Undereye Quick Fixes: Top 3 Concealers

A little concealer goes a long way to cover up under eye circles caused by late night studying and celebrating. Here are my top picks:


1. DIOR Skinflash Radiance Booster Pen
PRO: The clickable pen form makes application super easy because it deposits just the right amount. This is perfect for when you're in a rush to get out the door. Even if this is the only makeup you have on your face the light reflecting formula brings lightness to darker areas on your face making you look like you've slept forever.
CON: $44.00 for 0.05 ounces

2. M.A.C. Studio Sculpt Concealer
PRO: full, buildable coverage. Great for scars, blemishes too.
CON: the formula works best with a brush especially made for concealer. Using your fingers gets a different finish.

3. Maybelline Mineral Power Natural Perfecting Concealer
PRO: Effortless natural coverage that lasts all day + can be found at most drugstores
CON: Fantastic for undereyes but not for dark scars and raised blemishes.

Minty Fresh Fingertips

 This winter, hands are all about mint green nail polish. This pastel hue is all the rage in nail salons right now. Silver, diamond/rhinestone jewelery complement this cool hue. But I'm still going to sport my deep purples until it snows. When that time comes I'll be reaching for Essie's Limited Edition Winter Collection's Mint Candy Apple. Not only is it fashion forward but it contains no formaldehyde, DBP or toluene that can be found in many major nail polishes.

Portrait Tips: Gentlemen's Edition

Even if you live in sweatpants, t-shirts with ironic sayings or have a baseball cap that seems permanently attached to your scalp make people forget that when they look at grad photos. Here are a few easy tips that will help you go from dumpy to dapper.

1.  Patterned tie + Patterned shirt + Grad photo = Disaster
I personally cringe at the sight of a striped or patterned button up shirt peaking out of a graduation gown. It looks really busy. Like young Tom Cruise up there, go with a white shirt; This way you can show your personality with your tie print. Again, make sure your tie's pattern isn't too busy and your shirt is pressed.

2. Keep your facial hair in check.
If you plan on sporting a mustache/goatee/soul patch/chin strap etc. be sure you trim and groom it the morning of. And no, those 8 hairs under your lip does not count as a beard. In this case, opt for a clean shave.

3. Your smile is your best accessory.
Keep chapstick on hand to avoid having dry, windburned lips next to your pearly whites. Choose a non-shiny formula like Burt's Bees.


4. Wait a week after a haircut.
Sometimes a fresh new haircut can look really short and stark in pictures and you might not be used to it. Keep it for a week and play around with how you want to style it before the big day.


5. Don't load up on hair gel.
The studio can airbrush out shaving nicks or acne scars but not the globs of gel in your hair. Too much shine can make your hair look greasy. If you're using more than a loonie size amount you're using too much.

p.s. Can you believe the kid in the glasses is RYAN SEACREST!?!?

Portrait Tips: Ladies

I know starting this week a lot of you may be taking graduation photos and if not family portraits will be coming up real soon.  So here are some tips that will help you look your best. Look out for guys' portrait tips coming soon!

1. Avoid large accessories that may detract from your face.
Keep the focus on you with small accessories, such as simple earrings, thin necklaces. Leave large hoop earrings at home!
2. Get your beauty sleep.
All the retouching in the world won't fix puffy eyes. If you do happen to pull an all-nighter before hand put some tea bags in the freezer and then put them on your eyes in the morning to reduce swelling.
3. Aim to look like a more polished version of your everyday self.
This isn't the time to try out new hairstyles, hair colour or makeup. Concealer and mascara are a must even if you don't wear them usually.
4. Powder will be your best friend today.
Keep it with you to reduce shine and apply it right after your concealer to keep it in place.
5. For grad photos, opt of a collared shirt or one that won't show up under the gown at all.
6. Opt for a moisturizing lipstick or lip stain instead of a gloss.
Lip gloss looks great in person but can look like a shiny, I-just-ate-fried-chicken mess in portraits.

Top 6 Men's Fragrances: Axe isn't one of them

I was at a party a couple weeks ago and I saw a guy I knew there that I had not seen for quite sometime. I was glad to reunite with him again unfortunately his cologne managed to greet me before he did as a cloud of Drakkar Noir assailed my nasal passages. Fragrances, even for women, should only be smelled by another person when in very close proximity. How close is close? A hug, not a high five. Here are L&L's top 6 fragrances for men...she just might forgive you if you spray one of these ones:

1. Hugo Boss Selection
2. Lacoste Challenge
3. Burberry Brit for Men
4. Givenchy Play
5. Armani Acqua Di Gio
6. Hollister Jake

Do you have any faves?

Salon Review: A Cut Above

A Cut Above, a hair salon in the basement of Masonville Mall was responsible for this highlighting fiasco. In this case, A Cut Above was definitely a cut below. Mall salons have a high turn-over rate, meaning that mall salons, especially in London, usually will take stylists straight out of hair school who probably haven't had a lot of experience. Getting a bad hair cut is fine because hair grows back. Getting a bad colour job, especially when you are lightening your hair can potentially dry out your hair or worse, fry it completely and cause it to fall out.

Clairol Natural Instincts's Demi-Permanent formula was used to cover up this disaster. This formula will fade out gradually so that the colourist who takes Curtis' hair status from sad to sunkissed will not have to strip out permanent dark box colouring out first.

Salon Review: Jeffrey Donald & Joseph Hair Salon

As a student who isn't from London, its hard to find out what salons are good and what salons are within the student budget. I am a loyal client of Civello Rosedale in Toronto so finding a good stylist/colourist to tide me over before I could go home to see my regular guy was important to me. Jeffrey Donald & Joseph Salon, an Aveda concept salon,  just opened their Richmond & Hyman location about 6 months ago. Their friendly and attentive staff put me at ease made me forget that I was putting my hair into unfamiliar hands.  Andrea was able to match my colour formula perfectly and gave me the most amazing scalp massage.

The best part? For a limited time, highlights are 50% off for all UWO students. If your roots are showing, get on this offer while you can. Just mention the ad in The Gazette. All other services are 15%off if you show your student ID.

(photo: Snaplondon.ca)