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RI Beauty Insider: Get Naked – Nude Makeup for Late Summer Days

Saturday, August 23, 2014

Donna Macdonald, GoLocalProv Beauty Expert

Summer is winding down fast and although your tropical lipstick is looking a little outré, you’re not quite ready for fall’s russets and mulberry’s. Enter THE NUDES…makeup’s new darlings - just perfect for the transitional face.

End of summer is a great time to try naked color for casual polished glamour. This is not a no-makeup look but a just-back-from-vacation glow and sophistication that will carry you straight through to apple-pickin’ weather and all those lovely landscape colors. For now, read on and get naked:

Your canvas

Create a neutral canvas and hide imperfections such as discoloration. Hopefully, you wore sunscreen but you may still need to eliminate discoloration to create a picture-perfect skin tone. No one thought the powder foundation giant, bareMinerals would ever create a liquid foundation but they have. BareSkin Pure Brightening Serum Foundation is a weightless concoction with antioxidants for that light-reflecting backdrop that’s so gorgeous this time of year. Ulta or bareMinerals.com

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Eyes

With a nude look, eyes need to take center stage with strong lashes and velvety neutral lids. Laura Mercier’s Eye Canvas smoothed over the lid up to the brow line, removes any distracting redness. Now you can brush on your favorite low-key eye shadow. It’s ok to use a wee bit of frost but only if your shadow is sheer or pale. Line your lids with a great cocoa liner. Revlon’s Colorstay Eyeliner in Brown gives the right amount of understated definition. Grab your mascara tube and do a number on both uppers and lowers. This look is about textures including flirty lashes. Laura Mercier, Nordstrom; Revlon, Rite-Aid

Lippie

Nude lips are the essence of a sexy neutral style but if it isn’t done right, you’ll run the risk of just looking tired. Dior Rouge Dior Lip Color in Angelique Beige gives a soft subtle elegant flair with a touch of warm brown. It’s the perfect amount of tone and beige that won’t wash you out. Or try the palest rose pink in Yves St. Laurent Rouge Volupté lipstick in Nude. It’s a pretty feminine no-color color which will give you that sex kitten pout Bridgett Bardot rocked. Norstrom.com

Cheeks

Your one pop of color should be blush. L'Oréal Paris True Match Blush in Barely Blushing is a velvety tint that imparts the most natural looking cheek glow for a barely-there sun kissed look. Stroke on the apples of your cheeks and bridge of your nose for a healthy spark.

Try the naked look while summer is still here. Afterall, you’ll be plenty covered up before you know it.

Donna Macdonald is a freelance writer who enjoys covering topics of interest to women, especially fragrance, style, beauty. She has also written marketing material for a women's book that hit the New York Times Bestseller list and netted her an up close and personal discussion on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Donna currently writes her own personal blog, alovelyinconsequence.blogspot.com where she also writes about issues close to a woman's heart. Donna believes that when a woman finds beauty in the world, she will find beauty in herself.

Related Slideshow: 2013 Gift Guide: Great Gifts for Her

Charm Bangle

Are you looking to find a memorable gift for that special woman in your life? Why not get her a customizable charm bangle bracelet from Alex and Ani? Bracelets come in either gold or silver, while Alex and Ani offers a nearly endless variety of charms. From spiritual symbols to birthstones, Alex and Ani allows you to pick the charm the best embodies special someone.

Price: $28

Buy it from: Alex and Ani has five retail stores throughout Rhode Island. Click here to find the location nearest you or shop online at alexandani.com.

Cozy Accessories

Warm her up with a gift of comfort and joy. Check out the vividly hued hats, scarves and gloves at Karol Richardson in Newport. This joyous boutique will find you pondering between eternity scarves and fingerless mitts by Wooden Ships in great crayon colors sure to brighten up her dreary winter day.

Price: $32-$52

Buy it from: Karol Richardson, 24 Washington Sq., Newport

Gorgeous Lingerie

Whether it's a nightgown for Mom or a sexy bra set for sis, a well-crafted piece of lingerie is an utterly luxurious gift. But don't leave yourself off Santa's list. Let a stunning lace chemise find its way into your shopping bag when you search for girly gifts for others. You will get thanks galore on Christmas Eve!

Price: $28-$198

But it from: Deborah Winthrop Lingerie, 424 Thames St., Newport

Beautiful Jewelry

Who doesn't want a little bling under the tree on Christmas morning? Flatter her with your best-things-come-in-small-packages sensibility and choose something unique from this lovely little shop. Our suggestion would be a gemstone necklace or ring in their signature lollipop colors. It doesn't have to be fancy; just sweet and adorable.

Price: Beginning at $900

Buy it from: Tiffany Peay Jewelry, 3851 Main Rd., Tiverton Four Corners

Perfume

Think outside the perfume box this year and fete her with a special “niche” fragrance that is out of the ordinary. Mignonette carries Caron perfumes from the old world Paris perfume house. If nothing tickles your fancy, splurge on Caron’s beautiful and extravagant powder puff instead.

Price: $40-$85

Buy it from: Mignonette, 301 Wickenden St., Providence

Skin Indulgences

Farmaesthetics is Rhode Island’s pride and joy as a premier natural skin care line. What we love about it is its greenness, localness, AND sophistication. Show her you understand her needs with their Seasonable Salt Cabinet web special. Make her long winter baths spa-worthy right at home while you take on the kids and their new toys. Or shop their inspiring Newport store and come away with their Big, Beautiful Box of Everything. She may just find a big, beautiful way to thank you!

Price: Bath Salts Gift Set $25; Big Beautiful Box of Everything $275

Buy it from: Farmaesthetics, 114 Bellevue Ave., Newport.

Fanciful Evening Bags

With New Year’s Eve looming, a darling evening bag is a coveted gift. These are not your mother's bags—most are handmade and textural with velvety fabrics, feathers, and sequins. But if you think an unpretentious bag is the chicest, a black envelope of boiled wool with a little tone-on-tone lace lets her get her Chanel on! It will look gorgeous tucked under her arm for that midnight champagne toast.

Price: $18-$50

Buy it from: Blue Hydrangea, Main St., Wickford.

Compact Beauties

Each holiday season, venerable cosmetic company, Estée Lauder releases their series of limited edition compacts. This year’s array includes several whimsical versions filled with pressed powder or solid perfume. These miniature works of art look like they came from an elegant art museum shop. They will surely captivate her imagination and she just might be found kissing Santa Claus under the tree after the kids are in bed!

Price: $89-$295

Buy it from: Nordstrom, 6 Providence Place, Providence

Luxurious Facial Cream

Enter Roses - not the flowering variety but the bare essence of the thirty roses that go into each tube of Dr. Hauschka Rose Day Cream. This lush emulsion has a major cult following and for good reasons: the delicate rose fragrance will delight the senses while the cream protects delicate outer skin against harsh winter weather. She’ll toss it in her bag for those outdoor Kennedy Plaza skating sessions. The entire Hauschka celebrity-endorsed line will be a welcome sight under her tree.

Price: Rose Day Cream $42.95

Buy it from: All That Matters, 315 Main St., Wakefield

Ultimate Splurge

This gossamer sweater may be the ultimate in plush decadence but what better way to say I love you than to wrap her shoulders in its filaments of sparkly warmth? The neutral grey go-with-anything hue will look party lovely over a winter white dress on New Year’s Eve or with a tank and jeans on the couch before the fire. Wherever you clink your champagne glasses and share that midnight kiss, you’ve given her a piece that will stand the test of time. And isn’t she worth that?

Price: Blissful loveliness for $1,500.

Buy it from: R.G.E., 1775 Bald Hill Rd., Warwick

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