If you have never gone to the department store cosmetic counter and asked for a "sample", then you can stop reading this now.

Since we are all still reading- I want to share with you about the expensive cost of free samples vs. the amazing money saving, service enhanced, greater results and benefits of using the "experience" center.

Samples are expensive for your time, your effort based on the results you get plus the trips of gas used and emissions released into the atmosphere for a wee packet of stuff to try.  

Samples are not as strong as the actual bottle of product you are looking to buy.  Samples are a one time use packet that are thrown away and contain non-biodegradable cosmetic products that further fill the dumps on the outside of cities everywhere.

Our Earth goal is to use-reuse-recycle and when it comes to beauty and cosmetics, my goal is to help you shop smarter while making better choices about the items you choose.

Here's where it gets good and what we can do as consumers and citizens of Earth to do our part in keeping things clean and green.

If you do get a sample, get it in a container that can be washed and re-used for another purpose. If you are going shopping and know that you are going to need a reusable container, then take your own snack baggy for a to-go squirt because many makeup counters don't have fillable sample cups.

Now for your best case scenario: the "experience" center!

Follow these steps to get your highest level of satisfaction in makeup shopping:
1. Go clean faced if possible so you can try the product on yourself

2. Walk outside of the store to see the product in a different light besides overhead fluorescent. ( I am convinced men design the cosmetic stores because they don't have lighting conducive to makeup!)

3. Use the knowledge of the counter girl. Yes, she is there to sell you something, it's her job.  She is also there to provide ingredient knowledge in case you have a sensitivity to something, and also show you how to apply what you are looking for.

4. NEVER SAMPLE MASCARA...spoolie or no spoolie, you never know who came before you and wiped the wand on their eye and put it back into the tube. Buy the formulation you are interested in, keep the receipt and the box it came in and if it doesn't work for you, return it within 30 days for a credit, exchange or cash back.

Plus it just makes a piece of plastic covered in non biodegradable toxic petrochemicals that can't be reused or recycled.

5. Experience the shades of colors from light to dark.  Meaning if you like the beige lipstick and the red, please put the beige on first.

6. To get the most out of the experience center, the cosmetic counter or the event that is being promoted in store, please call the store ahead of time and make an appointment to meet with the makeup artist.  These appointments are usually free, though may sometimes require a purchase. ( again, keep your box and receipt )

Finally, as you venture into the experience center, please be conscious of cleanliness. The best time to go is early in the morning, and not on the weekend when it is busiest and sanitizing can  wane on the part of the people working there.  Remember to see the artist cleaning the brush they are using on you, or using a disposable wood spatula or cotton applicator.

Toss sample using out! Enjoy the experience center and pick the brain of the makeup artist, because they love it!

For more information on getting a green face and loving it, please contact Cherelynn Baker at www.makeupuniversity.com

Hi, I was just writing some bridal beauty answers for THE KNOT brides and figured it was something that everyone could use. Enjoy!

What’s a good trick for keeping your face from getting oily in the heat of summer?

Humid areas: apply a mattifying lotion: the best is Peter Thomas Roth MAX Anti shine gel. You can get it at Sephora, there are other brands, though this is the one I use most in film and television plus on my brides and it will last through humidity. For our shiny brides, with their full face of makeup on including mattifying lotion, the key is to BLOT the face with tissue, or kleenex or preferably a toilet seat cover...yes, toilet seat cover and even the stuff coming out of the top of gift bags. Take a piece, press onto the skin, lift up, press again till the tissue no longer shows a mark of oil. It is better to blot repeatedly to control shine versus layering on more powder.

Any tips for choosing a foundation shade? (For brides that usually don’t wear it.) In my book Bridal Style DIY "How to take control of your wedding day beauty" available on Amazon I have what's called the "Wet'n'Wild" bride. An entire wedding day photo ready face for $20! Our budget conscious brides who don't own foundation and don't plan on ever owning it after the wedding need to visit Sephora, or the cosmetic counter at the department store and get color matched by the staff artist, and take home a sample. Sephora gives a generous sample and it is enough for the wedding day plus some!

Here's the key for our do it yourself brides: where the same color shirt to the makeup counter as the color of your dress and then make sure to check the shade in sunlight or lighting similar to the time of the wedding so there are no surprises.

Can a bride simply use her regular makeup? If she can’t splurge for the whole deal, but want to do it herself, what is the most important product to purchase?

Yes! A bride can use her own makeup! I know that most women have the shades she needs in her cosmetic bag right now. The shadows need to be matte to photograph best, a stain for lips and cheeks will make all the difference for longevity on the face, and the most important makeup tip for the wedding day is amazing skin.

There is only so much makeup can do. True, good foundation helps. I like ERA Classified Cosmetics or Laura Mercier, plus the L'Oreal True Match is good too! But the skin! It makes all the difference in photos for of a lifetime to have well exfoliated hydrated plump healthy skin!

Start several weeks before the wedding preparing your skin with facials, exfoliation and good hydration from a moisturizer. Add some anti-aging serums and you are really in business for amazing photos.

These can be at home treatments with drugstore products or trips to the aesthetician. As a personal favorite item for the wedding day, I highly suggest the bride buy a "signature lipstick". Pick a color that marks the day, and can be used as a memory touch stone during the marriage. Maybe it's only used on anniversaries or special date nights, but the memory of the intimate wedding ceremony triggered by the color is what we are after.

Any tips for teeth whitening? The thing that makes teeth the whitest is flossing. I know, nobody wants to hear that. Second, a dental cleaning before any whitening treatments whether at home or in the dentist office because who wants to pay to whiten plaque? Third, the Crest Whitestrips are good and they work, plus they have coupons on their web page. ZOOM treatments are worth the investment, then again, it's several hundred dollars. Maintain all this action with whitening toothpastes and don't forget what our grandmothers did, baking soda. Dip your wet toothbrush in baking soda, brush, rinse with a solution of half hydrogen peroxide half water. Not so glamourous but it is efficient.

Know any great products that keep eyeshadow from creasing? Okay, the MAC shadow base is good, I like the Paula Dorf shadow base, in a pinch a creme concealer applied before the shadows can help the powder hug the eyelid. Some people like me, no matter what, our shadows crease. It's something to do with large eyes that have alot of lid. We are the people keeping eyelid tuck doctors in business. When this product is applied...it must "set up" and dry first. Don't rush it, otherwise you waste your time, product and spoil the mood of the day!

Ideas for making eyes look bigger and cheekbones more defined?

To make the eye look bigger, we use basic art theory 101: put the light color on the areas you want to come forward or stand out, and we put the dark color on the area that we want to recede or go back. Meaning, we put highlighting shades on the brow bone underneath the curve of the brow, and on the inside corner of the eye, about a pinky's width. Just a smidge, not a big stroke. Finish coloring in the rest of the lid with a medium toned brown/taupe for a natural day look. In the crease of the eye, make a small arc, like a half semi circle of darker shadow. Blend the darker shadow until it is soft looking on the edges, work the brush back and forth gently. Use a little powder to start, and layer until you get the depth of darkness or "contour" that you are looking for.

That's the biggest makeup artist secret around: blend. When you think you are done blending, blend some more. The goal is to see your beauty not your eyeshadow.

To make cheekbones stand out more you are going to need three colors: light, medium, dark. What ever color family you pick is fine, you just need a highlight, a tone, and a contour.

Smile big, on the apple of the cheek, where it gets pinched, apply a light coat of color and work the brush in a small circle. Just like the tattoo artist does. If you haven't got a tattoo yet, you just got some insight into what happens. Next, take your dark color, the contour, and make a small half circle, that looks like a kidney bean in the hollow of the cheek. If you don't have a hollow " hollow" of the cheek, this will help make it look like it. Again, blend the dark color in a small circle. Using your blush brush, in small circles, work from the front of the cheek back towards the ear and hairline. Finish the defined cheek look with the light, or highlight shade. Wipe the blush brush off on a towel or tissue to take off the darker shades, load with the highlight and now in a sweeping side to side brush stroke, apply the highlight color on the top of the cheek bone, right under the eye. It will also light up the eyes.

Tricks for not looking tired? Dark under eye circles can be remedied with the application of cold raw potato slices applied directly to a closed lid for several minutes. Puffy eyes are fixed with cold water soaked chamomile tea bags. Red, tired, jet lagged, cocktail soaked from the night before "oh no I"m getting married in 4 hours eyes" can be fixed with cold cucumber slices. The key is to make the slices thin so they fit the contour of the eye.

As for makeup for these tired eyes, blue mascara. Not the shocking 1980's version, but a good dark navy blue. The best wedding mascara in my opinion is Christian Dior "Dior Lash" and it comes in navy, I know that Benefit Cosmetics BADGAL lash does also. If these aren't in the budget for our bride, the next best thing is L'Oreal Voluminous. It is hard to find that brand in navy. When I find it, I buy up everyone hanging on the rack.

My one personal insider secret for bridal makeup: foundation must cover the ears, neck, collarbone and any skin showing in the front so that the photos appear seamless. If my bride has blotchy skin anywhere that is showing, I cover that with foundation also and set it with translucent powder.

Getting married is such an amazing event. Girls of all ages dream about it and we all would like some version of the fairytale, including me!