Ghastly Flapper

upload, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

So I've been taking Halloween looks from Pinterest and applying them to the hair heads at the salon, this one is from this post. http://www.pinterest.com/pin/161777811587855163/

Halloween is one of my most favorite holidays, mostly because I love an excuse to dress up and pretend to be someone else. I also love dressing other people up and making them look like someone or something else, it's a great chance to really stretch myself creatively, I'm looking forward to Halloween clients and whatever ideas they bring in.

Before and After 2, Karissa

A big thanks to Karissa for letting me play with her face.  She came into the salon to visit with me and get her hair done and left with hair AND makeup.  Karissa has fabulous skin and a face I could make up over and over and not get tired of. She is also one of those people who cannot stop blinking and flinching when you apply makeup to her so it gets pretty lively and very amusing when it comes time to do the mascara and eyeliner.  I used MAC's face and body for the foundation with NYX's HD Studio Finishing powder and NYX Dewy finish setting spray for the skin.  The face and body foundation would have been fine on it's own but I was experimenting.  On lips are Flower's nude lip pencil and MAC's Blankety lipstick.  I've been using NYX's Black Bean jumbo pencil with a MAC 266 or 212 to get a nice controlled black line.  It can be smudgy on some lids so you can set it with black eyeshadow or a translucent powder like the HD Studio Finishing powder or you can just use a gel liner made specifically for eye lining.  Again, I've been experimenting.  I used MAC's Malt eyeshadow to fill Karissa's brows.  She made it very clear that she did not want me to groom them at all.  I respected that.  You should always listen to your clients if you want repeat business.  It's hard sometimes, but it must be done.  You may know what looks best, but they know what they like best and sometimes the two don't meet.  Lucky for the both of us, Karissa's brows are pretty good looking and don't need much help from either of us.  So that's Karissa before and after.  Thanks Karissa!

What's a Headshot and why do I need one?

So...that's my temporary headshot.  A headshot is industry lingo for a picture of a person's face or just their head, hence "headshot".  Why do I need one?  Well because a position I recently applied for asked for it. It's industry standard.  I don't know why but I can make a guess.  It's because people want to see what their makeup artist looks like.  Have you ever walked up to a makeup counter and picked who was going to help you based on who's face looked most like what you wanted to look like?  Yeah.  It's like that.
  Why do I look so long suffering you ask?  Because I really really don't enjoy having my picture taken.  It's why I always work behind the scenes.  There are only three people on the planet who have ever been able to take good pictures of me, two of them are professionals.  The other is my husband, who can always make me laugh.  I full well intend to get a professional headshot done, I just needed something quick, so I threw on some makeup, grabbed my camera and a friend and had her take a bunch of shots with the belief that one of them was bound to work.  Now you're looking at it.  And that's the story of the headshot. The End.

Fight Like a Girl!

Its October and that means quite a few things, but today, for this post, it means Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Something just jumped up and bit me and I was inspired to take pictures of all the women I know in hot pink lipstick making fight faces.  So all month you'll be seeing pictures and maybe hearing stories about how each person has been affected by breast cancer, because not one of us has managed to go unscathed in this fight.  Put up your dukes ladies!  Fight for yourself, fight for a friend or family member or just fight because it feels right.  Get yourself checked, get a friend checked, take a family member to get checked.  Be aware!  Arm yourself with knowledge and Check out the information the Cancer Center has.
  Now go fight like a girl!

The Mini MAC Haul

Clockwise from Left to Right Red Brick Matte eyeshadow, Swiss Chocolate Matte eyeshadow, Saddle Matte eyeshadow, Clear Lipglass, N5 Face and Body foundation, N1 Face and Body foundation. 

MAC has this great program called "Back 2 MAC" where you can bring your empty MAC containers and get free stuff back.  I have a huge bag of empties.  Like, hundreds of empties.  You see, tragically I live far far away from any MAC counter.  I have to drive no less than an hour to reach the closest MAC counter and farther than that to reach a stand alone store.  Today I happened to be visiting my sister, who lives less than 10 minutes from a stand alone store.  Guess who got to turn in 24 empties?  That's right, this girl.  If you return your empties to a stand alone store you get to pick either an eyeshadow, a lipglass or a lipstick so long as the lipglass or lipstick is not from the Viva Glam collection.  If you're wondering what that B on the lipglass is about, its to indicate that its a Back 2 MAC item.  So, if you have 7 empties, head to your nearest MAC retail spot and get some freebies.
  The Face and Body bottles were paid for.  I was told that they don't need to be thinned out to go into an airbrush, but my airbrush must have issues because its a little too thick for it.  I'm going to try adding mixing medium to it and see how that works, I think a three to one ratio, three drops of FAB to 1 drop of mixing medium should do it.
Speaking of mixing medium, I'm putting a tutorial together on how to mix your own airbrush foundation.  I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps I'm just a dunce when it comes to airbrushing. It's either that or I'm just having a run of bad luck with foundations and my airbrush.  So far, L'oreal's True Match Naturale has been the only foundation that's worked according to plan.  Too bad it's so limited in color selection.  Funny thing that, not everyone is pale and pink.  Why haven't drugstore brand cosmetics realized that yet?  And why do they assume everyone's pale?  If you go to Khol's you can find a fairly decent selection by Vera Wang, they've got a nice deep color, but it runs to the orange and there is glitter in the formulation.  I think it's supposed to create a glowing complexion but really...it just looks like you're going out clubbing.  Glitter may be my favorite color, but I also believe in moderation.  It doesn't belong on your face on a regular work day.  Unless it's a part of your job, in which case, tear it up!

Things I have learned recently

So I've learned quite a few things recently and I'm going to share them with you in the hopes that I'll save you some time and money.

1.  When making your own airbrush foundation, don't use MAC's loose mineralize powder.  It's super fine milled and coated in silica, which means it sure doesn't mix with a water based mixing medium.  You'll wind up with a funky sludge that clogs your airbrush machine and doesn't actually work.

2.  When hosting a free event to build your portfolio...schedule everything.  Schedule the people coming in to get their makeup in 1.5 hour time slots.  Schedule your hair people to actually show up and be there the entire time.  Schedule your photographers to be there, that's really important.

3.  Don't run yourself ragged or you'll have two weeks of miserable recuperation.

4.  When doing makeup on those crazy heads hair students use.......you know what?  I'll just do a tutorial on that.  I've been doing makeup on all of those heads recently in order to put Halloween faces up for people to see when they come to the salon.  Much like face charts, those mannequin heads aren't much like putting makeup on a human face.  Its almost easier to load the airbrush machine with acrylic medium and paint the stuff on than to try and get regular makeup to work.  I'm staring at the one I most recently did and wishing I had done exactly that.

Some happy news?  I'm totally going to the MAC store in the Pentagon mall.  I'm going to go visit my sister and I figured I'd just grab my huge bag of empties and go shoppin'!  I hope they have Face and Body there.  I have color cosmetics coming out of my ears but I have no airbrush foundation....well I have 2 but they're subpar in my opinion.  Wish me luck and a safe trip.  I'll post my haul on Monday.

My new toy.

My new toy., a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

Yes, I really am getting with the current technology of makeup. Happily it doesn't involve a computer screen or keyboard so I should be safe. Airbrush makeup is THE thing for HD image capture. If you want flawless looking skin, you need to learn how to use an airbrush. I've spent most of today watching tutorials and reading all about airbrush technique. The most informative vlog entry I found was by someone called EnKore, you can find the pin on my Pinterest site. He made his own mixing medium and airbrush foundations. I'm mixing some up tonight to test before tomorrow's makeup throwdown. The book that I've found to be the most informative and helpful in all things makeup artistry related has been "The Makeup Artist Handbook" by Gretchen Davis and Mindy Hall. It's expensive, but completely worth it. I consider it to be an investment in my skills as an artist.
Tomorrow's the big portfolio building photo shoot. I'm pretty excited, everything is already all packed up and ready to go, all I need to do is pick up some water. I hope to see you there, we can mess around with the airbrush.

100!

Yay, this blog has now had 100 views.  I know, I checked.  I didn't think anyone read this, I even double checked to make sure that it wasn't counting my own views, as I've psyched myself out this way before.  Ok so maybe the majority of those views were spam bots, I don't care.  100 is a big number.  Thanks to ya'll with human eyeballs who've taken the time to read, I appreciate it.
In case you were wondering what those lovely products are in the pictures, here they are from left to right. t Chanel glossimer in Galactic, MAC's skinfinish powder in Whisper of Gilt and MAC's Beauty Powder in Tahitian Sand.  They were tucked away in my personal cache of makeup.  One day I'll take a picture of my work stash versus my personal makeup stash.  It will be really quite revealing.  Actually it will show that I wear very little makeup on a daily basis and that I save all the good stuff for my clients.  My beauty regimen involves moisturizer, cleanser, lots of water, for washing and for drinking, sleep and tons of vitamin supplements.  That and well groomed brows.  Everything else is icing on the cake.  Makeup is for date nights, light work days, and playtime.  I practically have to hire a babysitter to be able to put my makeup on without having to run interference with my kids and animals. I'd rather sleep those extra 10-20 minutes than put my face on.  I have a very comfortable bed. It's a shameful state of affairs.

Makeover break!

My model for this post is the lovely Katie, you'll be seeing more of her as she works in the same salon as I do.  I caught her doing her face and forced her into my chair so I could get some practice in.  I also wanted to try some new stuff I had just bought.

Product list:
Urban Decay Naked Skin Beauty Balm as a primer
Smashbox Photo Finish Lid Primer
Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream in Fair
Smashbox Halo Hydrating Perfecting Powder in Fair
NYX Wonder Pencil in Light
NYX Jumbo Pencil in Cashmere ( I LOVE this pencil, I have multiples just in case)
MAC eyeshadow in Arena
MAC pressed mineral blush in Warm Soul
Flower Kiss Stick lipstick in Coral Floret
Flower lip liner in Nude

Face Charts

When you don't have faces to work on, face charts are supposed to be the next best thing. I'm not sure who thought that up but I'd like to point something very obvious out. Paper is flat, faces are not. Also, paper does not have varied skin tones the way human faces do. That said, they are a great tool for keeping track of what makeup you've used on a client and for coming up with new color combinations and looks.
For me, they're an artistic challenge. Getting the shading to look realistic on the paper is not easy for me. It forces me to really observe the way light shapes a three dimensional object. Getting the reflected light right on a glossy lip is like the challenge of a century when it comes to my face charts. I also get a mite frustrated with blending and keeping the color and texture of the makeup to remain true on paper. Try getting the glitter in a sparkly eyeshadow to stay on paper without glue or primer. Dare ya.
Coloring with makeup is not the same as coloring with crayons. I take so long to do a really good face chart that it's probably easier for me to find a model, put makeup on said model, and take a picture. So why do I do face charts? Because it makes me a better makeup artist. By forcing myself to transform a flat piece of paper into a realistically shaded and beautifully made up face, I'm exercising artistic talents that I need to transfer the idea in my head to the three dimensional face successfully. 
I have a selection of more beat up older brushes and makeip that I use just for face charts. Whenever inspiration strikes or I'm feeling particularly smug I pull my kit out and get to work.

LIGHTS!

The lights are situated and I'm open for business!, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

Well, my lights came in, I set them up and now I'm officially open for business. YAY! Come get your makeup on!

Prime time!

Wow, I found a topic that The Beauty Department hasn't completely covered.  I love that blog! If you love makeup, and you haven't stumbled across that blog, it's time to add a new bookmark.  So, I want to talk to you about primers.  Don't worry, this will be less uncomfortable than that time someone sat you down for "The Talk".  Do you currently use a primer?  For anything?  There are quite a few out there and it can be confusing so I'm going to simplify it.  Get the best of what you can afford.  There.  Everyone's different, everyone's skin is different so everyone's primer experience is going to be different.  I can't give you a miracle panacea primer, I can just tell you why I use them, how I use them, and which ones I use.  So here goes.
Why use a primer?  Because you want everything to stay where you put it and look good while it's there. Primers help pigments adhere to skin.  It's like painting a wall with primer before you get the color on, or putting gesso on a canvas before you start to paint.  You're preparing the skin's surface to receive makeup.  But like everything in life, too much of a good thing isn't good.  More primer isn't going to be better, it's just going to get cakey or pill or roll or crease.  It's not a good look. Be easy.
Nobody pays me to endorse products.  I don't even think anyone reads this thing honestly so if I suggest something, it's because I love it.  Like, crazy love it.  Like, I can't believe I put makeup on anyone without this stuff love it.
That said, here are my favorite primers and why:
All MAC primers:  No joke.  I'm a MAC certified artist formerly of the Cville VA counter. Every time they came out with a new primer, I lost my mind over it.
Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion:  It doesn't move. In fact, without some good makeup remover, you're going to have a time getting it off.
Urban Decay's Naked Skin face primer: It looks ridiculously peach when it comes out of the tube, but your skin looks amazing after application.  Sometimes, that's all I wear on my skin, no foundation, no tinted moisturizer.
L'oreal's Magic Lumi: It's more of an illuminator/highlighter but it does brighten dull skin and mixes well with foundations and tinted moisturizers.
L'oreal's Magic Perfecting Base:  Not quite good enough to wear alone, it kind of has a sticky quality if you don't set it with powder or apply your foundation of choice over.  It still looks lovely and wears well on my dry skin. A little bit goes a long way.
Urban Decay's Ozone Lip Pencil: Its clear!  Its an amazing barrier against color bleed!  I love it!  I don't usually like lip primers because they don't address chap issues.  If you have chapped lips, you need to exfoliate.  No primer can fix that, but a moisturizing one can help prevent it from getting as bad.  Also, no primer in the world is going to help a lip biter like me.  I've chewed off more lip product than I can even count.

In summation, find a primer you like, use it sparingly so it doesn't gum up and get gross, and fall in love with makeup that doesn't move.

It's a photo shoot!

One of the most important things you need as a makeup artist, other than having a professional attitude and great application skills, is a good portfolio.  It needs to be current, reflect the entire range of your skills, and look professional.  Guess who doesn't have a current portfolio?  Yup. Me.  It's a sad state of affairs indeed. The thing is, I rarely ever have my camera with me after doing someone's face.  You try begging wedding photographers for some of the prints or shots from a wedding you've done.  Maybe you'll have better luck than I have.  We won't even talk about getting stills and reel (the industry term for images from any film work).  Maybe I'm not charming or persistent enough.  Maybe I'm working with the wrong people.  I don't know.
  So here's my solution.  I'm going to throw a party, put makeup on as many faces as I can and get tons of pictures from some other folks who want to work on their portrait skills and/or portfolios.  Yeah, it's going to cost me to rent the space, but it's worth it.  This will ensure I'll have a well lit space to work in with enough room to accommodate everyone.  So if you're in the area and you need a head shot or want to practice your portrait photography, come on by.

What Website?

I'm in the middle of trying to figure out how to set up a website.  Do I even need one?  Everyone else has one.  Or at least that's what it feels like.  This...this is terribly frustrating.  I've already reached the point in my life where almost all technology befuddles me.  I'm surprised I even blog.  My kids are waaaayyyy savvier than I am when it comes to tech.  Maybe I should have them making my site.  They'd be done by now if I had asked them to make it.  My husband wants me to have his company do it.  The last time I asked him to do something it took so long I wound up doing it myself.  He's a genius, but I'm not a paying customer. I'm not on the priority list and honestly, neither is a website.

It's coming together!

It's coming together!, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

Everything's in place, now all I'm waiting for is my lighting rig and my space will be perfect! It already feels homey and safe and full of potential. Now I just need to do the portfolio building shoot, which means I really need to order those invites. After that I'll be hitting the pavement and building business.
People make that seem so easy in tutorials, seminars, group meetings and books, but it's not. The hardest part is the waiting and not getting discouraged. What they don't tell you is that it takes at least a year to build steady word of mouth traffic and can take more than that to really build your name. I live and work in a small town that tends to be reluctant to accept change. That can be tough. But that's ok. I knew when I got into this that I wasn't doing it for the money. I'm doing it for the love of what I do. I love makeup. I love teaching people about makeup. I love watching people fall in love with makeup. I love watching the difference in a person's confidence levels when they see themselves after a good application. Oh man I'm looking forward to all of the faces that are going to come through that door.

Setting up the new digs at Main Street Salon.

Setting up the new digs at Main Street Salon., a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

Well, it's official, I now have a space all my own in a salon. This is a huge step for me. I've ordered my lighting and I'm trying to decide what furniture to move in. It's really a small space so I need to maximize every inch. I need a place to sit and consult with my clients as well as a space to apply said makeup and storage space. Right. I'm creative, I'm clever, and I'm good at this. Keep checking back to see how it progresses.

Whatever happened to less is more?

I've recently been doing some intensive blog reading and web browsing in order to brush up on my skills (as a look at my pinterest boards can attest to) and I've been seeing some very defined, obvious makeup.  It leaves me wondering what happened to pared down minimalism or a clean, natural look.  It seems like the only time I see a barely enhanced face is in an ad for skin care or foundation.  I love a dramatic look as much as the next style maven, don't get me wrong.  I just feel like there's a time and a place for it, and it's not every day.  I'm an advocate of enhancing what's already there with subtlety, blending and soft touches of color that mimic or boost your natural coloring so seeing all of these heavily defined, sculpted looks is a little disconcerting.  Some of these eyebrows just look glued on, which intimidates the bananas out of me.  I'm going to spend the next couple of days just looking around at what I see on the faces of the every day local gals and see if that's what people are really doing, or if it's just one of those industry things.

Playtime!

upload, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

My friend and next door neighbor Cat lets me play with her face whenever I get the urge. You'll be seeing a lot of her here.

New services offered on Styleseat!

So I was at Target today doing a little school shopping with girl #1 and as usual, I couldn't help butting in when I saw a makeup browser in distress.  You know the one, you may have even been the one, she's standing there with product in hand, looking mighty indecisive and a little overwhelmed, possibly voicing opinions of doubt and dismay to her shopping buddy.  Like Superman, I cannot pass a body in distress, especially not when I can help.  So I did, and I came away wishing I could do that every day and possibly get paid to do it.  Then I thought "Why not?"  So now, when you go to my Styleseat page, you'll be able to request a 2 hour stint of personal makeup shopping with yours truly.  Want to go to Ulta? Me too!  Just need help at the drug store?  OK!  Want to hit the MAC counter and know you're coming away with stuff you'll use AND love?  I LOVE the MAC counter, it's my home planet.  I speak makeup fluently and can translate into English.  I also won't allow you to blow your budget, because I too am on a budget and am all about accountability.  Trust me, the money you pay me to shop with you you'll get back in confidence and product knowledge.  You'll be a savvier shopper who won't fall for the over the top claims made by products and you'll learn what you can pass on, go low budget on and what you should splurge on.  Oh my I just can't wait to go shopping with you!

Taking big steps

Took some time to talk to a local salon owner about renting a space today.  I think it's time to take a big girl career step and invest in myself.  I've been slinging brushes freelance without a retail/public space for the entirety of my career as a makeup artist and while it's been less expensive, it's also been less productive.  Not to mention the hassle of trying to find a place to hold consults and test runs.  Mostly I had been doing it in my home and I can tell you, with two girls, a dog, a cat, and few places with great natural lighting, that's not so professional.  It'll be nice to not have to scramble to clean the house and stow the kids and animals before a client comes over.
I know the saying "You have to spend money to make money" but actually putting it into practice can be a little...stressful.  To really get things started, there's the initial outlay of portfolio and materials costs.  Then, if you want to up the ante, you've got advertising, networking, retail space, travel and possibly storage depending on your situation.  Right.  And how much are you charging?  Ugh.  In the end, the question you have to ask yourself over and over is "Is it worth it."  I know I'm asking myself that now.  How much is this worth to me? The answer?  I don't know yet.  Right now I'm going to try and see how it works out, because if I don't try, I'll never know, and I really don't like what if.  So here I go, I'm going to hitch up my pants and take a big step.  Wish me luck.

The kit

The kit, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

What to pack in the train case? There never seems to be enough room for all of the things I want to carry with me.

Brush Roll

Brush Roll, a photo by The Paper Doll on Flickr.

Oh it's so nice to see these beauties all packed up and ready to go.

It's time to break out the brushes and dust off my travel gear

After a long hiatus (3+ years), I'm feeling like it's time to pull out my brushes and get back to making people up.  I took some time off so that I could focus on being a mom to a new baby girl and my first girl and recharge my creative batteries but now, that old familiar craving is creeping up on me.  I feel the need to get my hands messy and make someone, anyone, everyone beautiful.  Or at least more colorful.  This is one of the things I love to do and I really had ignored it and denied it for three years.  I barely even made up my own face.  These past three years have been great, I've had fun watching my girls become the people they're growing up to be.  I love the fact that I've been here for them every new step of the way, I wouldn't trade that time for anything, but now I'm a little restless.  I'm not ready for the full on hectic travel schedule of being on set all the time.  I'm going to ease on in with some weddings and photo shoots, a little local work.  Once my girls are older and more self sufficient, I just might throw myself into this all the way.  Maybe.  I really love my bed, my home and my family a little too much to be gone as often as I would have to be if I did this thing full time.  For now, I'm just enjoying getting back into the swing of things.  YAY Makeup!