Though you may think of old Barbie dolls from the 1980s when you think of blue eye shadow, you don’t have to look like you just stepped out of a scene from Valley Girl.

Blue eye shadow can be bold. It can be subtle. It can be dramatic. It can be work-appropriate.

Want proof? Want tutorials?

Check out these makeup tutorials and FOTDs to find a blue eye shadow look that suits you. Some feature a large swath of blue while others have just a hint among many other colors.

Six Ways to Wear Blue Eye Shadow

Icy Blue Eye

FOTD: Blue Drama

Bejeweled

FOTD: Birthday Blues

Rainbow Eyes

FOTD: Tropical Fusion Revisited

Want more eye shadow color inspiration? Check these out:

• 6 Ways to Wear Green Eye Shadow
• 6 Ways to Wear Pink Eye Shadow

Now, go put on some blue eye shadow! Stat!

Think you can’t pull off green eye shadow?

Well, you should be happy about being wrong—in this instance anyway. There are so many ways to wear green eye shadow, you’re bound to find one that looks good on you.

It’s time to use the greens in your makeup stash.

Whether a bold colorful green look, a darkened smoky moss, or a splash of green amidst other colors, follow these ways to wear green eye shadow.

Click on the images and links to get instructions for each of these looks.

Six Ways to Wear Green Eye Shadow

FOTD: St. Patrick’s Day Smoky Green

Mossy Eyes

FOTD: May Flowers

FOTD: Green as Money

Glacial Dust

Rainbow Eyes

Now you have no excuse! Break out the green shadow and try something new today.

See, most women think they can’t pull off red lips. They see other women wearing it and say, “Oh, I can’t do that.”

Guess what: you’re wrong.

Perhaps you really can wear red lipstick, but you’ve just been trying the wrong shade all this time.

I’m here to help you. Together, we’ll find the right shade of red lipstick based on your skin tone temperature.

If you already know your skin tone (cool or warm), then you can skip ahead. If not, it’s time to find your temperature:

How to Find Your Skin Tone Temperature

1. Flip your arm over so you have a good view of the underside of the forearm. Make sure you’re in good lighting. Daylight is best.
2. Have a look at the color of your skin. If you see undertones of yellow or orange, you’re warm-toned. If you have undertones of pink or blue, you’re cool-toned. (This applies to women of all ethnicities.)
3. Still not sure? Look at the veins running along your arm. Warm-toned gals will have a slight green tint to their veins. Cool-toned gals will have very blue, almost purple, veins.

Now that you know whether you’re warm or cool, it’s pretty easy to find the right shade of red lipstick.

For Warm-Toned Skin

Look for lipsticks with orange, yellow or golden hues. These shades will look best with your skin.

For Cool-Toned Skin

Pick up lipsticks with a blue base. The cooler shade will accent the coolness in your skin.

When in Doubt…

If you’re not sure if the red lipstick will look right on you, there are two things you can do:

1. Pick a shade of pure red that falls between the cool and warm categories. When you look at the color, you shouldn’t see a hue of orange or blue. Just pure, vibrant red. This shade should look good on most women, in theory. (This shade is also harder to find, but most good cosmetics companies have a true red somewhere in their lipstick line.)
2. Test it out. This works best if you’re at a department store’s cosmetics counter or at Sephora where you can test the lipsticks on site. Even if you’re at a drug store, you can purchase it to try at home and return it if it doesn’t work.When you test it on your lips, look at your skin and your teeth. Your skin should be vibrant and bright. Your teeth should look white (or as close to white as your teeth can get.) The wrong red lipstick will make you look sallow and your teeth yellow. No one wants that!

Done! If you follow these rules, you should be able to find a shade of red lipstick that looks amazing on you. You’re no longer one of those women who can’t pull it off. You’re one of those women to be envied. Congrats!

For a long time I didn’t think I could pull off blue eye shadow, but I figured it out eventually. The same could be done for pink shadow.

So, before you scoff at the thought, check out some of these pink eye shadow tutorials and faces of the day. Some are all pink, while others pair it with different colors. You just might get inspired!

Six Ways to Wear Pink Eye Shadow

Daily Lipstick Look

Geranium

Blueberry

Watermelon

FOTD: Nerdy McNerd

FOTD: Spring is Coming

Going to try some pink eye shadow now?

1. Go with the Tropical Storm makeup tutorial.
2. Be affordable, since most things I’ve done are hella expensive.
3. Be casual in an elegant way.
4. Feature green for St. Patrick’s Day.

For a little reminder, here’s a shot from the Tropical Storm look:

As you can see, it utilizes green and blue for a good spring and summer eye shadow color scheme.

And finally… the finished outfit:

Outfit to Match Tropical Storm by goldferris featuring Monsoon shoes

Items in this set:
Old Navy Womens Linen-Blend Boyfriend Shirts, $25
Raw Cuff Capri Short – Teen Clothing by Wet Seal, $20
Monsoon Accessorize – Ditsy Floral Ruched Ballerina Pumps, 25 GBP
Green twist lock shoulder bag, 28 GBP
Felt Floral Cloche Hat, $15

I imagine wearing this outfit to an outdoor St. Patrick’s Day celebration. You’ve got enough green to fit in, but not enough to make it look tacky. Also, the added benefit of the vintage hat and long pearl necklace adds some elegance.

Yeah, I’d wear it. How about you?

Today, I’m making an outfit to match the subtle, rusty smoke look from the Soft Rust makeup tutorial. Here’s a reminder of how it looked:

It’s shimmery and uses red and rusty pink and yellow colors. At first glance, you may expect that I was going to choose some jewel-ridden look full of girly frills. While that may be my usual M.O., that’s not what it is today.

Instead, we’re going casual:

Soft Rust by goldferris featuring Rocket Dog shoes

Items in this set:
glee t shirt
Super Skinny Zip Raw, 220 AUD
Rocket Dog Kitten Shoe, $20
Jalda Eel Bean Clutch – Free Overnight Shipping & Return Shipping:…
Green and Gold Bow Bracelet, J.W. Anderson, 110 GBP

Now back to the outfit.

I picture wearing this as I’m off to a friend’s house or a picnic at the park or a summer concert. It’s not summer yet (for us in the northern hemisphere) but I can dream, right?

Well, you don’t need to worry about. I’ve created an outfit that I think works very well with this look. Use it as inspiration for your own outfit (especially since most of it is hella expensive).

As a reminder, here’s what Simple and Clean looks like:

Although it’s pretty simple, it also has a vintage feel to it. So I wanted to create a sample outfit that matched the vibe of Simple and Clean.

Vintage. Simple. This is what I came up with:

Simple and Clean by goldferris featuring Alexander McQueen accessories

Items in this set:
Baba-blue Dress-Mod Retro Indie Clothing & Vintage Clothes, $100
Chloe Capretto leather ballerina flats, $495
R22074A/S10GD – Clutch – Satin Rose Box – Gold | Sondra Roberts, $99
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN AMQ4126/S GREY PLASTIC 43V, 239 GBP
LongLocks HairSticks & Hair Accessories: The Original LongLocks Hair…

Sehr adorable, yes?

It’s like the outfit walked out of a picture of a lady in the 1950s or 1960s. Heck, it could have been worn by Audrey Hepburn. Just look at those oversized glasses!

I want to wear it right now. How about you? Does this inspire you?

Late winter and spring are good times to start self tanning if you’re interested in browner skin. While self tanning is much safer than hitting the tanning booth, there are some drawbacks to this method.

Mainly, sunless tanner can cause streaks if you’re not careful. It can also cause darker patches and orange-tinted skin. Though there are preventative methods to avoid this from happening, there are also techniques to fix a tan that totally went out of whack.

Exfoliation

Noticed some dark spots on your knees or streaks on your hands? Exfoliation can help!

There are typically 3 ways to exfoliate away the messed up parts of your sunless tan:

1. Use a washcloth, loofah or shower pouf to rub away at your skin.
2. Use a exfoliating lotion with little granules that scrub away your skin.
3. Use a combination of both.

Try body scrubs like BODY Sugar Body Scrub by Sephora.

When exfoliating, just make sure that you don’t over do it. If your skin feels raw and painful, you’ve gone too far. Be careful or you could damage your skin permanently.

Lemon Juice

Lemon juice has been used as a lightener for ages. Women have put it in their hair at the beach to create lightened streaks. You can also use it on your skin to lighten up a botched sunless tan.

1. Squeeze a lemon into a small cup or pour some previously purchased lemon juice.
2. Dip a cotton square or ball into the juice and soak it up.
3. Rub the lemon-soaked cotton on the offending area.
4. Wash off your skin and moisturize.

This method works best for small tanning mistakes, such as dark spot around your fingers or wrist. If you want to get rid of your entire tan, you’d have to go through a lot of lemons. Use a different method instead.

Tan Removers

Beauty companies have realized how often we mess up our sunless tans. Many companies have come out with tan removers, including ModelCo Tan Remover Exfoliating Scrub and Tanwise Exfoliating Self Tan Remover.

Since these products can be a bit pricey, use them as a last resort. Try cheaper methods like lemon juice or traditional exfoliation first to see if that does the trick.

Wait it Out

Still have some dark spots even after trying everything above? That’s too bad.

But guess what? A self tan will eventually fade. It may take a week or two, but before long, you’re botched tan will go unnoticed. Though it may be embarrassing at the moment, just remember that it will be gone before you know it.

Photo credit: Evil Erin

Today, I’ll be showing an outfit suggestion to match a makeup tutorial I did forever ago. It’s called Lemon Lime, and is a perfect look for spring. After all, it’s green!

Here’s a little reminder of how Lemon Lime looks:

Bright!

I was inspired to create an outfit just as equally bright. Bright, pretty colors!

Lemon Lime Outfit to Match by goldferris featuring Juicy Couture accessories

Honestly, I would wear this in a second. The dress is super adorable. Granted, this is all very costly, but a girl can dream, right?

I imagine wearing all those Juicy Couture bracelets at once, on the same arm. And the bows can be worn one next to the other in your hair.

‘Dorable!

And the scarf is both for fashion and to keep you a bit warmer, since spring can be breezy.

That’s not the case for those with blond or lightly colored lashes. This is most common in people with red or very light blond hair. When you take little care in applying your mascara, it will look messy and may even look as though your lashes are floating a few millimeters away from your eyelid.

Next time you’re set on applying mascara on your blond eyelashes, follow these steps to ensure your makeup look is fantastic.

Choosing the Right Mascara

For best results, pick a mascara with short bristles. Most mascaras these days have wide wands with long bristles. While this may work for dark-lashed lasses, those with blond lashes should avoid them. For instance, Maybelline Lash Stiletto Mascara has short bristles perfect for this occasion.

If you have a choice between thick or thin mascara, always reach for the thin, light brand. Globs of mascara are way more noticeable on light lashes than dark.

Try Brown Mascara Rather Than Black

Those with lighter lashes should reach for brown mascara instead of black for two reasons:

1. Black mascara makes it easier to notice mistakes. If you’re new to applying mascara or you can’t get the hang of applying from root to tip, pick brown mascara instead.
2. Brown mascara matches hair and skin tone better. If you have light eyelashes, you likely have a fair complexion. Brown mascara will match your hair, eyebrows, and skin type well. Black can often look too harsh on those with red or light blond hair.

Of course, there are exceptions to every rule. If you’re adept at apply mascara and want a bold look, black shades may be fine. For day looks at the office though, brown is the mascara color of choice.

And if you truly want a natural, classic look, go for clear mascara instead. It will smooth out each strand while emphasizing your natural lash color.

Apply Mascara from Root to Tip

Since blond lashes are almost clear, it’s important to apply your mascara right to the very base of each lash.

When applying the mascara, start at the root and shake the wand gently left and right to ensure each lash gets coated in color.  Bring the wand forward along the length of the eyelashes. Reapply as necessary to cover the entirety of each lash.

Photo credit: quinn.anya

A few weeks ago, I was leaning down to get something and my mom, who was standing in front of my and had a clear view of the top of my head, yelled…

“You have a gray hair!”

I practically had a mini heart attack. Yeah, there are plenty things worse than gray hair (swine flu?), but I’m just really not looking forward to aging.

Luckily, she couldt find it after her exclamation, so I’m choosing to believe that it was just an illusion.

Did you know that gray hair comes during different times in life based on your ethnicity?

• Caucasian: Mid 30s
• Asian: Late 30s
• Black: Late 40s

Lovely. My Caucasian heritage means early grays.

Regardless of your heritage, grays can happen at any time. My brother started getting gray hairs when he was in high school!

What to do when you get gray hair

Noticed some grays? Here’s your options:

• Pluck it. The old wives’ tale that the hair will grow back two in it’s place is FALSE. Still, this is only viable if you have a few grey hairs. You really don’t want to pluck out your whole head of hair, do you?
• Ignore it. Gray hair is natural. Why ignore something that’s a part of life? Go ahead and let that beautiful gray hair blow in the wind!
• Dye it. Okay, you don’t want gray hair. No big deal. You can always dye it.

Dying your gray hair

If you’ve decided to dye your gray hair, there’s some things you need to keep in mind. For instance, gray hair is actually a lack of color, and not a color change. It’s because the melanin in the hair follicles has stopped.

Sometimes when you dye your hair, your regular non-gray hairs will dye the right color, and the grays will just turn a lightened shade. It sort of looks like highlights. Thing is, this can be obvious and not the desired look.

Try for hair dyes that explicitly say they work on gray hair. Because not all dyes do. If you do that, you should end up with a full head of hair that’s all the same wonderful color.

Hair dye suggestion

I’ve heard that Clairol Natural Instincts Hair Color does pretty darn well for grays.

See in the picture, at the bottom right? It says ‘covers gray naturally.’ Make sure to look for that when you go dye shopping.

And if you need help with the home hair dying experience, I’ve got some good tips for you: Home Hair Dying 101.

Then there’s colored mascara. I’m sure you’ve seen them amidst the traditional mascaras you eventually choose. They’re green, blue, or even red and pink.

But how do you use these colored mascaras? Is it only for gaudy club looks?

For the purposes of this how-to, I’m using Barry M Bright Turquoise Lengthening Mascara (pictured on the right). You can find it online for £4.95.

The Bold Look

Have some colored mascara? Then go all out! Use it on the top and bottom lid.

Just keep in mind that this look doesn’t work well for most situations. Instead of someone looking at you and thinking, “oh, she’s beautiful,” they’ll probably think, “‘oh, her eyelashes are blue.”

Also keep in mind that colored mascaras don’t usually add much volume. You won’t get the same voluminous effect you’re used to getting with black mascara.

You might want to try something less pronounced…

The Half and Half

A nice way to add a little pizazz to your look is to use traditional mascara on your top lashes and colored mascara on your bottom lashes.

It’s hard to notice the blue from far away, so it’s a nice surprise for people who get close to you. (Dinner date, anyone?)

This is my favorite way to use colored mascara because it can go with a lot of different looks. Some people may even be able to pull this off at work.

Does this seem like too much for you, though? After all, it still stands out. How about this…

The Subtle Approach

If you’re still not satisfied, here’s a tip. Coat your top and bottom lashes with your favorite black or brown mascara. Once it’s relatively dry, coat just the tips (about 3 mm) with colored mascara. This is barely noticeable and can be darn cute.

You could even do the tips of just the top or just the bottom lashes. That’s about as subtle as you can get.

More Colored Mascara Tips

• Choose a color that complements your overall look. If you have a pink eye shadow look, go for a colored mascara in pink’s complementary color: green.
• Leave time in your routine for changes. If you’re a first time user of colored mascara, or you’re trying a different technique, you may end up not liking it. That’s okay. If you have the extra time, you can just start over.
• Be brave and try new things. It’s true, most people don’t wear colorful mascara. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. So go for it. If you never tried anything new, life would be pretty darn boring.

Have you used colorful mascara? If you have any tips, let us know in the comments section!

Many months ago, I did a Rainbow Eyes makeup tutorial. It really has a spring feel to it. Here’s a picture to refresh your memory:

Very rainbowy, right?

Now, I wanted to create an outfit to match this eye shadow look. Prove to you that it can actually match your look. I may have been a little ambitious. Have a look:

Outfit to Match: Rainbow Eyes – by goldferris on Polyvore.com

My whole point was an outfit celebrating spring. And, it uses the colors of the rainbow. I can imagine a gal wearing this to an outdoor spring concert series, or to sit on a park bench and drink an Orange Julius while people-watching.

Sure, it’s a little bright and gaudy, but a particularly stylish and brave lady could pull it off.

You can click on the outfit picture to see a full list of the items in the outfit, including where to buy them.

Its common for those of us with hair color issues to dye it at home. It can be a lot cheaper than going to a stylist.

While home dying can be straight forward, there are some tips you won’t find on the box of hair color. Follow me on my trip from light to dark brown hair. I’ll give you home hair dying tips along the way.

Your hair will need to be clean to start. You should be on day two of cleanly shampooed hair. That means if you’re dying your hair on a Tuesday, the last time you washed it should be Monday. Keep all hair products out of your tresses. No hair spray or gel, ok?

My hair is naturally curly, but I straightened it for my home dying. In the end, it made the hair color go in smoother. (Also, my hair isn’t red. The lighting is just terrible in that bathroom. It’s actually light brown.)

Here’s the deal, it’s hard NOT to get hair dye all over the place when you’re changing your hair color. Because of this, there’s a few things you can do to prepare:

1. Change into your dying outfit. This is an old shirt and pants that you don’t care about anymore. Save them afterward so you can use them again next time. If you’re like me and wore a tank top, wear a bra you don’t care about either.
2. Pick up any rugs out of your bathroom. While I’ve never dropped a dot of dye on the ground before, why take chances?
3. Wipe down the counters. Clear off all your beauty products from the bathroom counter and wipe it down.
   

Everything’s ready!

Before you start dying your hair just yet, you might want to take some preventative measures. Hopefully, you have some petroleum jelly in your bathroom (great all around beauty tool). I use Vaseline.

Vaseline is great for dying your hair. Just put this around your hairline on your skin. Be careful not to get it in your hair. This helps when you inevitably get some dye on your skin. The Vaseline prevents it from sticking and dying your skin awful colors.

Don’t forget about the back of your neck and your ears.

Read the directions. Read the directions. It’s so important. In fact, you should have read this the night before. Each brand of hair dye is different. Heck, even every version of hair dye from each brand is different. Don’t get cocky now. Read the directions.

For this tutorial, I’m using Clairol Perfect 10 by Nice ‘N Easy in #4 Dark Brown “Espresso on the Double”. This is permanent hair dye you can find in drug stores and other mass retailers for $13.99. You can see a picture of the box at the top of the post.

Wear good rubber gloves. With them, you won’t be afraid to get your hands right in there.

Most home hair dye kits come with gloves, but there are two different kinds. There are the thin plastic kind that don’t move well and break easily, and there’s the rubber kind. Choose the latter. If you got a dying kit with the bad gloves, go pick some up at a hair care store like Sally Beauty Supply. They’re cheap and you can reuse them if you wash them well enough.

Luckily, the Clairol Perfect 10 comes with good gloves.

Now that you’ve read the directions, its time to mix your color. Here’s a list of dos and don’ts:

• DO use the complete amount of each tube of chemicals. Even if you’re only planning on dying your roots, mix it all.
  
• DON’T mix the chemicals early and store them for later use. The chemical reactions won’t last long and it won’t work right once you use it.
• DON’T store mixed chemicals in a closed container. It’ll explode!
• DO use the hair dye right away once it’s mixed.

Now you can apply it to your hair. Start with the roots. Even if you’re dying your whole head of hair, you start with the roots and work outward.

The Clairol Perfect 10 hair dye I’m using comes with two kind of tips: the traditional point tip and the new comb tip. I decided to use the comb and it did a really good job of spreading the color evenly.

As you’re adding hair dye , start piling your hair on top of your head. In the end, you’ll have a mound of hair up there and you’ll be ready to wait it out as the dye sets.

How long you wait for hair dye fully depends on the brand. I’m using Clairol Perfect 10, which works in 10 minutes. By the time I was done cleaning up my mess, it was already time to wash it out. With other brands, you might have to wait as long as 45 minutes.

This is the perfect time to wipe off any drips of hair dye that landed in mysterious spots on you or on your surroundings. I got it all over my arms for some reason.

Once the timer dings, you’ll need to wash out your hair. I suggest getting in the shower. I’ve tried leaning over the sink or tub before and you’re asking for trouble. Instead, wash it out with the highest power setting on your shower head.

Once the water runs clear, use the conditioner provided with your hair dye. It’s rare that hair dye doesn’t come with conditioner these days. It’s imperative that you use it. Your hair will be a lot softer if you do.

Now you should be done. Style as usual and admire your handiwork. You just dyed your hair at home!

(By the way, I’m really liking my new hair color. Really, really.)

Today, I’m going to show you what you could wear with that makeup look.

I actually found this one really difficult.  I didn’t want to go too glamorous, and that was tough.

Here’s what Blueberry was like so you can see what I mean:

Yeah, pretty bright and out-there, right?  Because of that, I wanted to do an outfit that plays it all down a bit.  Of course, it’s still totally adorable.

Here’s what I came up with:

Nice, right?  I actually found a camisole that actually represented the makeup look really well.  I especially love those shoes.  Those Bermuda shorts are pretty adorable, too.

I chose to do a few of the accessories in yellow, since that’s purple’s complementary color.

You can find out the list of what I used if you click on the picture above.  I’m putting it below, too:

• 3 Button Bermuda Shorts
• Rainbow Camisole
• Ada 2 Piece Shoes by Frye
• The Costa Del Sol Bag in Yellow
• Yellow Butterfly Ponytail Barrette
• Large Carved Rose Bracelet in Yellow
• Romy Rhodonite Bracelet

See what I mean?  It was difficult to find the best outfit.  In the end, I think I found the right look.  Frankly, I really love that cami and those shoes.

What do you think?  Not glamorous enough?’