Let Me Be Your Star Marilyn Inspired Outfit Of the Day

Hello starlets,

I just wanted to quickly share the look I put together for my performance of "Let Me Be Your Star" from the NBC show Smash. I wanted to do something inspired by Marilyn Monroe without it looking like a costume, though I did go heavier on the makeup than I usually do, but I always do that for performances. I would have loved to have recorded the performance for you but it was a small venue and pretty informal. I might eventually put up a recording on my youtube page if you'd like. It's probably better that I didn't record it anyway as I'm not sure if it was any good. You practice and practice and when you get in front of an audience, most of what you've rehearsed goes winging out of your head and your fall back on instinct. I had a bit of choreography that I had to throw out when I realized I would be boxed in by the way the microphones and audio devices were positioned. And singing a cappella solo to a small room is very different from being on a stage. It was a little petrifying to be honest.

You can find my review of the polish I was wearing, Maybelline's Gold's Night Out here. http://smartandsarcasticwithdashesofinsanity.blogspot.com/2013/04/review-of-maybelline-color-show-sequins.html

As for my makeup, I kept things pretty simple. I did a basic cat eye (not Marilyn's and not my normal cat eye either). I usually try and do something thinner and a bit more subtle and stop at the center of the eye but I wanted something more theatrical that would pop in almost a cartoonish way so I traced along my entire eyelid and made the line a little thicker than I would for an ordinary day. I'm not really in love with the Dollywink eyeliner pen I used for this look. I like the precision I get on the flick but it's a bit like using a cheap felt tip pen. It's just not that pigmented, and I feel like I'm doing thin watercolor washes to build up the color I want. Also, the precise point makes a thick eyeliner look like this more time consuming.

I used Maybelline's Dream Lumi Concealer in Buff as my undereye concealer. I will be reviewing that concealer soon. Again, I wouldn't specifically recommend it for this look. Just use whatever concealer works for you.

And as an extra theatrical touch I filled in my brows a bit with MAC Carbon Black eyeshadow. You need to use a very light hand as it's easy to go overboard.

You can't really see my blush that well in this picture but I used Stila's cream blush in Lillium. I just used my fingers to apply it very lightly.

On my lips I used Clinique's Chubby Stick in Voluptuous Violet as a base (more for the moisture than the pigment) and put Maybelline Colorsensational Lipstick in Red Revival on top of that.

I bought my dress at a local boutique that is now closed.