I Can Make You Hot! (23 page)

Eye-brightening eye drops (which I call “wasabi” because they sting) work miracles—turning bloodshot eyes ultrabright and white. Apply a few drops in each eye and roll your eyes from side to side to spread it around. The ones I like best are Rohto V cooling redness reliever eye drops.

Another magic trick is to curl your eyelashes. Curling will open your eyes and make you look more awake. Then apply a subtle cream shimmery shadow to the lids and a coat of mascara to your lashes.

Use a lipstick or gloss with a pop of color. Stay away from nude lips and choose something with a cherry tint.

These quick tricks will help you fake your way through any not-so-hot day:

“Red hot is always sexy!” I learned that from one of my best friends, Stefani Greenfield, who is the co-founder of Scoop, one of the hottest, sexiest clothing stores in New York and who now has her own line, Curations, on HSN, and the line Theodora and Callum. When I was pregnant with Sea I wasn’t feeling very sexy and my feet looked like paws. So what did I do to make myself feel better? I painted my toenails red!

Years later, filming Season 3 of the
Real Housewives of New York City
, I cut my fingernails short and painted them red to feel sexy while all the women were yelling, fighting, and being mean to one another. I even painted my nails red the minute I started writing this book. I wanted to see my short red nails tapping away on my Macbook Pro. Almost every red dress is smokin’ HOT, and I’ve never met a guy who doesn’t think a woman in a red dress isn’t hot. He’s a liar if he denies it. When I was sitting in the front row of a Marc Jacobs fashion show a few years ago, I wore a full, red short skirt, a tight red sweater, and red open-toed shoes. One of the editors from
The New York Times
was sitting across from me, and as we were waiting for the show to begin I kept crossing and recrossing my legs to make him laugh. It was a long wait and after a while some guy I didn’t know who was at the other end of the row, leapt towards me and screamed that he was obsessed with my
feet
. How crazy is it that red open-toed shoes and red toenails could create such a reaction. Red is HOT, even stalker HOT. Yikes!

The great thing about fashion is that you can change your style to suit your mood. What are you feeling like today? Be an indie, a rocker, a prepster, or a boho. Take a page from the past: a straight skirt from the ’50s, an A-line dress with popart color from the ’60s, a ’70s bohemian, Lycra leggings from the ’80s, or ’90s simple chic. Be a chameleon.

Every problem has a solution, so here are some other HOT tips for heating up your image:

Keep it monochromatic; wearing one color, top to bottom, will make you look longer and leaner.

Put on slim trousers in your favorite, most flattering color and a pair of high heels.

Wear colored panties and a matching bra.

Put on a pair of jeans and a white tee shirt.

Red lips are hot, and according to makeup artist extraordinaire Quinn Murphy, anyone can wear them. “Red pouts are sophisticated, luxurious, confident, and impossibly chic,” says Quinn. “If you are wondering whether you can pull off a red lip, doubt no more!”

I think of red as a dramatic neutral. There are many shades, undertones, and finishes to choose from, so that everyone can find “their” red. There are blue-reds and orange-reds as well as berries, cherries, wines, fire engines, blood, brick, and full throttle power reds—and that’s just to name a few.

If you are new to wearing a crimson lip, try a lip gloss. Benefit Benetint is a universally flattering cherry balm with a hint of color. For a more showstopping approach, pick a creamy semi-matte formula in a rich shade.

The key to a bold mouth is keeping the rest of your makeup minimal. Perhaps you wear a raspberry red lip and finish the look with a touch of cream blush and black mascara.

When choosing your red, go with your instincts: feeling good with your red is the most important, and if you feel good, you will look HOT!

Wear high heels around the house.

Apply smokey eye shadow.