A Tale of Polished Persistence

Even though manicures are headed for brighter pastures this summer, those dark, dramatic nails are still vampin' up the Hollywood scene on occasion. (The manicure that just won't die!) So hurry up and sport those moody-mood polishes while you still can—black, plum, violet, burgundy, whatever—because the season's shifting to lighter, brighter shades soon enough.

LA Fashion Week: DuWop, Get the Look

DuWop lit up LA Fashion Week with sultry eyes and pouty-pink lips. As promised, here's how to get the look yourself: Start with a tinted moisturizer, Revolotion Face, and a concealer-foundation, Surface, to create a smooth, glowing complexion. Next, highlight the face with Spring Duet in Fauna and lightly dab cheeks with a rosy cheek gel, Bronzerrush in June. For eyes, use the Brown Eyes and Gray Eyes palettes—dotting the silver shimmer on the middle of the eyelids—under coats of Lash Lacquer mascara in Carbon Black. To finish, rev up some pretty, pouty lips with Neutral Lip Pencil in Switzerland, Spring Duet in Fauna (the gloss side this time, of course) and Lip Venom 2nd Sin.

LA Fashion Week: Black Lips

Look on as Smashbox lead makeup artist Amber Kerns demonstrates the painted black lip backstage at the Imitation of Christ show, which took place on Monday night, during LA Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios. You saw it here first, the raven black lip. Are you ready to get your goth on? - Joannie Sevilla, LA

LA Fashion Week: Stila Gets Vampy

Stila Makeup Artist extraordinaire Sarah Lucero and I keep running into each other these past few days. First at Sephora FashionWeekLive in San Francisco Thursday, and tonight at LA Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios for the Tart show. Sarah let me peek over her shoulder as she transformed her model into a gold-kissed vamp. Smoky brown lids tinted with hints of gold on the brow bone and inner corners of the eyes, coupled with a glossy lip in a girly shade of pale ginger. “The focus is a super vampy eye, lots of jewel toned and shimmery shadows to make it look really dark and smoky but really sexy.” She used Stila Eye Shadow Pan in Poise (a deep plum) and the darkest shade in Ravishing Rose (wet with an eyelining brush) to “wrap” around the eye. Using the All Over Shimmer loose eyeshadow in #12 wet as a liquid eye shadow, she used it to glisten up the eyes in the inner corners and around the brows. To deepen the intensity, Sarah used lots of mascara, a strip of lashes and black liner. Stila’s Fade Cheek Color and Lip Polish in Glisten finished off the look. “So it ends up being a really great balance of a sexy, glistening eye, paired with a light lip and a soft contoured cheek.” Nice job, Sarah. See you at the next gig! –Joannie Sevilla, LA

Goth Is The New Pretty @ LAFW's Imitation of Christ Show

A “tired doll” face framed with uncomplicated hair in “beachy waves” were the highlights of the looks transforming backstage at the Imitation of Christ show Monday night for LA Fashion Week at Smashbox studios. Lead artist Amber Kerns followed the edgy theme of the evening with a “romantic gothic” inspired dark berry and black lip with a dewy, transparent face palette (which she achieved using Smashbox’s Artificial Light in Diffuse) and nothing but a thin black line on the eyelid. “We wanted one point of focus, that being just the lips, everything else stays muted.” The signature lip color of the evening (and included in all the gift bags on everyone’s seats) was a gorgeous, blackberry-esque shade called “Enchanting” packaged in a black box printed just for the Imitation of Christ and Smashbox show. “The dark berry shade is crucial, we’ll be using it on everyone—including myself.” As soon as I opened mine and put it on, I could see why it was a shade Amber had to have. I can already tell what my new favorite lip shade will be this fall, and darn, it’s only March! For those who wish to join me in my gothic look for spring, yes, “Enchanting” will be available at Sephora. –Joannie Sevilla, LA

FashionWeekLive:Jo Strettell

Lead makeup artist Jo Strettell gives the lowdown on the makeup looks she created for FashionWeekLive presented by Sephora. Listen to her inspiration, then learn how to get Houston's RED LIPS and San Francisco's GUNMETAL EYES.

FashionWeekLive: Southern Smackers

A look that revved up the FashionWeekLive runways in Houston? Dramatically red lips. And here's a tip those southern belles have up their (perfectly ruffled) sleeves: To give red lips a modern twist, fill lips in with lip liner, then follow with lipstick. With a Q-tip, smooth the lipstick over the liner to blend color ... Easy. Classic.

FashionWeekLive: Smoky Eyes

Grey eyes and pale lips are taking over the sunshine state! The subtle but smoldering look will glam up the runway at Sephora's FashionWeekLive tonight, which debuts at Ft. Mason in San Fransisco. So, want to get this silvery look yourself? For charcoaled peepers, apply Sephora Colorful Pearl Mono Eyeshadow in #6 and #13 or MUFE Crease Color #17, lined with Stila Quartz Kajal Pencil. Coat skin with Smashbox Photo Finisher Foundation—it doubles as a primer and mattifier—then lightly sweep cheeks with Diorshow Powder 004. Last but not least: For soft, natural lips, dab Dior Rouge 433, Smashbox Lip Pencil in Palm Beach or Stila Sheen Lip Polish. Voila! Stay tuned for live backstage blogging tonight.

FashionWeekLive: Model Citizens

mNicole Trunfio, an IMG model who strutted the runway at FashionWeekLive in Houston, is slowly getting used to Manhattan life. Understandable, as she’s an aussie at heart and grew up in the outback of Australia—definitely not your typical fashion model story. “I moved to New York three years ago, but just started feeling comfortable,” she said. “I just started calling it home.” (Added perk: The big city is a great place for Nicole as an aspiring actress too.) For now though, Nicole is definitely sitting pretty in her modeling career. She’s stomped the catwalk for a laundry list of designers—Chanel and Fendi included—and has even appeared in high-fashion mags like French ELLE. The must-have in this beauty's makeup bag? Sunscreen. After all, you don't grow up in the bush without learning how damaging the sun is!

FashionWeekLive: Model Citizens

Another aussie gal. Jessica Gnomes, also an IMG model in Houston's FashionWeekLive show, hails from Perth. (Think far southwest coast of Australia.) She started modeling in Australia and Asia as an 18 year-old—back when she was "a huge tomboy and very shy"—and has been modeling with IMG in NY for the past two years. Her secret beauty tip? Apply baby powder to (dry) hair if it's oily. Jessica—who lives in East Village, but swears by the fish burgers in West—says skin care is critical too, especially in a city like New York. She cleanses and exfoliates her skin daily, and uses lots of tinted moisturizer to keep her skin healthy and glowing. Another must-have in her backstage bag: Cosmedicine Full Benefits.

FashionWeekLive: Model Citizens

More gorgeousness from Houston. Here's Luca–the German beauty who just cut her hair, remember?–strutting in Oscar de la Renta.

A) She lives for NARS Blush (a Best of Sephora winner). How rosy and fresh-faced does she look?!
B) She also swears by Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer, a sheer moisturizer with a hint of color.
C) Love, love, loving those shoes. Adorable.

FashionWeekLive: Model Citizens

Too soon? Can't wear white after Labor Day? Well, apparently you can if you look stunningly drop-dread gorgeous in it ... But don't be fooled by the photo: You aren't looking at the infamous Naomi Campbell on the catwalk here, just her absolute spiting image. (Note: Naomi did participate in FashionWeekLive too, though.) This is Maria, a stunning and just-as-fierce IMG model who worked this shot in Peter Som's beautiful gown. Quite the long-lost twins, huh?

FashionWeekLive: Hair, Paris Style

Teddy Charles from T3 was getting to his roots, so to speak, with tonight’s hairstyle inspiration: “It’s a modern version of Belle du Jour. You know, the movie with Catherine Devenue when she had big, big hair. But it’s going to be a smaller version than the actual movie.” First he sprayed Phytovolum Actif onto sections of the models’ hair, and then blow-dried, piece by piece. Next, using the T3 Narrow Wet-Dry iron, he straightened sections, pulling the iron under to create a reverse flip. It’s as simple as it sounds: “You just take the iron from the roots to the end, pull it down, and when I come to the end, I just twist it under,” says Teddy. (Peep the video, above, for a visual.) To finish it off, he pulled the top section back into a little ponytail at the crown. Voilá—a classic Parisian ‘do becomes the new San Francisco treat. —Mari Tzikas, San Fran

FashionWeekLive: The Scent of Tyson Beckford

It’s every girl's dream: to get up close and personal with Tyson Beckford, arguably one of the modeling world’s hottest commodities (in more ways than one). The beauty gods were smiling down on us when he appeared backstage for a pre-show manicure. (He’s a biker, which often leaves his hands a little rough around the edges. Hot, nonetheless.) So what does the beyond-handsome model smell like? “Right now, I’m still kind of stuck on Marc Jacobs. That’s one of my favorites,” he said. “And Gucci Envy is one of my favorites, of course. But right now I have on Marc Jacobs.” His chiseled features look fresh and clean, and he admitted he just shaved this morning. “I let my facial hair grow whenever I’m not working, so that when it’s time to go to work I get a cleaner shave,” he admits. “I hadn’t shaved in a couple weeks and this morning I shaved it all off. It felt so good to do it, and I was like ‘Wow, I look like a little kid right now!’” While Tyson has yet to find a grooming line he absolutely loves, he says he’s tried everything, including Clinique—and might be interested in starting his own line. (We can see it now, The Tyson Treatment!) He does, however, have a shaving tip to share. “Whenever I’m getting ready to shave, the night before I take a dry towel and I’ll kind of like rough it up to get all the in-growns out.” As a woman, I can’t complain about ingrown hairs on my face, but I’m guessing I could have used a dry towel to wipe my drool as I walked away. — Mari Tzikas, San Fran

FashionWeekLive: Eye on the Prize

The focus of the San Francisco look was a smoldering, smoky eye. Jo Strettel, Sephora’s celebrity makeup artist, advised to line and shadow the eye to fully saturate, so “no pink shows.” Hank from Smashbox Studios worked on Lucca using Smashbox’s Liquid Lip & Lid Primer, Cream Eye Liner in Lava, Eye Shadow Trio in Shutterspeed and Cream Eye Liner Palette. To see Hank in action, just hit play below. — Mari Tzikas, San Fran

FashionWeekLive: Live Blogging from SF, tonight

Stay tuned...segment 2 of FashionWeekLive presented by Sephora is taking place in San Francisco this evening, and we've got 2 beauty writers there (our own Joannie Sevilla and Mari Tzikas), blogging live from backstage. We followed four models (Nicole Trunfio, Jessica Gnomes, Trish Goff and Luca Gadjus) from Houston to San Francisco, and along the way they've offered us their insights on the backstage scene and the hectic life of a model. So check back throughout the evening for FashionWeekLive--literally!

FashionWeekLive: Jessica Gnomes

As Make Up For Ever’s makeup artist Vadim did her makeup, I chatted with Aussie native Jessica Gnomes about her favorite look (Red lips in Houston or smoky eyes in San Francisco), and hands down, the edgy California look won in her book. “It gives me a sexy sultry look and it makes my eyes look more exotic. It’s sexy and you can wear it with everything, with the red lips you kind of have to work around it.” Her day in San Francisco consisted of an unsuccessful trip to Alcatraz where “on this day the ferry wasn’t working” and lunch on Chestnut Street. Since my fellow writer Mari and I had not seen the Sephora goody bags yet, Jessica gave me a sneak peak on her favorites. “I loved the lip plumper, because I love big lips, and I loved the hairdryer and makeup kit in the black box.” And it turns out, she’s also a huge fan of Sephora and swears by an eye cream made for men that we carry (Vadim and I think it’s Jack Black). “I love Sephora. I bought this men’s eye cream that really opens your eyes up and feels really minty. I love Strivectin, it’s really expensive but it’s really good.” Oh and she thinks Stella McCartney’s skincare line is “wicked.” Ok, you had to hear it in person, but punctuated with the Aussie accent, we're guessing that meant "sick"! - Joannie Sevilla, SF

Sneak Peak: Houston FashionWeekLive

Red lips are rulin' the southern runways! Deep in the heart of Texas, old Hollywood glamor will make a smashing entrance at Sephora's FashionWeekLive, which debuts at Water Wall in Houston tonight. 40's-era ruby lips will take center-stage, with models sashaying down the runway in fall’s hottest fashions from Derek Lam, Oscar de la Renta, Nanette Lepore, Nicole Miller and Michael Kors. The look of crimson lips, flushed cheeks and a hint of shimmery shadow—a prevalent beauty trend on the fall catwalk, too—is the work of our celebrity makeup artist, Jo Strettell. More southern belle beauty to come. Stay tuned for live backstage blogging tonight!

FashionWeekLive: The Models Have Been Announced

Reporting live from FashionWeekLive presented by Sephora. I've got so much to blog about, but I'll start with the basics. It's such a crazy scene backstage--between makeup artists, hair stylists, photographers and everybody else, it's almost hard to spot the models. So, they make a poster with all the models's headshots (or, as the models like to call it, mugshots). Here's a shot of the poster (hair and makeup look up top) , with a list of the models in the show

THE GALS: Naomi Campbell, Gemma Ward, Nicole Trunfio, Jessica Gomes, Trish Goff, Luca Gajdus, Hilary Rhoda, Caroline Winberg, Jessica Stam, Erin Wasson, Sasha Pivovarova, Marija, Marie Fuema, Lily Cole

THE GUYS: Tyson, Clay, RJ, Dan Cameron, Jared Jones, Andrew Purpura, Zakk Goodman, Josh Slack, Brian G.

FashionWeekLive: Sephora is the New Black

Sarah and Tommy, the fabulous makeup artists from Team Stila are modeling the Sephora T-shirts, which every makeup artists will be wearing tonight. The slogan? Sephora is the new black! But of course.