Like most women, I am sure you play with color throughout the year and summer is no exception. Whether it’s a few highlights, or like me a new vibrant color every other month you still have to deal with fadage and the other ravages of summer. And none of us want to spend the entire summer hiding from the sun and heat just to make a color job last.

For one it’s impractical and for two, it’s just no fun! So, you might ask, just what are we supposed to do about it? Fear not my fabulous friends! I am about to pass on a few hair care tips that will save your hair and your budget.

1. Don’t wash your hair every day. I know, I know, sounds pretty impossible, especially to those of you currently yelling, My hair will get oily! I know this, but here’s the simple truth, you’re over washing your hair people! Try spreading it out to every other day, longer if you can last with out plotting my destruction.

2. Stop using Pantene! And herbal essences and suave and….Hopefully you get the picture. Sure they all smell really great, but they are hell on your hair. Stop the madness people! Love your hair and it will love you. Give it what you need. My personal preference? Enjoy Hair Care’s Sulfate Free Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner. These are scientifically formulated to be pH balanced to your skin and hair. These beauties won’t kill the budget nor will they kill the hair. I know once you use them you will love them the same way I do.

3. Use a Heat Protectant. If you are using heat to style your hair, Blow Dryer, Flat iron, Curling iron, you need to use a hair protectant. And not just any, some of these so called heat protectants or shine serums actually contain isopropyl alcohol which dries the hair and splits the cuticle wide open causing even more damage than heat alone. My suggestion: Enjoy Hair Care’s Shine Spray. I love this little pink bottle; it’s an addiction I know is good for me.

4. Indulge yourself. No, not just on those fabulous shoes you saw the other day at the mall (though I do encourage that too) I mean treat your hair to a deep conditioning treatment. Give it what it’s craving, protein and moisture. You won’t regret it.

So, now that you’re armed with these jewels of wisdom, head out there and have a great summer! (The full line of Enjoy Hair Care products can be found everyday at Image Provocateur)

VIP-CAT Bride, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal & Hair Makeup Specialists, VIP-CAT Makeup Academy, Sacramento’s Makeup School

I’m not just talking about skin cancer, though too much sun exposure can definitely lead to that. What I’m talking about is wrinkles, yep, those dastardly signs of aging that we all could do without.These denizens of maturity, these signatures of life, though on a man a few lines are thought distinguising, on a woman?

Not quite so distinguishing are they?So what are you supposed to do? Well for one, don’t tan your face and neck when in those hot boxes or under that golden orb. And if you really insist on baking your skin, stay hydrated.

Dehydration is the number one creator of fine lines and wrinkles in skin. It’s amazing what a difference a few ounces of water can do for your skin. Use a good moisturizer, hydrate and don’t leave your house without your sun screen.  Even with tanning a sun screen should be used to cut down on the damage done by direct sunlight.

So with all these side affects, wrinkles, dehydration, pre- mature aging and cancer why would anyone still want to tan the old fashioned way or in a tanning bed? Because we all want to be golden, that’s why!

My remedy for this? Airbrush spray tanning of course! The results are immediate, so there’s no need to plan in advance of your summer vacation or a night out in that little black dress that shows about a yard of leg.

Take fifteen minutes out of your day to have a golden tan that lasts a week. The perfect start to your summer tanning or the safest way to keep bronzed and avoid all the hazards of sun exposure. Not to mention, no tan lines, no orange streaks or ‘fake bake’ look, get a perfect sculpted tan every time.

And one more added benefit, the ingredients in this tanning solution, DHA and Aloe benefit the skin more than you might think. Aloe adds conditioning, moisturizing to your skin while the DHA has actually been known to help reduce the signs of cellulite! Yep, I said it, cellulite. So what are you waiting for? It’s time to get your own golden glow!

VIP-CAT Bride, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal & Hair Makeup Specialists, VIP-CAT Academy Sacramento’s Makeup School

MAKEUP APPLICATION TIPS by VIP-CAT:

Cleanse:  Cleanse face thoroughly using Japanese Wash Cloth with your favorite cleanser.

Moisturizer (Preferably after bath or shower). Make sure your moisturizer isn’t too greasy. Blot moisturizer off face gently with a tissue if this occurs before applying foundation.

Foundation:  When purchasing foundation ask your makeup artist to test color on forehead or décolleté’. It should blend with your skin tone. When applying foundation start at forehead and work down horizontally.

Make sure foundation is blended well over eyes and under eyes as well as underneath the jaw line, and down the neck. Apply with either fingertips or sponges.

Always blend foundation onto eyelids and lips; this will make your eye shadows and lipstick set and stay better throughout the day!

Always check your foundation color in the daylight.

Concealer any dark circles under eyes or imperfections in the skin can be covered with concealer. May be applied before foundation or after.

Powder:  This will set your foundation and give it a matte finish. This is very important when doing photography – you should always aim for no shine. Powder well with a powder brush.

When being photographed, apply a bit of powder to neck and chest as the skin without the foundation absorbs the light. On mature skin be careful not to powder too much under eye area, as it may become to dry looking.

Eyebrows:  Use eyebrow pencil or powder and angular eyebrow brush. In most cases the highest part of the brow arch should be just past iris of eye.

There are clear mascara products on the market I highly recommend, as this will set the brow to give it a nice clean appearance. Put this on after your brows have been filled to your liking.

*If your brows are unruly, try and get a professional to do a good wax on them and tweeze any stray hairs along the way.

Eyeshadow

1.Lid Color

2. Highlight or Brow color

3. Crease Color

This is a very conventional way of applying eye shadow, I find this works with most clients but remember there are no rules in applying makeup, whatever works for you and gives you the best results is what I recommend you go with.Remember there are many different eye shadow shapes and each one can give you a totally different kind of look, experiment and have fun with it!

Eyeliner:  Apply eyeliner as close to your lashes as possible. There is nothing more uncomplimentary then when you see the white line between the lashes and eyeliner line.

Choose powder, gel or liquid (I don’t like pencil because it moves as your body heats up and doesn’t stay well). The first point of contact with your brush is going to be the darkest. Start on the outer corner and work your way in, feathering in your eyeliner until you reach the inner corner. This is not easy. Practice, Practice, Practice!

Mascara:  A fanning, wiggling type movement from side to side followed by brushing the lashes outward, is what I like to do. If you do get the odd clump, separate with metal lash comb, you can purchase this in drugstores or beauty supply stores. BUT be careful, it’s very easy to poke yourself in the eye with these.

Lips:  Line lips with lip liner. Make sure your lip pencil is sharpened. Lining lips prevents bleeding of lipstick. Follow natural lip line. Fill in lip color, blot and reapply lipstick Gloss (optional)

* Powder first coat of lip liner and then reapply it will last longer

Blush:  Apply to apple of cheek, and dust on tip of nose and forehead. Make sure you don’t see lines. Set make up with powder once again.

*Blend well. Use a good blush brush, dip into your blush powder, shake off or if it’s your personal brush blow off any excess powder and apply to areas I mentioned above, lightly.

There you have it!  Tips to make your makeup Flawless!

VIP-CAT Bride, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal & Hair Makeup Specialists, VIP-CAT Makeup Academy, Sacramento’s Makeup School

In some ways it seems it is easier to stay hydrated during the sweltering heat of summer than it is when things cool down to brrrr. In the summer nothing is better than a nice cold glass of water. but in the winter, it’s just the opposite. We tend to order drinks that will warm us up from the inside, like hot tea, spiced cider, coffee and cocoa. It’s true all of these feel great when the wind is rushing about at a furious pace and sending those leaves skittering down the street. But they tend to leave our bodies sorely lacking in hydration. Yep, big problem.

So what are we supposed to do? You ask.

Well, it’s a scientific fact that the body absorbs water better when it is room temperature than when it is ice cold. However none of us are usually keen on the taste of lukewarm water. So that leaves us with a few options:

1. Carry a reusable water container since there is no need to clutter the landfills just to stay hydrated. Besides, this will save you money in the long run, since a bottle of water can run from $1 to $5.

2. Add a few drops of lemon juice to the water. This will make it much more palatable, even when it isn’t ice cold and will also give you a nice little boost of Vitamin C. A vitamin we could really use more of during the cold and flu season.

3. Avoid Sodas and other drinks that are high in sugar. These only serve to dehydrate you more and add more junk and chemicals to your body that none of us really need.

4. Avoid Caffein. I know, I know. You are screaming, BLASPHEMY! at this point, but just bear with me a moment longer. Ok, caffeine tends to curb your appetite, which is good, but it also curbs your thirst impulses. So if we don’t feel thirsty, why would we want to force ourselves to drink? So, if at all possible, avoid the caffeine.

So raise a glass of crystal clear water and make a toast to beautiful skin, YOUR beautiful skin.

VIP-CAT, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal & Hair Makeup Specialists, Sacramento’s Makeup School

The most sensitive wax to use on those delicate areas is a hard wax, though sugaring has been known to be very gentle as well.  Both of these products that reduces the pain and chances of break outs. In comparison to the standard soft wax/cloth strip method the difference in results and experience are huge. Some notes of warning however if you do decide to wax before the big day. Exfoliate well before your appointment and do it at least a week in advance. Aside from that, it’s time for you to get honeymoon ready!

It’s great…if you’re twenty with warm toned skin and no blemishes or dark circles.  Sorry ladies, BB Cream is nothing but hyped up tinted moisturizer.  It does have a very nice moisturizer, not too thick, not too oily, but it’s not all that impressive.  It didn’t matter what brand I tried and I did try four, they were all the same.  A warm toned tint that, if you were cool toned like I am, made you look jaundiced, which combined with dark circles was NOT pretty, and a very nice moisturizer.  Of all the brands I did try, L’Oreal was my favorite.  It had the best moisturizer, to silicone to tint ratio, it felt great on the skin, didn’t break me out and covered most of the blemish, though dark circles still showed through.

So, my final verdict?  If you are warm toned and don’t need too much coverage it’s a fabulous product for the price.  For the rest of us?  Don’t waste your money.

VIP-CAT Bridal & Academy of Cosmetic Arts

Sacramento’s On Location Bridal Hair & Makeup & Sacramento’s Makeup Academy

Leptin isn’t the only hormone we need to contend with.  The other one is Ghrelin.  It’s an appetite suppressant that kicks in while we are sleeping, making us not hungry.  Why?  Because we are not exerting ourselves so we don’t need to eat.  But if we are wide awake instead of catching some Z’s can increase the production of Ghrelin making us raid the fridge.

So, say Bye-Bye to your favorite snacks and get to bed on time.  DVR will record your favorite shows, while you get your eight hours of sleep and burn those calories.  At least that’s what I’m going to do.  No more late nights for this girl!

Sweet Dreams Everyone!

VIP-CAT Bride, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal Hair & Makeup

And

VIP-CAT Academy of Cosmetic Arts, Sacramento’s Makeup School

First, it’s important you have the right tools.  That means no cheapy plastic lashes, get real, 100% human hair false lashes with a nice small band.  This does not mean you need to spend a fortune on your lashes.  I don’t spend more than $2 per lash at the wig shop.  For those of you in the Sacramento, CA area, you can get amazing lashes by Red Cherry, Wig America and Adoro at Crown Wigs on the corner of Watt Avenue and Elk Horn Blvd in North Highlands.  The rest of you, I suggest doing a web search for those brands.  These brands are good quality, can be worn at least three more times and won’t break the bank.  I love MAC but do NOT pay $10 or more for a set of lashes.

Next you need to have a pair of slant edge tweezers; these will help you place the lash to your lashes.  And strip lash glue, clear.  The best brands for lash glue are Duo and Lash Grip.  Avoid black glue as this can show up more than the clear.  And the last thing you will need for your lovely lashes is a pair of scissors.  You need scissors because one size does NOT fit all in the lash world.  Lashes are supposed to be cut to fit your eyes.  The way you would measure this is from slightly out of your tear duct.  Do NOT take it all the way to the inside of your eye, because this will make it lift and poke you in the nose.  Not fun.  Start them where your natural lashes start.  The small end of the false lash goes towards the inside of your eye, while the fuller end goes outward.  Trim off any access lash that extends past where your own lashes end.  If you leave false lashes too long they will start to lift AND they will make your eyes look droopy.

Once you have all the tools and your lashes are trimmed you are ready to apply your lashes.

1.  Trim your false lashes to fit your eyes.  Each eye is unique so measure them separately.

2.  Do NOT apply mascara to your lashes.

3.  Apply a little bit of lash glue to the band.  Just a little bit is needed.  Let stand for a count of 30 before applying.

4.  Apply lashes from the inside towards the outside.  Apply to the lashes themselves NOT the skin.  Slid up your lashes until they touch the skin, but are NOT on the skin.

5.  Allow to dry with your eyes closed.

6.  Open your eyes, apply mascara from roots to tips, wiggling back and forth to blend your natural lashes with your false lashes.

And there you have it!  Beautiful lashes!

VIP-CAT Bride & VIP-CAT Academy of Cosmetic Arts

Sacramento’s On Location Bridal & Event Hair & Makeup, & Sacramento’s Makeup Academy

So, I’ve been a fan of Aveeno hand lotion for years.  The reason?  It’s the only lotion that helps my psoriasis and keeps my hands from cracking in the winter.  Aside from that it is pretty natural, can be found with no fragrance and is a life saver for those of us with eczema or psoriasis.  For that reason alone, when I saw shampoo and conditioner by Aveeno I was intrigued.  On a whim, and to give it a shot, I mean how bad could it be, I bought a bottle of shampoo and conditioner for dry and damaged hair.  My hair isn’t damaged, but it is dry, super thick and about as coarse as a horse’s tail.  So I figured what the hell I would give it a try.

Guess what?  I love it!  Oh, my lord, my hair feels like silk!  Ok, really thick silk, but still silk.  The shampoo is rich and thick, a little bit goes a looooong way and its sulfate free!  The conditioner is creamy and also sulfate free, enriched with wheat gluten protein, so those of you with a gluten allergy I am sorry, and made my hair feel amazing!

My hair hasn’t every felt this silky, not even when I use All Soft by Redken which is my usual favorite.  So, as you can tell I am very excited.  Not only does it make my hair feel great, it’s easy to find, yes, at Wal-Mart, costs only $6.47 for 10.5 ounces and is fragrance free.  Right now I am in LOVE.  I will be sure to keep you posted should Aveeno Nourish + Moisture Shampoo and Conditioner break my heart.  But for now?  These are must haves for my shower.

VIP-CAT Bride, Sacramento’s On Location Bridal Hair & Makeup and

VIP-CAT Academy of Cosmetic Arts, Sacramento’s Makeup School