Channeling My Inner Diva (or How I Forgot Halloween!)

Hi everyone,

The other day, I drove around and noticed some costume sales. It took me a couple of red lights to realize Halloween is at the end of this month and I have done diddly squat to prepare for it. To think about it, I have been busier than ever. The only time I was this busy was when I wrote that thesis to push myself out of grad school. But even with that, I did remember about Halloween.

But I'm not complaining. More things for me to do mean more money coming in at the end of the year. It also means people trust me enough to give me things to do. Just to remember not so long ago I was bouncing from one interview to another without landing anything gives me a shudder.

In my head, I was planning to do a Halloween look with some rhinestones gluing onto my face. But as I said, my timing was wrong and I ended up being supremely divalicous to myself. And please don't ask me how I did my makeup. I had no clue! This is a mix of Mariah Carey's hair in Honey, Katy Perry with her bright lips, and some K-Pop star eye makeup. I only had sunscreen and some powder on my face that day, btw :)

I did some mild facial and nose contouring. For the eyes, there was a mix of browns and purple blended out really well before I applied false eyelashes. I highlighted the inner corner of my eyes and the lower lash line with a champagne eye shadow. This is a highlighting trick Korean pop stars use on their eyes. It totally works as my eyes look huge!

If I used a primer and liquid foundation that day, it would probably ended up looking more K-Pop than this. But I do consider this a trial run in case I decide to do a real Korean pop star makeup look one day :)

Huge eyes at every angle, wow!

Close-up on the eye
This is probably the most unhelpful close-up picture ever.
Everything is so nice and muted that you can hardly see anything!

What I did on the eyes:

• Applied a light brown cream eye shadow as a base on the eyelids, MAC Bare Canvas (light pink champagne-ish color) underneath the brows to highlight
• Smudged out a soft liner near the lash line to darken it
• All the eye shadows I used have some sort of shimmers in them. I applied an inky purple eye shadow from the outer corner into 2/3 or the eye, then applied dark brown on the crease, blended out with a light brown color until they all look nice and natural and shimmery
• Highlighted underneath the brow bone with a shimmery champagne color, then applied the same color to the inner corner of the eyes and to the lower lash line. Don't be afraid if you can see a really pale line on your lower lashes. It's supposed to look like so!
• Mascara-ed up, line your eyes, and applied falsies.

Lips: bright pink lipsticks à la Katy Perry :)

Hair: curled up and tied to the side.

Then, you can totally sass people and demand things to be done your way. Yup, the divalicious act is good for a Halloween night!

Happy Halloween, y'all!

Dao xoxo

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Concealer Tricks to Banish Raccoon Eyes

Hi everyone,

When I was in my 20s, I could stay up really late to study and still looked fresh in the morning. But only a few years into the 30s wonderland and here I am needing concealer like a calf needs milk! When I got a chance to interview James Molloy from MAC, one of his tips is to really conceal the dark circles under and around the eyes. He prefers to bring lights to a woman's face and I took his advice. A little bit of well-blended concealer can make you look wide awake and take years off your age. Trust me, I know!

Lately, I have found an effective way to conceal my raccoon eyes. It's not cakey and the products I use are not outrageously expensive (YSL Touche Eclat, I'm looking atcha!) If you have the same problem, I hope this post is helpful to you.

What I use:

• Maybelline Super Stay Concealer 24HR in light: this is a drugstore product that works really, really well without setting into lines. Unlike many concealers out there, this has a peach tone which works great to conceal darkness on cool tone skins
• MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer in NW 20: I know MAC has a ton of concealers with different textures but this one is the easiest to use. The texture is mousse-like and I can blend it with my fingers. Definitely a nice product to use when I'm in a hurry
• MAC Mineralize Concealer in NC 20: I got this as a gift and since it's a cool-tone product, it doesn't work that well to conceal dark circles (you need to use a concealer with an opposite tone to your skin to conceal darkness on your face.) However, it has tiny pearlized particles that reflect light so I use it for a different purpose: to highlight.

 Let's get to work, shall we?

 First of all, here is how I look without any under eye concealers. I have a few fine lines and bumps around that area. The bumps make it tricky to conceal as too much product can make that area look cakey.

I decided to get a lil' bit creative and used the Maybelline concealer on my right eye (your left, the one with the dots undearneath) and MAC Studio Sculpt on my left (your right)

I blended the concealer on my right eye with my finger and used a small dual fiber brush like MAC 188 to blend out the concealer on the other eye. Yup, that was moi looking quite mad while blending out concealer (which, btw, I think is the key to success here: you need to look mad so the dark circles would stay quiet and take the concealers like they should!)

After I blended things out, things started to look like this.

But wait, there's more! This is when the Mineralize Concealer comes handy: I've found out that in order to completely take away the darkness and brighten up the whole face, I need to add some sort of luminizer to this area. The Mineralize Concealer has this wicked wand that can reach to small places like none of your bidnez. I feathered it out like this, waited for a couple of minutes for the concealer to thicken a bit before I blended things out with the small dual fiber brush.

And here is the end result:

You have seen this picture before in the Benefit post. I used the concealers here and foundation/primer from Benefit. The products I use in this post are excellent. The trick to make them work is to use a small amount of product and let it get a bit tacky before you blend out. Please don't pile on your makeup but work them into your skin. MAC has reliable concealers and if you are loaded, try Cle de Peau. That thing costs around 70 bucks but from what I've heard, it's the best in the biz.

Also, I wrote a post about how to create beautiful skin with makeup. This is essentially what I do these days to get that porcelain skin that celebrities have. Believe me on this one: when it comes to skin, less makeup is more. And if you haven't had a dual-fiber brush in your kit, please get one. It's a gift that keeps on giving. I've never been happier since I started using this brush again.

If you give this a try, please let me know what you think. I'd love to hear from you!

With love,
Dao xoxo

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One More Appearance

Hi everybody,

I guess I'm really lucky to become a beauty and health contributor to F-Fashion Magazine. Not so long ago, I bought an issue of that magazine, read it, and felt so good about it that I wish to write for it one day. Time passed, then one day I got a call from a friend who's now the beauty editor over there. We met and all of the sudden, I was writing my butt off!

F-Fashion is going through a revamp as their aspiration is to become one of the main fashion and beauty magazines in Vietnam. I think it has an advantage as it is in the same family with Fashion TV. I wrote stuff, submitted them, and waited anxiously for the magazine to come out.

I have to say it was an interesting experience. I've learned so much about beauty from the print industry standpoint after only 1 magazine issue. Here are some snapshots of the magazine and the articles I wrote:

Cover page
The cover girl is Vietnam's Next Top Model runner up in the first season

 As I mentioned earlier, I wrote quite a few pages in this issue. "Most Wanted" features products that I think deserved to be mentioned due to their own greatness. I picked UD Naked Skin, Lady Gaga Fame perfume, Cle de Peau Cheek Color Duo, Jungle Fever palette in the Carine Roitfeld x MAC collection, Illamasqua Magnetism lipstick and La Creme face cream.

"I See It First" features 2 looks from the runways with product recommendations from moi. I had the most fun scouting for looks :)

The first look I chose is the English Rose look
It's essentially the skin trend that's been going on lately

The second look is a liner-lip look
I love, love, love the look at the bottom right corner done by makeup artist Kabuki

I was not supposed to do Global Beauty News and this was srsly last minute work. I had to search like mad to come up with 5 news-worthy pieces of information on cosmetic representations, makeup collection launches, and new products.

 And guess what? As a True Blood fan, how could I not put Alexander Skarsgard on the news? I had to convince the editor that the ad is truly hot. She put the title like so: "Alexander Skarsgard and an uber hot commercial video clip!"

I had only 1 actual article to write in this issue and I co-written it with another person. It's about the Perricone anti-aging diet. I didn't remember writing that much but it ended up being a 3-page spread :)

Last but not least, here's the pinnacle of my beauty writing career so far: I was chosen as the blogger for their Beauty Blog section. I wrote about the on-going skin trend, which is essentially this blog entry without the collage. I have to say it was weird to see my face in a magazine. I'm not used to this, really.

So yeah, that's all about what's happening in my beauty writing life at the moment. I am very happy and thankful for this opportunity to contribute to F Fashion Magazine. It was a smooth and chaotic first month but this month is getting better. I wish F Fashion all the best to their relaunching effort.

With love,
Dao xxoo

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September-October Apperances

Hi everyone,

ELLE Vietnam has been kind to me. Not only did I get my articles published, I also got opportunities to interview cool people. They even invited me to their biannual fashion show for the Fall-Winter season. Here are the photos of my articles in their September and October issues.

ELLE Vietnam September issue
The cover girl is Vietnamese version of Tyra for Vietnam's Next Top Model
I had 1 article :)

It's about vitamin A in skincare
I didn't notice they put it in the Health section. I guess I'm a Beauty and Health writer now :]

ELLE VN October edition
Apparently, Elle is going through a revamp and it shows
Each cover looks better than its predecessor

Guess what? This is my first article on plastic surgeries
I wrote about Botox, rhinoplasty (nose job), and breast implants

The artwork was done by the Art Editor
I felt so honor!

It's a 3-page spread and I hardly had any corrections :)

A closer look at the illustration
I don't know if the Art Director reads my blog or not but I just want to say
THANK YOU!
You made my article look better than it already did

Interview-wise, I got to talk to 3 people: James Molloy the day after the Trend Presentation (he's the sweetest!), Manolis Sevastopoulous and Ocea Ferber for Elle F/W 2012 Fashion Show. All of them are so passionate and they made me feel a lot more energized after I interviewed them. On top of that, I had a lot of fun and learned so much from them, too!

Last but not least, here are a couple of very blurry pictures that I took from Elle F/W 2012 Fashion Show. I was sitting in the 2nd row, btw (had to elbow a couple of people to get there!)

There were 2 ice blocks at the middle of the runway

The word ELLE made out of transparent plastic at the back of the stage
I was sitting very close to the stage, btw
(Some guy's big head managed to get into the picture, gah!)

A very famous model wearing some really beautiful clothes
Sorry guys, that's how I talk about clothes these days. Or any day, really!

I think I took pictures of the first collection by Elise Kim before I realized there was not enough light for me to take decent photos. Instead, I enjoyed watching the rest of the show and went home happy!

I wanted to go backstage to take a look at the hair and makeup but I didn't get a backstage pass. Both Manolis and Ocea wanted me to see them that day but oh well, there's always next time! Next time, ELLE, please let me in. I have a D-SLR now, I can take pictures for you! </end shameless plugging>

That's all for now, folks! Thanks for tuning in and support me through all these years!

Love,
Dao xxoo

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Feeling Stilted

Hi everyone,

Lately, everything has been going so well that I have no reasons to complain. Another fashion and beauty magazine asked me to be their beauty contributor. I said "yes" and that was two months ago. While I write features for ELLE, with this magazine, I get to play fantasy football with makeup: I get to pick and choose makeup products for them to put in their magazine. I also get to pick 2 makeup looks from runways and suggest products for readers to re-create the looks.

For a blogger, it's a dream came true! Not only do I get to pick and choose, people may end up buying the stuff I suggest. The products I pick are the ones I want. But since they are very expensive, they are not in my makeup drawer yet. And to have people going out and buying them because someone put them in a magazine? You can even imagine my own dilemma, right?

In a sense, I feel stilted. I feel like Nina Garcia when she suggested a Birkin bag as it only cost people a few week's salary. I guess beauty editors and bloggers can sometimes get into this habit of thinking expensive products are worth it because they are so beautiful and they work. I know they do. And most times the products get the praises because the editors and bloggers get them for free.

But not so much in Vietnam. Here, we suggest products the same way people play fantasy football: you love them, you want them, you talk about them, period. Right now, my wish is to have all the products I suggest to past my desk at least once so I can use them before I write about them.

So, beauty blogging/editing is not an easy task. While I don't want to suggest outrageously expensive products to readers, there's not much of drugstore products in the Vietnamese market at all. My other wish is to have healthy, affordable, and plentiful drugstore makeup products here in my own country so I don't feel so guilty suggesting products to people anymore.

Wet n Wild, NYC, Rimmel London, NYX, Essence, Milani, Sonia Kashuk, Sinful Colors, China Glaze: please come to Vietnam! We need you here!

With love,
Dao xoxo

P.S: Please show your support by following my blog and subscribing to my feed. Thanks a lot!

A Fail-Proof Guide to Natural-Looking Skin

Hi everyone,

Our weekly dose of Polyvore is here! Lately, as I leafed through magazines, blogs, and other beauty medias, all I have seen is beautifully made up skin. Porcelain skin is in and my bet is it's going to stay for a year or two. This skin trend, while looks so simple and easy to do, in fact requires a lot of skills. But fear no more! With the help of Polyvore, I compiled a list of favorite products that will help you achieve the Hollywood skin status in no time. And the catch? We only need 1 brush!

Let's do it!

1. Prime your face
I'm not even kidding! Face primer is one of the top products that changed my life, makeup-wise, of course! The 3 products I select are (1) L'Oreal Studio Secrets, (2) Bare Minerals Prime Time, and (3) Urban Decay Pore Perfecting primer. These 3 are good and Prime Time is designed for mineral makeup so it's a bonus.

2. Conceal, conceal, conceal!
Srsly, the secret to flawless skin is concealer. I chose Benefit Boi-ing, Chantecaille, and Maybelline Super Stay 24hr concealers. I didn't add Cle de Peau concealer because it's tres expensive but it works really well though. Except for the Chantecaille, I tried them all out, even the Cle de Peau so I can vouch for their goodness.

The trick of blending out concealer is not to use a concealer brush. I've used one since forever and guess what? My face always ended up cakey. But once I switched to MAC 188 brush and voila, cakey no more! Only fresh and wide awake face that looks 10 years younger!

3. Foundation
The 4 I selected from MAC, Shu Uemura, Neutrogena, and Benefit are all good. The MAC Mineralize Satin Finish is the one people use for editorial photos as it has a beautiful and ethereal glow. I'd say you should use it for parties and events at night only. Shu Uemura Face Architect is light and awesome! You don't feel like you are wearing makeup at all! The same with Neutrogena Healthy Skin. Last but not least, Benefit Flawless Oxygen Wow is going to give you that glow without any extra highlighters. It also has vitamins C and E, which is an added bonus.

I also use MAC 188 brush to apply foundation because it can fit into small nooks and crannies. Also, I am lazy and I don't want to wash both MAC 187 and 188 :)

The trick to applying foundation is quite simple: you use the minimal amount of foundation and you blend like mad, that's all! Seriously, you should spend more time blending out foundation and you'll notice the difference. I personally think people tend to apply their liquid foundations way too fast.

4. Powder
There's no doubt that Make Up For Ever HD Powder is the one when it comes to translucent setting powder. And the ELF HD Powder is an exact dupe as they both have micronized mica as the main ingredient.

The trick to use this product without making your face look ghostly is to use a tiny bit of powder on the puff and roll it onto your skin. Using a powder brush is too much for this, btw.

So yeah, there you have it: My Makeup Blog's official guide to natural-looking skin. You do this often and people won't even believe that you have makeup on.

Practice and have fun, you guys!

Love,
Dao xoxo


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Who Makes the Cutest Samples? Benefit Does!

Hey y'all!

Sooo... I came home after taking my mom to the hospital for an eye surgery (don't worry, Momma MMB is fine!) Upon entering the living room, I saw this cute bag and my mom asked me what was inside.

Me: Some samples, mom.
Mom: From whom?
Me: Benefit.
Mom: Never heard of it *paused* Really? There's a makeup brand called Benefit?

Benefit Cosmetics finally came to Vietnam a few months ago and I'm seriously in love with their Coralista blush. The product packaging is always cute and quirky. On top of that, the products are decent. I received 2 samples of face products in the bag. Since they are not that small, I assume that they are deluxe samples. The Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow foundation has 5 ml of product and That Gal face primer contains 7.5 ml. I'm so glad I got these samples as I've wanted to try Oxygen Wow for ages!

(L-R): a dot of Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow in Believe in Me Ivory and a dot of That Gal

I was very surprised that Believe in Me Ivory matches my skin perfectly. Before, anything with "ivory" in the name screams "too light!" to me. But recently, I've used a few foundations with this word in it and they match! Even an NC 25 foundation is too dark for me now.

With that said, I used a tiny bit of That Gal underneath Oxygen Wow. Since this is the first time I use it and it's also a humid day, I don't think it works that well as a face primer. However, Oxygen Wow is amazing! It is really liquidy and feels like my Sunplay sunscreen on my skin. At first when I applied, it looked a tad lighter but once everything settled down, it was the perfect match!

But that's not it. While it doesn't look like a lot of coverage on my skin, it actually looks really unbelievably good on film. It's like my natural skin but better. I mean, if you don't believe me, just look at this picture:

See what I mean?

Beside That Gal and Oxygen Wow, I used a bit of concealer to hide away my raccoon eyes, a bit of mascara and eyeliner on my eyes and a dab of gloss, that's it! I didn't even bother using blush, highlighter, or contouring powder. Yet, my face looks amazing and I have the glow from within!

Srsly, thank you so much, Benefit, for making this foundation! It does feel very comfortable and for those who have oilier skin, you should use some powder on top. By the way, I just found out that Believe in Me Ivory is the lightest shade and I'm about NC 20 now, which means those who have lighter skin than me is kinda out of luck. I wish Benefit could have some lighter shades, though :(

Also, here's the deed: if you don't have severe raccoon eyes type of dark circles, you can mix a bit of Oxygen Wow with That Gal and apply it like a concealer onto the under eye areas. It immediately illuminates your eyes without you having to use heavy concealers.

Ingredient list for That Gal

Ingredient list for Hello Flawless Oxygen Wow

Ok, that's all for today, folks!

Oh wait, wait! It isn't. Did you notice anything different? And by "anything different", I mean in picture quality?

After a couple of months of intense savings, I finally had enough money to buy my very first D-SLR. After a lot of debates, reading so many many photography blogs and YouTube videos as well as listening to some of my friends who are pro photographers, I finally settled with Canon 600D (T3i in the U.S/Canada, Kiss X5 in Japan.) Since Canon just released 650D, the price of 600D came down a bit. I was in luck as the camera shop near my place had a sale on this particular model on top of the already marked down price. The camera + 18-55mm kit lens +  16GB SDHC card cost me a grand total of 650 bucks!

After bringing it home, I decided to call my new camera Sookie. Every time anybody attempt to touch my camera, I can yell out, "Sookeh is maihn!"

Yup, once a True Blood fan always a True Blood fan.

Sookeh is maihn!

By the way, dear readers, can you do me a favor? Can you let me know if it takes longer to load up my blog? Since the Canon 600D has higher resolutions than my good old G12, I wonder if loading time is going to be a problem.

Thanks, everyone!
Dao xoxo


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