Flipping through the April 2010 issue of Cosmo and was happy that it opened up right to the Gaga interview. I cannot explain how inspiring this woman is. I know, some of you are not big fans, and I’m sorry you have to deal with me and my Gaga Obsession with a capital O. However, you have to admit, some of her makeup looks are really fun. She is my absolute favorite celebrity to do tutorials based off of and I am working on a tutorial for what I think she should wear someday! =)

Anyway, the part of the interview I loved was where she talked about her ex-boyfriend. She said:

“I had a boyfriend who told me I’d never succeed, never be nominated for a Grammy, never have a hit song, and that he hoped I’d fail. I said to him, ‘Someday, when we’re not together, you won’t be able to order a cup of coffee at the fucking deli without hearing or seeing me.’”

Look at her now! She’s the most successful female artist of the moment and she doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. She’s an icon for Christ’s sake!

I just love stories like these. I love it when I hear successful people talk about how other people told them they would never amount to anything or they weren’t good enough. I’m not saying I’m the poster child of a success story, but as a wise woman named Doe Deere of Lime Crime Makeup told me over lunch months ago, “You certainly aren’t a failure!” I have had my fair share of people telling me [or talking behind my back] about how I could never succeed at anything. For any reason under the sun — I wasn’t “smart enough”, “pretty enough”, “cool enough”, “likeable enough”. Blah blah blah. I would be lying if I said I never believed any of those things for a second, but this is what calmed me: Looking around at all the other people who achieved their goals and made wonderful things happen in their life, I realized none of them were ever perfect. I’ve seen stupid people succeed. I’ve seen ugly people succeed. I’ve seen nerds succeed. I’ve seen people who I would rather gouge my eyeballs out than sit and have a two-minute conversation with succeed. We all have flaws and imperfections. I have dozens of things I don’t like about myself but that doesn’t stop me from loving and respecting myself. In the end, we only have ourselves. We are our main responsibilities. I’m all for improving on whatever you don’t like about yourself but there’s no reason to be fanatical. Not everyone will like you and that’s okay because as long as you like yourself, you can do anything! It’s a fact.

So, that all being said, don’t ever be afraid of doing what you want to do and going after your dreams no matter how big or small they may be. How far you go in life all depends on how far you let yourself get. Look at me, I’m not perfect! I have a big nose, bad skin, a nasally voice that I try desperately to change but I keep forgetting. I reached 50,000 subscribers last night. I cracked into the top 100 Most-Subscribed Gurus of All Time on YouTube. [It says I'm #94, but I'm actually around #84. Hasn't updated yet!] I’m going to be modeling beauty products on HSN next month [April 28th + 29th] in front of millions and millions and millions of viewers! And I have a whole bunch of other cool opportunities ahead of me that I cannot talk about yet and probably won’t be able to for a while… But yay!

Trust me when I say that you can succeed in whatever you want to do as well! Anything you set your focus on will only become bigger and bigger, so focus on your dreams and achieving them. Take some chances! You will be amazed at the results!

Watch the video for details on how you can enter! Do not leave your entries as comments to this post because they won’t be counted. They have to be left on the video’s page on YouTube which is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MO3X54WwSmo

TWITTER: http://www.twitter.com/jessicaharlow

FAN PAGE: http://www.facebook.com/missjessicaharlow

** Please note, I am not doing this to just get my numbers up there. My goal is to make things more interactive and fun for all you and myself. Twitter and Facebook are great ways to do that! And also, I’m not asking for you guys to write “I Love Jessica Harlow” because I’m an egotistical maniac. It’s just more enjoyable for me to see that than “Enter Me”. No guru ever had the balls to ask for people to tell them they loved them! It’s just meant to be silly and fun. I don’t expect you all to actually love me even though I love every single one of you which is why I do these giveaways! =) **

MWA!!!

I filmed this video last week because I got a few requests to do it and I really liked the look. After I filmed it, before I had the chance to edit it, I was flooded with requests to do this look. I guess I beat a lot of you to it because I already did it! Haha. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and that it was helpful.

LIST OF PRODUCTS USED

EYES:

Too Faced Shadow Insurance [It's a primer. It prevents your eye shadow from ever creasing or fading and also makes the pigments appear truer. Urban Decay's Primer Potion is also a good alternative.]

MAC Eye Shadow in “Gesso” [a matte white. A pearly/satiny white would work well, too.]

MAC Eye Shadow in “Electra” [A gorgeous shimmery silver. Must-Have!]

MAC Eye Shadow in “Plummage” [A deep  matte navy.]

MAC Eye Shadow in “Carbon” [matte black.]

L’Oreal Lineur Intense in “Carbon Black” [Love it but wish it were waterproof. Lancome's Artliner or Stila's Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Liner are excellent high-end alternatives.]

MAC Fluidline in “Blacktrack” [A black gel liner. Used in the waterline. Not recommended for use in the waterline but I've been using it for years and have yet to go blind.]

Illamasqua Volume Mascara

Shu Uemura Eye Lash Curler

FACE + CHEEKS

Illamasqua Rich Liquid Foundation [Used mostly as a concealer on red areas. Blended carefully.]

Makeup Forever Mattifying Translucent Powder

Benefit Hoola Bronzing Powder [Matte bronzer.]

LIPS

Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss in “Rouse” [Sheer yet pigmented bubblegum pink gloss]

Loving Anne Hathaway’s look for the Alice in Wonderland London premiere. She looks very beautiful and I’m actually loving the fair skinned look. It’s quite refreshing to see someone wearing their actual skin tone, what with all the orange Jersey Shore cast members running around Hollywood!

I wasn’t too thrilled with the Vivienne Westwood dress. I’m not a fan of any dress that makes boobs look weird or doesn’t fall correctly. I hated her nail polish! I would have loved to see a dark nail with this ensemble. The shoes are an atrocious afterthought. I think this would have went over a lot better if the dress was floor-length.

On a positive note, I loved her accessories — the studded cuffs worn together on one wrist while the other hand is only carrying one big clunker of a ring! The makeup looked beautiful on her. Plummy brown lids, super black lashes, a natural just-kissed lip, with just enough peachy bronze on the cheeks so that she doesn’t look dead. She herself looked so gorgeous I forget how much I don’t like the bottom part of the dress or the shoes.

What do you guys think?

1. The Blazer

ArynK Palm Beach Blazer – $98; ShopNastyGal.com

Boston Proper Boyfriend Blazer – $98; BostonProper.com

Boston Proper Studded Blazer – $119 ; BostonProper.com

Blazers are a must-have staple for your spring wardrobe. They can be thrown on with a pair of destroyed denim and a T-Shirt and make you look instantly cool and chic. You will always look put together and looking put together is a must! Again, they don’t have to be super expensive.

2. Destroyed Denim

Abercrombie & Fitch Brett Super Skinny Destroyed Jean – $70; Abercrombie.com

Siwy Hanna Slim Destroyed Denim – $198; Shopbop.com

I love destroyed denim and best of all, you can make your own pair of destroyed denim jeans easily. Take an old pair of jeans, a cheese grater, sand paper, and some bleach, and you’re in business!

3. Printed Sort of Pleated Skirt

Forever 21 Printed Pleat Skirt – $18; Forever21.com

Forever 21 Dotted Pleat Skirt – $20; Forever21.com

A plain shirt tucked into one of these with either a statement belt or necklace would look cute, feminine, and fashionable. What’s not to love?

4. Statement Necklace

ASOS Statement Necklace – $34; Asos.com

This can dress up even the plainest of outfits. Fabulous!

]]> http://www.jessicaharlow.com/index.php/2010/02/28/jessica-harlows-spring-must-haves/feed/ 1