Photoshop Tutorial - Custom Color Palettes

Ever seen a photo and fallen in love with the colors? Me too.
I actually do this quite a bit, and end up saving those photos with hopes that I may use them in the future for a new project moodboard.

Whether you're an interior designer, graphic designer, blogger, or even just a person who is re-decorating the kitchen, this simple Photoshop trick will be great for you. Take colors from your favorite photos and use them elsewhere. I'll show you how!

First things first, choose a photo with some great color you could see yourself using for your project. I'm always doing this for logo and branding mood boards, so I'm thinking of an entire brand and what colors represent them.




Open your photo up in Photoshop and click on the "Eyedropper" tool. (For a shortcut, click the letter "I" on your keyboard) Once you have this tool, scroll over the part of your photo with the color you want to grab. In this case, I'm in love with her mustard yellow dress, so that's the first color I'm getting.

After I click, the color shows up in my color palette on the bottom of my toolbar.



Now I'm going to create a shape with that color. I'm going to use the circle for my swatches, but you can use whatever shape you like! (Shortcut - click "U" to go directly to the shape tool, and "Shift U" to change shapes!) 

Click and drag to create your shape (hold shift for a perfect square or circle) and there you have your swatch! Repeat the same process with different colors and soon you'll have some wonderful colors ready to be used for your project.

This simple process can come in handy for so many different things. Here is an example of how I use this technique, at the beginning of a branding project while creating moodboards. It helps set the tone for the project and maps out the direction I'm headed!



Have fun! Let me know if you have any questions in the comments!

Happy Wednesday friends!



Photo from JCrew Fall 2012 Collection

Red Red Lips

So Valentines Day is coming up and red is the color of the month (in my book!) So I invited the one and only self-proclaimed product junkie Molly Reynolds to come over and show us how to get the perfect red lip! 

It can be scary to rock bold lips - but let me tell you, Molly does wonders and with her help, we can all have the confidence to be bold with our lip color!

Hey there lovelies! I am Molly Reynolds and I am a self proclaimed product junkie, also known as a makeup artist. I am so excited to be over here on Joanna's blog today! I am a lover of red lipstick and I think every woman can pull it off beautifully. Red lipstick is classic, elegant, and can never go out of style. Now its not as complicated as you think and I am going to break it down for you step by step for you, so let's do it!

First start by using a lip conditioner to prime the lip, then use a tissue to blot the excess moisture, I love using Smiths Rosebud Salve (it's a cult favorite) and by priming the lip you set a moistened foundation which will easily blend the lip color. 

Then use a primer, I use MAC Prep + Prime as a base to hold on tight to that beautiful lip color and make it last throughout the day. Make sure you are getting it around the lip line to prevent your color from bleeding. 

Now lightly dust your foundation or concealer around the lip to conceal the natural lip line and color giving your lips a clean canvas.

Now we are going to add the fun part! I like to start from the inside of the lip and work my way out, it makes it easier to find the natural lip line. The perfect shade of red for this is MAC lip pencil in Redd, it will blend with just about any shade in the red family. 

When applying the lipstick you want to use a lip brush with a firmness to it, this is going to help set in the color and really work it into your lips. My absolute FAVORITE red lipstick is Ruby Woo from MAC. It is the most universally flattering lip color and it truly works with any skin tone, its fabulous investment! Brush the lip color on using the brush and don't worry about getting it perfect, the next step is a little trick that is vital in perfecting the trend. Take an angled brush and dip into your foundation or concealer and clean up your color around the lip, now you look like your a professional.

Thanks so much Molly! You're the best! You can bet that I'm gonna rock those lips on my Valentine's date this year :)