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.