­

Beauty Buzz: Give Some Lip

By |May 14th, 2010|Beauty Buzz|

kerstin-lipsSo, as girly as I am, there are two things that I just can’t seem to keep a handle on. Lipstick and nail polish. I’ve mentioned before that my nails are chipped more often than not. To go along with that, I really just CAN’T be bothered with applying and reapplying lipstick. I once tried one of those “long wearing” red lipsticks and was horrified that halfway through the night I looked like I’d sucked the blood from a baby pig (or just a reject from the next Twilight installment). This is why you’ll probably only catch me with some lipgloss, chapstick, or nothing on my lips.

For a while I was happy using Benetint for double duty on both lips and cheeks, but despite the berry stained color, it did nothing to moisturize my lips. So while perusing Sephora (that place is dangerous) waiting to meet up with friends for an afternoon cocktail, I stumbled upon something brilliant from Tarte:

6a00e5504d1b2f88330128778c9f34970c-800wiTarte Natural Lip Stain with LipSurgence, $24

This little gem combines both a stain with a moisturizing technology called Lipsurgence (6000% increase in lip moisture!) and is completely free of parabens and sulfates.  I picked “Charmed” which appeared to be a very light pink. (I tested it on the back of my hand). It has a minty scent/taste (not sure which?), and glides on smooth. I must warn you, the color is much more saturated on the lips, so I was more bubblegum pink than sheer pink. I suggest testing on your lips before purchasing. My lips stayed smooth and moisturized for a lot longer than lipgloss and even chapstick, not to mention that the color certainly does last (so make sure you like the color!). I use it all the time despite the Barbie pink shade. My girlfriend laughed at me while wearing it during our run on the Hudson the other day. Whatevs, you never know who you’ll meet!

xx,

WhyDid

What on God’s Green Earth??

By |April 22nd, 2010|Beauty Buzz|

It’s Earth Day.  Yep, the day we celebrate our beautiful home. (We SHOULD be doing that every single day, but whatevs). I’m no granola girl and you certainly aren’t going to catch me wearing Birkenstocks anytime soon, but that’s no reason I can’t be a little bit Earth friendly with my daily beauty regimen. Below are some products that are good for you and our planet. Word to your mother… nature.

nude

Nude Cleansing facial wash, $24

origins

Origins Nourishing Facial Lotion, $42.50

burt

Burt’s Bees Very Volumizing Pomegranate and Soy Shampoo, $8.00

clarks

Clark’s Botanicals Skin Clearing Face and Bodywash, $46

cotton

Organic cotton balls, $2.49

yes

Yes to Carrots SPF 15 Lip Balm, $3.49

Go green or go home, bitches!

xx,

WhyDid

Beauty Buzz: Roll Out

By |April 13th, 2010|Beauty Buzz|

People are always asking me what I did to get so much volume in my hair (even without the weave, folks). When I don’t blow my hair completely straight (more a result of me being lazy and not having enough time), I slap in some old school hot rollers. That’s right, rollers. The kind that your mom used back in the 80’s when you were a mere fetus. The ones I own (and actually swiped from my mom) are an older model of these:

2050458Conair Jumbo Roller Instant Heat Hair Setter, $33.99

Everyone doubts me when I tell them all it takes is a set of jumbo rollers to add oomph to your wimpy ‘do. Yesterday we slapped them into our lovely photographer, Kellie Sliwa’s, luscious locks which she claims just won’t hold curl… and voila! She had a beautiful mane of heavenly curls. So how does one create vamp hair?

  • Wash and condition hair as usual.
  • Blow dry with flat brush to get the moisture out and smooth the tangles.
  • Spritz (lightly) with hairspray.
  • Section hair off and start at the back bottom and work your way to the top.
  • Leave in hair while you do your makeup or pick out your outfit (although that one could take a while).
  • Remove curlers in the order which you put them in (i.e., start from the back bottom).
  • Shake out curls and spritz again. Do NOT brush.
  • Boom! You’re a bombshell (but not a Bombshell McGee).

Happy curling!

xx,

WhyDid

 

 

Photo 44

 

Beauty Buzz: Cover Your Tracks.

By |April 7th, 2010|Beauty Buzz|

good-hair

So, we all sat down and watched the movie, “Good Hair” not so long ago and it was startling to learn that black hair industry is a $9 billion (yes, BILLION) business. I could not believe that such beautiful women were so stressed out about their hair… until I had my own type of hair inadequacy crisis.

Thanks to the great Smith family genes, I’ve been blessed with a full head of hair. Unfortunately, for me, too much is never enough. As you remember, I was fortunate enough to try out the Platinum Seamless extensions back in November. I loved them SO much that I felt like I was practically bald when they were removed (and not because they damaged my hair. It was left unscathed). So what’s a girl to do? Get some clip ins, of course!

At first, I only wore the clip ins for special occasions, like my birthday or an event.  Then they became addictive. I didn’t really want to leave the house without them. They made my hair so much fuller and turned even bad hair days into great ones.  I didn’t really like my normal hair without them and no amount of hair, skin, and nails vitamins were going to make my hair that thick. So, I continued wearing them all the time. I even figured out crafty ways to put them in (upside down) when I was wearing my hair up. Talent, not a skill, folks. No one could tell when they were in my hair because they match my hair EXACTLY plus I already have really long hair, so there was no weird “layer” where my real hair stopped and my clip ins began.

Sometimes, dating got a little weird. I had to perfect the art of clipping those suckers out one by one and stashing them in my bag while my gentleman caller turned his head. (I know, I’m sick). Never the wiser, I thought I’d duped my boo. He was probably baffled by my resistance to him touching my hair.

This was all fun and games until I was out one night and a friend of mine touched my head and said, “Girl! You got tracks in?” I was mortified. Now everyone was under the impression that my long luscious locks were not mine at all. 75% of it was all my own God given hair, but the cat was out of the bag and I wanted to shove that feline right back in.

So, I had to hold an intervention… with myself. When I spoke to the “boo”, he informed me he obviously knew all along that I’d been popping my clip ins in and out and actually laughed at the fact that I loved my “Texas hair” to be “obnoxiously large.” Hmph… guess I’m not as tricky as I thought. At this rate… I was one step away from a Bump-It.

I hadn’t actually worn my extensions since that night (until our photoshoot).  I quit giant hair cold turkey. I can’t say I won’t be putting them back in anytime soon. You’re all on crack if you don’t think that every Hollywood starlet from Kim K to Rachel Zoe aren’t wearing some type of hair enhancement (they’re more common than a boob job in LA). Clip ins are a great way to add a little extra glamour to your everyday  hair… just don’t get addicted.

To drive home the point that I’m not actually bald, here are some before and after photos of my white girl weave:

Photo 26

Photo 34

P dot S… please excuse my “photo booth” self portraits. Smitty sure is cute, but his furry paws can’t snap a photo.

xx,

WhyDid

Beauty Buzz: Bling Bling!

By |March 16th, 2010|Beauty Buzz|

2010grammys_beyonce001

So remember when I was a little taken aback with Beyonce’s “glitter wig” at the Grammy’s? Well, upon further investigation (you KNOW my middle name is Google) I have cracked the case. Nancy Drew strikes again.

Although it wasn’t a “glitter wig” (I still think she was wearing a wig), there were, in fact, strands of metallic hair knotted in. These little tinsel like strands are called Bling Strands and they’re one of the newest trends in hair. My dear friend, Ashley, just got them done at a salon and she looked absolutely adorable. You can get the look at home by ordering them online and watching the “how to” video. They are sold in packs of 25 strands ($6.50 for 18″, $8.95 for 36″) and come in a multitude of fun colors, but if you aren’t very crafty, I’d leave it up to the experts. You may end up with a knotted mess.

I can’t say that I will be sporting these little guys around, but I do think they are a fun accessory for the right girl or for a special occasion.

blingwhat

p3

hair_bling_blonde

Get your shine on.

xx,

WhyDid