Ladies, it’s time to update your makeup stash! This fall and winter, have fun with rich, vivid jewel tones that add warmth to winter skin and chicness to your fall and winter style.

On Sept. 1, Aveda will introduce its limited edition Jewels of the Earth makeup collection, a combination of gem-inspired eyeshadow and lip color hues that complement every skin tone and hair color, and can be used to create dramatic or subtle yet stunning looks.

“Jewels of the Earth is a palette of rich, intense tones,” says Janell Geason, Aveda’s global makeup artist. “Metallic, velvety-dark colors reflect depth and nocturnal elegance. The looks suggest a somber, antique and artistic mood, and the notion of old becoming new.”

The collection includes six Petal Essence Single Eye Colors (available in Crushed Citrine, Terraverte, Sanidine, Azurite, Amethyst and Jade), which are are crease-resistant, lightweight and long-lasting and boast a silky, petal-soft texture for effortless blending thanks to jasmine and geranium waxes; one Nourish-Mint Sheer Mineral Lip Color (available in Sheer Petalite), made with plant and fruit waxes to smooth fine lines, plump lips and add moisture, and has mineral-derived pigments for a flattering touch of color; and two Nourish-Mint Smoothing Lip Colors (available in Tanzanite and Vanadinite), a creamy lipstick that gives lips full-coverage color for a va-va-voom look.

If rich makeup colors intimidate you, relax! Blast spoke with Geason, who shared her expert tips on how to recreate some of this fall and winter’s standout looks from the collection—step by step!

Blast: Which of the colors from the collection do you recommend for light, medium and dark skin tones?

Janell Geason: All the colors of Jewels of the Earth can be used on all skin tones; the key is application. Just as gemstones are classified as transparent, translucent and opaque, these same effects can be achieved with makeup, therefore making all colors wearable for all skin tones.

Blast: What about for each eye color?

JG: It depends on what you want to achieve. You can create an interesting contrast to your hair color or eye color. For example, if you have a vibrant red or violet toned hair color, choose rich emerald tones to create a pop; Jade works beautifully for this.  Or use your eye color as a guide to create tonal dissonance.  For example, green eyes with gold flecks look beautiful in amethyst tones, blue eyes shine with warm, rich copper tones, and brown eyes have it all depending on what flecks of color you want to bring out.

Blast: Since jewel tones are rich, how can they be “toned down” for an easy daytime look?

JG: For a more subtle look, use a pop of color on the top lash line above or in place of your eyeliner. Amethyst, Azurite or Jade are great options for this look.   Use the colors as an accessory, which means doing your makeup like you normally do and add a touch of jewel tones to it.

Blast: Any tips on how to make a smokey eye using the collection’s colors instead of the classic black?

JG: Begin by smudging an eyeliner all around your eye.  I prefer Aveda’s Black Orchid Eye Definer. Then choose your favorite jewel-toned shade–I love Amethyst, Jade or Azurite for this–and apply with a Medium Eye Color Brush.  Apply from your lash line to slightly above the crease. Blend outer edges well. Then go back with a lighter shade –I love Sanidine for a touch of gold–and apply slightly above the first color and accent the inner corner of the lid for added glam.  I suggest doing the top lid first to avoid the “panda eye.”  Once you finish the top lid, you’ll easily be able to see how heavy you need to go on the bottom lash line.  Finish the bottom lash line with the same jewel-toned shade you used on the top, and remember to blend well.  Curl lashes and apply Aveda’s Black Forest Mosscara to top and bottom lashes. This smokey eye is my favorite for an evening out.

Blast: What is your favorite daytime look?

JG: For day, a strong red lip paired with a neutral eye creates a polished look. On the eyes, a sweep of Terraverte Eye Color from the lash line to slightly above the contour of the eye, with Sanidine diffused lightly at the inner corner of the eye, does the trick.  Finish with Aveda’s Black Forest Mosscara on the lashes and Vanadinite Lip Color for a pretty pout.

So there you have it; now there’s no excuse for ho-hum makeup this fall and winter. Do to your face what a sparkling bauble does for your outfit and brighten it up with gorgeous jewels!

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has only limited say in what cosmetics manufacturers can and cannot put into their products. And the cosmetics industry has essentially been regulating itself for some three decades. But critics argue that self-regulation isn't appropriate for an industry trading in potentially carcinogenic products. (Media credit/Jupter Images via Thinkstock)

The Safe Cosmetics Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in July 2010 by Democrats Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin. But it never got past committee reviews and thus never came up for a vote.

The proposed bill aimed to ensure that all personal care products for sale in the U.S. would be free of harmful ingredients and that all ingredients would be fully disclosed. The bill would’ve given the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to prohibit the use of certain ingredients, including carcinogens and reproductive and developmental toxins, to recall products that fail to meet safety standards, and to require product labels to name each ingredient.

The FDA has only limited say in what cosmetics manufacturers can and cannot put into their products. And the cosmetics industry has essentially been regulating itself for some three decades, and would like to keep it that way. In response to failed efforts in the 1970s to force the FDA to regulate cosmetics more like drugs—with required pre-market safety assessments—the industry decided to take matters into its own hands, creating the Cosmetics Industry Review Panel to judge the safety of various ingredients.

Critics argue that self-regulation isn’t appropriate for an industry trading in potentially carcinogenic products. “It’s a panel funded by the trade association,” Stacy Malkan of the non-profit Campaign for Safe Cosmetics told the Washington, DC-based Corporate Crime Reporter. “For 30 years that they have been in operation, they have only looked at about 13 percent of the chemicals in cosmetics. They do cursory reviews. They look mostly for short term health effects. It’s a panel of mostly dermatologists, not toxicologists. So, they don’t have the expertise to be looking at long-term health effects like cancer.”

Another non-profit, the Environmental Working Group (EWG), has identified upwards of 100 different products that passed Cosmetics Industry Review Panel safety assessments despite obvious violations of that body’s own guidelines. According to EWG’s research, 22 percent of all personal care products on store shelves today—including children’s products—may contain a cancer-causing ingredient (1,4-Dioxane), while some 60 percent of sunscreens contain oxybenzone, a potential hormone disruptor.

In response to the government not requiring cosmetics manufacturers to be more responsible, EWG launched the Skin Deep website, an easy-to-use, keyword-searchable database of cosmetics and their health risks and environmental footprints. The idea behind the website is to let users decide for themselves which cosmetics to purchase; EWG hopes that making this information freely available and easy-to-access will help drive demand for safer products.

Supporters of the Safe Cosmetics Act were hopeful that passage of their bill would usher in a new era of more rigorous mandatory screening of cosmetics here at home, and leadership in a global marketplace hungry for safer, greener products. Advocates for safe cosmetics hope that lawmakers will muster the resolve to reintroduce the bill, or another like it, in the current or some future session of Congress.

CONTACTS: FDA, www.fda.gov; Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, www.safecosmetics.org; Corporate Crime Reporter, www.corporatecrimereporter.com; Skin Deep, www.ewg.org/skindeep/.

The very first Taylor Swift’s CoverGirl ads have just been revealed.

The country singer’s ads will be releasd in January.

In the Associated Press’s CoverGirl shooting behind the scene video, Swift shares her opinion regarding how girls can be beautiful. Needless to say, Swift’s ads are very cute and beautiful.

Have you ever read the ingredients to your favorite beauty products only to discover the word "urea" on the label?  If so, you’re probably wondering why that word sounds so familiar… then it hits you; urea sounds like urine! As gross as it sounds, the majority of your favorite products contain urea, but before you throw them away in disgust, you should keep reading.

Urea, also known as carbamide, is an organic compound that is essentially a waste product of digested protein that gets filtered through the kidneys and is expelled from the body through urine. However, the urea that is often found in cosmetics is made from synthetic ammonia and carbon dioxide.

Initially, urea was discovered by the French chemist Hillaire Rouelle in 1773. Just 55 years later it became the first organic compound to be created synthetically.

So why is it used in beauty products? Urea slows down the loss of moisture from a product; when used in skin care products it increases the water content of the top layers of the skin. Urea also minimizes the change in the pH balance of a product when other ingredients are added to that product.

One important factor of urea is that it acts as a preservative; it helps to control the growth of bacteria and other microorganisms. Without urea, our beauty products wouldn’t last nearly as long as they do once they are opened.

Some beauty products that contain urea include Nair, Veet, hair conditioners, body lotions (such as Eucerin), teeth whitening products, skin softeners, bath oils, facial cleansers, and cosmetics such as eye makeup, facial makeup, makeup removers, tanning/bronzing lotions, and cuticle removers.

The ingredients you should be looking for are urea, carbamide, imidazolidinyl urea, and diazolidinyl urea (which is found in the preservative Germaben).

Diazolidinyl urea can also be found in baby wipes, household detergents, and bubble baths.

Imidazolidinyl urea and diazolidinyl urea are chemically related, therefore they are used in the same way. Both preservatives act as formaldehyde releasers (this is what makes them preservatives).

The Cosmetic Ingredient Review board (CIR) has found urea to be safe as used up to 10 percent, imidazolidinyl urea safe as used up to one percent, and diazolidinyl urea safe with qualifications up to a maximum of 0.5 percent.

Allergic reactions to imidazolidinyl urea may result in a rash on your skin; however it is not a common cause of allergic reactions when compared to other preservatives. Therefore it is often found in beauty products that are labeled "hypoallergenic."

If you are unsure about the ingredients found in your beauty products your best bet is to contact the company that makes the product. They will be able to provide you with all the pertinent information.

You can relax though, there is no one peeing in your favorite beauty products.

Pop music star Cyndi Lauper and music sensation Lady Gaga are teaming up on a new campaign by joining MAC Cosmetic’s VIVA GLAM program, as the new voices and faces of the campaign to support women battling HIV/AIDS, a campaign that MAC started in 1994. Fergie, Christina Aguilera, Eve, Mary J. Blige and Lil’ Kim have helped to advertise and sell the lipstick line. Every dollar coming from the sale of Viva Glam lipstick and lip gloss is going to the MAC AIDS Fund. The Viva Glam Cyndi and Viva Glam Gaga lipsticks, each for $14, will be available on March 18.

According to HealthDay, Lauper said, “Fighting HIV/AIDS is not a one-woman job. Lady Gaga and I are using our voices as a call to action for women all over the world. I lost a lot of friends to AIDS before we even knew what it was. Today, across the world, women are more likely to become infected with HIV than men. Each one of us needs to do our part to fight for women impacted by HIV and AIDS.”

“We’re raising the VIVA GLAM bar this year with the voices of two incredible artists,” said John Demsey, president of Estee Lauder and chair of the MAC Aids Fund. “Lady Gaga and Cyndi Lauper are bringing women’s issues to the forefront of the HIV/AIDS crisis. We have one artist that hit the music industry at the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, and another that is explosively popular with young people today. They represent different generations that are equally as affected by this disease, and both are helping to spread the message of the power of one lipstick.”

The program has already raised more than $150 million to combat the disease all over the world, from South Africa to the rural southern United States.

Blast had a chance to speak with Ben Bornstein, a Boston native, who has contributed to over fifty projects as a special effects makeup artist. He founded Creative Initiative Makeup & FX Studio in 2005 and has worked on films like “Acts of Violence” with Leelee Sobiesky, “The Fighter” with Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg and television pilots for VH1 and Tru TV.

Now, Bornstein is back in Boston. He’s set up shop and working with the growing local film business.

Blast: So we see that since 2003, when you moved to LA, you’ve contributed to over 50 projects in the film and television industry. How did you get your foot in the door in this industry?

Ben Bornstein: I actually had gone to LA with two hundred dollars in my pocket and I didn’t really know anybody out there at that point … I had sent out 30 press kits to makeup fx studios. I got one call three months later. A lot of people didn’t want to hire new people because they’d have to train them. It was really hard to get a job. (Eventually) I got a job creating some fake money trees for a commercial on set at Universal Studios.

Blast: What was the most exciting project you’ve ever worked on?

BB: Tough question. To be on the makeup department for “The Fighter” was a huge difference for me. (There’s a) difference between being a shop technician and doing makeup on the set with the cast and crew. I’m most proud of doing in shop for 300.

Blast: What was your most stressful project?

BB: They usually all are. It’s a high stress business and the deadlines are seemingly impossible. But it was for a short film we shot at Paramount. 18 hour days, zero days off for six weeks straight. It was crazy!‚  A huge deadline. We had enough work for 15 crew members with only five of us.

Blast: And what is your current project?

BB: Just finished up with “The Fighter.”

Blast:‚  What advice do you have for people interested in getting into special FX or film in general?

BB: As far as makeup FX, get as many books and DVDs online and research it. I don’t personally think you need to go to school for it. If you want to take a course, get the Dick Smith Advanced Makeup Course. Study anatomy the best you can. It’s all about knowing the human form to the best of your abilities.

In film, start out as a PA. If you can get a PA job-especially in a union production you might have a good shot. … Have a great attitude, never show up late. Show up early.

Blast: And you founded Creative Initiative Make-Up & FX Studio-can you tell us a bit more about that?

BB: Basically I had done a couple of little jobs while in LA. I was there a little over five years and moved back to Massachusetts. It was basically that I felt that my skill level had gone up enough to handle the fx in film.

Blast: How do you feel about the future of the film industry in Boston with Plymouth Rock Studios being built and the whole Hollywood East movement?

BB: I have a really strong feeling about it. If I didn’t I wouldn’t have moved back to Boston. I have really high hopes for this city.

There were 13 features shot in Boston in 2008, and Plymouth Rock Studios is due to open in 2010 , with plans for another studio to also open in the South Shore within that time frame (http://www.mafilm.org).

Work had really slowed down in LA, because of the strikes. I got‚  a job a week after I decided to start packing (for Boston). I was lucky enough to get a job over there to work on tThe Surrogates”¦(but I was) working in LA when I wanted to go home, for a film that would be shot in Boston. I was there six weeks and the whole crew was great. I worked on The Final Destination and Shorts, and after that I had a couple of small jobs and then decided just to move. And I’m really glad that I did! Work has really picked up a lot here. It was difficult to be a nonunion fx guy, everything is union here. Since I moved home last August I had applied to be a union makeup artist. It took me between October and February to see if I was getting in. Once you get in the union it can really change your life. And when I was in LA, my last day there I got a phone call saying I’d gotten into the Union.

Blast: Anything else you’d like to add?

BB: I’d like to thank the local makeup artists in Boston who’ve given me a chance to prove myself and thank you and good luck!

Ah, summertime: refreshing cocktails, days at the beach, s’mores over a campfire…and hair so frizzy it looks like you’ve been electrocuted? Let’s face it: we wait all year for this season, but it isn’t without its own beauty woes. And these days, who has the money to spend on fancy products? The good news: you don’t need Angelina Jolie’s bank account, hair stylist or dermatologist to be gorgeous this summer. We’re spilling the dirt on beauty steals you didn’t even know you already had. Blast is sharing some alternate uses for products already in your cabinet, and the best news? They work!

• Is the hot weather giving you greasy hair? Are you camping and unable to shower? Forget shelling out the big bucks on trendy dry shampoos; some baby powder or cornstarch works just fine. Just sprinkle a little on your roots, leave it there for a couple of minutes to soak up the oil, rub it out with your fingers and voila!
• Is the humidity turning your hair into a frizzy mess? Have no fear,‚  just head to your kitchen. Rub a few drops of olive oil together in your hands and lightly pat onto dry or damp hair. If your hair tends to be greasy, apply it to the ends of your hair only to smooth any split ends. It may sound gross, but mayonnaise also works wonders on dry, frizzy hair. Apply a small amount of it as you would conditioner, cover your head with a shower cap and leave it on for up to 30 minutes, rinse it out and then shampoo. Or try mixing 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar with 1 quart of water and pour it through your hair in the shower in lieu of your regular conditioner, then rinse it out. Do this once a week. Depending on your hair length and your preference, you may have to experiment with the ratio. Another super easy and totally free fix is to simply end your shower with a quick rinse of cool water, which will seal the hairs’ cuticles and leave your mane smooth, shiny and manageable.
• Summer’s heat and humidity can wreak havoc on acne-prone skin. But there’s no need to shell out lots of dough on expensive skincare products or subject your skin to harsh chemicals, perfumes, dyes and preservatives. There are a plethora of homemade skincare options – so many that we couldn’t list them all. But don’t worry, we chose from some of our favorites. Do you have oatmeal and baking soda in your pantry? Grind 2 teaspoons of oatmeal (a coffee grinder will work just fine), mix it with 1 teaspoon of baking soda and slowly add water to make a paste. Gently rub the paste onto your face and rinse well. Or raid your medicine cabinet and take out some aspirin, which is a natural source of salicylic acid, a popular ingredient in acne products. Crush 3-5 tablets (un-coated plain white pills) and mix the powder with water to form a paste. Gently rub the paste onto your skin and leave it on until dry. Now rinse and enjoy your new smooth skin. Feeling a little adventurous? Add a couple squirts of honey to the aspirin powder and then add the water to form a paste. After cleansing, always splash your face with cold water to close the pores.
• Does your skin get super oily in the summer? Try a homemade toner. You’ll have to experiment with the recipe, but start off with 2/3 part water to 1/3 part apple cider vinegar (ACV). If your skin can handle it, eventually move up to a 50/50 concoction. We recommend using distilled or filtered water. Shake the mix well, soak a cotton ball with it, and apply it to the face each night after cleansing. ACV is packed with vitamins and minerals and is, among many things, known to help regulate oil production. If you’ve got some tea tree oil or want to shell out some bucks to buy some, add a few drops to the toner for an added bacteria-killing benefit. Warning: this toner does not smell good. But if you want clear, radiant skin, get over it!
• Make sure your legs are bikini ready by exfoliating for a closer shave, a more even tan and fewer ingrown hairs. The aspirin mask mentioned above does wonders at sloughing off dead skin and eradicating those pesky ingrowns. Great alternatives to store-bought body scrubs (can you believe Fresh sells one made with brown sugar for $65?!) are ridiculously simple. Mix 1 cup of granulated sugar or brown sugar and 1/2 cup of oil – any vegetable oil will do. Sea salt and Epsom salts are wonderful at exfoliating the skin, and can be used all over the body; just mix 1/2 cup of the salts with 1/2 cup of vegetable, olive, or baby oil, or simply scrub your skin with some salts mixed with a little water.
• Got dry legs? Exfoliate them, of course! Also, try using hair conditioner as a substitute for shaving cream.
• Hot summer days equal embarrassing sweat and odor. Forget expensive “clinical strength” antiperspirants that contain aluminum (yuck!) and stick to the basics: Rubbing baking soda or cornstarch onto dry armpits should do the trick. If sweaty, stinky feet are a problem, brew a strong batch of black tea, let it cool, and soak your feet in it for 20-30 minutes. The pore-closing tannins in black tea will solve your problem. Or take Cosmopolitan magazine’s advice and do this routine every night for two weeks: soak a cloth in some strong black tea, allow it to cool, and put it on each armpit for five minutes. If excess sweating has caused some BO and your deodorant just isn’t cutting it, soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and apply it to your armpits. Don’t worry, the vinegary smell will disappear within a few minutes.
• Spent too long sunbathing and now you’re paying for it with a sunburn? Don’t distress! As long as your burn isn’t blistering or oozing, try some of these remedies. Apply a cloth soaked in apple cider vinegar to the affected areas, and then apply a moisturizer, preferably one containing aloe and/or vitamin e, since ACV is drying. Add Epsom salts or oatmeal to your bathwater and relax. Soak a cloth in a mixture of warm (not hot!) water and dissolved baking soda and apply it to your skin. Got a cucumber? It’s not just for salads and soothing your eyes; rub your skin with its cool slices. This one is strange, but it works: soak a cloth in cool milk and apply it to your skin, leaving it on for about 20 minutes, then rinse. Plain yogurt can also do wonders. Apply it to the burn, leave it on for about 10 minutes and rinse with cool water. Another, less strange, solution is to make some tea (any kind will do), drink it, relax and apply the cooled tea bags to your burn.
• It’s no mystery that chlorine wreaks havoc on your hair. But why spend money on clarifying shampoo when you can use what you already have? Once again apple cider vinegar earns a gold star: rinse your hair with it in the shower to remove product and chemical build-up. Baking soda also offers a solution: mix 1 tablespoon or so of it with your shampoo in your hand, suds as usual, leave it on for a few minutes, rinse and enjoy chlorine-free locks. Another awesome tip? Before swimming, wet your hair and apply your conditioner to it but do not rinse it out; this will prevent the chlorine from penetrating your hair. After swimming, be sure to shampoo and condition as usual.

So, Blast readers, got your own summer beauty solutions? Comment below and help your fellow readers with cabinet-raiding, beautifying, cheap summer tips. And please, if you have adverse reactions to any of the recipes above, discontinue your use of them and see a doctor.

Spa Week has some fabulous giveaways this month with‚ something‚  for everyone, a $1,000 Spa Week gift card, a pair of Manolos, a case of wine, a free vacation to Peter Island Resort, beauty products, and more. Yes, you read it right.‚ 

Spa Week Media Group Ltd., ‚ an integrated boutique marketing and public relations firm that specializes in the niche spa industry was founded in 2003 by‚ Cheryl Reid of New York. By reaching spa owners directly and offering treatments, regularly costing hundreds of dollars for only $50 the concept of having a website promoting these deals grew at a great rate. At first only having 25 spas‚ participating, there are now‚ Spa Week chapters in more than 21 cities nationwide.‚ ‚ ‚ 

“In three short years, Spa Week has gone from one of Manhattan’s best kept secrets to a nationwide spa enthusiasts’ dream. ‚ My goal is to have Spa Week in every American city that has a high proliferation of day spas to accommodate eager consumers looking for affordable indulgence and a peek into the future of wellness. I’m confident that the future of Spa Week will assist in educating Americans on the importance of spa as a part of a new and improved healthy lifestyle campaign,” said Reid.‚ 

It is very easy to maneuver through the website, finding your city and spas offering deals near you. After booking your treatment you can check out the giveaways tab and enter to win as many goodies as you like, equally simple.‚ 

This month Spa Week and Rioja wine are bringing you a chance to win a pair of Manolo Blahniks or a case of delicious red wine. ‚ Heroes of the beauty industry like Chris McMillan and Pat McGrath, from Allure Magazine, reveal their secret beauty weapons this month too and give away the fabulous products and tools they speak of.

With the economy slowly settling, and your cuticles probably‚ suffering form those at-home manicures, you are better of booking an affordable treatment at Spa Week that will cheer you up and not leave your wallet empty. And if you don’t want to get a treatment, you should still enter to win those Manolos!

We ladies have all been there, done that, and will more than likely do it again … fake something! We wear push-up bras to give us a more voluptuous boost, skinny it out in skinny jeans to make us appear longer legged. Even strut around in stiletto boots to make our 5’4″ frames appear to be a more modelesque‚ 5’9″. (Of course if you’re me, you will show your grace by falling down a flight of stairs while wearing them! Jump up, dust yourself off and try again, hence the “do it again” scenario.)

Since we can’t seem to help but lash out against our natural born beauty… it doesn’t seem so bizarre to bat our eyes at a new trend that seems to be taking on a view of its own!

Fake eyelashes are all the rage. From the individual ones that you place near the edge of the eye to the full eyelashes, they are a beauty obsession among many women, and in some cases a must-have for nights out on the town.

False eyelashes have been around since 1916, when American film director D.W. Griffith was filming his epic, “Intolerance.” Griffith wanted actress Seena Owen to pop on screen so he invented lashes that brushed her cheeks, so her eyes would appear larger than life. A wig maker wove human hair through fine gauze, which was then gummed to Owen’s eyelids.‚  They continued to be used in films and were also loved by everyday women looking to enhance their look.

Now fast forward almost 100-years and you will still find women winking over their fake and flirty lashes. Only now they are more practical in design but much more daring in style, and selection. Basic black is the most popular of course, but if you’re looking for a more Glamazon look, you can also find: feathered, furry, glittered and show-girly. It’s all a matter of preference, taste and in some cases how daring you dare to be!

Seeing someone in false eye lashes can make a girl wonder… “How did she get those things on?” It’s not exactly rocket science, but it’s not for the shake-y handed either. It does take a little patience, a good mirror and a little insight on how to apply them.

Here are some suggestions I was given by make-up artists:

• Apply a thin layer of liquid black eyeliner
• Curl eyelashes with an eyelash curler
• Before gluing fake eyelashes, lay them over your natural eyelashes to make sure they are the right length
• If lashes are too long, trim with scissors from the outer edge until you have the right size
• Squeeze out glue (I use the eyelash plastic container, why not)
• I use the back of my tweezers to add glue to the base of the eyelashes
• Wait till the glue is tacky before applying
• Lay fake eyelashes over your eye and slide down as close to the base of your real lashes
• And just like that, you have stunning eyelashes!

As you can see, I have worn lashes before, and I wanted to pass on a little tip I learned. Obviously, I was over joyed at the fact I was able to put them on myself and they stayed on! But one helpful find has made my lash locking a little easier- black glue. I tried the typical white when I first started and you could see I over-used it in fear of them falling off. Even though it said the white would dry clear, when you use as much as I did, there was still little remnants of white caked on the lashes. So even though I have gotten better at application, I still prefer the darker glue. Of course, you can always have a professional put them on for you too.

If you are looking for a long term glue-less solution, you can get eyelash implants. Eyelash implants are hair follicles taken from the scalp and sewn into the lash area. It is considered a surgical treatment, but you will have long thick lashes without the need to apply any fake ones. The only down fall is that the hairs that have been transplanted, may need to be trimmed. I wonder how soon there will be a line item at my salon under Eyebrow waxing that says “Eyelash Trim -$ 25.00?” Implants are also a little pricey, so the drugstore false lashes may have to do for awhile!

If you’re into trying new things, but are a little hesitant about lashing yourself out with false eyelashes or eyelash implants, there are a few liquid alternatives. One hot new product on the market today, that won’t break the bank, is called MaxoLash. If you want the lush lashes, but on a more permanent, no muss no fuss or needle basis, Maxolash can be easily applied to your lashes like mascara. Its patented formula allows your eyelashes to grow longer and thicker within a 4 week period.‚ You just need to plan ahead if that’s the case!

Few! Who would have thought there would be so much to say about eyelashes? Even I am amazed at my findings. So get your fabulous blinkers winking with your new found lash love, it’s something to bat your eyes over!

If the Nintendo E3 press conference was any indication, you can expect to see more of this.

Oxygen Games announced three more titles aimed at the fairer half of the Nintendo DS audience.

My Make-Up: Pamper and make-over your personalized avatars and those of your friends. Players can host makeover and face painting parties, share photo albums with friends, and chat about the latest techniques and trends in make-up. October 20

My Dress-Up: Practice your fashion creativity by dressing up your own personal avatars in this one of a kind dress-up simulation videogame. Players can host dress-up parties, share photo albums and trade fashion secrets, styles and trends with friends. October 20

My Secret Diary: Explore your top-secret feelings, gab about crushes and gossip about friends, using your very own password protected journal. Players can test themselves and their closest friends with a number of personality quizzes, keep track of their busy social lives with a personal secret calendar and discover what’s next with the game’s Fortune Cookie and Crystal Ball features. October 20

Oxygen games also has Pirates: Duels on the High Seas and a billiards game called 8Ball Allstars coming August 22 on DS and a crash-test dummy video game called CID The Dummy coming to PC, PSP, PS2 and Wii October 6.