To A Wonderful New Year !

Leighton Meester Looking Gorgeous !

LORAC Starry Eyed Baked Eye Shadow Trio - Rock Star : Eye Look

    These trios are some of my most favorite eyeshadows ever. I've raved about them a few times and am yet not tired of using them ! This one Rockstar - a satin finish white, a sea green and a shimmery black.



    Forgive the low quality of pictures. We've had no sunlight and it snowed today again. The lighting indoors coupled with the flash makes everything look pale in pictures. So, just add a hint of brightness and warmth to all the pics and you'll see how pretty everything actually is ! I almost didnot want to post it but I know its gonna be long time before daylight shows up ...

    This is a look I did today using just this shadow and the Urban Decay Glitter Eyeliner in Silver.






    Love,
    Indian Girl

Indian Girl At Chickasaw National Park

    This Christmas , a couple friends and I decided to drive up to Chickasaw National Park to spend our Christmas weekend there.

    Little did we know a huge snow blizzard was on its way ...

    After planning and unplanning several times we finally decided on Chickasaw because it was only a three hour drive from TX. This was important just in case the weather didn't permit camping and we had to get back home. Driving 10 - 12 hours for a day trip did not make sense. And if we couldn't camp , there was no fun staying at motels.

    So, Chickasaw it was !

    We started at five AM on Christmas day on our drive to Oklahoma. The night before we had a snow storm of epic proportions - well for us it was epic.

    The roads were bad.
    Terrible actually.
    Slippery, icy and freezing cold.

    So we drove slowly...keeping our eyes OPEN and driving with all the concentration in the world because one wrong move and the car would slip and slide into the shoulder or guard rails.

    The roads we drove on...

    Once we crossed TX and entered OK, we realized the snow was even worse here. I'd lost count of the number of vehicles that had crashed , lost its grip, swiveled and hit the concrete rails, crashes. We didn't see any but apparently many people were stranded in their cars all night long. There was at least one car or truck at every mile on the side of the road.

    Scary to say the least.
    Few of the abandoned cars

    Snow everywhere

    Cattle chilling on their ranches

    And we continued driving slowly. By now the sun was on its way up and the tireless cleaning crew were on the roads clearing the snow, adding saw dust , bettering the road conditions. Big Thank You to them.

    The snow clearing crew hard at work

    Finally we reached Chickasaw.

    Our car also got stuck in the snow. A fifteen minute push, pull accelerate got us out. Needless to say we were the only people in Chickasaw that day other than the park workers. Even the administrative office was closed but we knew it would be.


    Thanks to a park worker Frank , we got to know about the safe hiking trails, roads that were cleared, bridges to avoid and icy hazardous areas to avoid. I really liked Frank. He gave us clear instructions and didn't scare us about being over careful. He made sure we used the right trails, told us it would be beautiful and made sure we made the best out of our trip. We followed his words and started on out hiking trail.

    I bundled myself in several several layers of thick sweatshirts, woolen hiking socks, hiking boots, couple of gloves and the Cold Killer Mask .I couldn't have done it without the mask - it really kills the cold. Keeps your head, ears, nose warm. Of course the mask also makes it hard to breathe but I took breaks removing it so I could breathe through my nose & mouth.

    The trail was the most pure, pristine thing in the world. Fresh white snow everywhere. Bright sun shining over our heads making the snow glisten like tiny tiny diamonds. Deers running around, digging their deep hooves into the fresh snow, birds jumping making their own tiny, shallow feet marks and us the humans dragging our feet along the thick blanket taking in the wonders of nature.

    This was our trail...a beautiful white blanket of snow

    Deer foot prints on the fresh snow



    We only completed half the trail because the sun was coming up , melting the snow. The trail was getting icy & slippery. So we decided to get back.

    After hiking we reached the camp grounds - snow everywhere. We cleared a small area set up fire and make camp food - Sausages & chili.


    This was without a doubt one of the best Christmas ever. I so look forward to visiting Chickasaw again this Spring. Will be fun to compare our snowy pictures with the warm green ones in the spring. If you are interested check out pictures from my trip to Big Bend National Park this past Summer here

    Don't mess with the bison !
    Naa...they seemed pretty docile.
    That doesn't mean you can mess with them.

    Camping in summer is great but in winters, its more exciting and thrilling ! I wish we could have camped but the snowfall was too heavy and more was expected.

    This is what I did this Christmas ! Hope your Christmas was warmer !


    Love,
    Indian Girl

Shu Uemura Essence Absolue : Review ; Truly An Elixir For Dry Hair

    Hiya Ladies !

    Hope y'all had a wonderful Christmas ! Did you get all the gifts you wanted ;)

    Mine was UNBELIEVABLE. Unbelievably good. I'll share some pictures with you soon and you'll see what I was up to on Christmas day ! I also got a jacket that I have been in love with forever. Just *so* happy and thankful for it all !

    Essence Absolue - Absolutely Essential !

    A while back we were all introduced to Essence Absolue, the nourishing protective hair oil from Shu Uemura. Remember ? It is the secret behind Jennifer Aniston's flawless hair and all ?

    For a month now I have been using the product after every wash and I cant seem to be getting enough of it. Every time I remind myself that I must save it for special occasions but then I don't.

    I have never been good at saving good things for special occasions.

    When we were young my sister would save all expensive chocolates that we received as gifts and ate them one a week. I'd just eat it all up in a week. Saving good things for later just isn't my thing....


    The hair oil has several uses like

    1- Intensely hydrating leave-in conditioner for very dry/damaged hair
    2- Pre-shampoo treatment for deep, nourishing care
    3- Protection during color application, adding shine, moisture and elasticity to processed lengths & ends
    4- Use in summer time as protective oil against the sun's harmful rays (UV filter)
    5- Ultra-shine finisher along lengths and ends

    I've used it only as a post wash, hair nourishing conditioner. Once I've washed and dried my hair (80% dry) , I pump the bottle once and use that small amount all over my hair. Just mess my hair around so the product spreads and them brush it.

    Verdict

    Hands down the softest hair I've ever had. My hair feels softer than a really really expensive Cashmere sweater. And it also has an incredible shine to it. No hair clip keeps my hair in place. It just slides off and I don't seem to mind it at all ! Its that soft and shiny !

    There is absolutely no oiliness or stickiness from the product. It almost disappears into my hair but I do feel the hydrating effect that it gives once I brush my hair. All the fluffy volume I have after a wash gets tamed and softened.

    And it does look like liquid gold. If it didn't have a pump on it, I might have used it as a table centerpiece - so pretty !

    Overall it is worth every $ of the big big $65 that it costs.
    But $65 is a lotta $$.
    Lotta Lotta $$

    Love,
    Indian Girl


    This article contains a sample product sent for consideration by PR. For more details on the disclosure policy please refer to it at the bottom of the page.

Best Of 2009 - Beauty & Makeup Favorites


    This is not an easy thing to do , at all ! So hard to tell what I love the most especially with lipsticks and eyeliners. After much thought, I put together a list of my most favorites products from this year. These are mostly products that I used the most, longed to wear everyday and ones that I look forward to using next year ! To me, they are THE BEST !

    Go on and tell me - What Were Your Best Beauty Finds This Year !


    Best Face Primer

    SKINN Orchid Gel Mattifying Face Primer
    Rock & Republic Tinted Face Primer

    Best Foundation

    Clinique Super Balanced Powder Makeup
    Smashbox Healthy FX HD Foundation ( Its a brand new favorite. Will write about it soon)

    Best Concealer

    Julie Hewett Cream Concealer - Omit
    Conceal FX by Cover FX

    Best Eyeliner

    Julie Hewett Too Good To Be True Eye Pencils
    Urban Decay 24/7 Eye Liner Pencils
    Clinique Cream Shaper For Eyes
    LORAC Front Of The Line Pro Liquid Eyeliner Pen

    Best Eye Shadow

    LORAC Starry-Eyed Baked Eye Shadow Trio in Starlet
    Clinique Bamboo Pink Eye Shadow Quad
    Julie Hewett Twilight Palette

    Best Mascara

    Max Factor 2000 Calorie Extreme Lash Plumper Mascara
    L'Oreal Telescopic Explosion Mascara

    Best Eye Brow Fillers

    Milani Easy Brow Automatic Pencil - Natural Taupe
    Julie Hewett Eye Shadow - Vita

    Best Blush

    Cream : Julie Hewett Cheekie - Rosie, Clinique Blushwear Stick
    Powder : Illamasqua Powder Blusher - Create, LORAC Baked Matte Satin Blush in Velvet Rope, Smashbox Fusion Blush - Regal

    Best Highlighter

    Estee Lauder Opulent Shimmer Powder

    Best Bronzer

    Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder
    Illamasqua Bronzing Duo - Glint & Writhe

    Best Makeup Brush

    Smashbox Blush Brush #16

    Best Lip liner

    Urban Decay 24/7 Lip Liner - Wall Flower

    Best Lipstick

    Smashbox Photofinish Lipstick - Captivating, Exquisite
    Clinique Butter Shine Lipstick - Baby Baby
    Smashbox Double Take Lip Pencils
    Lipstick Queen Chinatown Lip Pencils
    Revlon Matte Lipsticks

    Best Lip Gloss

    Julie Hewett Lip Lush
    Bobbi Brown Sheer Color Gloss

    Best Moisturizer

    Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel
    Korres Materia Herba Moisturizing Cream
    Kenzo Cream With A Sheen

    Best Eye Cream

    Biore Skin Preservation Fortifying Eye Cream
    Kenzo Ice Cold Eye Cream

    Best Cleanser

    Korres Materia Herba Toning Cleansing Foam
    Biore Skin preservation Even Smoother Microderm Exfoliator

    Best Body Lotion

    Jergens Sensitive Skin Relief Fragrance Free Daily Moisturizer

    Love,
    Indian Girl

All You Ever Wanted - Inspired By Demi Moore

    Anybody tried the Helena Rubinstein Frangrance - All You've Ever Wanted, inspired by Demi Moore ? I like Demi and have been dying to check this one out. Most celebrity perfumes for some reason are too sweet or too flowery in general. I'm hoping this one will be different.


    Haha. Rachel Zoe is cute ! I used to love mascaras with big brushes too until I met Maybelline Lash Stiletto. It taught be that thin ones can be great too !

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Last Minute Gift Ideas

    Day / Night Smokey Eye Kit
    Make your own Day & Night Smokey Eye Kit for a gift !
    Get a purple / taupe shadow trio ( Smashbox Panorama) and a gray/black shadow trio ( Smashbox Twilight). Add in a fluffy brush , an eyeliner and its a smokey eye kit to love !






    RODIAL LA Face Lift ($99)
    Give your complexion the celebrity treatment with these luxe lifting formulas: a-list cleanser, glamtox peel, SPF 15 glamtox eye light, SPF 18 glamtox and glam balm.

    I've tried the glam balm - its amazing !






    The Ultimate Blackhead Survival Kit
    Another make your own kit with simple but effective drugstore products like the Biore Anti Black Head Cream Cleanser + The Super Popular Deep Cleansing Pore Strips.










    Philip B Travel Kit ($30)
    Peppermint & Avocado Volumizing & Clarifying Shampoo
    African Shea Butter Gentle & Conditioning Shampoo
    Nordic Wood Hair & Body Shampoo
    Light-Weight Deep Conditioning Crème Rinse (available in Classic and paraben free Formula)

    I am going on a small trip soon. I wish I had this one !




    Clinique Acne Solutions Clear Skin System Starter Kit
    $32.50

    A great gift for adults or for younger teens ! The kit comes with a
    Cleansing Foam, Clarifying Lotion & a Moisturizer all
    designed to treat Acne.







    Love
    Indian Girl

Rani Mukherjee Makeup Breakdown


    Rani Mukherji is a popular Bollywood actress.

    Gosh the lady looks positively radiant in this picture ! Love the blue Saree and the clean simple makeup !

    Face :

    A clean even looking face is an absolute must for the rest of the makeup to look good. This look especially has a satin finish with zero shimmer other a little bit in the gloss.

    Start with a primer (SKINN Orchid Gel Mattifying Primer) and apply all over face. Follow with a tinted moisturizer / light - medium coverage foundation. Set it with powder foundation / translucent powder.

    Eyes :

    Rani has been doing the smudged black liner + brown shadow look for quite a while now. It works great on her and will on almost anybody. Its easy fool proof and brings attention to your eyes.

    Apply concealer all over your eye lids and under. Apply a matte brown shadow ( Thevi Matte Shadow - Dark Brown) all over your lids and blend it upwards and outwards at the crease to create a soft brown eye look.

    Using a black pencil liner, line upper lash line, lower lash line and lower waterline. Now using a smudging brush or your ring finger smudge out the pencil liner so the black shade gently frames your eyes. You can also go over the liner with a black shadow ( Thevi Matte Shadow - Charcoal) and delicately blend it so the black looks soft and not sharp.

    Smudge the same brown matte shadow along your lower lash line. Do your brows and apply mascara.

    Cheeks

    For fair to medium skin try Thevi Sheer Matte Blush - Whisper Apricot. For Medium - Deeper Skin tones the Thevi Sheer Matte Blush - Hint Of Red is a great choice !

    Lips

    A nude shade with a hint of pink like Urban Decay 's Naked Lipstick or Sally Hansen Natural Beauty Lip Gloss - Mystical Mauve

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Holiday Beauty Tips : Gimme More !

    These Holiday beauty tips from Skyy Hadley of As “U” Wish Nail Spa in Hoboken, NJ. Its nothing you don't know. What it is, is a a great reinforcement of what you do know. For everybody running around trying to decide on the Holiday looks, this will be a small push to get one started !

    Metallics are golden – no matter what your color scheme, a shimmery gold, silver, or bronze will finish the look.

    Here are a couple of my favorites.

    For Eyes : Silver , Gold , Bronze


    For Face : This Opulent Shimmer Powder adds glitzy glamor sparkle for the holidays !
    Or go the Golden Bronzer route with this one here from Tarte - it never gets old !


    For Lips : I have two shades that will be perfect for a golden lip look - Smashbox Lip Gloss in Luster and the lip lush - Tish from Julie Hewett. Both are sparkly golden shimmers done Oh So Tastefully ! I promise it looks like nude golden sparkle and not like a strip of metallic goop.

    Cool tones are perfect with the chilly weather – don’t be afraid to strut darker colors.

    If we don't get out the darker lip colors now, we might as well bury them and never look at it again. A few days back I reorganized my makeup drawers and arranged them in such a way that I see wintery shades up front and the other ones are at the back. Of course few days later its all a big mess again ! Must go digging again...


    There are few cool toned oldies that I love ...

    There is the Stay Mauve from Estee Lauder the only time I loved purple.

    A couple of pretty cool ones form Urban Decay - Confessions for the daring soul and Vinyl for the not so daring souls.

    And then for the uber cool, uber dark vampire inspired looks there is this sexy thing

    When in doubt, nudes are always your safe bet – classy and sophisticated, they never go out of style.

    Nudes nudes nudes. This has been a decade of nudes. I don't think the word nude has been repeated as many times with respect to makeup. There is a nude for everybody !


    The Smashbox Lip Pencils have been my most favorite things this year for a nude look . Such pretty shades.

    Then there is the Bollywood inspired nude shade.

    And the Kim K / Mila Kunis inspired nudey nude nude shade.

    So there we go ! A bunch of things from this year and past but Holiday worthy ! What Holiday Beauty Tips Have We Missed out On ? I cant think of the red lips ! What is on your mind ?

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick - Rum Raisin : Review & Swatches - The LBD Of Lipsticks

    This one is an old fav.

    An old fav that never retires.

    An old fav that I will never get tired of.

    An old fav that I have recommended 1667843.5 times.

    The Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick - Rum Raisin ($7.99) is the most flexible shade of lipstick . Its a classic but not in a retro way. In a will-stay-relevant-forever kinda way.


    The shade Rum Raisin = soft burnt red + nude soft brown with some deep deep red-wine + amped up rose brown .

    This is the LBD of lipsticks. Its a shade for everybody to wear everywhere.

    To me, there are two kinds of everyday lipsticks. The regular kind and the special kind. The regular kind is like cereal - the one I eat everyday for breakfast & like.

    Then there is the special kinda everyday lipstick which is like the breakfast I really really would like to eat - eggs, bacon, pancakes, warm syrup & the works. This shade is like that breakfast. Something that will make everyday feel like its special !

    It looks great on women with pale / fair / light skin too but I'd especially recommend brown girls out there to give it a go. It is on BOGOF at CVS right now.


    The flash washes the color out a little bit. The shade itself is little more deeper. You'll see what I'm talking about when you check it out at the store.

    After you've tried it and fallen in love, don't forget to send me a letter telling me how it changed your life.

    Or you'll probably put it on your Annual Christmas Letter !

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Happy Weekend !


    By GUESS. I want it. Love the flat chains. Christmas, Birthday - you pick.

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Maybelline Color Sensational Lipsticks : Review & Swatches

    Last night I paid a visit to my neighborhood drugstore, CVS with a mission. I had to get tooth paste, Listerine and two Maybelline Color Sensational Lipsticks.

    I've been wanting to try these lipsticks forever but somehow didn't. Unfortunate for me, they weren't even on sale. After much debate I picked up Pink Me Up & Mauve Me ($7.49).



    Pink Me up , I knew would be very similar to my Avon U by Ungaro lipstick - a fuchsia pink. I wanted to confirm the hunch and so I picked it up. As far as Mauve Me goes , lets just say the color spoke to me and my love for hint of shimmer. Its a mauve with a hint of purple and a slightest bit of gold shimmer. One second its there, next its not !

    Since when do Maybelline lipsticks have the weird scent. I used to love them for the absence of weird chemically scent but unfortunately this line has the same smell that Loreal lipsticks have. Its lighter than Loreal but scent nonetheless. However, we've got to hand it to Maybelline for putting out some super duper pigmented, almost opaque creamy lipsticks, in some very good shades !



    Unfortunately the shades I picked up did not work well on me. I think its has got to do with the hint of purple in both the shades. Purple on my lips is not my thing. Pink me Up is similar to Ungaro lipstick but is different. It does nothing to my face. Mauve Me just plain fell flat. Really the shade in the tube and the one on my lips are two different stories.

    I will return these and pick up some warmer nudes / browns from the same line or check out Revlon. If you have tried these, please give me a few recommendations / swatches please.

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Easy Eye Makeup Tutorial Videos

    Ladies !

    If you don't have a youtube account, you need to get one now. Apart from thousands of everyday beauty gurus there are several brands which have their own channels. One of my favorite channels is the Smashbox one. They have their lead makeup artists showing us how to use products, teaching us the latest trends, colors and several new methods of makeup application !

    Bobbi Brown also has a channel which is a great source to learn about their new collections and products !

    Here are a couple of new tutorials from Smashbox. I love that drop shadow effect ! And the model is cute in a very unconventional way !





    Love the makeup ! But the part where the model looks like she is rolling her eyes back into her head is scary ! LOL !



    Have you checked out these Halo shadows ? I saw them at Sephora last weekend. But didn't play with them. Do you think its possible to get just one of the colors ? What if I don't want both the shades ?

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Lotion Up. Even When You're Feeling Lazy

    Last week I woke up one night at 2 AM.

    I couldn't take it anymore.

    It wasn't the baby next door crying.

    I couldn't bear it any longer. I ran to the bathroom.

    It had nothing to do with my bladder. Lord knows, the bladder works overtime what with me guzzling down over 64 oz of water a day. Not like you wanna know about it.

    But yeah it wasn't my bladder. Not this time.

    This time it was my skin.

    My dry parched skin.

    Dry parched skin spread all around my legs and body. So dry it was paining. My skin was paining and I couldn't sleep anymore. I had to run to the bathroom, and slather moisturizer all over my body. At the end of it I almost wanted to cry. I felt *so* much better. I was beating myself up for not following with my advice on moisturizing soon after shower.

    Not anymore. I have gotten back to religiously applying moisturizer after my shower. If I'm feeling lazy I just think of that night and in no time I'm squeezing the bottle of lotion out.

    Apart from at home lotion-ing I carry a tube of moisturizer everywhere I go. I have one stashed in the car, one in each of the two bags I carry. I carry a tube of Curel. It is one of my absolute favorite drugstore brand.


    They have tubes of Curel hand creams and the lotion itself in small travel size tubes. I use them both everywhere - legs, knees, elbows, hands and face. A few years back I had a really bad episode of dry skin on my face. I tried several products including Olay, Palmers butters, The Body Shop products - nothing helped. The only thing that worked was Curel's Lavender lotion on my face. I've been a fan ever since !

    Moral Of The Story

    Love,
    Indian Girl

Can Face Primers Be Used On / Around Eyes ?

    Can Face Primers Be Used On / Around Eyes ?

    The answer to this question like most other life altering ones is ...

    It Depends.

    Depends on which face primer you're referring to. Here are the answers to four of the most popular face primers.

    SKINN Orchid Gel Mattifying Treatment

    Yes, the SKINN Orchid Gel mattefying can be used around the eye area. The creator of the product Dimitri James has given us a green signal on this one.

    Hands down my most favorite primer. I have been using this for over a year all over my face and on my eyes right before applying concealer. It fills up the tiny fine lines / my one big crease and keeps the concealer looking fresh and smooth . Absolute beauty !

    The brand also has a product designed specially for the eyes - Insta Fill For Eyes. I've tried this and it is amazing too. You need just a dot of it for the whole eye area. Love it !

    Smashbox Photo Finish Primer

    The lovely Lori Taylor - the Lead Makeup Artist at Smashbox had this to say " Sure it’s amazing under the eye. And the color correctors help with discoloration."

    So, yes the super popular Photo Finish Primer can be used around the eye area too !

    Smashbox also has a eye primer called the Photo Finish Lid Primer

    Tarte Clean Slate Face Primer

    This is what the wonderful folks at Tarte said about the multi uses of Clean Slate.
    "Yes, clean slate is safe to use on your eyes (it is a natural product). "

    Another yes !

    As for a eye primer from Tarte, this fall they launched lifted™ natural eye primer with Firmitol ™ which is an eye primer that actually lifts and tightens the skin 10 minutes post application.

    MAC Prep + Prime Skin


    Unfortunately MAC Prep + Prime is not designed to used around the eye area.

    That's a no, folks.

    However MAC does have the Prep + Prime Eye which was designed for the eye area !

    So there we go ! Another mystery solved. If you have questions on any other face primers and would like me to find out if its safe for use around eye area - just send me a note. I'll try and get back to you on it !

    In Other News...

    Can somebody please get me out of this old school Usher Mania. I cant get over it. After listening to You Got It bad only about 16951 times , I'm now stuck on You remind Me. Its cute , though.

    Thanks to Usher I'm working on our favorite Boys - Episode 3. This will be singers delight :p
    Help me put it together. Who do you think will fit into our category of the hottest , sexiest male singers ? Hip Hop, Rock, R & B, Country, Pop - all are welcome !

    If you missed out on our boys. Check them out here. HOT HOT HOT....

    Boys - Episode 1
    Boys - Episode 2



    Love,
    Indian Girl

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