Eye and lip pencils must be kept sharp. I keep seeing things online that give a “use by date” for pencils, and the truth is, if you keep them sharp and sharpen them each time you use them, it is a good guideline for keeping them clean and fresh. Also, you can clean your pencil sharpener, too. Some salons will clean and sterilize them for you. As you can see, this lip pencil has been sharpened to almost the bitter end. If you sharpen and use your cosmetic pencils regularly, you will use the make-up faster which is good for the “life” and safety of the product. Store your products in a clean, dry place. The bathroom is NOT the best place to store your cosmetics, lotions, perfumes and potions. Too steamy and warm in there!

This is a photograph of my father’s ex-wife. She was an actress in New York, and this is a picture that was taken at a photo shoot for an audition. It was a test to see who would be the print model for a large cosmetics company. I don’t think she got the job, but my father kept this picture of his ex-wife in his wallet his whole life. Her stage name was Alix Taran, and she was married to my father Richard Riley Shepard back in the late 1940′s. I had this photo restored for him by Panda Lab as a gift a few years ago. She passed away a year or so after that. He passed away in November, 2009. They never spoke after they separated in 1952, but I am glad I have this photograph. I think it was for an Elizabeth Arden ad.