What Guys Think About Makeup

The makeup world is a multi-billion dollar industry. From the scientists and lab technicians who study all the ingredients  (to make sure you skin doesn't bubble up when you apply makeup), to the artists at the MAC counter selling you hundreds of dollars of the highest brand -- there are millions of people in between. In the old days, women would put their health at risk to make their faces pale (which was hot back then) using lead, mercury and even leeches to achieve this look. Were the guys really into this? Was the pale face trend, or the intricate ways we apply eye shadow REALLY doing anything for the guys? Let's observe and analyze the in-depth conversation I had with my fiance, who is definitely a man's man.  He's the ultimate hetero, who defines seasons of the year by the type of sports game (i.e. basketball season, football season, etc.)

Ahem...here it is....

Eric: "You're so beautiful"

Me: "Really? You never say I look beautiful when I wear makeup. I mean, do you like me with makeup?"

Eric: "Well of course you look pretty with makeup."

Me: "You seem to compliment me more when I look like a little dude." (that's just how I feel without makeup sometimes)

Eric: "No, when you're Not wearing makeup it's like, you look innocent.  I look in your eyes and see your soul. I can't see to your soul with all that clown whore makeup on."

Me: "................(blink blink)....................thanks.........."

There ya have it.  So it got me thinking, who do we put makeup on for?  And then I realized....for ourselves!  It's not always about them.   He may feel a deeper connection with me without my makeup, but I feel better and more confident with makeup on!  I think guys definitely would know the difference if the world went without makeup.  Our skin wouldn't look as smooth and, as an Asian, maybe my eyes wouldn't look as big.  My face is my resume honey.  No one likes a little dude girl with no makeup on.  So let me ask you boys this...which way do you prefer to see these girls?

Don't kid yourselves boys, you'd much prefer us with makeup on.  So, is the billion dollar makeup industry justified?  AbsoFrickinLutely!

Watch out for many many future posts on makeup and all of the knowledge you need to know to feel confident and sexy with makeup on.  And it's just fun to apply isn't it?

Hot Fashion Trends: Cardigans for Guys

Alright so let's talk about cardigans.  I guess if the dorky "Mr. Rogers look" is in, I'll go with it.  It's not completely dorky, as it can be a very metro look on many guys.  Fashion for men is more limited than women, so if you want to try a new look for yourself, layer on a cardigan to complete your outfit.  If you're normally a t-shirt and jeans guy, you can prep up your look by taking advantage of this trend.  Or if you wear a dress shirt and tie to the office, you can also layer on the cardigan to spice up your look and stay warm at the same time.  Fashion does have a function after all.  Or, what's even hotter is the dress shirt, cardigan, tie, with jeans to go out.  It shows you have style, but you don't care at the same time.  Girls dig that.

Take David Beckham for example.  Now, if you dress him in a garbage bag with homer simpson house slippers and Aretha Franklin's hat from the inauguration, he would still look gorgeous.  Just don't let him talk.  He has a squeaky voice.  I mean, let's be honest, it would be pretty funny if he wore that Aretha Franklin hat...but we'd still want to jump him afterwards.  He is big on cardigans and he wears it well.  If you can confidently pull off cardigans, get as creative and bold as you can.  Play with colors and patterns and wear the cardigan over a nice plaid or striped button down shirt.  Hot.  Guys, let me let you in on a little secret.  Girls don't care how you dress THAT much.  I mean as long as you're not wearing anime shirts (I didn't know what that was until recently, as I have never dated anyone who wore those) and suspenders, we love you in everything.  And especially if you stop fighting our fashion sense and let us dress you, nobody gets hurt and everybody wins.

Look at the couple walking down the street!  This guy pulls off the cardigan look very well.  He is in a nice black cardigan, button up shirt unbuttoned and relaxed at the top, nice shoes, and I like the wash of the jeans.  Strolling the streets comfortably, stylish...I'm sure it helps having a beautiful lady friend on your arm to boost your confidence level.  This is the perfect use of the cardigan.  I love it because it isn't Mr. Rogers, it isn't dorky, it's pretty timeless.  Thumbs up!

I'll have to hear your thoughts on this one.  Justin Timberlake rocks the cardigan a lot.  In this particular situation, I have no feeling.  I think it looks pretty effortless and nice.  But maybe I can't get over the creepy look in his eye to analyze this outfit.  Is it just me?  Or do you agree?

Haha look at this male model!  He's very serious about the cardigan look.  This is definitely more on the dorky side.  If you're an extremely hot or confident type A personality kind of guy, you can dork up your style and still be irresistible.  This is a very Euro, and while it's nice, you have to know what colors you look best in.  Do you look better in darker colors?  Or can you pull off the gray?  Not everyone can do it.  I personally think that guys usually look best in darker colors, but if you can pull off light colors or get bold with really bold colors, by all means, go for it.

Haha...uhm...No.  I do NOT like John Krasinski's cardigan here.  I feel like he paired a Fruit of the Loom or Hanes shirt with a cardigan.  Perhaps he tried, but this look is screaming bachelor in a bachelor pad with bachelor style -- and not in a good way.  If you're going to try something, commit to it and go for it all the way.  Buy the right undershirt, the right washed jeans, get accessories and ties, etc.  If you want to pair it with a t-shirt, go for a graphic tee or something more rockerish so you can mix styles and spice up your look.  NOT a plain white shirt.  Sorry John, better luck next time.

 

 

 

Looking to buy some stylish cardigans for men? Here are a few of my top picks:

Inaugural Ball Fashions

Now this is where fashion comes out to play!  This is where we get to see what's underneath those black coats and unveil who is hot and who is not!  Let's check in to see all of the gowns and dresses worn in this Cinderella moment.

Michelle Obama
Michelle Michelle, you did it again.  Michelle Obama has apparently learned from her former mistake on election day.  The dress she wore looked like a volcano erupting from the midst of her belly.  But not today at the inauguration, and certainly not tonight!  She wore this stunning dress by Jason Wu who started his career by designing  clothes for toy dolls.  After he stopped practicing on the dolls and upgraded to human clothes, his career has taken off from there and hasn't stopped.  He has dressed Lisa Cant, Ivanka Trump and now for the first lady herself on one of the biggest nights in history.  We love this dress as it exemplifies two key elements of 2009's fashion trends;  the one shoulder dress married with the fairy tale romantic look with the flowers and the draping of the fabric.  The results?  Success!  She looks like a modern day Cinderella!

Jill Biden
Jill Biden continues to rock the 'red' from earlier today.  Her dress is designed by Lebanese designer Reem Acra who usually specializes in wedding gowns.  I thought it was plain, simple and age appropriate.  It didn't wow, but she still looks beautiful and you can't miss the red.  They both have a very classic Hollywood look and we dig that their biggest accessory is each other.  Such a cute couple!

Jennifer Lopez
J.Lo is trying to make a come back.  If you were uninterested in her rocky relationship with her hubby, she'll put her butt in this gown and right back in your face so you'll remember her.  Although she may have been trying to steal the spotlight a little bit, I definitely can't hate.  She looks beautiful in this white gown.  In this classy number, she is Jenny from the Beverly Hills block, ok.  If her marriage is on the rocks, I wouldn't be able to tell as she is glowing and vibrant.  Bring it back on J.Lo, we still have love for you!

Beyonce Knowles
Beyonce....hmm..I feel like this dress didn't compliment her assets very well.  It kind of made her look wide.  The color doesn't do it for me and the neckline doesn't look right on her.  It looks like a bridesmaids dress that you hate your girlfriend for making you buy.  She has curves and I felt like this dress was covering it up or highlighting the wrong curves, I'm not sure.  All I'm saying is, she has looked better.  That's ok though, we all have our days.  She's usually stunning so we're over it.  Her performance rocked and she definitely delivered!  The performance surpasses any fashion opinion we may have.

Alicia Keys
On the other hand, I thought Alicia Keys looked very sophisticated and fun in this black dress.  I like the length of the dress, the trim around the bottom of the dress gives it a little rocker look, and the belt accents her waistline just perfectly.  I love it!  I have seen her perform live and she did it again with tonight's performance.  It was what you would expect of Alicia.  It's hard to ever say anything bad about her, why would you want to?  She's so cool!

Inauguration Day Fashion

Whether or not you voted for him (and most of us did), no one can deny that today is a great moment in history. My mother, a 63 year old asian woman who lives in Kentucky, took off work today just to watch the inauguration. Ahh yes, you don't have to be black, white, blue, pink or yellow to be touched by this moment. Millions of people gathered and a slew of celebrities showed up to support Obama as his first official day in office. So, what did they wear? Which designer was lucky enough to dress Michelle Obama? Let's take a look:

Michelle Obama
Although Glenn Close's gaudy gold pant suit number was a flop, Michelle Obama proves that gold, when done right, is sophisticated, fun and flashy!  This sparkly gold dress with matching coat was designed by Isabel Toledo who worked at Anne Klein for some time and is known for her whimsical patterns and fabrics in many of her designs.  What I love about this outfit is that she paired the stunning gold dress with green gloves from J. Crew.  It goes to show that true fashionistas pair expensive items with practical, more inexpensive pieces to complete a gorgeous look.  Good job Michelle!  We say this is a fashion "Yes You Did Honey!"...she worked it -- I thought it was fierce.

Malia & Sasha Obama
Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, were completely adorable in their colorful blue and pink coats (also from J. Crew).  Bold colors are hot this year and it looks like these girls...or maybe their mother....or maybe the White House stylist, definitely got the memo!  So cute!  They look like they just stepped out of a J. Crew ad.

Jill Biden
Ok I'm going to be honest, I don't know who Jill Biden was wearing.  But she didn't take a backseat on the fashion front behind Michelle Obama at all!  She worked it in this red coat (could it also be from J.Crew?) with some cute black boots and strutted her stuff with the best of them.   Everyone always notices a lady in red!

Oprah
Of course the big O herself was there.  Perhaps she didn't want to upstage anyone so she kept it neutral and basic in this boring beige/tan number.  Whether or not she wore something flashy, she's Oprah and we would never mistaken her for a commoner on the streets.  I guess being Oprah is her greatest accessory.

Aretha Franklin
Aretha Aretha Aretha....wow...she sure likes the bows.  This one seems pretty dominate....like she's a big gray present.  It's totally Aretha Franklin, and she's always representin herself.  But if I were to put that on, I would look like a gerber baby.  Hey 2009 is all about the big, bold, loud and flashy right?  I can't hate, Aretha did her thing.

Beyonce & Jay-Z
What is that floating hat walking around with Beyonce?  Oh no, it's just her husband Jay-Z and all of the ridiculousness worn right on top of his head.  This hat is hilarious and sad at the same time.  I think to myself, "How many cute fuzzy animals did it take to make this ugly headgear?"  I read a comment on another site where someone said "Jay-Z looks stupid, I hope the animal he killed to make this hat comes back to life and smacks him!"...haha, thats hilarious.  But seriously, why did Beyonce let him out like this?  Would Sasha Fierce have said something to him?

Don King
Don King is definitely showing off his love for America in this very confusing and colorful ensemble.  Again, 2009 is the year for obnoxious and loud fashion, but I heard Don King's outfit screaming from my room here in California.  It's a little too loud Don.  We get it, you love America and you're very excited with the hair and all.  Is he invited to the ball?  I mean, he can't seriously go to a ball like that.  Maybe he's just there for the parade.  If he's just there for the parade then I guess the outfit is fine.  One thing is for sure, he is festive and he committed to his fashion decision.  He worked that American flag up and down those sleeves! GO ON WIT YO BAD SELF DON!

Did you watch the inauguration?  What are your thoughts?  Leave me comments!

UPDATE: Did you guys see this on the Ellen Show?  Hilair!