The Tigermans are fierce!

Fair Oaks, CA. What a day! On Saturday, I was the guest at two weddings, the first for my college roommate Morgan and his beautiful bride Candice and the second at Blackhawk Country Club in Danville for high school friends of my beau's, Ramon and Jaryce. Needless to say I am still recovering from all the fun and love vibes and am gearing myself up for another this coming Saturday. Phew! First, a post about the newly married Tigermans...The two began dating while Morgan and I were roommates so I am happy to say I was there from the start! I arrived early for makeup application and was excited to witness the behind the scenes setup as everything came together under the summer sun.

A beautiful backyard wedding on a beautiful estate. With canopy trees, fountains and an outdoor bar, the Ruderman home was a perfect setting to unite two "bibliophiles" (as their officient called them). These literature obsessed high school teachers gave books as their favors and used the same titles for their table names in lieu of numbers, including The Little Prince. The place cards were even bookmarks!Though it was the hottest day of the year, nothing could stop this cool couple from glowing at each other as Candice walked down the aisle. Fair skinned and freckled, Candice wanted a very natural look, but a fun color on the eyes. Her eyes are a crazy bright green/hazel color and she has a deep red hair color. Since her wedding colors were peacock inspired, I used a brightening purple on the lids, a grey heather purple in the crease and a matte white shadow for pop on the brow bone. With a clean black eyeliner, a good amount of undereye concealer, a framing brow and a natural gloss, Candice was ready to walk down the aisle! Above is a family wedding tradition from Morgan's family- a group hug! Awww.

A few standout products included DiorShow mascara in waterproof (of course) and Navajo cream shadow as an eyeshadow base to insure that all the colors stayed in place. Because the day was so hot, the mascara smudged a bit. We touched up under and around the eyes after photos with BareMinerals Mineral Veil powder. I was sad to leave the wedding and miss out on Morgan's epic playlist (he used to fill our apartment with the sound of the very best mixes), but happy to have witnessed some of the sweetest (and most grammatically correct) wedding vows I've ever heard. Thank you Tigermans for including me in your special day! I hope you don't find too many errors in this post and have a wonderful honeymoon in Greece and Turkey. Eat lots of falafels for me! Next it was off to Danville for a fancy reception even Kimora would have envied. A glass of champagne and raspberries and I was able to unwind after my long drive. I'm happy to see that my own makeup held up well in spite of the heat (stay tuned for a post on pretty wedding guest makeup). It was wonderful to hang out with friends and a few faces I haven't seen in almost ten years! Ramon and Jaryce's cake was delicious and it was the perfect ending to a love filled day. The best to both couples and cheers to your new lives together!

Oakland Mormon Temple.

No matter your faith, there's no denying that the Oakland Mormon Temple is a beautiful site. If you're from the Bay Area, you may have seen it glowing on the hillsides late at night. Here is a shot of Luz and her groom in front of the temple. "Luz" means "light" in Spanish and I'm happy to see that the makeup complimented her inner glow. Glowing is easy when you're in love!

Because Luz's skin is so naturally flawless, I used a tinted moisturizer giving just enough coverage and to even out the skin. A soft mauve eyeshadow all over the lid, a deeper heather purple in the crease, subtle eyeliner and defined brows were all she needed to make her look picture perfect. Congrats you two!

Happy Birthday...

to me! Today is the big Two Six (which means that much closer to the big Three Oh... eek!) The one gift I can give to myself (and all of you) is to remember to use eye cream every day and night. All around the eyelids at night and on the under eye only during the day.

My favorites I've tried include: -Bobbi Brown Extra Eye Repair
-La Prairie Anti Aging Eye Cream SPF 15 - A Cellular Intervention Complex (for daytime only)
-Shu Uemura Beta-G Reinforcing Eye Cream
-Lancôme 'Absolue Eye Precious Cells' Advanced Regenerating & Reconstructing Eye Cream-La Mer the Eye Concentrate
-and my tried and true Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream (it has built in primers to keep that under-eye concealer on, which I find myself using more and more these days)I am a slave to my eye cream. Because the one thing I never want to give myself is premature crow's feet. Off to enjoy this sunny day (slathered in sunscreen, of course)!

Update: I had a wonderful day full of surprises that included a mirror maze, pinball, carousel ride and dinner at my favorite restaurant Roy's (Dear misoyaki butterfish, I love you so much. Love, Michaela). And of course I couldn't resist wearing extra lashes on my special day, because well, why not? Thanks to my family and friend Lindsay who made my birthday so memorable, and especially to my El-Oh-Vee-Ee who put the whole day together!

Next to Godliness.

Baby shampoo. Perhaps a more versatile product than you would imagine. In fact there are many baby products that work for grown-up ladies as well. Here are a few of my favorite baby products (most by Johnson and Johnson) you can use to maintain your tools and keep your skin as soft as a baby's bottom, all for a great low price. Baby wipes are always great to have on hand for wiping off makeup when you're just too tired to wash your whole face. They're also great for cleaning brushes daily. Just swipe the brush over a sheet a few times to loosen up the residue and ensure that there is no leftover color for the next day. Unscented ones are safest to use on sensitive skin. Not only is it great for refreshing your hair, baby shampoo is a gentle way to clean your brushes and is far less expensive than brush cleaner. Simply squeeze a small amount onto your dry hand, swirl the brush in the shampoo until colors begins to fall out of the brush and rinse thoroughly with warm water. Reshape the bristles and squeeze out excess water. Lay brushes flat to dry overnight.Baby oil is nice to use on dry patches of skin, like elbows and knees. You can also use it on a cotton ball to gently remove eye makeup in a pinch.Lately my favorite lotion has been Johnson's Bedtime in this pretty lavender bottle. It's a great scent that always allows me to drift off into dreamland. Use it during the day to smell sweet as a baby!

This post is inspired by a conversation I had with a co-worker about the importance of keeping your brushes clean. Too often I've been over to friends' homes and am appalled by the dirty makeup sponges, caked brushes and old mascara. Here are some helpful tips for keeping things clean and fresh:
- Throw out sponges once a week. At about 10 cents a piece you can afford to replace them often. Otherwise you are just pressing bacteria and rancid oils back onto your face. Eew!
- Tissue off residue on brushes and eyelash curlers after use if you don't have time to wash them. These tools can harbor a lot of bacteria if not cleaned regularly.
- Wash brushes once a week too. A gentle lather of baby shampoo does just the trick without loosening the glue that keeps the bristles together. Just don't soak the brush or you could end up compromising the quality and tapered ends.
- Ever catch a whiff of that fishy smell when you open your mascara? It's a telltale sign that it should be thrown out! Purchase a new mascara every 3 months, foundation and other liquid products every 6. You'd be surprised at how much better fresh make up can wear and how much better it is for your skin and eyes.
- Avoid sharing products such as lip gloss, mascara or other eye products. Though risk of infection is minimal, you never can be too careful!
- Quick industry tip: When trying on lipstick at the makeup counter, be sure to ask consultants to disinfect the lipstick bullet. All it takes is a quick spray of alcohol and a few swipes on clean tissue. Alcohol doesn't affect the color or quality of the product and you never know who tried the lipstick on before you.

I hope this is helpful! Please remember to clean and replace often. Your face will thank you for it!