Look: No Grey Area

The main attraction to this look? Smoke & shimmer! Shimmer is big for the party season, as long as you don't go shimmer-happy and become a frosted ice queen. You can always adjust the colours I used to fit your preference, comfort and skin tone. Also, to add a big (yet good) BANG! pair these eyes with a glossy, bold blue-based red lip.

GET THE LOOK (applied in this order): Foundation: Make-Up Forever Mat Velvet in Neutral Beige
Concealer: FACE Atelier in Medium
Powder: Make-Up Forever HD
Lid: Urban Decay Stardust Eyeshadow in Moon Spoon
Crease: Make-Up Forever Eyeshadow in Slate Grey
Outer 1/3: MAC Eyeshadow in Carbon (blended inwards towards lid colour)
Line (both top, bottom, tarsal plate): TOP: Stila Kajal in Onyx;with flat ended brush, blend liner for a diffused finish
Highlight: Laura Mercier Eye Shadow in Pearl
Mascara: Chanel Inimitable Mascara in Black; FALSE: MAC # 3
Lipstick: MAC Lip Pencil in Oak + MAC LipGlass in Clear
Blush: Sephora Blush Me! Mono in Brun Timide 7
Highlight: FACE Atelier Ultra Sheer in Opal

Glitz & Glamour

Also known as the "split eye", this look is eyecatching and can add a bit of "drama" to an overall look. Beyonce is often linked to this look, and when done correctly, it can create a longer, more almond eye. Also, adding a hint of colour also modernizes up the look!

 GET THE LOOK (applied in this order): Lid: MAC Eye Shadow in Gold Mine
Crease: MAC Eyeshadow in Cork
Highlight (Brow Bone & Inner Duct): Chanel Soft Touch Eye Shadow in Ivory
Eyeliner (TOP): Stila Smudgepot in Black (look down, much easier to apply!)
Eyeliner (Bottom): With a wet angle brush, apply into Make-Up Forever Eye Shadow in Lilac Matte
Highlight between Liners: Annabelle Eyeliner in White
Mascara: Chanel Inimitable Mascara in Noir
Foundation: Make-Up Forever Mat Velvet in Neutral Beige
Concealer: Maybelline Dream Mousse Concealer in Beige
Powder: Make-Up Forever Duo Mat Powder in Medium Beige
Blush: Chanel Powder Blush in Orchid Rose
Lips: MAC Dazzleglass in Baby Sparks

Mixing & Matching

Good morning Musers. More often then I like to admit, as I drive, walk, or trek via public transportation (it's mostly driving, who am I kidding?) through the streets of Toronto, I see women "teaming up" eye shadows, blushes, lipsticks and glosses way too boringly, improperly or just off, in my opinion that is. Experiment people! Firstly, there are really NO rules for make-up, so why are we folloing something fabricated? Erase them from your mind people and please stop believing they are the norm because they aren't!!! (I'm not angry, don't worry, just passionate about make-up). And even IF these rules did exist, aren't rules always meant to be broken anyway? Instead of make-up rules, we have countless options and choices. I mean, I do see tones of women wearing the same colour family all over: lovely lavender eyes, deeper plum blush and lips--and, I suppose, yes, it could work, especially if we lived in a monochromatic world, but we don't live solely in such a world where woman have to follow this "theme"--I strongly believe they are simply applying colours in all the same family because they think they have to, and once again, they are following the non-existent "rule". So, once and for all, you heard it from Beauty Muse: step out of the box and open your eyes to a rule-free world with make-up. None, niente, nada, n'ien. [Okay, enough of my multi-lingual skills, people may start to get jealous.] For your eyes, cheeks, and lips, they do not always have to be in the same colour family. Some who are unaware of what this means, colour families are warm tones and cool tones: warm tones are more reds, oranges, and yellows, and cool tones are more greens, blues and purples. Here we can use colour theory and the famous one-liner "opposites attract": because they do! Mixing colour families together actually complements the face and looks amazing--I am a huge fan (think deep blue eyes, with a neutral, pale orange lip--pure exquisiteness). If you have a cool skin tone (meaning your undertone leans more on the pink side) and you decide to do your eye make-up in corals and golds (warm tones), the rest of your face doesn't necessarily have to be warm, too. In this situation, pairing your warm eyes with a cool blush and lip colour, like plum, is a fantastic combination (and also more flattering). How do you know what goes with what? Lucky for us, we have permanent built-in palette: the back of our hand! Mix colours together and play around to see what looks good with what. If you hate the combo, change it up! Make-up, straightforwardly, is artistry: mixing colours and styles until you find what works for you!

Get Your (Re)Move On

Since we all love, actually adore, to put make-up on, whether it's for a quick lunch date or a glam gala, the application of day or night make-up is pure joy and delight, that is, until we get home. Upon arrival, we kick off our heels, neatly hang (or toss) our outfit and yearn for our bodies tucked tightly under our covers. WAIT! Before you even unfold your sheets, you must, must remember a crucial, 5 minute routine: make-up removal. Seeing as you are already in the bathroom brushing and/or flossing your pearly whites, why not give the same attention and care to your face? Just think of how the make-up will seep into your pores for at least 7 hours, clogging them and potentially leading to blackheads, breakouts, rashes (AAH! Enough already). We knew it. A product that makes this practice so much easier is L'Ancome's Bi-Facial Double Action Eye Make-Up Remover ($26, www.lancome-usa.com). It is a double-phase, fresh-as-water, liquid eye makeup remover. When shaken, it activates to gently whisk away even waterproof eye makeup, while conditioning and refreshing the skin. It does not burn or irritate the eyes or skin, and is ideal for sensitive skin and contact lens wearers. Your skin is left without make-up remains and eyes feeling cool and relaxed, with no oily residue.

BOWWOW! by Shu Uemura

What do you get when you mix an iconic beauty brand like Shu Uemura + Japanese pop artist Aya Takano? BOWWOW! Magic Queen Palette ($85, Holt Renfrew). (Check out their full colection online at shueumura.com) What is it anyway? A pressed eye shadow/cream eye shadow-liner/glow on blush, in which you can only bet the final result will fly off shelves before the blink of an eye (obviously embellished with a fabulous faux pair from Shu's collection). It is a warm-toned color palette for a peaceful holiday season--oh bah-humbug: we just love Christmas! "Feel relaxed, curled up in the magic queen's cozy home that is redolent with the fresh pine scent of her enormous Christmas tree filled with luxurious decor of silver, gold and bronze." This limited edition eye & cheek palette is complete with a mix of three pressed eyeshadows (silver, gold and bronze), one cream aqua-green cream colour eyeshadow/eye liner, a gold-iridescent cream highlighter and a peach-coloured blush, in addition to two applicator brushes. All of this gloriousness is jam packed into a bright pink compact, decorated with cherries, stars, hearts and a blue-haired, doe-eyed superwoman. We know what some of you may be thinking, with this kind of a treat, it must be Christmas already... (Check out their full colection online at shueumura.com)

All Dressed Up and Ready for a ...Blow?? (Blow-Dry People!)

From experience, I know the difficulty and straightforwardly, total aggravation and great displeasure of doing my own hair (make-up however, I love so I never have complaints in this department). Moving along here, I recently discovered the sudden increase of blow-dry bars across the GTA and find the idea utterly brilliant! You walk-in, get your hair wash & blown dry by experts, and you're off! One thing you need to look out for at these places are more-than-unfair prices (some blows are beyond my pocketbook). This is when I discovered Do My Hair - Blow Dry & Make-Up Bar (domyhair.ca). In about 35 mins, you get your tresses blown dry (curled, pinned, straight-you name it, they do it), which is ideal for post-gym, pre-dinner date, night out, meeting,or simply homeward bound to the couch (and some pizza with a glass of wine-mmm...I'm salivating). Okay back on track! What do they do? Do My Hair brings the New York style luxury to Toronto with their blow dry and makeup bar - their main focus is convenience. What makes them so unique and sets them apart from other blow-dry bars is they offer make-up! (Such a brilliant idea). Beyond the gorgeous ambiance, you get a relaxing, welcoming and comfortable environment with stylists and make-up artists who know exactly what they are doing: these people are the real deal of the industry. (And of course, myself being a very harsh critic in the make-up department, I can confidently say they are amazing).

Their core philosophy is simple:
-Gorgeous Blow Out. DONE.
-Fabulous Fresh Face. DONE.

They are located mid-town so it's the perfect spot: they in the in the middle of everything! Whether you're venturing downtown for the night or staying up-town... Check them out-you'll be so thankful and grateful you did (don't worry- I won't need any thanking later).

Marley Approved: Vegan Makeup?

For all you vegans out there, you can now happily know there is make-up especially for you! "Vegan cosmetics are formulated without any ingredients derived from animal sources, including materials that come indirectly from an animal, like honey," explains Wende Zomnir, co-creator of Urban Decay Cosmetics (www.urbandecay.com). They are cruelty-free cosmetics, which are free of animal ingredients and testing. From eye shadows to pencils, from glitter to foundation, and from lashes to lip stuff: they've got everything covered! (For full details and lists of their animal-free products, be on the lookout for Marley's purple paw on their website, which certifies that the product is vegan).

Mist on Freshness

Does your skin ever get the icky, dehydrated feeling from that dry or overheated office air? Or how about those days when you are running errands and are, for the most part, just hot? Evian has a Mineral Water Spray ($10/5oz, www.sephora.com) that tones, refreshes and moisturizes your skin with one quick spritz! It removes sweat, harmful salt and chlorine, and immediately eases and rehydrates sun-burned or wind-chapped skin. This cool neutral pH moisturizing mist rehydrates your skin, refreshes your make-up for those long days (that seem never-ending) and keeps you looking oh-so fresh. It brings you a natural, handy way to revive and revitalize your complexion.

Directions: Use the several times a day (for the face, start at the neck and move slowly upwards). Leave a few minutes and softly pat.

Traveling? On the go? Hitting the gym? Evian has you covered with their spray to-go: a duo of travel-size hydrating facial sprays. It's the cheapest and fastest skin refreshener you'll ever get! Start spraying...