Holy Grail, or The Hunt For The Perfect Black Eyeliner Part 1. Liquids & Gels

Cowgirls have their guns, artists have their brushes, and any badass babe worth her salt has at least one trusty black eyeliner at hand at all times.

As I have written previously, I am primarily a liquid liner gal. Unless I have a couple of shots of espresso under my belt, I can paint a pretty decent line. Liquid eyeliner, when done right lasts a long time. Unless you're absent-minded like me and rub your eyes with a full face of makeup. Anyway....

I've tried many a brand and type of liquid eyeliner along the way: classic liquid with brush, felt-tipped eye pen, and some really annoying ones with a crummy plastic rod instead of a brush.  I do have a favorite brand, but it never seems to stop me from trying others, and ultimately I go back to best, which happens to be the cheapest.  N.Y.C's New York Color Liquid Eyeliner in Jet Black.  $1.99 and the stuff has a smooth texture, dries perfectly, and has a decent brush.  If that is not available, Maybelline's Ultra Liner Waterproof in black is a decent back-up and not that pricey. Though I will note it is more like semi-waterproof. Don't go jumping in the pool with this stuff on. My more pricey favorite is NARS' in "Angel Heart." It really does go one gorgerously, but I have been happy enough with my cheapo drugstore brands that I've never replaced the one jar I bought years ago.

A few years ago, I was given the gift of a pot of MAC's Fluidline Gel Eyeliner and was smitten. The smooth texture and application with my own brush gave me much control, and the stuff looked amazing and stayed put. Stupidly, though, I left the lid off and it shriveled into a sad little lump. I never did replace it.  But this past weekend, I found a decent knock-off for the time being, as the economy has bit this makeup junkie's ass- Wet'n'Wild's Creme Eyeliner. It's a bit more oily than MAC's. This is one I'm saving for when I want a more smokey, smudgey, less precision line. If you have your own eyeliner brush, ditch the miniscule one that comes with it and use your own. Loreal's H.I.P line also has a gel pot eyeliner. I'd say it's closer to consistency to MAC's, but has a lousy brush like the Wet'n'Wild.  Both are useless if you don't have a decent stiff eyeliner brush.

For those of you who are in fear of putting on liquid liner or have no clue where to begin, here's a great tutorial. Note, I love all the makeup heads posting their stuff on youtube.

Card Revoked

Susan Boyle's.  She never will be a sleazy badass. 

Beauty Badass of the Day-Lady GaGa

When I started this blog, most of the women I considered beauty badasses were of another era, or of a more rock'n'roll ilk. But, whether love her or hate her HiNRG dance pop, take note Lady GaGa is a total beauty badass.

First of all, the woman is almost always seen completely devoid of pants. You have to be uber-confident to walk around in a Danskin all the time. In all seriousness, while I'm sure she has a passel of pros at her fingertips, she is willing to take risks from her bottled blond extensions, to changing up her makeup with every outfit.  What I adore about the Lady Ga is that she could give a shit about her natural born swarthiness, and goes for the gusto, making herself into possibly the most original looking pop artist of late.

She is, very heavily inspired by that 80s EuroTrash look-think overly tanned, bleached, gold and black, think Donatella Versace if she could sing in her youth.   In fact she is a fan of the late Gianni Versace:

MySpace Presents: The Fit with Lady Gaga

For some reason I imagine she smells like Lancome's Magie Noir and cigarettes.

YouTube abounds with tutorials on how to do GaGa inspired makeup:

Here's a makeup-tutorial from a woman with a fab accent on how to do Lady GaGa's "Beautiful Dirty Rich" video look:



Another tutorial on how to do Lady GaGa's "Poker Face" look:

So props to Lady GaGa for cobbling together a sexy, over-the-top look. And buy the way, don't bother with the pants.

Making Bad Girls Look Good-Black Eyeliner Vol. 1

From raccoon rings to Winehouse wings, the essential tool for every beauty badass is black eyeliner. Be it pencil, cake, liquid, or cone of kohl black eyeliner is vital.

How can you do the walk of shame without smudged eyeliner from the night before? Bedhead will just render you unkempt, while remnants of last nights face will scream "I know who had a good night last night!" Teary tantrums are just babyish hissy fits sans black eyeliner, and if you attempt bedroom eyes without a flick of the pencil, you might as well throw on a flannel nightgown and acquire 20 cats.

My first black eyeliner came from, of all people, a boy in my neighborhood. He was into making monster masks, and when my 12-year-old ass saw the tube in his mask making kit I knew I had to have it. I had only messed around with pencils up until that point He said it was from his mom. I could care less where it came from and after a bit of begging, I ran down the street to my house and proceeded practice making myself up looking like my idol at the time, Chrissie Hynde, circa 1979 (who I later learned was trying to look like one of the Beatle's girlfriends, who's name now escapes me.) Like musical prodigy playing Beethoven on the first attempt, it didn't take much work for me to get the look I was going for. Hands as steady as a surgeon, I swooshed the liquid black (and probably teeming with bacteria), up and over on my upper lids and never looked back.

that badass chick above is ronnie spector, definitely winehouse's muse

Working Hard To Make You Look Bad

“It costs a lot of money to look this cheap," once said Dolly Parton. The country diva also has often commented that her beauty role-models were the town tramps. While her over-the-top Vegasque, bewigged, daily drag may not be your scene, she does have what many other beauty badasses have-oodles of sex appeal.

This blog is not about, nor for anyone who is looking to look natural. Nor is it for anyone who is interested in portraying themselves as the girl next door. No, this blog is the chicks who perhaps would like to look like the girl who takes it in the back door or would at least consider it!

So if you're into painting yourself up into a smoldering bombshell, a tinted tart, or switchblade sister, please, do, stick around. Fun posts ahead!