Unless you’re a Neutrogena spokesmodel with flawless skin, you know there’s a huge difference between you with makeup and the bare-faced you. At least, I know this in my case. It’s not that my skin tone is that uneven or that I have so much acne, but I look like a completely different (and prettier) person with a swipe of foundation and a dab of concealer in the problem areas.

So, I’m late to this train, but apparently, every year, MAC Cosmetics asks their artists from around the world to submit their fantasy Halloween makeup looks that can be recreated for you and me. (Sort of a great way to put in minimal effort on the Halloween front—they paint your face and you throw on those randy cat ears you’ve still got kicking around from last year. An instant getup!) Check out a video on how they put together the makeup sheets, like the one above, into actual faces, on real-live people—after the jump!

We’ve been pretty fall fashion crazy around here lately, and while nothing beats slipping into some thick wool tights and soft, chubby cardigans, it’s also the time of year when it might be a good idea to switch up your beauty regimen a smidge, too. A few ideas, after the jump!

In Asia, where some women prize the “big eye” look which is more natural to Western women, some ladies opt for plastic surgery, some wear dramatic makeup, and others put on LED eyelashes. “LED Eyelash is a clever product that speaks to many Asian women’s desire for bigger eyes,” according to the gizmo’s creator. The apparatus includes headphones and a sensor that responds to head and eye movement. If the wearer moves her head or blinks her eyes, the lights flash. The contraption looks a little awkward to wear, but one imagines it would work wonders when flirting in a dark bar. [BuzzFeed]

Cue chorus of girlish squeals (or, um, not). But don’t these Pupa Kokeshi makeup dolls kind of remind you of your childhood? This brings us back to the days of princess-packaged blush, Polly Pockets, and all the other pretty things (or necessities) you’d carry around in your purse. The palm-sized dolls open up to reveal a range of fun colors to put on your face. Try swiping an eyeshadow in dark purple, pastel lavender, midnight blue, or charcoal.

Here’s our official plea to makeup companies to produce more lighthearted cosmetics! [Spoiled Brat]

Yeah, you like the sound of that, dontcha? Today Too Faced Cosmetics announced a 75 percent off sale of “vintage” products that will soon be discontinued. For example, their tinted lip balms are just $2 (they used to be $11), and this Glamour-To-Go pocket-sized kit contains lip glosses and eye shadows for $8, down from $18.50. Could be a nice, cheap way to stock up your makeup bag. Because we have seen your makeup bag. And we know you have a three-year-old lipstick in there.

Sale starts today and runs through Oct. 25. Check it out here.

‘Tis nearly the season of the dreaded flu shot. Those things hurt! And they make you feel awful for a day. Another alternative? LaRocca’s Shield Multi-Active lip balm contains bacteria-fighting ingredients like Camu Camu, a blend of amino acids and vitamin C, which helps strengthen your immune system. There’s also Cha de burge, which is another property used to help kill viruses. (Yeah, we’ve never heard of either of those before, either. But everything you read on the internet is true, right?)

“Anti-Microbal” elements aside, the balm also acts as a good lip moisturizer. Does it really fight off illness? We hear the psychosomatic benefits are wonderful. [$18, LaRoccaSkinCare.com via DailyCandy]

When I hear stories about people who wake up at 5 a.m. to “put their face on,” I kind of feel like vomiting. (And if I weren’t too busy sleeping in, I would.) Honestly, it should never take more than about five minutes to put on totally passable makeup for the day. And if you pass the 20-minute mark, you’ve got way too much junk on your face. Here’s all you need to look good without waking up at the ass crack of dawn.

We are big lovers of red lipstick. But sometimes the full-on red lip is too much of a commitment. Our favorite low-maintenance alternative is a red lip stain that’ll leave you looking like you just ate cherry pie but managed to remain fabulous-looking.

Unfortunately, most stains don’t last nearly as long as they claim and prove either too watery or too sticky. So we were pleased to see that Sephora’s uber-inexpensive Lush Flush Wine Lip & Cheek Stain actually does the trick pretty well. It lasts a few hours, doesn’t cement your lips together and comes in the perfect shade of berry red. We like. [$10, Sephora]

The webs have been buzzing over MAC‘s much-anticipated new all-black collection, Style Black, for awhile now. We’re excited to report it finally launched today! We are not just talking about eyeliner here, we’re talking black lipstick, baby. Now, we’ve all decided that the latter is one helluva tricky trend, but today we’ve got options. The line includes three Glimmerglass glosses that make black lips a little more wearable: There’s Blackfire Sheer black with berry-ish pearl; Bling Black Sheer, which is translucent black with a gold glimmer; and, of course, Blackware Creamy, which is a true black for the truly brave. Either you like to roll goth-style or you don’t, but we definitely plan on snapping up a couple of the limited editions. Check out the whole collection here.

Peggy Olson has really stepped up her look on the current season of “Mad Men,” but she still isn’t quite as lovely as Elisabeth Moss is when she’s out of character. The actress looked quite nice on the red carpet last night with her simple makeup that eschewed the Hollywood trend to heap on the bronzer. Find out how to get her look after the jump!

Prescriptives, the makeup company known for skin care-friendly products and custom blends, is going out of business. Apparently, the brand, a division of Estee Lauder, hasn’t been performing well, and its shutdown is part of company restructuring. Eek! What comes next? Please don’t take away our Bobbi Brown or Clinique goods (seems unlikely).

Anyhow, it’s a shame because we’ve long been obsessed with their Magic line foundations, which have the greatest texture. Luckily, Prescriptives fans now have fair warning, as wholesale distribution will end in January, and the rest of the stock will be sold on the Prescriptives website until supplies last. Better stock up now before you have to scour eBay! [Wall Street Journal]

The clothes at the Doo.Ri show last night were mostly gray, accented with a couple blue and peach pieces. The makeup matched, though in a rather unexpected way. Makeup artist Tom Pecheux made the models’ lips blue. Check it out!

Designer Catherine Malandrino’s spring 2010 collection was inspired by four locales: the Sudan, the Sahara, Peru, and Polynesia. The makeup, designed by Tom Pecheux for MAC, reflected these far-flung places. “The look is very ethnic, quite tribal,” Pecheux told us. “There’s a desert flavor, and the makeup is a bit rough. Brushes aren’t allowed. We’re only using fingers.” While the inspiration wasn’t the least bit rock ‘n’ roll, the makeup would be totally fitting for the lead singer of a band.

It was eyeliner hysteria last night on the MTV VMAs red carpet—I want to say 98 percent of the starlets that showed up (Cassie, Nicky Hilton, Pink, J.Lo, etc.), had some version of a heavily lined and super defined eye. Tres chic, sure—but only one pretty lady got the look really right: Lauren Conrad. Check her out above—could her eyes be anymore gorgeous, huge and perfect? There’s one big reason why her version of lined eyes really stood out from the pack, and it’s something you don’t need to hire a makeup artist to pull off yourself. Get the trick we all could use—and check out the one VMA attendee that should have heeded our advice…after the jump!

Members-only sample sale sites like Gilt Groupe are growing in number. But even as getting designer duds at deep discounts becomes easier, deals on makeup are almost non-existent. Or were almost non-existent, anyway. Enter The Fairest, an online makeup sale site, launched yesterday with offerings from Stila (at 50 percent off) to Jurlique (almost 70 percent below retail).

The site only deals in the big name brands and sales last 24 to 48 hours, with the good stuff moving quickly. But members—and all you have to do to be a member is sign up—get weekly email reminders of what’s to come during the week. We’re seeing our makeup bags growing bulkier already… [Style.com]

As someone with an uneven skin tone, I have a hard time applying foundation (which I wear everyday). I generally use a brush, but end up taking my fingers to my face to even out the streaky lines it makes. With a sponge it’s also hard to get an even application because each time you re-dab it into a pool of foundation and then apply to the skin, you have to spread around the excess.

For people (like moi) who are obsessed with flawless skin, the Temptu AIRpod system will be a miracle worker.

I’d never heard of lip primer before I saw Trish McEvoy’s sleek black tube of the stuff. Face primer? Yes. Eyelid primer? Of course. But never lip primer. Naturally, we assumed it had to be some sort of miraculous well-kept secret and became rather inquisitive. Curious enough, in fact, to waste $22 on what turned out to be essentially glorified chapstick in a good-looking vessel.

If you spend enough time in Sephora, you’ll see some disconcerting things, like booger-y children sticking their fingers in tubs of lip gloss, or gross grownups abusing their communal lipstick-testing privileges. But a few days ago while strolling around the makeup store, I witnessed a sight I’ve never seen: a woman (I assume she was the mom) swiping blue eye shadow on a young girl who must have been about four years old. I’ve seen lots of kids with painted nails out and about, but never little girls wearing adult makeup. 

Not to sound like an old grump complaining about “the kids these days,” but eye shadow on a four-year-old? Really? Isn’t that a bit young? Playing with makeup never appealed to me when I was a little girl myself, though, so perhaps I just don’t understand.