Recently, I was editing photos from my anniversary party (One year down, only 64 more to go...) and I realized I was spending an inordinate amount of time removing blemishes, erasing stray pockets of skin bulges, whitening teeth & whitening eyes. Did I mention these were pictures of me? Ugh...
So, I decided to make 2013 The Year of Photoshopping Myself in Real Life!
This entails a no nonsense year of diet & exercise lifestyle changes, which should be easy since Hostess went "belly up" (sorry, I couldn't resist) and a beauty regimen that would make Halle Berry stop me in the street and say, "Girl, your skin in gorgeous!" This is mostly because, like all of us, I want to look and feel better but partly because it saves me hours in the Adobe Suite which can better spent reading Suri's Burn Book and bidding on Devil Dogs on eBay.
I was pondering this strategy when my friend Lauren called and invited me to an event at Space.NK Apothecary in Soho to celebrate the book How to Look Expensive by Andrea Pomerantz Lustig, a beauty guru with over 30 years of aesthetic acumen accrued during coveted positions at Sephora, Glamour & Cosmopolitan.
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I immediately ran to B & N and bought the book hoping I could skim it before meeting her at the event. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I could read and digest the material so quickly that I regretted not buying it sooner. I managed to finish 3/4 of it on the 40 minute train ride home and polished off the rest while at home waiting for my polish to dry.
I wouldn't be doing the book justice if I launched into a lengthy and descriptive review because Andrea would say less is more, so I'll just say it's a small book that's funny and informative and packs a big punch. You should buy it... now.
I knew I couldn't wait to meet her at the event; and the free champagne, cookies, make overs & manicures had absolutely nothing to do with that sentiment. I swear!
APL, which I can call her now because we're best friends, is just beautiful as you'd imagine a tenured beauty editor would be and she's as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside which she would tell you is the most important aspect of looking expensive.
The event was amazing and I even got to pick the brain of the beauty baroness herself. See our interview below and scroll down for more pictures of the event.
Is there a specific person you wrote the book for?
I thought about all of the women in my life. I have a 14 year old daughter so I guess I’d have to say for Anna and for all my nieces that came before her because I love to spread my wisdom . My daughter grew up around make up when she was little she used to play with all of the drawers of make up and my husband said to her, “ You cant wear make up until you're married.” Then she turned 12 and started wanting to wear make up and I love having a guide that I can show her to pass on my career’s worth of advice to her and then to her daughter and through generations.
Was it intentional to make the book so compact?
To be honest we cut 70 pages. I wrote a whole lot more and the publisher really wanted it to be a certain thickness and a certain size. It should really be a book that women can stick in their purse and take with them. Part of my philosophy is you don’t need everything. I’m not someone who’s gonna to tell you that you need to use 10 skin care products. I try to make it as simple as possible. I want the book to be digestible so that you can really get what you need out of it and learn from it without feeling overwhelmed. It's for women. It's not for makeup artists. Some of the beauty books out there are fantastic, but very technical. You really need to be a make up artist to understand them and I wanted my book to be for real women.
Does that mean there are more books in the works?
Yes, there are definitely more books in the works. I’ve been really busy promoting. I’ll be on the Today show on January 3. I have a lot of speaking engagements coming up. I have a blog which is currently focused on promoting the book but will start to have more content. So it’s been great meeting real women and getting ideas and that will all be part of book 2.
What are mistakes you see a lot of women making with beauty?
There are so many. I think one of the big mistakes is over doing it,wearing too much. Women think they have to cover up their skin and that itself is a mistake. Make up looks more modern and healthy if you’re not wearing too much.
Eyebrows are a big mistake. There are so many bad eyebrows. I list the types in the book.
Nails! You get a manicure and you leave it on for a week. As one manicurist I interviewed for the book said , “ A cheap looking manicure is often a good manicure that's been on too long.” Just take the nail polish off and moisturize your hands until you can get to a manicurist. You’ll look so much better than walking around with chipped nails.
I was surprised by how truly affordable some of your recommendationswere. There were some items that were only $4!
It's all about educating yourself and developing the taste and knowledge because once you have those things you can find great beauty products at whatever price you can afford. In the book I show you what you should get for any amount you have to spend. I do the low end beauty products. I do the green beauty products. I think there are so many great products out there that you don’t have to spend a fortune.
In the book I took the contents of my own make up bag and I was able to take 2/3 of the price off! Once it’s on your face you can’t tell the difference.
All of the drugstores ( CVS, Walgreens, Duane Reade) are coming out with these great beauty lines. NYC color, Wet & Wild, Rimmel, Milani; one of my favorites; is a brand the knocks off all of my favorite products, and NYX, a brand a lot of make up artists use.
You mention some celebrities that you feel don't look expensive. Did you worry about naming names in the book?
It goes back to the question of who did I write the book for. When my daughter first read the book she said, "Mom! I can’t believe you wrote that!” So was I afraid? Yes, but I think it proves a point. I sign all my books with "Paris, France not Paris Hilton." It just says it. It says it all.
Andrea's thoughts on:
Beauty: less is more
Inspiration: backstage, runway
Expensive: luxe, gorgeous, natural, Tracie Martyn, purity
Bliss: Vacation, because I need one
So, I want to hear from you. Would you or have your read How To Look Expensive? What are some of your best tips for scoring big beauty on a little budget?
Well, that's all for now.
Thanks for tuning in.
Until Next time... (which I promise won't be six months)!
Keep Adding Bliss!
Michelle
