Tights, Stockings, Leggings--Oh my!

I am absolutely head-over-heels for this particular fall fashion trend: Tights.

Tights are usually in-style during the fall, but lately I have been seeing them everywhere.  They're warm, comfortable (usually), and add a whole different level of gorgeous to your outfit.

Don't believe me? Well, you'd have to be crazy not to love Zooey Deschanel's outfits with tights. (My favorite is the second from the left.  Oo-La-La.)




I also really, really love these tights with designs.

Opaque tights can also be helpful if your dress/skirt is a little on the short side. This way, you can wear the cute dress without showing too much skin! :)

But you don't have to wear tights with just dresses and skirts...they are also super stylish when worn under shorts.

I don't know about you guys...but I am definitely stocking up.

(Get it? Stocking? Stockings?)

-Valentine

{Three Things}

Hello all, Lillian here.  Today I'm going to share with you three "normal day" things I've delighted in. {New Makeup}  Now, I don't really wear all that much makeup, and often I just don't wear any, but I recently got a couple new products, and I love them.  Covergirl lashblastfusion Mascara and intense shadowblast eyeshadow/primer, and eyestudio master drama eyeliner.  They're pretty terrific.
 

{Yay for bracelets} I've been wearing these lovelies all the time.  Basically all summer.  Now that it's fall I need to find new arm candy/inspiration, but I still really like these. 

{Coeur de Pirate}  Lovely songs.

What have you delighted in?

{lillian}

Back to the Basics Pt. 4 - The Foundation Routine

Ahhh, part four of BTB is indeed the dreaded foundation routine.  Are you ready for some heavy duty makeup knowledge?  Well, ready or not, here we go!

First let's start with the pre-foundation routine.  You should always wash your face before applying foundation, and make sure your sponges and brushes are sanitized and bacteria free.  The bacteria that sits on your face from lack of cleansing and from old, dirty brushes can cause acne and other gross stuff, so take this easy step to avoid a lot of other trouble.  Now the fun part. :)

What did I use?

• Moisturizer
• Foundation (shade 420)
• Concealer  (shade Creamy Natural)
• Powder (Shade Transparent)
• NYC Bronzer (Shade Sunny)
• Blush (Shade Santa Rose)

Although there aren't many absolutes when it comes to foundation, here are some things you do want to make sure you know.

1. If anything, using too little foundation is better than using too much.  Too much foundation will make you look old and fake, more like you've been iced by a cake decorator than you are merely evening out your skin tone.

2. Primers are good but they're not necessary. I only use primers on special occasions where I need my makeup to look really good for a really long time.

3.  Always blend. OVERblend.  And never forget to blend into your hairline and down your neck, otherwise you'll look like you're wearing a mask.

4.  Make sure you use the right color for your skin tone. Try swatching it on the back of your hand and blending. If it sticks out even a little, it's not your color. Don't settle for something that's sorta-kinda your color. If you need to go to a department store and ask someone to help.  They find people's colors everyday and will be able to show you around what tones/shades you should be searching.

Any questions?

PS; Contouring/ Blush-bronzer is up next. :)

Emilyann


*I'm pleased to announce that thanks to all you lovelies, I won second in the makeup competition, and will be announcing the giveaway winner in my next post!  Be on the look out for the winner!*

My Three Favorite Fall Makeup Trends

I just had to take a break from the body shape series and write this post.  It was calling to me.  "Caroline.... Caroline.... tell the world.... post... post it......"

I'm absolutely head-over-heels for fall's clothing trends, but I'm even more in love with the makeup!  I'll give you the run-down on my three favorite trends that are what's hot right now.

• Bold, Berry Lips.



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• Exfoliate your lips using a scrub or your toothbrush, and apply some concealer.  The concealer will give you a blank, smooth canvas on which to apply your color, and it also acts as a primer.  Line your lips with a nude or berry pencil, to prevent bleeding, and then put on your berry lipstick or lipstain.  Always pair this lip with a neutral, warm-toned eyeshadow like brown or gold.

• Metallic Eyeshadow

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• Prime your eyes and apply your favorite shimmery eyeshadow.  Either go for silvers and blacks, or browns and golds.  Matte is out for this season, and the dewy, glittered look is all in.  Focus the darker color on the outer part of your lid, and the lightest color on the inner corner and out towards the center.  This look is fun because it can be natural and light, like Drew Barrymore and Vanessa Hudgens here, or it can be bold and funky like Amanda Seyfried at the top.

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• Doll Lashes

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• This trend is also known as "spider lashes," but I think that confuses people.  I've seen people take this trend the wrong way, and when they do, they generally clump their eyelashes on purpose.  In actuality, you want to be very careful with your mascara wand and gently separate all of your individual lashes, especially on the bottom.  But once you've done that, let your mascara dry and do another coat or two after that so you get the full, wide-eyed effect.  I definitely had some trepidation with this trend, but once I tried it, I loved it and have been doing it every day since.

 And that's all for now, folks!  I hope you enjoyed it.  Tell me... what are your favorite fall makeup trends, or what makeup have you been doing lately that you love?

-Caroline

OOTD

Hey lovely readers! I was going to post this yesterday, but I forgot. So you get it today.

Knit top ~ Forever 21

Cami ~ Kohl's

Jeans ~ Forever 21

Skinny Jeans ~ Forever 21

 Necklace ~ Nordstroms

Earrings ~ Kohl's

Rings ~ Vintage

Shoes ~ Target

I've never been able to pinpoint my exact style, but recently I'm loving the trendy preppy look. Maybe I'll do a post on that soon. :)

Hope you're all having a wonderful week!

<3,

Amanda

Caroline's Foundation Routine

Hey y'all!  Per Emily's request, I'm going to tell you about my foundation routine.  A lot of the steps are really optional, but I usually do them all, because I like "playing" in my makeup.  Honestly, I love putting makeup on more than the average person, so I understand if this is a bit extreme for you.

Here we go!

First things first, I put on sunscreen and let it sit for a while as I brush my teeth and do my hair.  Then, I put on my Smashbox foundation primer, which creates a smooth and workable surface.

 Then, I take my Sigma F80 Flat-Top Kabuki brush (which is amazing for foundation) and blend some Revlon ColorStay foundation onto my face.  I just put a nickel sized amount of foundation on the back of my hand, and then pick it up with the brush and apply, focusing on my forehead, nose, chin, and cheeks.  From there, I just blend that foundation outwards toward my jaw and hairline, making sure to avoid the dreaded makeup mask.

My favorite drugstore foundation

Next, I put Mac's Painterly Paint Pot on my eyelids, so that it can set.

I blend Eve Pearl's Salmon concealer and treatment under my eyes to cut the blue and purple circles.  It's not summer vacation anymore, and my under-eyes are making that perfectly clear.

Next, I take a fluffy face brush (this one is from Sephora) and lightly dust some ELF translucent powder over my t-zone, on my eyelids, and on my under-eye circles.  Don't use a heavy hand, or you'll look cakey.

I fill in my eyebrows next.  I use a small, angled, stiff brush and dip it into some Mary Kay eyeshadow.  As you can see, I've done this a lot.  I have pretty sparse eyebrows.  I just follow the shape of my brow to make them a tad bit fuller.

Highlighter time!  I put a very small amount of my ELF shimmering facial whip on my Sigma F60 foundation brush, and pat it onto the top of my cheekbones to give me a glow.

Now, I take a stiff-bristle, fluffy brush and apply my Urban Decay Baked Bronzer in Gilded.  I blend it in an "E" shape, from my temples, down to my cheekbones, and then down to my jawline.  I also run it down my nose, because that's where the sun would naturally "kiss" my face.

Lastly, I dab a bit of my ELF blush in Pink Passion with a stippling brush onto the apples of my cheeks.

Now, I don't use concealer much, but if I have a blemish that I can't shake, I'll use my Maybelline SuperStay 24 hour concealer in Ivory and blend it in with a Mary Kay eyeshadow brush.  I would do this step right before I put on my powder.

That's it!  I'd then do my eyeshadow and my mascara, and maybe some lipstick.  This is the final result:

I'm extra freckle-y right now from the summer sun, but as soon as the cold weather really hits, my skin will get really pale and my freckles will fade out.  

I hope you enjoyed this, and remember, you don't have to do any of these steps.  Just pick and choose whatever works best for you and your skin.  There's no one golden way to do makeup that will work for everyone, so don't panic!  If you have any questions, comment below and I'll answer you as best as I can.

Love, Caroline

Hello Beautiful People!

Hello Beautiful People!

My name is Lillian, and I am filling Josie's place as the magical seventh author for Dressing Room Door.  And as sad as I am that she is gone (sniff, I loved your posts Josie) I am entirely excited to be a part of this blog now!

So.  A bit about me so that you can add a bit of personality to the pictures here:

I have my own personal/fashion/photography/food/life blog over at Frills and Furbelows.  I love writing for it, but am a *little* sporadic in posting.  

I love fashion, and always am thinking up new ways to wear the clothing I have.  I love patterns and prints and color and texture, and don't really follow trends, just incorporate them subtly, when I like them.  As far as makeup goes, I don't do much.  I most often wear mascara.  Sometimes I'll add a bit of eyeliner or eyeshadow, and sometimes I'll go for a crazy color or cat-eye liner.  But I'm pretty simple.  For hair, I have super short hair, and enjoy messing it up as much as it will go and experimenting with crazy afro-like curls and such.  But really, I'm low-maintenance in regards to hair and makeup.  

I love photography.  Right now I am very into the documentation of things, so I always have my camera with me to take picture of whatever strikes my fancy.  

I, like the other wonderful DRD ladies am home schooled, and take classes with Veritas Press, which is an amazing online-school.  

I am a Christian, and love my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  He's saved me from my daily sins, and given me a hope and joy of eternal life with Him!  

I have three younger siblings, and a wonderful mother and father (a photographer and landscape painter!)

So there.  A little blurb about me.  At some point soon, I will put up my bio up there ^^  under my name, with plenty of random bits of detail, but until then, I hope you can enjoy reading my posts, despite the fact that you don't know what I like best to eat for breakfast.  

{Outfit Details:  Top-hand-me-down, skirt-ARC, handmade, Shoes-Payless, Scarf-Target}
{Makeup Details: Covergirl lasblastfusion mascara in black, Covergirl intense shadow blast-brown[I love this stuff!]}
{Band-aid on Knee: I fell and scraped my knee while at the park.  Don't judge.}

 Ok, so a little bit more about my outfit.  

I wore this to my one day of "outside" co-op school, and just added the heels when I went to a casual-ish gallery opening for my father.  

I got this skirt at ARC Thrift store, and it's homemade!

I really liked the bright color and pattern, but the cut wasn't too flattering, so I pinned it up in the front like that, creating a "mullet-dress".  Just kidding that's a horrible thing to be compared to.  

Though you cannot see it very well, there are little veins of yellow and red in the skirt, and I thought this green best complimented it.  I had a darker, Kelly green scarf on earlier in the morning when it was chilly, and you can see it there in the second picture on my purse.  It added a bit more balance to the outfit, being darker.  

And the shoes.  I love these shoes.  I wear them with everything that requires a heel.  Pretty much.  They're a great color and shape that hasn't really gone in or out of style, so it's pretty easy to add to any and every outfit.  

I love it when the weather is cooler, as it is now, because I can begin to layer and wear more patterns as the weather gets colder.  Where as summer: not so much.  

So there you have it!  

Feel free to contact me via the dressing room door email, I would love to answer your clothing/style questions!

{love}

{lillian}

I think I've finally mastered this tripod business.

In short: You, my chicken legged friends, are getting your last post from me. YEP. This is it. This post is ITTTTTT. Case you didn't hear the first time. It's just because I can't keep up with blogging and school this year... After I leave the blog, that wonderful guest poster Lillian who posted on "back to school" stuff, is taking my place. So, this is gonna be great. Mainly because we will still/then have the magical number 7 of posters, not to mention Lillian is a super super superrrrrr awesome fashion blogger.

I'm going to be talking about the amazing wardrobe flexibility of button downs, and I'm going to answer this question from Caroline L.

"5) Last but not least, Josie, would you please do a tutorial on how you make up your eyes? Please?! They always look so fabulous that I want to know your secrets."

(You should always use good grammar and punctuation. You never know if your comment will be featured in a blog post. Good job, Caroline... ;))

I'm honored by your compliment, and honestly, I don't think I do anything that special. The only things I can think of are: that either the eye products I commonly use are very attractive, the way I edit my pictures (I use Picnik, normally), the way my eyes look in photographs, or the fact that I put plenty of mascara on my bottom lashes.

Products I use on my eyes (normally):

CoverGir: Lash Blast volume enhancing, black, waterproof mascara.

Eyeshadows:

Hard Candy eyeshadow duo in Love Bug.

Palladio baked eyeshadow trio in Pink Bliss.

Physician's Formula blush in Natural Pearl. (Yes, I use it on my eyes, too.)

Almay Pure Blends in Oatmeal and some purple shade...I'm not sure they sell this anymore.

Occasionally I use an ELF palette, this brush set, or this primer. But honestly, I usually just use my finger and smack some on.

Here are a couple pictures:

When I'm being fancy, I'll apply the primer listed above and apply a slightly noticeable skin colored eye shadow.

With this, I applied the blush listed about all over my lid with an eye shadow brush and applied a dark grey/black color a long my lash line.

This is just with the Oatmeal color listed above applied by my finger. Also, normally that's how I leave my mascara. So. Yep. (And I don't use an eyelash curler or anything...)
So button downs: THEY ARE SO VERSATILE. I have several of them. In these pictures is just a plain blue ruffled Ralph Lauren shirt. Button downs can be dressed up or down, worn all four seasons, and is always, always, always in style. You can wear them with just skinny jeans and a cute thin belt or you can do some of these things:

Skirt: H&M

Sweater: Aeropostale

Belt: Jordache

Boots: Born

These shirts look ADORABLE underneath cardigans. One of my favorite ways to wear them.

Shorts: DIY

Belt: Aeropostale

Bracelet: Vintage

This is such a cute casual look, plus it's totally in right now.

Dress: H&M

Belt: Fossil

These shirts look amazing underneath dresses. Plus they make a great transitional piece so you can wear your favorite summer dresses in fall/winter/spring! (PS: isn't the horse print of this dress TO DIE FOR??)

Blazer: Tommy Hilfriger

Jeans: NY&C

Belt: Fossil

Shoes: Clarks

And of course, the very traditional (sometimes!) way of wearing a blazer on top.

Altogether, button downs make great investments, so go buy more NOW.

God bless y'all,

Josie.

Possible Giveaway?

Hi, all!

I've entered a makeup competition hosted by 2nd Love Cosmetics on Facebook.  There are three great prizes, and three different winners.  Currently I am in third place.  The prize is a large supply of makeup, brushes, and travel cases.

Here's the deal.  If I win one of the three prizes, I plan on doing a giveaway here on the Dressing Room Door.  I'm not sure which articles I'm planning on giving away quite yet, but you guys will most definitely benefit if I indeed, do either stay at 3rd place, or even progress to 2nd or 1st.

So the good stuff-  how to enter this giveaway.

{Mandatory Entry}

Go and "like" 2nd Love Cosmetics on Facebook and then "like" my entry in the contest.  If you don't want useless likes on your page, you are more than welcome to "unlike" 2nd Love after you enter, it will not effect your vote or your entry. Make sure you leave a comment on this post letting me know that you voted for me. That will enter you into this giveaway.

{Optional Entry #1}
Share the link to my picture on your Facebook, Twitter, Buzz, Tumblr, Dailybooth, or blog.  Leave me a comment with the link.

{Optional Entry #2}
Tell your friends about the link.  If they vote for me, leave me their name in the comments!


Thanks, girls, you're the best!  I hope to share my profits with you, since you're the reason I'd even make it past one vote!

PS. Just to let you girls know, there's currently an Urban Decay Sale going on at Hautelook!  There's a bunch of great deals, so go take a look! 

Emilyann 

Makeup Brushes: 101

Hey guys, it's Amanda!

We recently received a request to do a post on makeup brushes. So this post is about which brushes are for what, which ones you should have, and some suggested brands. There are dozens of different kinds of brushes out there, and it can get confusing, especially if you just want the basics. Hopefully this helps.

Let's start with face brushes. You should definitely have a foundation brush. As you could probably guess, a foundation brush is for applying, distributing, and blending foundation onto your face. MAC's 190 Foundation Brush is a good (although pricey) option, but if you want something less expensive, try stila's #27 foundation brush.




Another option for foundation is a stippling brush. Stippling brushes can be used to apply foundations, creams, and powders by dotting or patting them onto your face. I actually prefer them to foundation brushes, but that's just me. MAC's 130 is amazing (I use it every day), or try Ulta's Stippling Brush.







Next is the concealer brush. This is another brush you should have, and it is used for applying concealer. This is pretty basic, so there's no need to splurge on a super expensive one. Check out Revlon's Concealer Brush or even e.l.f.'s Studio Concealer Brush.



The last face brush you should know about is the blush/powder brush. There are blush brushes (for applying blush) and powder brushes (slightly larger than blush brushes and for applying powder), but they are so similar in shape and size, you may as well just buy one. If you're not sure what size to get, opt for a slightly larger one, or a powder brush, as larger brushes hug the cheeks and actually apply blush better. As usual, MAC has a good one (129 Powder/Blush Brush), and you could also try Sonia Kashuk's Powder Brush.



Now let's look at some eye brushes. First, you should have a basic eyeshadow brush, to apply eyeshadow. These come in different sizes and shapes, but you'll probably want something with slightly rounded edges and firm bristles, like MAC's 239 Eye Shader Brush or e.l.f. professional's Eye Shadow Brush.




Another good brush to have is a blending brush. Blending brushes are used to blend eyeshadows on the eye and create a softer look, and they're usually longer than an eyeshadow brush with softer bristles. Try Sephora's Classic Blending Eye Brush or e.l.f.'s Mineral Blending Eye Brush.





You might also like a smudge brush. These are usually short and curved, with dense bristles to deposit more concentrated color. You usually use a smudge brush when doing a smoky eye, smudging color, and softening lines. Check out Japonesque's Mineral Smudger Brush  or as always e.l.f. has a cheaper alternative, the Essential Smudge Brush.



If you use liquid or cream eyeliners, you'll want an eyeliner brush. These can either be long and pointed or angled; use whichever you're more comfortable with. These are stiff, designed to apply the liner smoothly and give you control over the line. A good angled brush would be Sephora's #15 Classic Angled Brush, and if you prefer a straight brush, try MAC's 209 Eye Liner Brush.

There are many more different kinds of brushes out there, but these are the basics. Try different brush shapes and brand to find the ones that work for you. And don't feel like you have to pay an arm and a leg just for some brushes. A lot of times the cheaper ones work just fine (e.l.f.'s brushes are great to start with and to get used to the different kinds). When you're buying, just tug gently at the bristles to make sure they're not going to fall out. And of course clean your brushes regularly with water and gentle soap.

Hope this helped! As always, feel to free to let us know if you have any questions or any more requests. We're more than happy to help. :)

Much love,
Amanda