Karlie Kloss' MET Gala Look + Birthday Outfit of the Night!

Yesterday just so happened to be my 21st birthday, so me, my boyfriend, and a couple of my friends went out for dinner and drinks. I decided it was the perfect time to do the Karlie Kloss MET Gala look that Sarah (Diary of a Beauty Padawan) has been requesting! I based the look mostly off of these two photos from Instagram:

Her look is definitely 60s-mod inspired with a modern pinup twist. After doing a little bit of hunting, I found that her lip color is Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel in "Moody Margot," which honestly would be a horrific color on me since I don't have Karlie's beautiful golden undertones, so I opted for MAC's Shy Girl instead! For the eyes, I used my Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette, but the Urban Decay Naked2 would be a perfect palette for this look!

For my skin, I have been testing and loving the Bare Minerals bareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation. I used 2 drops on each section of my face (my cheeks, chin, and forehead, with one drop on the nose), to give me a sheer-to-medium coverage. Karlie had absolutely flawless skin at the MET Gala, but since I was planning on going out, I wanted some of my own skin to show through. Then I let the foundation sit, while moving on to my brows. For Karlie's brows, she had a very natural yet defined look. I went in with the "Triple Fudge" shade from the Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette and filled in my brows the way I normally do. Then, I brushed through with the Anastasia Clear Brow Gel to keep all the hairs in place.

From here, I moved onto the eyes. First I went in with my MAC Studio Finish Concealer all over the lid and up to the brow to even out my lids. I then took "White Chocolate" and used it to set the concealer as well as create the cream colored base that Karlie has in her look. From here, I took a mix of "Triple Fudge" and Inglot 358 Matte on an angled brush and precisely ran it through the crease, flicking upward to create a cut crease that would be easy to blend. I used a clean pencil brush and blended up the line, making sure to keep it crisp along the bottom. After blending it, I continued to build the colors into the crease. I avoided blending into the outer corner of my lid, because her crease color is concentrated specifically in the crease. After the color was built up to an intensity that I was happy with, I went back in with "White Chocolate" on a flat shader brush and cleaned up on the lid, making sure it was crisp, as well as along the brow bone.

From here, I moved onto the liner, which was the Maybelline Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in "Blackest Black." I won't go into detail about how I did my liner since I already did a post on that here. I used my MAC Studio Finish Concealer on a very small detail brush to create a crisper finish under the wing. Then, going in with an angled liner brush, I lined my lower lashline with "Triple Fudge," doing a soft wing on the outer corner that mimicked the strong liner on my upper lashline. I then lined my waterline with Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Kohl Kajal in "Nude" to brighten up the eyes. 

For my upper lashes, I skipped mascara altogether, and used the Ardell Natural Lash 110 to create the full and flared out lashes that Karlie has in her look. On my bottom lashes, I used a single coat of Maybelline Volum' Express The Rocket Mascara. Then, after the falsies dried, I curled them to blend them with my natural lashes! The great thing about these lashes from Ardell is that they have an invisible band, which makes them so easy to blend into your liner without having to take a million steps to hide the band. They also look super real and make you look like you have the longest natural lashes!

Back to skin, I took my Maybelline Dream Touch Lumi Concealer and applied this under my eyes, to the tops of my cheekbones, and down my nose, and blended it out with my finger. Then I took my Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Cream Bronzer and contoured under my cheekbones and along my jawline. I topped it with my Inglot 358 Matte to give me an even more defined look. For blush, I used the NYX Rouge Cream Blush in "Natural," which is probably my new favorite cream blush! Of course, I then set all my cream products with my Revlon Photo Ready Translucent Finisher, and very lightly blended "Champagne Truffle" on the tops of my cheekbones to really make them pop. To finish off the entire look, I used MAC's Shy Girl, which is the perfect nude lip color for my skintone. 

For my outfit, I actually used a basic black dance leotard from Bloch, which I have found serves me just as well as a fashion piece as it does a dance outfit! Leotards are pretty much everywhere nowadays, so you don't have to find a specialized one for your wardrobe, but it's just what I had in my closet. My skirt was a piece I picked up in Chicago at a little boutique called Akira, and unfortunately, they no longer sell it on their website. However, I found an almost identical skirt at Forever21, except it is all black as opposed to black and tan. For my shoes, I had some basic leather flats with a subtle pointed toe that I got ages ago from a little shoe store in our local mall, and my chunky chain necklace is from H&M. 

I promise I fixed the edge of that false lash before going anywhere ;) And of course, I couldn't talk about my 21st birthday without showing you a picture from last night at the restaurant with my first legal drink!

- d. 

Beauty 101: Contouring & Highlighting

I've been trying to type this post for...I don't know, say, three weeks now? If you haven't noticed, I haven't been featuring very many photos of my face this month, if at all. Here in San Diego, we have had the most insane weather, and I think it's been affecting the way I take photos (or at least, the way I appear in photos). I just couldn't get it right! I think I've finally got it this time, so let's take a crack at contouring and highlighting basics.

The first thing you're going to need is a good bronzer for your skin. You can also use an eyeshadow. Personally, I love using a taupe shadow for my contour when I don't want the sun-kissed look. However, I've recently been reaching for the Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Cream Bronzer that I mentioned in my April Favorites. What you choose is definitely a personal choice, and a lot of people are very particular about what they use.

For fair skin, like mine, I definitely recommend staying away from anything orange. If you have a deeper skin tone, you can get away with it, but if you are fair, you'll end up looking like an Oompa Loompa! And no matter what you skin tone, if you plan on contouring with a bronzer, I would definitely avoid shimmer. I've seen a few bronzers with shimmer that work, but it's usually very sparse and unnoticeable.

For Fair to Medium skin I recommend:

• N.Y.C. Smooth Skin Bronzing Face Powder - $3; e.l.f. Studio Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder in St. Lucia - $3; The Body Shop Honey Bronze Bronzing Powder in Light Matte and Fair Matte - $20; Benefit Hoola Bronzing Powder - $28; Too Faced Milk Chocolate Soleil Bronzer - $30; Too Faced Sun Bunny Bronzer - $30.

For Medium to Dark skin I recommend: 

• e.l.f. Studio Contouring Blush & Bronzing Powder in Antigua - $3; NYX Matte Bronzer - $9; Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Cream Bronzer in Rich Bronze - $10.99; The Body Shop Honey Bronzer in Medium Matte and Deep Matte - $20; Too Faced Chocolate Soleil Bronzer - $30.

Obviously, because I am a fair skinned girl, I tend to know a bit more about bronzers for fair skin. Whenever I do contouring on anyone with darker skin, I tend to use a brown eyeshadow that is suitable for the individual.

Moving on to the technique! First thing's first, let's find your cheekbone. Generally, it's pretty easy. Just make a fish face!

No contouring post is ever complete without a fish face photo. However, if you don't know how to make a fish face (which is more common than you think so don't be ashamed!), take a makeup brush, a pencil, or anything that's straight and round, and place it on the top of your cheekbone. From there, roll it down until you find the hollow of your cheek. 

When contouring and highlighting your face, most people almost always think of contouring your cheeks first and foremost, which is why I mentioned it first. It's also the part where most people struggle, because they tend to use too much product in the wrong place.

Whatever product you are using, it's going to be the same technique. Starting at your hairline, take your brush and very gently sweep the color into the hollow of your cheek. Focus the color near your ears and blend it into your hairline, as well as in toward your mouth. Don't go any farther than the outer third of your eye! That is the key to keeping it look natural. 

Another quick tip is to avoid blending downward. You can easily get the bearded lady effect by blending downward. Don't bring the color down, just use the brush to gently feather the product out. When in doubt, just pull the product into the hairline. This will keep everything looking natural and beard-free.

Yes, I am aware that this picture makes me look crazy. However, it's an important diagram for contouring and highlighting! The areas where I have marked the brown are the areas that are most commonly contoured, and the areas that are in white are the most common areas for highlighting.

For highlighting, I often like to take a small fluffy eye brush and dust my highlighter on the high points of my face. Be careful when highlighting. If you have oily skin, you may want to skip highlighting altogether. 

Honestly, it's a bit hard to really sit down and write a tutorial on contouring because it is so different for different people. Everyone has a different face shape and your contouring routine should cater to your specific wants and needs. But just keep this in mind: If you want a part of your face to recede (the hollows of the cheeks, the top of your forehead, the sides of your nose, etc.) use a darker color. If you want a part of your face to pop (the tops of your cheekbones, your chin, your brows, etc.), use a lighter color. The best advice I can give is to play with it and find what works best for you!

- d. 

Quick Graduation Ceremony Tips + Throwback Thursday

In my experience, graduation day can be a totally nerve-wracking experience! My biggest concern on graduation day was "Don't fall don't fall don't fall." And looking back, there were definitely some things that I wish I could go back and re-do. So I decided to make a quick list for you to help make you less worried about your big day!

Beauty-Related Tips

• If your ceremony is outdoors, make sure to apply plenty of sunscreen! For both my middle school promotion and my high school graduation, I got majorly sunburned. A lot less so at my high school graduation, but either way, I definitely suffered some sun damage from sitting out on the field. For my post about different types of sunscreen, click here.
• Wear a great long-wearing foundation. Nothing is worse than finding your family and getting ready to take pictures and realizing your foundation is melting off! Definitely invest in a good primer or setting spray, if you haven't already, to help prevent any meltdowns. 
• Bobby pin your cap to your head, especially if you will be outside or if it doesn't quite fit right. On my graduation day, I didn't pin my cap down, and it was windy, so I constantly was playing with it to keep it from flying off! A great way to make the bobby pins unnoticeable is to spray paint them the same color as your cap. No one will even know they're there!
• Wear a lip balm that has SPF. I promise you that nothing is worse than sunburned lips. Just do it.
• If you think you might cry, or the weather may be hot, make sure to wear waterproof eye makeup. Smeared eye makeup never looks good in pictures!

Fashion-Related Tips

• If your graduation is out on grass, avoid wearing pumps. If you want to wear heels, go for a wedge instead. If you have a pair of pumps that you really love, you can always purchase some heel caps, which can help prevent you from sinking into the grass and ruining your shoes. 
• Wear shoes that are comfortable to walk in. If you aren't comfortable in your shoes, you may trip!
• If you're wearing a white gown like I had to, try to avoid wearing a bright outfit underneath. It will show through the gown, and look rather tacky. 
• Avoid wearing dresses that are longer than your gown. Typically, it just doesn't look good, and unless you're super comfortable in maxi dresses, they can be a cause for a great big tripping disaster.

Etc, etc, etc.

• Drink water. If your school is anything like my high school was, I wasn't allowed to take anything with me onto that field! Especially because, for me, my graduation was outdoors here in sunny California, I got really dehydrated while sitting out waiting for my name to be called. Just make sure to run to the restroom before it's too late!
• If you are allowed, wear sunglasses. The year I graduated, my high school instated this really stupid rule that we weren't allowed to wear sunglasses during the ceremony. Honestly, we should have been allowed to, because I felt like I was really straining my eyes through the whole ceremony. Protect your eyes and they will thank you later.
• Walk tall. This is your day -- you've earned it! Don't be afraid to wear all the things you earned while you were in high school. For me, it was my colorguard and theatre medals, and my Thespian stole and pins. It isn't cocky or conceited to show everyone what you've accomplished. That's what this whole day is for!
• Make sure to tell your family to arrive early. Unless you are graduating from a very small school, the parking lot will fill up fast.

I thought this would be the perfect time for a fun throwback to my high school graduation!

Me with two of my best friends from high school, right before our graduation rehearsal.
I didn't wear any of my medals that day, but I did rock my Thespian stole! 

Alana was squeezing the heck out of me because she was so proud! We've been friends since way back when.

Huge congratulations for all of you who are graduating, whether it be from high school or college, or anywhere in between. It's your big day, enjoy it, and good luck! ♥

- d.