Spring Giveaway: MIYU Beauty Skincare and Beauty Teas

After a long winter, spring is finally around the corner. What better time to get your skin ready for a new season and leave the cold, dry weather behind!

MIYU Beauty is a revolutionary line of skincare and beauty teas that can renew your skin by hydrating and soothing your complexion inside and out.

I’m a big fan of award-winning MIYU Beauty and am so excited to be hosting a giveaway of their four-piece collection of skin essences and tea pairings.

A Prettea Little Tea Quartet

This handy travel-size beauty set will help you hydrate and unwind with skincare and delicious beauty tea. The quartet includes:

• Hydrate mi beauty essence (15 ml)–Enhances your skin’s ability to retain water and leaves a radiant, dewy glow.
• De-stress mi beauty essence (15 ml)–Helps with visual signs of stress like redness and irritation and leaves a healthy, serene glow.
• Hydrate mi beauty tea (2 sachets)–Contains green rooibos, an African red bush tea that naturally contains electrolytes to rehydrate from within.
• De-stress mi beauty tea (2 sachets)–Contains relaxing ingredients like peppermint and chamomile blossoms.

How to Enter the Giveaway

Follow @blushstopshere on Twitter and tweet the following before Thursday, March 19 (12 pm PST):

RT & follow @blushstopshere to #win a 4-piece skincare/beauty tea set from @MIYUBeauty. #Giveaway details at http://wp.me/pwaiC-7bF

A random winner will be chosen and contacted on Twitter. The winner has 48 hours to reply or a new winner will be drawn. This giveaway is open to Canadian and U.S. residents. The prize package is sent directly from the sponsor.

Note: I’m just starting out on Instagram, so feel free to follow me at https://instagram.com/blushstopshere/.

Find out More about the MIYU Beauty Lifestyle

Eye Contouring All-in-One: Benefit Cosmetics Big Beautiful Eyes

If you’re a beauty junkie, you know that contouring is hot, hot, hot this year.

Besides the cheek and jaw area, you can also contour your eye area.

I’ve been relying on the Benefit Cosmetics Big Beautiful Eyes kit to contour and define my eyes for years! Benefit is always spot on with kits and this one definitely gets The Blush Stops Here approval.

The Big Beautiful Eyes kit contains:

• Boi-ing Concealer (one shade suits most)
• Alabaster pink eye shadow (soft pink shimmer shade for highlighting or applying as a base all over the eye area)
• Cocoa shimmer eye shadow (soft brown shimmer for contouring)
• Rich chocolate eye shadow (deep brown for lining and defining)

A concealer brush and a double-ended contour/liner brush are included, plus step-by-step application instructions.

Hot Tip

Natural Flush for Spring: Too Faced Sweethearts Blush Trio

Nothing says spring more than a natural-looking, fresh face.

So, go ahead and trade in heavier, darker makeup for a blush palette if you want to create a soft, romantic flush.

A super easy way to get this look is with the Too Faced Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush. This trio palette in multiple colors is a baked, heart-shaped blush with dimensional color that helps your skin look brighter and healthier.

The blush comes in three swatches:

• Candy Glow (pink)
• Something about Berry (rose)
• Peach Beach (peach)

Foundation and Concealer in One Formula: Clinique Beyond Perfecting

Are you a sucker for multitasking products? If you answered yes, you’ll want to check out a new addition to Clinique’s foundation portfolio: Beyond Perfecting Foundation + Concealer.

Beyond Perfecting features an oil-free formula that combines a liquid foundation and concealer for long-lasting (12 hours) yet lightweight, full coverage.

The foundation also includes a unique wand applicator that lets you use the foundation based on the level of coverage you want:

• Use the doe foot part to apply dots all over your face or sideways to spread across your cheeks.
• Use the tip of the wand to cover smaller imperfections.

Hair Tutorial: Recreate the Romantic Bouffants From Badgley Mischka NYFW 2015

If you’ve always loved a romantic bouffant hairstyle, it looks like it may be back after being seen on the Badgley Mischka show at NYFW Fall/Winter 2015 (check out the striking bouffant looks here).

According to Wendy Rose Gould of Latest-Hairstyles.com: “Everything is super fresh — remarkably “fresh” for autumn, even — and there’s a certain romance in the air.”

“Badgley Mischka’s runway had all of the above, and we fell in love with the entire look and collection. Especially the hair (naturally)! The hair was inspired by the collection itself and incorporates both sensual modernity and a hint of old-fashioned.

Peter Gray for Moroccanoil created what’s been dubbed the “sexy walk of shame” or, in his own words, the “stride of pride.” The style is delicately textured, just loose enough, and very sexy. Think glamorous bedhead.”

Get this NYFW FW 2015 look in five easy steps.

Step 1: Lightly Mist with Hairspray

After washing your hair, lightly mist with a little hairspray, such as Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray. This will create a strong, shiny foundation for you to work with. Rough dry your hair with fingertips on low heat to create a loose and piece-y texture.

Step 2:  Curl Sections of Hair

Using a large, 1 1/2-inch barrel curling iron, curl two-inch sections of hair. Alternate directions as you do this, then apply more hairspray to create additional definition and hold.

Step 3: Add Some Texture

For that sexy “bedhead” appeal, use a little dry shampoo or texturizing spray at your roots. This will both mattify and add texture. Try Moroccanoil Dry Shampoo.

Step 4: Gently Tease Sections

Begin to gently backcomb hair in 1 1/2-inch sections starting at the crown, toward your forehead. Peter Gray says, “To ensure even crown height, count the number of brush strokes and gradually increase strokes as you work towards the top of head.”

Step 5: Gather Hair

After teasing, gather sections from your ear to temple on either side of your head and twist back towards the center. Once at the back of your head, secure with bobby pins and a spritz of hairspray for good measure. You can even add an ornate hair accessory, such as the one pictured.

If you’re all about learning and recreating new hairstyles, make sure you check out all of Latest-Hairstyles.com’s other original hair tutorials.

OPI Hawaii Nail Lacquer Collection

Sandy beaches, lava-flowing volcanoes, rugged shores. Right about now, we’d all like to be exploring the sights of Hawaii.

One of OPI’s spring 2015 collection is inspired by the exquisite colors of the Hawaiian islands.

You won’t find beachy pastels in the collection but deep, rich colors that evoke days and nights spent on Hawaii’s beautiful terrain.

Here are the 12 shades in the Hawaii Collection by OPI (love the names!):

Too Faced Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer Duos

Even though Valentine’s Day has come and gone, you can still keep the romance alive 365 days a year.

How do you do that? With a little help from Too Faced Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer duos.

Not only does the heart-shaped compact for these blushing bronzers strike the perfect romantic chord, the color payoff is superb. The bronzer and blusher let you add warmth, contouring, and a pop of color with a natural finish.
TIP: Use the blush and the bronzer separately or mixed together.

And it gets better! The duos are inspired by two iconic TV couples: Ross & Rachel and Carrie & Big. I’m a big Jennifer Aniston fan and obsessively watch Sex and the City, so I was very excited to take a look at the Soul Mates Blushing Bronzer duos.

Ross & Rachel

This blushing bronzer features a medium to deep bronzer with a slight shimmer combined with pink blush. This bronzer works well on lighter skin tones and creates a natural flush.

Clinique Spring Bouquet of Beauty Indulgences

If you can’t wait try out a few spring beauty indulgences, Clinique is offering an exclusive gift with any $31.00 purchase at Hudson’s Bay until February 22^nd.

The gift features a bright, large-scale floral print cosmetic bag that contains a sunny collection of Clinique’s signature pieces:

Decidedly Defined Lips: MAC Pencilled In

For awhile, lip pencils were a makeup no-no. But, lip pencils are back and they’re better than ever.

If you want to take your makeup look to the next level with defined lips that are bold or classic, check out MAC Cosmetic’s latest launch: Pencilled In.

You can expertly line lips in 11 shades that are carbon colors of MAC lipsticks like the peachy coral Fruit Cocktail and the bright purple Heroine.

Here are the lip pencils in the collection (which also includes 12 lipsticks and
3 lip glasses):

Sculpt Your Face With Highlighting and Contouring Pencils

Highlighting and contouring used to be a trick of the trade reserved for only the most experienced makeup artists.

With so many great vloggers now showing the way, anybody can do a great job creating the look of a sculpted jaw line.

The latest tools that help enhance your best features are highlighting and contouring pencils. Unlike powders, these pencils are blendable and easy as pie to apply.

Here are few highlighting and contouring pencils carving out new territory.

1. Smashbox Step-By-Step Contour Stick Trio

This little trio of pencils includes three shades that mimic perfect lighting:

• Contour sculpts by creating shadows.
• Highlight mimics light reflection to pull features forward.
• Bronze provides a smooth transition that eliminates the look of harsh lines.

The trio also includes a how-to insert with instructions for achieving the best looks for your face shape.

2. Clinique Chubby Stick Sculpting Highlight and Contour

The Clinique Chubby Stick tradition continues with a highlight stick that features a luminous cream with light-reflecting optics that bring your best features forward. The creamy contour stick makes areas appear to recede.

A Valentine’s Gift Inspired By Love

Is your special someone overworked and stressed out?

MIYU Beauty, a beauty brand that pairs luxurious skincare with beauty teas, can help you give the gift of an at-home spa retreat with a healthier twist on chocolate (if you’re new to MIYU Beauty, read more about their beauty essences and teas here).

The Made With Love kit designed especially for Valentine’s Day features a dash of kindness, a spoonful of laughter, and heaps of love.

The limited edition kit contains:

Turn Your Shiny Lip Color to Matte in a Flash

If you’re loving the matte lip trend, but missing some of your favorite shiny lipsticks, don’t turn them loose quite yet.

Cargo recently introduced Cargo Matte Top Coat, an innovative lip product that transforms your favorite shiny lip color into a moisturizing matte finish in one stroke.

Why You Need to Invest in Makeup Brushes

Budget beauty works well when you can pick up a trendy new lip balm or a purse-sized hairspray.

When it comes to makeup brushes, you just may want to pull out more bills.

Why? High-quality makeup brushes make application easier and they’re designed to last longer. Most importantly, they don’t damage your skin.

The Make Up For Ever Artisan Brush Kit and the Bobbi Brown The Basic Brush Collection are excellent choices if you want to spend a couple of hundred dollars on brushes.

If $200 is too expensive, there are still a lot of good choices for a lot less.

One of my favorite brands for makeup brushes is IT Cosmetics, who design luxurious brushes that give new meaning to air brushing. The brushes are 100%, cruelty-free and anti-microbial.

Clinique’s Mix-and-Match Neutrals Collection

When it comes to beauty, 2015 could very well be the year of Clinique.

First, the company collaborated with Meghan Trainor on a limited-edition makeup bag, inspired by her latest video Lips Are Movin’.

Now, Clinique has introduced a very wearable collection of eye shadows that will definitely shake up your image of neutral shadows  (these aren’t your mother’s neutrals).

The Wear Everywhere Neutral collection includes 5 palettes, each with 8 shadows that explore a different colour family:

• Nudes
• Greys
• Pinks
• Blues
• Greens

Each neutral palette lets you get creative and mix and match blendable neutrals that are either matte or shimmery. You can tone down the shadows for work or amp them up for evening wear. The shadows are crease-and fade-resistant and ophthalmologist tested.

I had a chance to check out a sample of the Greys and the Pinks.

How to Conquer the January Blues

Hang in there, January is almost over. If you can’t beat ‘em, though, join ‘em.

Survive the January blahs by trying some bright nail colors on the blue side of the rainbow.

The four shades in the photo are (starting at the top counterclockwise):

Butter London–Scallywag Nail Lacquer

This Butter London shade is a bright turquoise glitter with full coverage suspended in a clear base.

Nicole by OPI Nail Lacquer–A Lit-Teal Bit of Love

This shade by Nicole by OPI is a bright blue with silver tones. The fast-drying nail formula also comes in a glass bottle that is recyclable.