Saturday, June 23, 2012

Avant Garde # 2

Avant Garde Look # 2:




Darkened brows were highlighted by white shimmer powder underneath



Front View:



The eye crease was defined using black gel liner:








The inspiration for this look came from multiple sources. The colors used were traditional Geisha colors, a white face, with red lips and red shadow. However the look is reminiscent of mimes. I wanted to create something that defined the lids, and used the white face to contrast against the red & black colors. I highlighted the cheek bones and used a gold shimmer powder on the center of the bottom lip. Pink eye pencil & red eyeshadow created an exaggerated circle blush.

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Before And After

Before :

After:


The above pictures are a great example how a little bit of makeup can complete your look, making you look more polished and put together. This woman has very good skin to begin with, so there wasn't really anything I wanted to cover up, instead, there were features, that I simply wanted to enhance. For example, I wanted to show off her beautiful skin, so I used a light application of BB Cream. This provided a sheer coverage, while evening out skin tone, and protecting it with a light SPF.  Her brows are nicely shaped, but I enhanced that shape using a brow pencil in Medium Blonde. I then used eyeshadow to define the contour of her eye, and add some brightness to the lid. I used a tiny amount of NYX shimmer pigment in Nude Pearl just under the brow bone. I used a cream blush, and cream highlighter, a nude lip liner and lip gloss topped with just a dot of white shimmer gloss in the center to make her lips look fuller. She did not have any dark circles to cover, but I did use a highlighting concealer just under the eye to brighten things up. This was her first time wearing false eyelashes, which I applied using lash glue. I used a mineral foundation just on the t-zone area to mattify, similar to what I did in the summer wedding look in my earlier post. This was a quick and easy look for a night out. The goal was to make her still look like herself, just a better version of herself, by enhancing her lovely features.

For more info, please leave a comment below.

Avant Garde- High Fashion Makeup

This look is one commonly seen on runways, or in high fashion magazines. This is NOT a look one would actually wear out in public, but for a makeup artist, they are by far the most fun to create.  The inspiration here, was the Pantone color of the year: Tangerine Tango.  I used orange and black (faux) feather false eyelashes here, and created a makeup look based around them. I used an orange cream blush, orange lip tar, and several different eyeshadow colors and pigments in various shades and textures.



 Lashes like these are quite heavy feeling on the lid, but oh so fun to wear!
 For those of you who don't know, lip tars are a matte lip cream product, applied with a brush, they are mixable, blendable, and work as a blush or lip color.
 I highlighted the model's cheekbones with a liquid highlighter
 Above, I used a dark color on her blonde eyelashes, and took it down the sides of the nose for an exaggerated contour using taupe cream shadow
 The eyeshadow look above, was created using orange cream eyeshadow, a red shimmer shadow, yellow shadow under the brow bone, and a mix of several loose pigments. I started with NYX white eyeshadow base, to help intensify the color, and then dragged a gel eyeliner across the lash line
 I intentionally used a makeup base, lighter than the model's skin, by mixing in some white from Illamasqua's Skin Base collection.  This created a more distinct contrast between her skin and the orange hue.


Summer Makeup - Bridal (beach wedding)

As promised, below is my take on makeup for a beach wedding. Some of the important items from my first post, still apply.  Primer is still important here, however there are some important differences for a beach wedding:
  • If possible, use waterproof makeup, not just waterproof mascara
  • Consider that natural light isn't forgiving, so your makeup needs to account for that
  • Swap out foundation for a tinted moisturizer
This model, had flawless skin to begin with, so I didn't want to hide it.  Instead I used a tinted moisturizer, mixed with a little bit of primer, and applied it with an airbrush foundation brush lightly, allowing her skin to still show through.  I wanted to create a somewhat sun-kissed look, so I used a gel bronzer from Stila, which I applied with a precision kabuki brush.  However, I took into consideration that she is fair, and did not want her to look unnatural on her wedding day. I think the major difference between a beach wedding, and a traditional wedding, is that the makeup is more low key.  You want to use less product, so it's less likely to melt off in the hot sun of the beach. I did not go heavy with shimmer highlighters here either, in the direct sunlight, that would look too glittery. I did use some light shimmery eyeshadow to highlight the eyes, but in neutral colors. A coral colored cream lipstick fits in perfectly with the vibe of a beachy wedding theme. I did use a tiny bit of concealer, and makeup was set with a very light dusting of mineral powder foundation, rather than traditional powder, as these formulas tend to be more creamy in nature, but set to a powder finish to control shine. Again, I did not use false lashes, as I have heard one too many horror stories of brides who end up with a lash stuck to their cheek by the end of the night, not something  a bride should be worried about on her big day. 

Frontal view:

 Eye, up close:

 Outside, in natural sunlight:
 Sun-kissed cheek bones:
Next: Avant Garde- High Fashion Makeup ...

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Bridal Makeup 101



The most important thing I can say about bridal makeup is PRIMER PRIMER PRIMER. Prime everything: face, eyelids, lips, lashes. You name it, prime it.  Your makeup needs to be applied in layers to create the perfect, long lasting bridal look.  It is also very important to curl lashes and wear a waterproof mascara. Many brides are emotional on their big day, and one wouldn't want to have mascara running down her face on one of the most important days of her life. As you can see in the below picture, I used soft colors to create an angelic look. This is classic bridal makeup for a traditional American wedding. All weddings are different, and not all require quite this much makeup. However, regardless of the type of wedding you have, you still want to make sure:
  • Your makeup will look good in photos (do not use too much SPF-doesn't work with flash photos)
  • Your makeup lasts all day (PRIMER, and waterproof mascara)
  • Your makeup is not too overly trendy (Save the wild colors for the club)
  • You feel comfortable
  • You still look like yourself-If you typically don't wear a lot of makeup, that doesn't mean you have to at your wedding
While some makeup artists feel that no wedding is complete without false lashes, I disagree and did not use them here.  If you are interested in more info, finding out which products I used to create this look, or would like me to re-create this wedding look for you on your special day and live in the CT/NY area, please reply in the comments below.

Coming up next: Makeup for a beach wedding!