do they sell discounted makeup but they all sell discontinued products as well. And since MAC has so many collections that include limited edition products, you can really score at these stores. They also sell some of their permanent products. I typically only purchase the MAC stuff and from what I can tell, they are usually priced at about a 30% discount (awesome, right?).

Below is picture of a portion of the MAC display at the CCS in Maryland. This is just a small portion - they also had a whole wall rack of their skin, eye, and cheek products. But check out all those palettes on the bottom shelf - those are from past collections that aren't available at stores today.



The offerings vary from store to store. The one near me doesn't really have too much compared to the ones I went to in Las Vegas and Maryland.

Here are the fun MAC products that I got in the Las Vegas CCS:

• Sweet & Nice Tendertone (Limited Edition, came out in June 2008)
  
  
  
• Love Nectar Lipglass (Permanent)
  
  
  
• Dipdown Fluidline (Permanent)
  
  
  
• Fafi Eyes 1 Quad (Limited Edition, came out in February 2008)
  

I was excited to get this quad because all the colors are pretty plus I've been meaning to buy Vanilla as a standalone eye shadow anyway. Here are all the colors included:

Top Row (L-R)
- Pink Venus: Washed pink (lustre)
- Vanilla: Soft pale-peachy-ivory flecked with shimmer (velvet)
Bottom Row (L-R)
- Hey: Neutral tan with white pearl (veluxe pearl)
- Howzat: Deep grey with silver sparkle (satin)

I couldn't wait to try it out so here's a look I did using all the colors.



I wore Hey on the inner third of the lid, Pink Venus on the remainder of the lid. Howzat in the outer V and Vanilla as the highlight color under the browbone.

I later went to a CCS in Maryland and bought a couple of eye shadow brushes that are part of the permanent collection. I totally do not need them but I have some weird addiction with collecting MAC brushes. That's why I absolutely love these discounts!

Next time you're outlet shopping, make sure to look for The Cosmetics Company Store!