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PRODUCT REVIEW | Make-up For Ever HD Invisible Cover Concealer
Searching for an awesome concealer is pretty much the equivalent to finding the holy grail of beauty for me. Blame it on my own dark undereye circles, but trying out every decently reviewed concealer can be pretty much deemed a bad addiction….I mean, how many concealers does one need?! (Fortunately, I have the excuse of “I’m buying it for the kit”…riiiight.)
Developed for compatibility with the unforgiving scrutiny of High Definition lenses, Make-up Forever’s HD Invisible Concealer easily blends and doesn’t settle into fine lines. You only need a minimal amount (like we’re talking a tiny dot here) for a layer of opaque coverage. It works beautifully to conceal redness and (even my) dark undereye circles!! With a selection of 13 shades to choose from, it’s easy to find a colour (or a mix of colours) that matches your own skin tone.
My only gripe with the product is the packaging that takes a little bit of practice to get used to. You have to wind up the bottom to shoot the product out through the nib of the tube, but you sometimes end up twisting too much and losing some valuable product (the stuff’s not cheap after all – 0.05 oz for approximately $35 CAD). Once the concealer is exposed to air, it loses a bit of its creamy consistency and becomes tougher to blend, particularly in delicate areas like under the eye. Moral of the story: be careful how many times you twist the bottom for product, as some drier product may be preventing it from coming up the tube properly. Squeeze the dispensing nib between your index finger and thumb to help ease the product out. Try to squeeze and empty the nib after each use so you can use fresh product the next time.
My favourites are 315 and 340 for their colour correcting properties. I have seeerious underye circles – so that calls for the heavy duty works – a shade of orange or a really dark peach. I use 340 (a bright orangey-peach) mixed with a tiny bit of 315 (a light pink) to counteract the dark undereye circles. I blend the skin tone matching 350 atop to help it disappear into the rest of my skin.
MUFE’s HD Invisible Concealer has quickly graduated to the top of my favourites list. You’ll find me using these in both my personal kit and my client kit. Thanks to MUFE’s brilliant concealer, the quest for the perfect concealer has been satisfied…for now… :)
Posted in Product Review
Tagged artistrhi, eyes, mufe, rhia amio
ARTIST TIP | More When to Splurge vs Steal
There are certain types of make-up products that I would advise splurging on, while for others, going for the deal is definitely recommended! Here’s when to dish out the dollars and when to save your bucks:
SPLURGE
Foundation and Powder
When done right, foundation and powder make the skin look absolutely flawless without looking like you have anything on. Part of the trick in making foundation work is narrowing in on the right colour and formula for your skin type (see here for tips on how to pinpoint your colour of choice and here for how to choose the right type for your skin). When the skin is perfected, other make-up is just icing on the cake! Glowing and even skin also gives you a more healthy and youthful appearance – and who doesn’t need a little of that every now and then?? Foundation and powder are definitely worth the splurge!
Fave foundations: FACE Atelier, MAC Face and Body, Stila, MAC Studio Fix
Fave powders: Vichy Dermablend Loose Powder, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish
Eyeliner
The more you shell out on an eyeliner, (usually) the better the quality. I consider eyeliner one of those staple items that transforms my look (i.e. I can’t live without it!). For an everyday basic, I think eyeliner is worth the splurge.
Fave eyeliners: Make-up Forever Aqua Eyes eyeliners
Lipstick
Lipstick is another product that can dramatically change your look. You just need to do a double-take of that lady you know who wears red lips all the time, and then look again when her lipstick is gone after lunch. Lipstick adds instant pop to the face and one tube can last you quite a long time. For another staple product that you would apply everyday, you might as well treat yourself – opt for a quality lipstick that is highly pigmented, lasts long and moisturizes all in one!
STEAL
Mascara
For a product that should be replaced every 3 months, mascara is definitely one item that you should go for the deal on. There are plenty of great mascaras out there to choose from and the beauty is that you can try them all until you zone in on your fave!
Fave mascaras: L’oreal Voluminous, Cover Girl Lash Blast, Maybelline Great Lash Mascara
Eyebrow Pencil / Eyebrow Kit
You don’t need to dish out on an expensive eyebrow kit to achieve your best brows yet! Some of my fave eyebrow pencils come courtesy of Rimmel, available at your local drugstore. You can even make your own “eyebrow kit”, by pulling out an angled brush and browsing through the eyeshadows you already own. For dark brown to black hair brows, choose a black brown eyeshadow in a matte texture. For lighter haired brows, choose either a taupe or a hazel colour also in a matte texture. Use the technique described here to perfect the brows.
Fave eye pencils: Rimmel
Highlighting Eyeshadow
You would likely spend more on an eyeshadow because you were looking for either a trendy, well-pigmented and creaseproof colour. Highlighting eyeshadow is typically applied to areas that aren’t prone to creasing (i.e. atop the browbone) so you don’t necessarily have to worry about it being ‘crease-proof’. Go for the deal here and instead save those dollars towards higher end eyeshadows in deeper/bolder colours that are long-lasting and crease-resistant.
Gloss
I haven’t met a gloss that I didn’t want to touch up after half a day’s wear. Even the overly sticky glosses that are meant to be long-lasting still look and feel better on the lips within 3 to 4 hours of a new application. Save on gloss to stock up on different types or to indulge in other make-up products!
Posted in Artist Tip
Tagged mac, mufe, rhia amio
Q & A | How to Avoid Dreaded Raccoon Eyes
Q: Help! No matter what product I seem to try, my eye make-up seems to have a mind of its own and give me raccoon eyes by mid-day. What products or make-up artist secrets are there to keep my eye make-up from wandering?
A: Here are a couple of tips that I abide by, especially with my bridal clients who require extended wear from their make-up application:
1. Use waterproof products to minimize any eye make-up transfer.
Waterproof mascaras, liquid liners and gel liners are at the top of my list for waterproof/water-resistant eye make-up. If you prefer pencil eyeliner, opt for a waterproof formula. I swear by the Make-up Forever Aqua Eyes collection.
2. Pat the eyelid area with some translucent powder or your powdered foundation.
Some women tend to have eyelids that are more on the oily side (nothing wrong with that – more natural moisture also means being less prone to wrinkles!). Dusting some loose powder on the lids will help to keep your eye make-up in its place and also act as a great base for eyeshadow application.
3. Use concealer to camouflage any darkness under the eye and set with a light dusting of powder.
Without concealer, migrating eye make-up will only make undereye circles look darker. When you’re doing eye make-up, remember to think it from a full 360° viewpoint: the eyebrows, eyelid and undereye area all play their part in framing the eye and need to be properly maintained for a make-up look fit for the pros! Applying some concealer and powder under the eye will also help act as a barrier to keep migrating eye make-up in check.
4. Avoid lining the inner rim (aka the waterline) with eyeliner.
Yes, lining the inner rim makes an undoubtedly gorgeous smoky eye look, but the look only stays fresh for as long as the liner stays put (usually a maximum of 3-4 hours). This area of the eye is naturally “wet” and is a high transfer area. Once the eyeliner starts heading down south, the look can transition from smoky to spooky. Be prepared with some q-tips, concealer and eyeliner to do a touch-up throughout the day.
Alternate option: Skip lining on the inner rim and try lining just below the waterline, right at the root of the bottom eyelashes. I like to use either a brush-tipped liquid liner or a combination of an angled synthetic eyeliner brush with gel liner to get a precise (and water-resistant!) line in this area.
5. Bring a mini-touch up kit.
Particularly if you can’t let go of the inner rim lining, pack some items in your make-up kit for a quick touch-up at lunch time. Some q-tips, undereye concealer and your trusted eyeliner are some of the items you can include to keep your smoky eyes looking their best!
For related eye make-up tips, see:
ARTIST TIP | Mastering the Smoky Eye Without the Mess (Part I)
ARTIST TIP | Mastering the Smoky Eye Without the Mess (Part II)
BEAUTY 101 | The Basics of Concealer
Q & A | How to Cover Undereye Circles
Q & A | Choosing the Right Eyeliner Product For You
ARTIST TIP | Maximizing Your Kit – Tips for Aspiring Artists
Here are more artist tips for building your kit. If you’re a make-up addict like me, it’s so easy to accumulate beauty products as time goes by. In the beginning as you’re building your name and your kit, you’ll want to give clients the impression that you’re well-stocked with all the quality products that suit their needs. But as time goes by, and you lug your stuffed make-up case from job to job, you’ll begin to wish there was a better and more efficient way to bring your product around.
I’m a huge fan of bringing only what you need – it’s way easier on your arms and helps to lessen the chance of one of your beloved items going missing! Consider these tips for maximizing the most out of your kit space (and your valuable energy!):
Buy palettes.
a). Lipsticks
Use a thoroughly cleaned and disinfected make-up spatula to dig your lipsticks out of the tube. You can purchase an empty palette from a beauty supply company such as Japonesque (pictured at right). With the Japonesque palette, you have the option of adding your own lipstick colours (also great for use with cream concealers). Other cosmetic lines, such as Make-up Forever, offer their own refillable lip palettes that are customized to fit insert versions of their popular lipsticks.
I picked up my lip palette for $12 from a local Toronto company called Jordane Cosmetics . The palette pictured at right is from the Jordane website (I can’t say that I have a blue lipstick in my kit!); the one that I bought came without any product, just the refillable container. The palette itself is made of a hard plastic that is durable, but doesn’t crack when dropped.
What I love about this: You can easily mix back and forth between lipsticks to make up any colour your heart desires. Just make sure to do the mixing in a secondary container (or on the back of your hand) to keep the colours in the palette fresh and separated.
b). Eyeshadows
Many cosmetic companies offer easily customizable palettes. I stocked up on five eyeshadow palettes (addict much?) from my time working at Inglot (see picture at right), and now I’ll have to go to Montreal (or Dubai, Australia or Poland!) whenever I need to restock on these.
At the lower end, Mary Kay and Avon offer refillable palettes while at the higher end, MAC, Make-up Forever and Bobbi Brown each do their version of a customizable palette.
What I love about this: Not only is this space saving within the kit, it’s also environmentally friendly! No need for the excess product packaging that usually gets thrown away once the product is all used. Just drop in the refillable eyeshadow insert into the palette and go!
c). Blushes
Similar to the eyeshadow palettes, many cosmetic companies also offer blush palettes. My blush palette is from Inglot as well, but blush palettes are also available through MAC and Make-up Forever. Sometimes the palettes come mixed with a selection of eyeshadows, blushes and lip products, like NARS Bridal Palette featured at right. The mixed palette is a great kit addition for make-up artists who specialize in neutral and bridal looks.
What I love about this: Usually I use a combination of two blushes – one darker shade for contouring just slightly below the cheekbone, and one slightly lighter shade for highlighting atop the cheekbone (and blending out any harsh edges of the deeper blush tone). Having the blushes all under one roof means less fumbling around in the make-up kit looking for product and more time to spend on the fun stuff – actual application!
d). Concealers
Concealers come in all different colours and sizes: aside from the regular skin tone matching concealers, there are also colour correcting concealers. Rather than lug every colour of the colour correcting rainbow around, opt for an artist palette. I love the Lise Watier palette discussed in a previous post, and I also love the Make-up Forever colour corrector palettes that come in a range of tones to cover every ethnicity.
What I love about this: Just like lipsticks, when concealers are all in one container, you have the freedom of mixing. The Japonesque empty palette described above is also great for managing cream concealers in one place. Now you can mix with ease…like a true artiste!
Bring only what you need.
If you’ve already had a trial with a client and have gone through the items that you’ll need, just bring those items. Be warned that sometimes your client may want to make adjustments to the look, so bring extra eyeshadows, blushes and lipsticks to have accessibility to different options. The foundation, concealer and powder will likely stay the same colour so you can ditch the ones you don’t need and travel lighter!
Posted in Artist Tip
Tagged artistrhi, aspiring, mac, mufe, rhia amio, toronto make-up artist
ARTIST TIP | Tips for Aspiring Make-up Artists: Building Your Kit!
One of the building blocks on the road to becoming a make-up artist is developing your professional make-up kit for use on clients. Remember it’s the quality of the products in your make-up kit that will help establish your credibility and make your make-up work overall look better (and last longer!). Since a lot of the jobs in this industry are based on word of mouth, it’s best to have quality products that reflect your quality of work! During those initial months of building your kit, it only makes sense to save where you can, as you try to nail as many gigs as possible. Here are some tips for building your professional make-up kit without breaking the bank:
1. Check out make-up warehouse sales.
L’oreal and MAC both have seasonal sales where prices are marked down anywhere from 25% to 75% off. Remember not only is it a good time to buy make-up, but it’s also a good time to buy moisturizers, make-up removers and make-up tools.
2. Check out your local drugstore or discount superstore for deals.
I’m an avid fan of stocking up on supplies from Shoppers Drug Mart (sorry Canadian readers will know what I’m talking about) whenever they have bonus points sales. Nowadays, Shoppers also sells brands like Lancome, Smashbox, Make-up Forever and Benefit so you can get all of your favourite brands and rack in the bonus points as well!
The other night I was in Wal-Mart and picked up a couple of packs of Maybelline’s Blackest Black Waterproof mascara at one of the best prices I’ve seen in years – 2 tubes for $5! Yes, reason enough for me to scoop up multiple packs!
3. Check out your local dollar store.
I’ve blogged about my love for dollar store q-tips before. Seriously, you can’t go wrong. 400 q-tips for $1. The dollar store q-tips are my fave because they have a minimal amount of cotton, and won’t leave a cottony residue on your face. Check out this post to see their versatility!
4. Check with your favourite counter to see if they offer any make-up artist or make-up artist student discounts.
MAC is great for supporting make-up artists, and you can find out more about their programs here.
5. Buy the lightest foundation and the darkest foundation in cool and warm tones.
Buy these foundations on opposite ends of the colour spectrum and mix in accordance with your client’s skin tone. Until you start getting more make-up artist jobs, you likely won’t need every colour under the rainbow. Splurge on the brand of foundation you buy – great-looking skin post make-up is always a winner with clients and may win you some referrals down the line!
6. Buy disposables.
Buy disposable mascara wands so you don’t have to constantly replace your mascara. Check out Elegant Faces where 25 mascara wands go for $8. That means that’s 25 times you can use your mascara without replacing it for only $8! Imagine having to buy 25 tubes of mascara at $6 each – totally impractical!
7. Try to get a part-time (or full-time) job at a make-up counter.
Not only will you be gaining valuable experience in your field of choice, you’ll also be able to save money by building your kit with a handsome discount!
7. Pass on the make-up kit your school provides, and start building your own!
If you can, skip out on the kit that your school is offering, unless it contains brands that you’ll use in your future professional make-up applications (if you’re unsure of the quality, look up reviews and ask other people who have used the products.) Use that $500 (and up!) that would have gone towards the cost of materials for class towards buying good quality products.
Posted in Artist Tip
Tagged artistrhi, aspiring, mac, mufe, rhia amio, toronto make-up artist
