The Clueless & Lazy Woman's Guide to Eyeshadow

It's been way too long since I last updated this blog. Unfortunately, the job that pays the bills is keeping me very busy. I promise to make more time for this so for those of you out there still reading, there will actually be something new to read every week.

Shocking confession: I'm pretty clueless about eyeshadow. Yes I do makeup, and I've taken classes, but when it comes to my own face, I just don't know what to put on my eyelids! The experts will tell you that you need three colors; an all over color, then the color that is applied up to the crease, then a highlighter shade applied just under the brow bone. Most of the time when I bother with eyeshadow I just slap one color on and call it a day. Here are a few things you can use to get some color on your lovely lids without really trying.

MAC Paints, $16.00 - I absolutely love this stuff. My favorite shade is "art jam" which is a sparkly violet/red shade, but not remotely as scary as my description sounds. All you need is the smallest amount. The cream is very highly pigmented. If I really have the time, I'll make sure the color is heavier towards the bottom of my lids and lighter at the top so it looks like I actually did something special. Most days I just rub on your eyes and go! As you can see from the picture the paints come in tubes, which can get messy over time, but I've had one of them for years and have barely made a dent in the tube. The other great thing about these is that the color just doesn't come off until you wash your face or use eye makeup remover. No creasing I swear!

Bobby Brown eye shadows, 19.00 - A few weeks ago I went into Bloomingdales in Soho needing to use the restroom, but the very first thing I saw as I walked in was the Bobbi Brown counter. I was instantly drawn there, but knew I needed more makeup like I needed a hole in the head. In order to avoid buying yet another needless lipstick, I decided my mission was to find great eye shadows. I acted as though I was a complete novice to makeup, and that plan backfired on me when the makeup artist suggested the same damn colors everyone else recommends, which I already have. I told her I wanted to kick it up a notch - not an easy task at Bobbi Brown since her entire makeup philosophy is all about the natural look. We finally decided on the beige eyeshadow for the all over color, which I thought was a bit too light for my face, but I could use a highlighter color, and the Black Plum eyeshadow for the crease. Using a small amount of color, it looked really nice! I recently wore it to a good friend's wedding and it looked like I'd just put it on at 1:00 AM when I got home. Definitely worth the money.

Milani Eye shadows, $2.99 (at Ulta.com) - This is my drugstore pick. Good color selection, the color lasts and doesn't crease or look cakey even after wearing it all day. My favorite color is Antique gold, which is a lovely green-gold with a lovely shimmer. I wore it at a wedding shower once and got so many compliments on my makeup. I just used that one color; no all over base, no highlighter. Super easy!

Photo courtesy MAC.com