MAKE UP FOR EVER

Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream Eyeshadow in Pastel Blue brings back childhood memories

June 4, 2012

When I was a little girl one of my favorite things to do was to play with my mothers makeup. I remember watching her carefully apply her makeup by the window, to catch the natural light. I remember how carefully she applied her red lipstick, filled in her perfectly arched eyebrows and applied her mascara and eyeshadow. She always looked so beautiful with her big brown eyes and long black hair. I always wanted to put on makeup too to be just like my mother, it looked like so much fun and my mom always looked gorgeous. One of the colors that my mom used a lot was blue eyeshadow, and yes I know that blue eyeshadow has gotten a bad rep over the years but back then it was very much in vogue. Besides the blues of today and not the blues of yesterday.

Blue eyeshadow today has been greatly modernized to look much more chic and fashionable. So when I saw Make Up For Ever’s Aqua Cream Eyeshadow in Pastel Blue it whisked me away back to my childhood full of makeup dreams and perfume wishes. This Aqua Cream eyeshadow is not the dusty powdery shadow of the 1990’s, it’s very pigmented with mother of pearl particles to give a super rich color payoff that’s easy to blend and lasts forever, plus it’s waterproof.

Sometimes an object can bring up such strong memories of the past and for me its blue eyeshadow; for the rest of my life it will always remind me of my mother. I guess I can say that I am fortunate to have a mom that prides herself on how she looks. Watching her apply her makeup inspired my femininity. And to this day I still laugh about how she would shout “You’re leaving the house without any lipstick?” as I walked out the door. I can truly appreciate her tips now because she made me the beauty lover that I am today.

Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream Eyeshadow, $23

The Makeup Show NYC 2011

May 15, 2011

The booths at The Makeup Show NYC

The Makeup Show NYC descended upon the Big Apple for it’s 6th consecutive year bringing beauty professionals two days of lectures, workshops and the opportunity to stock their kits with some of the best products on the market. Some of the pro-focused brands present were Make Up For Ever, Stila, Face Atelier, Smashbox, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, Kevyn Aucoin, Yves Saint Laurent, Becca Cosmetics and many, many others. The Makeup Show is more than just a trade show, it provides inspiration, community and necessary education to the artists that attend.

In addition to the pro workshops there are live demos where you can get up close, ask questions and even buy the products used. One of the most popular booths was Xotic Eyes Body Art, they had lots of models and they were VERY creative with their designs. Check out one of their models below (left).

Body art at The Makeup Show 2011

Another benefit of the Makeup Show is checking out the new products. One of my favorite discoveries is actually a something that I was looking for anyway, a summer lotion. I sampled the new Summer Shine Body Lotion by Mario Badescu and I was sold immediately. The lotion gives a subtle (not glittery) shimmer that just illuminates the skin.

Mario Badescu Summer Shine Body Lotion at the Makeup Show

This is my second year attending The Makeup Show and needless to say it did not disappoint, you can check out the 2010 makeup show here and here. Have you attended The Makeup Show before, what was your experience like?

Fashion Week Beauty: Five Hair and Makeup Trends From the Runway

February 17, 2011

Hair and makeup are undeniably important at Fashion Week, and while not forgotten, they can still take a bit of a backseat to the many fabulous clothing trends that debut during the fashion frenzy. If you’re a cosmetics junkie, you probably devour the makeup looks just as hard or harder as the fancy frocks on the catwalk. Here are five Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011 makeup trends that we spotted!

1.) Paler, Matte-r Skin: As seen in this pic from MAC Cosmetics (and in several other places), skin for F/W 2011 is trending towards dropping the bronzer in favor of more natural, almond-y tones for fairer skin types. A bronzed glow is a bit of a perennial, but it was interesting to see the more alabaster types get their day- well, not in the sun, apparently. MAC’s Studio Fix is a very favored product for a perfected matte visage.

2.) Gunmetal and black: Lots of shows featured an Old Hollywood vibe, and gunmetal has a modern edge but undeniable silent film-era feel as well. (Seen on eyes in Badgley Mischka’s Fall/Winter 2011 collection.) Dior’s 1-Colour Ultra-Smoothing High Impact Eyeshadow in Argentic 056 or Flash Back 086 provides a finely-milled shimmery gray wash of color.

3.) Undone Updos: Are you one of those people who can get days out of a good blowout? Looks for Fall and Winter 2011 will put far less of a strain on your hot tools, as bed-head inspired updos totally rocked the runway this Fashion Week- as seen below at Vivienne Tam. A dab of Bumble & Bumble’s Brilliantine is a standby for this fashionably disheveled look.

4.) Neutral lips: A twist on the Hollywood siren look was a neutral lip in lieu of the old glam standard red. Make Up Forever did the look at Mara Hoffman below, and Rouge Artist Intense in Matte Caramel is a good neutral choice for an understated lip.

5.) Intense, winged liner: We hinted at this trend in our post about Mehron for Toni Francesc, but this is a look that popped up in several F/W 2011 collections and is seen below at Monique Lhuillier. NARS has a felt tip precision liquid eyeliner that would make this look a snap, even without pre-existing liquid liner skills.

Which makeup and hair trends for Fall/Winter 2011 are you excited about?

[Pics: BeautyPress]

Review: High Definition Beauty with MAKE UP FOR EVER blush

April 13, 2010

I like blush, in fact I like it almost as much as I like bronzer. For me blush is the perfect way to brighten up my face when I want a nice and healthy glow. Some days I’m just not into the whole primer, foundation, powder bit, you know? On those days I wear a little blush, gloss and mascara; it’s quick and easy and I’m out the door (especially when I’m running late). I decided to go to my favorite beauty haunt and see what was in stock that I haven’t tried before. – no easy task. 🙂 I asked one of the sales ladies if she could recommend a new product to try and she suggested MAKE UP FOR EVER High Definition Blush. I took a look at the bottle and thought that it was a bit small and that I would not get much out of it but I quickly saw that one pump would go a long way. In fact I only needed half a pump for both cheeks!

This blush is highly pigmented so you only need very little but unfortunately the container is going to pump out more than you are probably going to need…so press lightly. This formula is creamy as very easy to apply with a brush or your fingertips. When it dries it leaves quite a luminous finish and it stays on for hours, yes hours. I didn’t need to reapply while at work, the color stayed true throughout the day.

The blush comes in 14 colors, most of which were sold out when I was at the store (not surprising). I was able to try out the shades that were there and I opted for #9 – In the Spotlight. This color is supposed to be a nude but it’s pretty intense, more like a light/medium brown. Either way, I liked how it looked on my complexion so I decided to purchase it. The little bottle will last me quite a long time so it’s worth the price especially since I adore the rich colors and easy application. The only thing that I would change is the pump, less product needs to come out or allow for more control in dispensing the product. Overall this is a good buy if you love blush and want something with a lot of staying power (this blush delivers).

make up for ever HD blush swatch — #9 - "In the Spotlight" swatch

This blush is sold exclusively at Sephora and retails for $25 for a 0.33 oz bottle.