Celebrity A-listers showed us at the 2012 Golden Globes that the only way to go is au natural … makeup, that is! Forget the sultry smokey eyes and fake tans, this year stars like Charlize Theron, Reese Witherspoon and Michelle Williams kept it simple this year when it came to beauty.

Of course, there was the occasional bold red (and if we had lips like Angelina, we wouldn’t be able to resist the call of color either!), but most stars chose a nude lipstick with a little touch of gloss for their red carpet look. As for the eyes, again, stars chose to keep it simple with shades of peach, pink and tan, complemented by a light application of eyeliner. Blush was also used to give a natural and light sun-kissed look by applying a light shimmery pink, peach, or even a little bronzer to the cheeks. Many celebrities also embraced their natural hair, and instead of fighting the waves or curls they chose to accentuate them.

As the peak of winter slowly approaches us, it’s the perfect time of the year to give your skin a little bit of a break and go lighter on the makeup. This season, don’t worry that your summer glow has faded and embrace your lighter skin tone. Put the curling iron and straightner away and let your hair have a break from the heat. It’s time for your beauty to go au natural!

Learn more about makeup artistry on and off the red carpet by checking out makeup artist schools in your area today.

Courtesy UK_repsome via Flickr

Deep down, every woman longs to have a smooth and sleek tresses fit for a princess – Princess Kate Middleton to be exact. The world fell in love with Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, during her slow-growing romance and highly anticipated wedding to Prince William. As Kate crossed the bridge from “commoner” to royalty, she quickly became known for her fashion savvy and unique style that has been emulated by women all over the world. But, while many of us appreciate Kate for her stunning good looks, timeless grace and iconic style, we all simply LOVE her hair! And recently Kate’s stylist, James Pryce of Richard Ward Salon and Metrospa, has spoken out on how her tresses’ tonal color and simple long layers can be replicated with the help of a professional hairstylist or colorist.

Daily Care
If you want to achieve a look befitting Kate Middleton, you will need to rethink your daily hair care regimen. Princess-worthy hair requires serious conditioning. In order to keep your hair in tip-top shape, be sure to visit your hairstylist frequent. Kate Middleton has been visiting the same salon for eight years and has developed a strong relationship with Pryce, who travels with her for public appearances and other occasions.

If women want to keep their hair smooth and sleek, they may want to think about switching to a sulfates-free shampoo. Shampoos that use sodium lauryl sulfate in their formulas can strip the hair of its natural shine and contribute to frizz. To ensure princess-worthy shine, wash with a sodium sulfate-free shampoo.

Color and Highlights
One of Kate Middleton’s most striking – and most sought-after – hair trends is her rich brown hair color. According to her stylist, she achieves this beautiful brunette tone through the use of three or four shades of brown, which include a gloss treatment and low-light enhancements. To ensure your hair color is Kate-worthy, have your hairstylist apply the hair color on just a few strands of hair instead of large sections. This technique will help to achieve a subtle, more natural looking tresses.

Conditioning and Straightening
Considering Kate’s body and shine, it’s no wonder why many women are interested in Kate’s hair. It has been reported that Kate achieves her beautiful hair texture and distinctive shine through the use of keratin treatments. Keratin treatments have been gaining a lot of buzz with women who are looking for a more permanent solution to achieve radiant hair. Made popular in Brazil, keratin-based conditioning and straightening treatments work to replenish keratin, a protein naturally found in hair. As the keratin is absorbed into the hair, it fills in the damaged hair cuticle – leading to smoother, straighter hair.

Keratin-based treatments last for two months and can cost upward of $300 in a salon setting. Women can opt for a cheaper DIY keratin-based conditioning treatment by using silk protein masks on the hair. For best results, leave the protein masks on the hair overnight.

Whether or not you were like us and tuning in at 4 AM last spring to catch all of Kate and Will’s wedding festivities, you can’t deny that the Duchess has fantastic hair. And now, thanks to Pryce, we know how to try and duplicate it.

We love fun and funky new beauty ideas, so it’s no surprise that we’re fascinated by the outrageous and awesome Violent Lips, temporary lip tattoos that are growing in popularity. Kim Kardashian just posted a picture of her wearing them on her Celebuzz blog, and they’re cropping up all over the entertainment scene on singers, actresses and models who all have a flair for wearing bold beauty and makeup trends.

Personally, we’re all about a product that lets us experiment with no repercussions, which is exactly what Violent Lips offers. Pick out one of their wide variety of colors and patterns, put them on, and then dazzle people out on the town. They last 4-8 hours and can be removed simply by applying an oil-based makeup remover to your lips.

And with Violent Lips’ selection, you can be as funky as you want. Go racy with red fishnets or leopard print. Go wild with cupcake sprinkles, stars or checkers. Or go fabulous with their Glitteratti collection, our personal favorites, especially with the upcoming holiday parties. Spakrle is a big makeup trend everywhere else on your face – why not your lips?

You can get your hands on Violent Lips at Sephora or Ulta, or - better yet - you can just go straight to the source and order from their website. Bonus: They’re offering a 20% off and free shipping coupon, plus they have a whole page of tips and tutorials to help you apply them. Sounds good to us!

Photo by Upstate Options Magazine via Flickr

You’ve seen them on Steven Tyler. You’ve seen them on Ke$ha and Miley Cyrus. You’ve probably also seen them around town. Feather hair extensions are a red hot trend everywhere.

But do you know where this flashy and colorful fashion is coming from? And the controversy behind it?

Feather extensions – which clip into your locks and can last for a couple of months – come from roosters, or more specifically, from the backs of roosters that are specially bred to produce unnaturally long and striking saddle feathers. Before the trend explosion over the last year or two, they were used almost exclusively by fly fishermen as part of their tackle. But the rabid new demand for feathered tresses has made them expensive and difficult to come by.

And it has led to the slaughter of thousands of roosters a week.

But, you may say, that can’t be true – birds don’t have to be killed in order to get their feathers. That’s absolutely correct, but a lot of times, these roosters are. Thomas Whiting – head of Whiting Farms in Colorado, which is one of the largest producers of feather extensions – told the Orange County Register that the roosters “aren’t good for anything else,” so after they are de-feathered, they are euthanized and turned into compost.

And just to give you an idea of the scale: Whiting Farm alone ships out feathered bird hides to the tune of around 65,000 per week.

65,000.

The good news is that if you want to sport the look without supporting this brutal process, there are options. Do a quick search for “cruelty-free feather extensions,” and you’ll find that there are quite a few vendors out there who are taking a greener approach to the trend. Mostly, these vendors are getting their feathers from people who raise birds in safe, comfortable, no-kill environments and procure feathers naturally when the birds molt them. It is being embraced as a great alternative for those who keep an eye both on fashion and animal rights.

So before you clip in that bright-colored plumage on yourself or your clients, take some time to research your vendor. Don’t just succumb to the feather hair extension clamor – first, make sure you’re comfortable with where they’re coming from.

This summer’s favorite hairstyle isn’t that cute bob you were rocking last fall, or those long, beachy waves from a couple summers back.  Nope.  The new summer style is simple, classic and easy to achieve.  If you haven’t tried it out already, or noticed it on countless celebs, let us introduce you to this season’s it look—The Lob!  A fusion of the words “long” and “bob,” this hairstyle is exactly that—a long bob.  The right length of hair for a long bob is right at the shoulders or a little below.

A few celebrities who look great in a lob include Gwyenth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Nicole Richie, Rihanna and Selena Gomez.

Why should you try out the lob?

•    It looks good, trust us.  This hairstyle’s length—right above the shoulders—is the most attractive on all women because it frames the face.
•    It’s no big deal.   The best thing about the lob—you don’t have to go to extremes.  If you have long hair you don’t have to chop it all off, and if you have shorter hair it won’t take forever to grow out.
•    It helps you lose weight. Ok, not literally unfortunately. But, it will make you appear leaner, and that’s never a bad thing!  Lobs minimize round faces and big cheeks and make the face appear softer and more feminine.
•    It serves as a palette for new styles.  Say the style changes next fall into super short hair or long, luscious locks, or ponytails.  Where ever the trends go, a lob allows you to morph into it quickly!

Try out the lob for a sleek and easy to maintain summer style!

The History Of Razors – most likely tidbits left out of beauty schools‘ history classes.

30,000 B.C.
Cavemen get vain. Smart archeological people figure out that the earliest shaving razors were made of flint blades, which started out incredibly sharp, but dulled after use. Yes, cavemen used disposables.

3000 B.C.
Metal mania. Thanks to a lot of metal clanging and banging, copper razors (which make for a more “permanent” solution) make their way into the mainstream… well, if you want to call Egypt and India the mainstream of the B.C. era.

1500 – 1200 B.C.
Designer razors. Leave it to the Scandinavians to bring style to the art of shaving. Razors discovered from this time period were adorned with etchings of cool stuff like horses, and came in cute leather carrying cases. Seriously!

500 B.C.
Alexander the Clean Shaven. Apparently the “great” one was obsessed with having a smooth complexion. Legend has it that he wouldn’t be seen in battle before shaving.

300 B.C.
B.C. Barbershops. A rich Greek businessman, Publicus Ticinius Maenas, decided that he was too rich to shave himself, so he brought over professional barbers from Sicily, and started a fad. In fact, in Rome, a popular 21st birthday ritual included a first-shave party to celebrate adulthood.

50 B.C.
All hail the beardless. Speaking of Rome, Julius Caesar was very into personal grooming, down to plucking stray hairs with tweezers. As they say, when in Rome… shave like the Romans do.

1066 A.D.
Razor trickery. William the Conqueror defeats King Harold in the Battle of Hastings, in some part thanks to his army’s calculated decision to shave their faces and cut their hair to resemble monks. The deception meant that King Harold’s spies underestimated the enemy threat, and the rest is history.

1500
New world barbering. Archeological evidence indicates that the Aztec Indians of North and Central America created razors from volcanic glass. The first hot shave?

1770
The book on shaving. Perhaps it’s no surprise that a Frenchman literally wrote the book on shaving as an art form: The Art of Learning to Shave Oneself (La Pogonotomie). Sort of like a beauty how-to article, the guide may also be the first to introduce the concept of “safety” razor.

1847
Who you calling a hoe? The hoe-shaped razor (resembling the farming tool) that we recognize today can be credited to English inventor William Henson. It’s all about a comfortable grip.

1901
Shave safely. King Camp Gillette (you know, the-best-a-man-can-get guy) teams up with an MIT genius named William Nickerson to perfect the safety razor, complete with double-edged, disposable and replaceable blade. Side note: Isn’t Nickerson a funny name for a guy who wants others to shave without getting nicked?!

1914
The war on facial hair. Gilette’s popularity skyrockets worldwide after he cuts a deal with the U.S. Armed Forces to give every enlisted soldier a safety razor and blades as part of their off-to-war care package. Foreign soldiers are envious, and European sales soar.

1921
Invention intuition. Adapting a military idea for a practical use inspired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Jacob Schick to invent a new razor – the Magazine Repeating Razor. Similar to how a magazine clip contains bullets, this razor housed replacement blades right in the handle.

1928
No water required. Schick invents and patents the first electric dry shaver, great for roaring ‘20s men on the go.

1970s
Back to basics. The disposable razor, not popular since the stone ages, makes its way back into mass popularity. Cheap to make and easy to use, all of the major razor manufacturers offer a throwaway option.

Today
Headline-worthy beards. If you’re a celebrity, sporting a beard represents a lifestyle choice. Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Conan O’Brien, Joaquin Phoenix – need we say more?

Via: Spa Beauty Schools

You’ve seen them out there making headlines, raising eyebrows and perking paparazzi. It’s a simple pleasure we take in life by seeing celebrities in their “not-so fine” moments, especially when those moments are fashion and makeup mishaps. You know, when the celebrity in question looks more like they just got out of a stint in the slammer than off the red carpet. Well, today ladies and gentlemen (more so ladies) is your lucky day because this is a list of top celebrity fashion disasters. Enjoy!

Nicole Kidman
This one’s tough because Nicole Kidman typically radiates beauty and she does so subtly – never flaunting the vibe that she’s 1,000 times prettier than you like some celebrities do. But, this makeup mishap is just too hard to ignore. Next time Nicole, make sure you check your makeup in different lighting before you grace the presence of hundreds of flashing cameras.

See For Yourself: http://bit.ly/sq4jIp

Lindsay Lohan
Remember when it was semi-funny to make fun of Lohan’s absurd run-ins with the press? Well, it’s far past the road of funny and the car has really just taken the path to pitifully sad. Talk about a celebrity fallout. Well, despite the massive amounts of negative comments she already receives, Lindsay so eloquently lands on this list as well. In fact, finding a picture to encapsulate Lohan’s fashion disasters was probably easier than beating a 4-year-old in a spelling bee.

See For Yourself: http://bit.ly/u4OAeh

Christina Aguilera
Remember when Christina first hit the music scene with her “Genie in a Bottle” hit? Then you probably also remember her looking cute and innocent and not…well, like this. Although Christina has finally gone back to emphasizing her true beauty look as of late, the above picture really displays that whole drag look-alike phase that she went through during her “Dirty” period.

See For Yourself: http://bit.ly/v5zHjp

Mischa Barton
Mischa Barton is beautiful, there’s no denying that. But, sometimes even the most beautiful women can look straight up scary if their makeup application shares a closer resemblance to the aftermath of a fight than a trip to the salon. In this particular case, it looks like Barton just got double punched in the eyes. Is that black bruising or eye shadow?

See For Yourself: http://bit.ly/svJcxm

Carrot Top
This is believed to be comedian Carrot Top… in drag? Nope, just Carrot Top being himself. There is so many things wrong here that this picture should be in one of those children’s activity magazines (like Highlights) where you have to circle everything that is out of place in the picture. Although, this picture would probably only have one circle – the entire image.

See For Yourself: http://bit.ly/tggnMC

Our favorite celebrities always seem so put together—perfect hair and glowing, flawless complexions. We’d all like to replicate their look but most of us aren’t willing to shell out the big bucks that they do to look that good.  How can you be red-carpet worthy without spending a fortune on spa treatments and blowouts at the salon?  We’ve picked out a few celebrity make-up artist tips that won’t break the bank.  In fact, these items can all be purchased at your local drugstore.  No need for a shopping trip to Rodeo Drive!

Five Inexpensive Hollywood Beauty Tricks:

1. Primer: Okay, some stars really are born with perfect skin.  But most of them have a little secret called skin primer.  Most skin primers are silicone-based and act as a thin layer that fills in fine lines, large pores and acne scars. The result? A smooth, flawless complexion! Give skin primer a try and you’ll understand why Hollywood make-up artists call it the under-make-up make-up.

2. Skin Illuminator: Where do all the stars get their glow? Skin illuminators!  Most skin illuminators are pearlized shimmer creams that you put under your foundation or mix with your foundation for a fresh, glowing complexion.   Celebrity make-up artists warn that skin illuminators should not be confused with shimmery powder, which can end up looking like a sparkle-overdose.

3. Fast Lash by Tweezerman: Medication to make your eyelashes grow? Expensive.  Fake eyelashes? Messy and inconvenient.  The trick to get quick Hollywood lashes?  A secret to the stars—Fast Lash by Tweezerman.  In fact, it’s one of the most requested products for celebrity photo shoots and special events.  You first coat your lashes with regular mascara, then use Fast Lash which looks like a normal mascara tube but really contains dry white flakes.  These pieces of harmless polyester fiber act as a lash builder when you add another coat of regular mascara.  You’ll end up with thick, luscious lashes!

4. Blue, Yellow or Orange Concealer: You may not believe us, but putting these colors of concealer under your eyes will actually make them look better– trust us!  Blue-based concealer helps reflect light and makes eyes look brighter.  For even darker under-eye circles use yellow or orange concealer which will neutralize the darkness beneath the eyes.

5. Shampoo With Dimethicone Copolyol: Ya, we can’t pronounce it either. What we do know though is that shampoo that contains this ingredient has a little extra “oomph!”  Next time you need to purchase shampoo, make sure it has this volume booster in it.

Love makeup beyond just reading about it. Consider going to a makeup artist school and becoming certified.

Kate Middleton’s makeup look is classy and natural. With the Royal Wedding, makeup artist Sansia shows an easy step-by-step process to get the Rimmel London makeup look mirroring America’s latest obsession, Kate Middleton. For more Kate Middleton makeup looks, check our Liz Pugh’s makeup tricks and tips on the Rimmel Facbook page.

Feather trends…are HUGE right now!  Have you noticed that everywhere you turn you see feathers?  The feather trend is roosting on hair clips, purses, clothing, shoes and jewelry.

The types of feathers you’ll see range from flashy bright colors, classics like black or peacock, or muted neutral tones seen in pheasant feathers.

Tips for wearing feathers?  Keep the rest of your outfit understated if you’re sporting something feathered.  Because feathers are showy and theatrical they can make a great statement but can turn into plumage overload with too many feather pieces.

Five Ways To Wear the Feather Trend:

1)    Hair - Ever since Ke$ha graced us with her feathered-hair presence, it seems all of Hollywood has been embracing this boho-hipster accessory.  If you’re not as bold as Ke$ha, or would prefer to not look like you’re a dream catcher, there are more understated ways you can incorporate this look.  Try a head band with feathers or a small feathered hair clip with an up-do.

2)    Clothing - Everything from shirts to dresses are growing feathers these days.  A lot of feathered clothes almost mimic a “ballet” look thanks to the recent movie, “Black Swan.”  Feathered clothing is soft, elegant and ladylike while being whimsical at the same time.

3)    Shoes - Shoes that feature feathers can add a touch of elegance to your look.  The key is to be subtle.  You don’t want anyone to think you have a chicken on your foot. Black is the easiest color of feathered shoes to get away with if you’re not Lady Gaga.  Try wearing a solid-black dress with black feathered shoes.  Where else are feathered shoes making a scene? Weddings! Check out some beautiful frilly, white plumes for your feet if you’re tying the knot soon.

4)   Purse - Feathered purses are a fun throwback to the days of old Hollywood glamour.  Many women who would never consider donning a feather dress love toting a feathered purse because they see it more as a fun accessory they can pair with anything from jeans to a fancy dress.

5)   Jewelry - Probably the easiest way to include the feather trend in your look is with a piece of jewelry.  Adding a small pin, earrings, necklace or bracelet is temporary and understated when paired with your everyday outfit.  If you’re reluctant to have feathers brushing against your neck all day, try earrings to add pizzazz.

Will you be rocking the feather trend this season?