Vlogging With Makeup

This week I've been picking up a lot of beauty-related obsessions on the Web - and not just because I've been playing with Taaz.com (mostly to test out several makeup looks on my own pictures, but also for the, uh, "stress relief"). Recently I've just discovered Lauren Luke and her YouTube channel of video-log makeovers, which I discovered after looking at videos for both Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love" (the UK version*) and Adele's "Chasing Pavements" (though Lauren's Adele-inspired look is different from the retro-eyeliner in this video). There's just something hypnotizing about her video log entries; her accent is just charming, and you can even hear her pug snoring loudly in the background. While she does start every entry practically bare-faced with minimal to no foundation, she's also a huge believer in MAC and Stila - in particular MAC's Shadesticks and Pigments, which figure prominently in her video demonstrations.

(And lest you think that some of her products are beyond your reach, Lauren also champions NYX and L'Oreal's HIP line.)

Here's Lauren demonstrating a technique for making green eyeshadow more tolerable for dark brown eyes - gotta love her use of Benefit's Lemon-Aid as a base, and the combination of green with a hit of purple!



And here's the Leona Lewis-inspired eye look, tamed down to the essentials of fantastic eyeshadow and peachy-pink lipstick.



The best part of these video-log entries is that Lauren demonstrates these looks in real time, with minimal (and somewhat crude) editing, so you can either stop, rewind, or gloss over the boring parts if you find that she's going too fast for your pace.

So far Lauren's videos have already captured lots of media attention in the UK - and has even caught the eye of the bigwigs at MAC, who have invited her to a company event in London. I can't wait to see what will come out of her MAC experience!

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*A word about "Bleeding Love": I like to call the UK video "the one where Leona Lewis shows off what she learned from the Nicole Scherzinger School of Fake Bake and Sexy Choreography." Not that it's bad, really; it's just that, apart from the gorgeous eye makeup that inspired Lauren's video-log entry, Leona looks unnecessarily shiny and varnished, and the chest-thrust/rain-dance moves don't help her either. I personally prefer the US version myself, since both her moves and skin look more natural.