The Makeup Show NYC

You guys have no idea how BOOSTED I am to be going to The Powder Group's The Makeup Show in NYC this year! I have waited FOR.EV.ER for this trip, and i called my mentor a few days ago to share my excitement. Of course, she was equally as excited; however, she did bring up some interesting points about getting "lost in the makeup show", especially with this being my first time attending.

According to Kim, it's very easy to get to the Metropolitan Pavilion, go apeshit buying everything you see, and go home completely broke. Let me be the first to tell you: that is NOT for the kid. *shakes head disapprovingly* I am not the one who needs to blow hundreds and hundreds of $$ on makeup in one weekend. Not a good look. So, she shared with me her plan of action, which she lovingly called 'strategic shopping'.  She said I need a plan of action as well, and advised that I take some time to take stock of my makeup kit, evaluate what I have vs. what I need, be honest with myself about where my artistry is vs where I want it to go, and make a list. The idea is to be hard core, to have a plan in place so that I don't get carried away by the glitz and glamour and chaos of just BEING at The Makeup Show and run wild like a freed gorilla. *eye roll*

Picture that. Me. In NYC during the first weekend of Makeup Week. With friends, free time, and money to spend. *blink, blink* Yeah. We'd better get ta planning. Ret now.

Because my kit is metal with stackable trays, it isn't very flexible or pliable. It is large and difficult to maneuver at times, especially when all the trays are full. So, the first thing I want to do is purchase a new kit. It needs to be softer, made of a material (not metal), and have wheels. This is what I found:

This is the Heavy Duty Toughwear® Makeup/Moulage Case On Wheels.
Its weatherproof, tearproof, everything proof. AND it's got wheels. It retails for 69.99 at www.paintandpowderstore.com and I do believe that I'm allotted a discount on this item as a TPG Pro Member. Boost! The color could stand to be a little sassier, but hey, I won't complain...especially if I DO get a discount on it.

Next, there's this, which I've actually been stalking for about a year and half now but have refused to break down and spend the money:

This is the Pro Soft Sided Rolling Cosmetic Case w/ Trays, sold at www.yazmo.com. It retails for about $160 and there is NO DISCOUNT on this one, lol. *smh* Who can afford to spend $160 on a KIT, in this recession??  *Exasperated sigh* Maaaan, they're makin it hard for The Kid, I tell ya. 
Its a tough choice because while the former has a much better price, the latter has way  more space and compartments. Choices, choices...


The next thing I definitely have to purchase is an airbrush machine. I feel like I'm the only MUA left in the world who doesn't do airbrushing. Kinda feels like I'm a dinosaur, lol. Though I've taken no classes on airbrushing, and the next class that I'm able to take isn't offered until October, I still intend to purchase the entire system, take it home, and play with it. I figure I know enough people who HAVE taken the class that they can point me in the right direction. I have been blessed to know some of the best MUAs this town has to offer, and I find their wealth of knowledge invaluable whenever I'm stumped. 


In the case of which airbrush machine is best, I've basically whittled it down to Graftobian or OCC. 

OCC AIRBRUSH MAKEUP STARTER SET:
1. Their system is smaller and easier to handle.
2. Reviews and personal testimonies suggest its easy(er) to use.
3. It's affordable.
4. It's recommended for students and anyone else who's new to airbrush makeup. *points to self*

Graftobian GlamAire™ Silver Jet Beauty System:
1. Its not as affordable, but for the price ($499) you get a full system that does face and body airbrushing. 
2. It's sleek, silver and pretty, lol.
3. It comes with full size products, and I was already gonna purchase Graftobian foundation palettes anyway.


I think that might be it for Graftobian. I'll let you know what happens after May 17th. 


Besides a new kit and an airbrush machine, I'll be adding the following:


Graftobian HD Glamour Creme Super Palettes in Warm, Neutral, and Cool
Graftobian HD Pro Powder Foundation Palettes in Warm, Neutral, and Cool 
Graftobian Hi-Def Glamour Creme Blush Palette
Mehron Tattoo CoveRing concealer
Keromask® Concealer and Camouflage Cream in all colors
Graftobian Lip Color Super Palette which isn't really a huge necessity but I still want it
A Travel Light like this one, but cheaper:  Stik-Up Light Kit, with Lamp & Filters
Make Up For Ever HD Invisible Cover Foundation liquid in all colors


I think that takes care of everything I need. Lord knows I have more than enough eyeshadows, and those that I don't have, i can mix and make myself.  Oh, and I also need more gel liners  in white, pink, lavender, and turquoise. 


Once I sit down and tally up how much all this is gonna cost me--and after the ambulance finds me stretched out in my living room floor, passed out--I'll be ready to hit the makeup show and get back to work confidently.

My  makeup class/party is tomorrow and I can't WAIT to get pics of it for you! 


P.S.
In a few more days, I'll start blogging about my upcoming vacation in Miami here.  Stay TUNED!

Kisses!


BD

Neutrals

Here are some pics from a neutral look that I'd forgotten I'd done a few months back. *Pay no attention to the date on the picture, it's set improperly.*

I'm on the path to discovering how to do the perfect contoured eye using neutral colors, something like this:

Now, before you say it, yes, I do realize that this picture is photoshopped to all hell BUT it's still a great concept to aim for, no?  The look I did ended up NOTHING like this picture (surprise, surprise) but I was pleased with the results anyway.

Maybe next time.

*giggles*

Until next time, loves!

BD

New Look Tuesday + MAC Spring Colour 1 Forecast Collection

Okay, okay, okay. I know I'm late on the Spring Colour 1 Forecast look but please forgive me. It's been a rough few months.
Anyway, in an effort to not let my blog go completely into shambles, last night I mustered up the energy (i'm so lazy these days) to do the look with the pigments. Let me just say 1. I love that these colors come in mini-pigments. The regular sized pigments are just entirely, ENTIRELY too much color! Who the hell is ever gonna use all that color?? The new crushed metal mini-pigments in this collection are not only smaller, but they come stacked in convenient little plastic rounds which totally works for my kit.

Looksee:

I didn't get the entire collection, mainly because the blushes, lipsticks, and nail polishes were basically duplicates of colors I already have. But I didn't have any pigments in any of these colors, and I promised myself I'd get more.

The look I did last night is was prepped with the following:

Olay Refreshing Toner
MAC Prep + Prime Foundation primer
Too Faced Shadow Insurance (my favorite eyeshadow primer, btw)
MAC Cash Flow paint pot (as a cream base for eyeshadow)

It's always tricky to use pigments and not have them end up all over your bathroom sink, your table, or yourself. There's just too much of it. The best way to apply pigments, I've found, is to use a synthetic brush that's meant for creamy products: foundation, concealer, flat eyeshadow brushes. Fluffier brushes will have pigment falling every which way and lemme tell you, it is HELL to cleanup. I used my MAC 239 Flat shadow brush but even that was too fluffy...so I switched to the 194 concealer brush. Perfect. Depending on how bright or intense you want the color, you should only dip the brush into the color halfway down the bristles each time. Pigments are buildable (like most MAC shadows) so if you have the patience to build up to a vibrant intensity, pigments may work for you. The crushed metal pigments don't have individual names (way to go MAC) but I started with the lightest lilac color all over the eyelid. It takes a few minutes to get even coverage because the pigment will fall off if you don't press it on hard enough, or if your cream shadow base (if you used one) gets dry. But, press the first color on so that it sticks, AND so that it covers the cream base. *note: only do this if you WANT the cream base color not to show thru. In my case, I didn't because Cash Flow is a greenish/goldish/olive color and didn't really work for the look but it was the only thing cream I had to work with.*

Once the first color covered the entire eyelid, I cleaned the brush a bit, dipped it into the second pink color and pressed it on just beyond the halfway mark on my eyelid. Not in the center because that would look weird, lol, but at about the 3/4 mark. Before I forget, let me mention that after this look was finished, I did go back and press these colors on again because the fallout dulled the colors down a bit. So, a second "coat" might be necessary, if you want it vibrant. Once both colors were pressed on,  I used MAC's Carbon eyeshadow to smoke out the outer eyelid corners (using the MAC 217 brush) and to softly line the bottom lashline using the MAC 219 brush.  I blended Carbon up into the crease about halfway.
Pulling the color softly from the outer corner towards the middle of the lid, I also blended the Carbon with the pink pigment color until they were seamless. Ditto with the lilac and the pink pigment colors. You don't want the colors to bleed into each other because they'll get lost and just be a bright shiny mess. In the picture below, i tried not to overblend so that you could still see the lilac, the pink, the black, and the purple individually. Sometimes when I do a smokey eye, I never know what to do with the top of the eye, especially when using metallics. It's like...now what? So, I learned to use a contour color in the crease. Usually, a dark brown will work on any skin tone. But, since this look already included a black color, a brown would probably have gotten lost. So, I took my fluffy 217 brush and just smoothed out the edges of the entire eye with MAC's Fig. That's the color that you see just below the highlight of my brows. It's kinda brownish purpley (is THAT a word??). Blended that allllll the way over to the inner corner, down to the lilac color, and that was it for the shadows.

After eyeshadows, I lined with my favorite BlackTrack gel liner, curled my lashes for a full 2 minutes (it is HARD to wait a full 2 minutes while you just stand there with your lashes caught in a death trap a.k.a. eyelash curler), then put on one coat of mascara. While waiting for my mascara to dry, I filled in my brows with MACs Spiked brow pencil, and used MAC's Jardin Aires pigment to highlight just under the brow. It's perfect because it's not too much shimmer and blends really well. Blend that down into Fig so that it's seamless, and it's done. Once my mascara was dry, I applied Red Cherry false lashes in #15. Let me justify how sloppy this lash job is by saying that because it was late at night and I knew I'd take this makeup RIGHT OFF, I only put on enough glue to hold the lashes in place long enough to take pictures, lol. If I were actually going to wear this out of the house, they'd be way more secure.

For blush, I started with the MAC cream color Cherche' as a base. It wasn't dark enough, so I topped it with a combo of MAC's Blunt blush (which i always default to for contouring my cheeks) and Sweet As Cocoa just under the cheekbones for contouring. For the apples of the cheeks, I used MAC's Azalea, below:

Though this is a bright pink color with an icy shimmer (and yes, it is THAT bright in real life so be real careful when using the blush brush. Tread very VERRRRY LIGHTLY, lol.), the look still looked a little dead so I highlighted this color with Mineralize Skin Finish in Porcelain Pink:

This completely awesome product is the culprit for the beautiful glow on my cheeks:

(Again, ignore the shabby lash job, please and thank you :-)  )

My concealer is MAC Studio Tech concealer in NW43, the closest thing to my perfect concealer I've ever found. I am one of those weird people who applies foundation and powder last, so after the concealer I applied MAC Studio Fix Fluid in NW43 all over, i set my concealer with Mineralize Skin Finish in Dark, and kinda bronzed my whole face (just one light coat, didn't buff it in) with Mineralize Skin Finish in Sunny By Nature, below:

Lips are based with MAC Young Spark, one layer of MAC Veneer lip lacquer, and topped with Prescriptives' Cosmic lip gloss.

I'm teaching a class/having a makeup party this weekend and I'm really excited about it! Stay tuned for pictures from the party...

Lemme know what you think in the comments!

Oh! After the look was complete, I decided to get fancy and add some glitter to the eyes...it ended disastrously (read: all over everything in my bathroom) but I did get a few pics of it before bedtime.

 

The glitter doesn't really show up on camera as much as it does in person, of course...but trust me, there was glitter E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E.

Until next time, loves!


<3 BD.

Blending eyeshadow colors

The trick to blending dark colors up into the crease so that they don't overpower the whole eyelid is to blend softly, not pressing too hard. Aim to use only the very tip of the brush while sweeping the color up to the top of the eyelid.

It is possible to over blend eyeshadow colors, just as it's possible to under blend (is that a word?). When blending, you only want to focus on the seam where the two colors meet. If they are complementary colors, you can simply swirl the brush in a circular motion; because they're complementary, overblending won't really be a problem. If, however, they are contrasting colors (black/white, purple/yellow, pink/black, blue/orange), don't swirl. Holding the fluffy brush with your middle finger and thumb as FAR from the bristles as you possibly can, lightly sweep the seam of the colors from left and right, up and down the eyelid.  Essentially, this eliminates the top layer of each color and melds them together in that one spot, instead of mixing them completely together.