Easy Brow 101

                                           

The Go Brow-Universal Brow Pencil is a two-sided brow pencil from Anastasia Beverly Hills is GENIUS! A universal shade of brow color on one end and a highlighter on the other side! We are always looking for easy products that work for everyone and this is one of them! Brow pencils are ideal for filling in gaps and a brow highlighter can draw out the eye in a magical way!

To use this, you'll take the brow color side and fill in your brow using short strokes to mimic the growth of hair (you can also use an Anastasia Brow Stencil) to fill in. Next, take the highlighter side of the pencil and swipe a little right under the brow and right on top, blending it in with fingers. This item is available for $21 at Sephora.com.

Perfect Your Canvas with Water Canvas Blush

                                                

Vincent Longo's Water Canvas Blush is the perfect cheek color for summer. It's unique water canvas delivery system is a 75% microwater formula is an all-natural botanical seaweed polymer. Excellent for all skin types it gives the skin an incredibly natural looking flush that stays put! It's not oily and not too dry either.

Ideal for your beach bag as well as for the office, all you need to apply it are your fingertips. Use two fingers to blend onto the apples of the cheeks and you are good to go! Some fave Nicciknows shades are Morning Tender and Forever Flush. Available for $42.50 at Sephora.com

Beauty Deals and Bargains for the Week

                                                      

Macys and Estee Lauder do not disappoint this 4th of July with their gift, aptly named America. This gift is yours while supplies last both online and in-store with any purchase of $29.50. With any $60 Estee Lauder purchase, you'll also recieve free shipping.

The gift includes:

Pure Color Long Lasting Lipstick (CHOICE) of Candy, Hot Kiss, Bois de Rose, or Tiger Eye

Bronze Goddess Soft Matte Bronzer with applicator

New Double Wear Zero Smudge Lengthening Mascara

Advanced Night Repair Protective Recovery Complex

Tote (CHOICE) in Red or Blue

In order to qualify, Nicciknows recommends picking up Daywear Plus Multi-Protection Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15 ($35) for summer and the Double Wear Zero Smudge liquid liner ($19.50) and of course a tube of the fabulous High Gloss ($16). All items available at Macys.com.

                                                

Nordstrom and the Somme Institute are offering you the chance to try their skin care system. Receive a "Try Me Kit" with deluxe samples of Nourishing Cleanser (1 oz.), Transport exfoliator (14 pads), Serum (0.24 oz.), A-Bomb cell renewal accelerator (0.25 oz.), and Double Defense SPF 30 (0.25 oz.) with your two-item Somme Institute purchase. Online only.

This is an amazing skin care line. Some Nicciknows to try favorites include Somme Institute Eye ($72)which brightens the eye contour, reduce fine lines and wrinkles, dark circles, puffiness and discoloration. You'll definitely want to buy the full-size Transport Pads ($58) which exfoilate the skin without being abrasive. All items available at Nordstrom.com.

                                                      

Last but certainly not least Clinique and Bloomingdales have a special offer from 3-Step. Purchase one full size of any Clinique 3-Step product and get deluxe samples of the other two items free. Available while supplies last.

Nicciknows recommends picking up the Liquid Facial Soap-Extra Mild ($14.50) to qualify for this gift. All items are available at Bloomingdales.

Dry It Out

                                                                

The best "zit zapper" around, the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion is made specifically for whiteheads. Its a blend of calamine and salicylic acid to both dry out the pimple and soothe skin, preventing reinfection. The best part is that it's SO fast acting. Dab a bit on a budding pimple at night before bed and the next morning you'll see a huge improvement. Available for just $17 at Mario Badescu. This product belongs in every woman's arsenal!

Shadow Shields

                              

We found this fabulous new invention at the Makeup Artist Tradeshow in Pasadena this weekend. Shadow Shields were invented by Michelle Villanueva to prevent eye shadow dropping onto the cheek when blending. They are half-moon shaped and have a light adhesive that gently sticks onto the area under the eye, allowing you to blend to your hearts content! They are disposable, easy to use AND the adhesive doesn't remove your makeup! A pack of 50 shadow shields for just $16.95. Available for purchase at Shadow Shields website. These are a must have!

                                                

Many people don't use a loose powder or see a need for it. The truth is, loose setting powder is a must have for a flawless canvas. Brushing or buffing it onto skin after applying foundation and concealer, helps to set the foundation, taking off all excess moisture and prolonging the wear of your foundation!

To avoid a powdery looking finish, use this Setting Fx Transluscent Setting Powder from Cover Fx ($32 at Sephora). Take a powder puff or a large powder brush and brush onto the skin gently, focusing on the t-zone area, which tends to produce the most oil throughout the day. 

Weekly Beauty Deals and Bargains

                                                

Borghese and Bloomingdales are offering this adorable gift set while supplies last with your $35 Borghese purchase. If you purchase $75 in Borghese products, they will throw in a Beauty Basics Tote.

Gift Set Includes:
Mini Perfetta Lip Pencil in Bacca
Mini B Gloss in Roseto
Mini Powder Bronzer Spectra
Mini Eye Accento  Pencil in Black Vellura
Tono body Crème (1 oz)

To qualify for this gift, Nicciknows recommends the Fango Brilliante Mud ($59.50) which is the most phenomenal mask! Also the Superiore Mascara ($18.50) is a fabulous, luxurious mascara must have! All items available at Bloomingdales.

                                      

Clinique and Dillards are offering a unique gift this week as well! With any purchase from Clinique's Almost Powder collection, recieve an Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, a famous shade that is perfect on any skin tone! Available while supplies last, only at Dillards.

                                               

Nordstrom and Dior Cosmetics are offering a free mini Rouge Dior Lipstick in Box Office Beige with any Dior purchase. Available online and in store while supplies last. This color is the perfect nude shade to pair with that smoky eye.

Nicciknows recommends the Dior Show Mascara in Blackout ($24) is a makeup must have for gorgeous dramatic lashes and the Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect in the new Summer shade Beige Lurex ($24.50) is the perfect shade to go over any lipstick including the gift!

The Perfect Pencil

                                    

It's difficult to find a lip pencil that has a nice color payoff, is smooth and silky AND stays put. It seems like normally one thing is trade off for another. This lip pencil, however, has great color payoff, is smooth and silky and stays put! Its infused with vitamins to protect the lip barrier and comes in some must have shades. The colors that every woman needs are Trust, Dusky Mauve and Wineberry (also, the shade Honest is the perfect nude for fair skin). These pencils come with sharpeners and are available at Sephora.com for $15.

It's a "Lipstick Jungle" Out There

                                                   

Brooke Shields, the star of last seasons' "Lipstick Jungle" on NBC was looking radiant on the red carpet at the 62nd Annual Tony Awards. We love that the makeup artist paired a bronzy, summery look with a bit of a smoky, sexy eye....killer combination! Here's how to get the look:

1)  Mix a natural finish foundation, like Vincent Longo's Liquid Canvas Dew Finish Foundation SPF 15 ($48.50 at Beauty.com) with a bronzing luminizer like Clinique's Up-Lighting Liquid Illuminator in Bronze ($22.50 at Clinique.com). Blend together on the top of your hand and brush onto the skin with a foundation brush.

2) Follow with a bit of loose powder like Prescriptives All Skins loose powder ($26 at Prescriptives) and then take a bronzer like Bobbi Brown Bronzer  ($33 at Nordstrom) and apply it all over the face where the sun would naturally hit you.

3) Add a coppery bronze cheek color like Nars Powder Blush in Torrid ($25 at Beauty.com) to the apples of the cheeks.

4) For eyes take a Nars Glitter Pencil in Le Sept ($24 at Beauty.com) and rim around the top and bottom of the eye. Highlight under the brow using Smashbox Eyeshadow in Oyster ($16 at Beauty.com). Coat the last in lots of mascara to complete this sultry eye. Try Borghese Superiore State of the Art Mascara in Black ($18.50 at Beauty.com).

5) Lips are nude and bronzy. Start with MAC Cremestick Lip Liner in Creme Sherry ($14 at Macys) and Nars Sheer Lipstick in Barbarella ($24 at Sephora) and Estee Lauder High Gloss in Bronze ($16 at Macys).

Get the Red Out!

                                 

Face Stockholm, a Swedish cosmetic line that is a makeup artist favorite, brings us the most fabulous product for concealing redness! Those of you with Rosacea or surface redness will LOVE the Corrective Concealer in Neutralizer Red ($26 at Face Stockholm).

Apply it over your moisturizer and primer. Take a concealer brush or a clean finger and pat the concealer on the the red areas, blending around the edges for a traceless finish. Once all the redness is covered, then proceed with foundation or powder as preferred. The color and texture of this product are perfect for covering redness! Enjoy.