Celeb MUA, AJ Crimson, and My Beauty Booty Talk Affordable Makeup for Fall

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with AJ Crimson, makeup artist for beauties like Estelle, Amerie, LeToya Luckett, and Hilary Duff. Check out a snippet of our conversation below, during which he shared a surprising pick for one of his new fave makeup brands.

There's so many things that women can do already to enhance their natural look and to stand out in a crowd. What are some of your ideas for fresh looks that women should try to reinvent themselves for the fall?

Well, you know, I think that fall is a time of reinvention in many ways - not only in beauty, but in your fashion and your entire wardbrobe. But when you're revamping your makeup wardrobe, I think it's really important to take chances. You know, look at the magazines and look at your resources. You know, you have great resources, like HoneyMag.com, you have Essence, and Allure and Style.com. So, you have up to the minute knowledge of what the trends are. So take chances.

Also, go to your local drugstore. All of these products are there, and they're quality products. Revlon makes quality products. I've been loving some stuff from a brand called Jordana. I was on the way to a Luca Luca show with Estelle this season and she said she wanted to do this really dark berry lip, and all I had was a color called Solstice from Kissable Couture. But I wanted to make it stronger. So, I was like "pull over, let's go to Duane Reade". We picked up like $20 worth of products, a whole bag full, but ended up using this $2 lip liner from Jordana. We filled her lip in with it and put the Solstice over the top. It was a perfect look, it was amazing. You can try a bunch of stuff and never make a real financial commitment, especially now when money is tight and you don't want to spend it on a $40 lip gloss or eyeshadow. So definitely utilize your resources and try all the trends. It's makeup, it always washes off.


AJ Crimson is co-founder of Kissable Couture, a lip gloss line that has both celebs and us everyday girls raving. In addition to being both luscious and long-lasting, each lip gloss evokes a certain emotion or inspiration - from the the shiny, nude shade called First Lady to the deep red shade, Solstice. Kissable Couture is available online and in stores. Retail $22 each.


Top photo; courtesy of UptownLife.net

Beauty Booty Review: 30 Days With Jane Carter Solution

One of my favorite hair product lines of all time has got to be Jane Carter Solution.

Designed specifically for dry hair, these products work especially well for women with relaxed, color treated, or curly hair. They even have products for twists and locks. My favorite product is the Nourish and Shine hair cream ($22, available at most hair supply stores). It smells really, really good, gives moisture without being greasy, and adds shine. Love it!

Well, it looks like I'm not the only one in love with Jane Carter. Check out this fabulous video by crownofHisglory on 30 Days With Jane Carter Solution:

Neon Nail Polish ... On Me?

Well, it seems like everyone's doing the neon nail polish thing right now. So, I must talk about it.

For brown-skinned girls like myself, neon green or pink on any part of our bodies doesn't sound like the right move. I mean, who wants to walk around looking crazy, right? But, I must admit: it actually does look good. See ...





Ok, maybe not neon green for me, personally. But every color has its lighter and darker variations, so choose what works best for your skin tone.

WHERE'S THE BOOTY:
OPI has a ton of great neon colors. AND, on their website, they let you see exactly how each nail color will look on your hand, based on your specific skin color. Love it!

(But $9 for 1 bottle? Does it come with nails, too? A free nail file? Something?)

For those of us still looking for that recession-special, there's always N.Y.C. or good ol' BRUCCI. Stop acting like you don't know BRUCCI. Priced at under $3 a bottle, you might want to get to know it.

Oh, and dare I forget Liptini-Nailtini, a website that lets you create your very own customized "nail cocktail". (And boy, do I love a cocktail.)

Other options: Essie, Sinful Colors, Rescue Beauty Lounge, Claire's, Shu Uemera, Nars, Lippman Collection, and Zoya.

Is 'Good Hair' Still the Goal?

Women of color all know what the term 'good hair' means. For some of us, it's what we strive to have. For others, it's a perception we fight against daily. Its a term that divides us, makes us enemies almost (just like that scene from the movie School Daze?)

Having been on both sides of the aisle, my perspective is varied. In elementary and high school, natural hair was not the thing to have (at all). 'Good hair' was the goal. But ... by my college years, everyone and their mother wanted to go back to natural hair. We even had a Facebook group called 'Stop Living the Lye'. (I know, I know).

Truth be told, my relationship with my hair has been a tumultuous and crazy one. At first I ran from it. Then I embraced it. Now that I'm back on that 'creamy crack' (better know as relaxer), I feel like I've finally found what works for me. For ME, relaxed hair is easy. With relaxed hair, I get the most bang for my buck and save much-needed time to do other things.

Which brings us to the eagerly-awaited documentary, Good Hair, produced by Chris Rock. I, for one, can't wait to see the film. Looking at the movie trailer, what I like most is that it features celebrity women - the women who we often forget are just like us. They sit down and shed light on how they really look, a much-needed reminder for us that what we see in magazines and on tv are just an illusion.

Good Hair will be in theatres on October 9th. Check out the trailer here:

In Honor of My 24th ... 24 of My Favorite Things

Aside from family and friends, there are certain things I can't live without. What better time to share them than today, right?

24.

My Douglas umbrella: It's not just an umbrella. Its an accessory. And it lasts forever.

23.

Sweaters: You (and by 'you', I mean 'I') can never have enough sweaters, especially black ones. They go with absolutely everything - wrap sweaters with pencil skirts, boyfriend sweaters with skinny jeans, studded sweaters with party dresses, cardigans in place of blazers, etc, etc. Here's one that I love. I may have to add it to my collection ...

22.

Pashmina scarves: Everyone knows I can't live without my scarves. Regardless of the weather, I always keep one nearby. Not just because I'm always cold, but because it adds a little something extra to any outfit.

21.

St. Ives Apricot Scrub: After years of trying fancy products, I finally found one that works perfectly. It has the biggest exfoliating beads of any product I've ever tried (but it doesn't hurt, don't worry), so I can actually feel it working its magic. It keeps my skin smooth, gets rid of any blemishes within a day, and keeps the oil away for most of the day. Plus, it smells great and it costs nearly nothing.

20.

Pearls: Every girl needs her pearls. They're a must-have, if you ask me.

19.

Zara International Store: If anyone is curious to know where most of my paycheck is, it's here. Whenever I need an item or an outfit for any occasion, I come to Zara. They have everything that a girl could ever want and the looks come straight off of the runway.

18.

Anything purple: It's my new favorite color. It's also the new color for fall. So, expect to see me wearing something purple every day for the rest of the year. If not clothing or jewelry, it'll be one of these two nail colors that I love: OPI's Louvre Me, Louvre Me Not and We'll Always Have Paris (from the France collection).


17.

Wedges: I've been wearing them all summer, and I'll be wearing them all fall. Why am I so in love with wedges, you ask? Because they have the sexiness of heels, without the pain. Sounds good to me.


16.

Bath & Body Works Japanese Cherry Blossom: I love it because it's smells much better than your typical scented lotion. So, it could easily replace your everyday fragrance, and no one will ever be able to tell that its not an expensive designer perfume. Right now, I'm all about the anti-bacterial mosturizer. Maybe I'll try the body scrub next.


Music: I know, it's not beauty-related. (But it's my birthday, so I can do what I want.) These are the albums that I will ALWAYS have on repeat:

15. Raphael Saadiq - Instant Vintage
14. Q-Tip - The Renaissance
13. Adele - 19
12. Bilal - 1st Born Second
11. Lauryn Hill - MTV Unplugged
10. Nas - The Lost Tapes
9. Emily King - East Side Story

8.

Funky rings: I'm not really a jewelry person. I really just need a few things - one of which is a cute ring, preferably a really big one. Just saw these on Forever21.com:













7.

Gold bangles: As annoying and distracting as the sound of 10 metal bangles moving up and down your arm is, I am never deterred. So, more likely than not, you'll see me with a stack of gold bangles, no matter where I am.

6.

Its A Ten: If I could pick one miracle hair product, this would be it. Its a Ten is a leave-in conditioner that will straighten ANY hair type, better than ANY other product, no matter how "straight-resistant" your hair might be. Trust me on this. Ever since I discovered it a few years ago, I've been taking it with me to any stylist I go to, just to make sure they use it on me.









5.

Big (really big) bags: I carry my life with me everywhere I go. So, I'm always on the hunt for the perfect, perfectly-oversized bag. You may have seen me around town with the Puma Runway Shoulder Bag, pictured here.










4.


My Solia flat iron: It takes a miracle to get my hair straight. But this flat iron does the trick, and you don't need to run it over your hair 5 times. Once will do. And I've had the same one for years, so it lasts forever.


3.

Coco Mademoiselle Eau de Toilette: It's my 'signature scent', so I always keep a bottle close by.





2.

My Cavalli cuff: This Roberto Cavalli Logo Bangle is the only bracelet that I've ever wanted to wear everyday, with every outfit. Its simple yet sophisticated, a great color, and it sparkles. Love it!


Drum roll please .....


My #1 Favorite Thing (right now) is



Chanel Velvet Body Cream: Every since I 'permanently borrowed' this from my sister a few months ago (thanks sis!), I've never not been wearing it. The texture is perfect and the smell lasts for hours. This is not your average lotion. Its heaven in a jar. And I just got a brand new jar for my birthday. Yay me!

Just Because Keri Hilson Did It ...

Ladies, ladies, ladies - now I appreciate creativity just as much as the next person. BUT, there comes a point, especially when it comes to our hair, when being too creative isn't an option.

With the recent wave of celebs coloring, chopping off, and shaving their hair, its understandable that us common folk would want to replicate. Unfortunately, what works on the red carpet doesn't always work in real life.

So, here's a look at some of the latest hair trends, with practical options for real-world girls like me and you.


Trend: The Mohawk

The Rihanna Way:






















The Real-World Way:







Trend: Blond Highlights

The Keri Hilson Way:























The Real-World Way:





Trend: The Buzz Cut

The Amber Rose Way:





















The Real-World Way:








Photos courtesy of Essence.com. Check out their hair gallery for more.

Beauty Booty Pick of the Day: QUEEN by Queen Latifah

Stopped by Macy's yesterday and got a chance to smell the new QUEEN fragrance by Queen Latifah. Originally set to debut in the fall, it looks like it was released a bit earlier than expected.

I know, yet another celebrity fragrance ... as if we need more. But this one actually amade me do a double-take. (And it almost made me forget that I wanted to smack the perfume lady, for shoving the sample card in my face while I was mid-stride.)




Says the Queen about her first fragrance: "Beauty really does start on the inside. It's like a state of mind, a state of love if you will. So I see fragrance as just a natural expression of this state of love: scent expresses a woman’s confidence and sensuality, it’s how she embraces her body, her mind and her strength"

Well, I don't know about all that. But it smells good. So, if you're looking to change up your scent for the fall, you might consider giving this one a try. Why? She's the Queen, why not?


Available at Macy's, $59, 3.4 oz. Body lotion and body butter also available.