Yes I know what you are thinking! What happened to the new years resolution of being a better blogger! It is the 22nd February and this is only my second post of 2012….BAD BEAUTY BLOGGER. To be honest though I have an excuse I was working on a Feature Film and as some of you might know already, this means long long hours (generally over 12 hours a day, then you might go home and catch up on some paperwork). Also it meant moving to Monaghan for 4 weeks, I didn’t even have signal on my phone, for some reason O2 has no coverage there, so I have pretty much been out of contact with everyone.
Anyway now I am back in action and ready to blog to my hearts content. I thought I would talk about some Sigma Brushes that I got, they are amazing! I have a few sets to talk about, but for the moment I thought I would start with the “Make Me Classy” set. This is pretty much every brush you need as a make-up artist except a lip brush, but other than that it is a brilliant starting out set, especially because it is only $109. Also they deliver to Ireland, happy days
I have always been tempted by the cheaper brushes, I have brushes from Crown, ebay, Hairspray etc. While most of them are good, they generally end up becoming bodypainting or special effects brushes. It is mainly MAC, Bobbi Brown and Nars brushes that make it into the coveted space of my make-up brush belt. Not anymore I tell ya! I am really impressed by the quality of the Sigma brushes and some of them are total “dupes” for MAC brushes that I already have and then some of them are even better! I have had a whole spring clean and now I would say the 30% of my working brushes are Sigma. I will have to do a post later of what is in my brush belt.
Anyway, what you get in the Make Me Classy Kit is:
1. ) Eyeliner – E05 - An extra-fine tipped synthetic fibre brush which is supposed to be used for eyeliner, but I have been using it as a lipliner for people with really small lips.
2.) Pencil – E30 - A natural bristle brush for the precise application of color on the crease, outer corner, and upper and lower lash line. It is also supposed to be for smudging eyeliner too, but to be honest it just isn’t hard enough for that, but I don’t mind, I think this is a fantastic eyeshadow brush. This is similar to the MAC 219 pencil brush, but just a bit looser and softer.
3.) Tapered Blending – E40 - Natural bristle brush, specially designed to apply and blend color on the crease. I just love how big and soft this brush is! I find it fantastic for putting on a base colour in a jiffy. It is lovely to just sweep colour over the whole eye and also great for light washes of colour.
4.) Eye Shading – E55 - Natural bristle brush which can be used to apply pressed or loose eye shadows and pigments. This brush is great for really building up intensity of colour when dealing with dark highly pigmented shadows, great for intense smokey eyes. Also because it it is quite firm you don’t get too much fall out.
5. ) Large Shader – E60 - I found this great for applying concealer or foundation to small areas.
6.) Small Angle – E65 - This is meant for gel or cream eyeliner on the upper and lower lash line, but I love the firmness of it for precise eyebrow filling, getting that perfect defined brow to finish off any look.
7.) Medium Angled Shading – E70 - This is like the 275 brush from MAC, I have both brushes, but to be honest I am just not a fan of this shape, definitely a personal preference though.
8.) Large Powder – F30 - This powder brush is one of the most softest brushes I have used in a long time, it is really dense and is great for really blending the powder in, so you don’t end up having a Nicole Kidman moment.
9.) Large Angled Contour – F40 - The angled shape makes this brush ideal to apply blush or contour shades. Again this is soooo soft and just blends the contours so beautifully.
10.) Duo Fibre – F50 - A blend of synthetic and natural bristles designed to create a flawless finish when applying foundation. I love this brush for really buffing the foundation into my client’s skin.
11.) Foundation – F60 - A synthetic brush that for applying cream foundations, I find this great when you are looking for a fuller coverage.
12.) Concealer – F70 - The best concealer brush ever, brilliant for really getting into hard to reach places like under the eyes without touching the bottom lashes.
As a member for the Irish Film and Television Academy I was invited to Dublin’s Gibson hotel on Thursday the 29th September 2011 for ‘The Craft of Make-Up’, the Academy’s annual event hosted in association with MAC Cosmetics, featured the work of two IFTA winning Make-Up artists Jennifer Hegarty and Linda Mooney.
The event was hosted by Tv3′s Xposé presenter and Karen Koster. Jennifer and Linda share behind the scenes secrets from their award winning careers in film and television. It was a really informative event with a great insight into the industry.
One of the things that I noted was that as make-up arists they never stop learning. Jennifer said that she started her career by going to London to do a few courses, but that she still learns all the time. She said that the industry changes so fast that you have to keep up with the times. Also it was great to note that there was no overnight success for Jennifer, it was a very slow process. It was through hard work and dedication that she has become the success that she is today. The first time that she actually felt that she had made it was when she did Peter O’Toole’s make-up. She said on meeting him that she found it quite comforting, because he was very nervous that day and it made her realise that everyone is nervous about what they are doing, so you have to keep going and keep doing it. She still enjoys the job and sometimes has to pinch herself when she is on a set in an exotic location. She has worked on films from Lassie, to Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, to Harry Potters, so I am sure she has seen a few! On creating a character, she says that it is usually a collaboration between the Make-up Artist, the Director and the Actor, although it is really about trying to convince them to do what you want . The products that she can’t live without are her grease palette and her skin illustrator and her brushes in particular the MAC foundation brush. For people starting out Jennifer would recommend taking up painting. If choosing a school, find out what the background is of the people you would be learning with.
Linda came to her career in a little bit of a different way. She was from a family that did hair and would have seen her mom make wigs for the Abbey. She is a fully trained hair dresser as well as a professional make-up artist. She found herself having to go abroad alot because the union in Ireland is quite restrictive and you can’t really do both. She is fluent in German and spent some time over there. Linda felt that she had really made it when she got to do a Deaf Leppard album cover, she had to turn the clean looking young men into 80s rock stars so lots of backcombing was required! Linda also mentioned is very aware that the women in the industry have missed out on family, that you have to try and strike the balance. She feels that she is a better mother when she is working. She was working with 21 women at the time of the talk and only 3 women out of that had a family.When asked what tools she couldn’t live with out, her immediate response was: Good brushes! When you are starting out Linda thinks you can’t beat being on set, try and get some work experienc. You will realise what it is really like and see what end you would like to go to.
They are both very warm people and it is easy to see that as well as their skill and talent that their personalities have brought them a long way too. They both touched on having the right personality for the job and being easy to work with and letting things go over your head. Also it is about knowing what battles to fight, when to take a bit more time doing a make-up and when to just let a bit of shine go…. Someone asked a question in the audience about whether they ever looked at another make-up artist’s work and said “what were they thinking” and they both agreed and said that they wouldn’t judge someone else’s work as you never know what kind of stress or what the circumstances were surrounding the job. Never a truer word was spoken! As a makeup artist if the day has run behind, you could sometimes be asked to do a make-up on set with the whole crew looking at you, when usually the make-up could take an hour to do normally!
It was a great talk and I hope that the Academy run more events like this in the future. It was great to meet fellow make-up artists and we got a free lippy to boot!
I was in desperate need of a new foundation, so I headed to my mecca that is Brown Thomas, Dublin. I really should not be allowed in the place without a shopping list because it is a recipe for spending alot of money on make-up
Having suffered from acne through my teens, I have found myself continuing this battle at the age of 27! Come on hormones, give me a break! Anyway I had heard that Clinique had a new foundation specifically targeted at spot sufferers like myself called Anti-Blemish Solutions, so I decided to go road test it.
I was approached by an extremely welcoming and friendly girl called Kirstie: “What are we looking for today?” Aha! I am on to you, the salesy open question…however what could I do but answer! I told her I was looking for a foundation and she paired me off with a Make-up Consultant (can’t remember her name for sure, but I think it was Sandra). Sandra discussed my needs and was able to tell me that I needed their anti-blemish foundation. She tried two colours and asked would I prefer to go a shade darker or the same as my skin tone. Of course I said the same as my skin tone…this usually means I look like a ghost, but at least I don’t have to try blending it down my neck! Anyway I luuuurve me blusher as you know, so the ghost look is no problemo. So turns out I am Fresh Alibaster, which is 01 VF-Very Fair.
I only wanted to try the foundation out and wear it for the day before buying it, because it is so important to road test a foundation first. Often you will find that colours look completely different in natural/fake light and not only that, some foundations change colour as they dry, so what you could try on that looks fine could end up looking too dark later on. This is usually the way with highly pigmented or matt foundations.
Anyway we tried the foundation and I said I would be back if I still liked it later. She was completely cool with it, didn’t pressurise me for the sale and she even let me know that in three days they would have a gift with purchase on. Roll on three days:
I am happy enough with the foundation so far, but it is very drying, so we shall see what this does to my skin over the next couple of weeks. I bought their anti-blemish solutions concealer too, this is great for covering spots as it is so pigmented – a little goes a long long way. It has a toothpaste like consistency and it takes a bit of getting used to, I find that applying it with my fingers is best. It lasts ALL day which is amazing for me, because I rub and touch my face all the time.
Anyway to summarise the whole Clinique counter in Brown Thomas Dublin experience:
Counter Atmosphere: 10/10
Consultant Friendliness: 10/10
Make-Up Application: 9/10
Product Suitability: 10/10
Pressure to buy: 0% (this is a good thing!)
I attended a MAC Trends Masterclass which was hosted in the Brown Thomas headquarters. The masterclass was run by Lesley Keane and Nikki Gillick.
The day started off with a snappy video of all the backstage action in London, Paris, Milan and New York. I love seeing the mayhem and discord before a big show. Leslie fresh from behind the scenes herself was able to regale us with tales and anecdotes. The biggest trend (which I was talking about in a previous post) is definitely bleached eyebrows.
This can be done using the good ‘ol Jolene, usually a staple for the lady bleaching her top lip, you can now use it to stay on trend and brighten up those brows. If you don’t want to commit fully to this look, you can always cheat it by using MAC full coverage foundation and working it into the brows with a mascara wand. Make sure you brush them in all directions ensuring that every side of each hair follicle is covered.
There were a few mentions of this season being a real throwback to the 70s with strong colours and a more rounded eyeshape, following the natural curve of the eyesocket.
I went away from the event inspired.
Here are the finished looks:
Here are some of the MAC Trend Facecharts for Spring Summer:
I have been contacted alot lately about becoming a make-up artist and the different courses that are out there. So I thought I would put together a few tips:
1) DREAM:
Everything in life starts with an idea. If you believe it is possible and put all your determination into it, things will happen for you. Everything takes time so try not to get disheartened. Starting off you will get little to no money and it will seem like a thankless job. However if you love the job you are doing all the pain will be worth it right?
Do your research, find make-up artists you like and that inspire you. Tear sheets out of magazines, look at websites, read blogs and watch youtube videos. Then practise practise practise. Try and get as many of your unsuspecting friends, girlfriends, moms or sisters to sit down and practise on them! It’s one thing being able to do make-up on yourself, its another to apply it on someone else. Try and get as many different looking people as you can, with different eyeshapes, lipshapes, skin tones etc. This will prepare you for any eventuality that you may come across when you start working as a professional make-up artist.
2) GET SOME TRAINING:
I trained in the LA Make-Up Academy in Ireland, which I think is a good private course. If I was to do it all over again however I would attend the two year full time course in IADT, it is much more comprehensive and prepares you for every aspect of the Make-Up Industry.
I would have loved to go abroad and study, but at the time I never really considered it as an option. There are a few courses that really stand out in my mind, they are the Make-up Forever Course in Paris, Blanche Macdonald course in Canada, London College of Fashion and Brushstrokes which are both in the UK.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how good or bad a course is that you choose, you will learn only as much as you are willing. No one can teach you to be a fantastic Make-Up Artist, it is a combination of learning the technique, practising your skills and a bit of raw talent, then even that isn’t enough…if you are going to work freelance you have to have a business acumen to boot.
3) GET SOME EXPERIENCE:
Probably the fastest way to get experience and learn the trade is by getting a job on a make-up counter. They have great training programmes as well as some of the counters will give you the opportunity to do fashion shows and shoots if you are with them long enough. The only thing about this is that it is very sales focused, so if like me you are rubbish at selling people things, then this route is not for you. Another option is to test with photographers and models. Work for local theatre productions for free. Work on short films. They don’t pay and they can be very hard work, but the experience is invaluable. The best way to get in contact with people is on the many great websites out there. For fashion testing try Model Mayhem or Folio32, if you are keen to get into film and tv try the Film Makers Network, also place your own adverts saying that you would like to practise and are willing to work for free. I am sure that you will get loads of people willing to take you up on your offer.
Another great way to get experience and learn to tread the boards is by assisting a Make-Up Artist. Make sure that you do your research before hand, remember they probably get requests for assistants all the time so you have to make your request stand out from the crowd. The best way to make sure that you are not even considered is by not even addressing the person by name. It amazes me how many requests I get from people saying “hi there” or “to whom it may concern”, you just know they have sent the same email to 100 other make-up artists. Make sure that you make it known that you have seen their work and have done a bit of homework first.
4) BUILD YOUR PORTFOLIO:
The most important thing that a Make-Up Artist will own is not the best foundation or the brightest eyeshadow. It is in fact your portfolio. It is the one thing that will get you jobs and shows people what you are capable of. In a beauty driven industry it is imperitive that your posrtfolio looks the part. Make sure that the prints are impeccable in large format and bound in a professional way. I like the books by House of Portfolios. If you can’t find anyone to test with, it may even be an idea to pay a photographer to take good shots of your work. Nothing screams amateur more than badly taken photos! Linked into your portfolio is your website and business cards. Again these should be really well designed, if you can’t do it well enough yourself, then pay someone to do it for you, after all you can’t be brilliant at everything! I once went to a talk given by Sarah Newman of “The Dragons Den”, in which she said you have to learn what you are good at and when to call in the professionals.
5) CONTACTS
In the beginning you will find yourself working for free alot, but don’t worry, this is not in vain, you are not a charity case. Not only is it to build experience, but it is also to build invaluable contacts. There have been many occasions that I have worked for free and people have brought me back for paid assignments. As people’s careers build and grow so will yours. You will soon learn to weed the time wasters and users from the genuine professionals just trying to make a break.
6.) BELIEVE
I know I said this at the first point, but I think it is really important to stress again…you are going to have loads of times of self doubt, where you think: “What am I doing, maybe I’m not cut out for this” Just believe in yourself and know that your big break could be right around the corner. Also enjoy the journey, life is an adventure with ups and downs, if it was too easy it wouldn’t be worth doing.
That’s all for now If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me: emma@emmafarrellmakeup.com or 0863274449
Before you even start I recommend you use a primer, a good one is Smashbox Matt Primer. With the onslaught of hormones and nights out, young skin, can often be prone to outbreaks. The best quality and priced concealer out there has to be the Rimmel Clear Stick. For extra stubborn spots, keep layering the concealer and powder inbetween layers.
Rimmel Clearstick
It is always best to invest in a good foundation as this will be the base for make-up and if you spend extra here, it will be sure to last the whole night. I would recommend Estee Lauder Doublewear Foundation. This full coverage foundation is non-transferable, which translates as NON-MOVEABLE, no need for touch ups However I would recommend you use a good make-up remover to take it off.
Estee Lauder Doublewear
Rimmel also do a great clarifying powder that like the concealer also helps to fight off blemishes and further breakouts whilst setting your make-up.
Rimmel Powder
Eyes
Dramatic eyes are a must for your debs make-up look. Why not go for a sultry smokey eye, dark colours will make your eyes pop for the photographs. For an alternative to the smokey look, why not try some dramatic eyeliner with some falsh eyelashes. Girls Aloud and Eyelure have brought out a fantastic range . Make sure to put on lashings of Mascara no matter what look you decide to go for…its like the frame on a good picture, helps to focus the viewers eye!
Girls Aloud Lashes
Lips
If eyes aren’t what you like to define you can still have alot of fun with lips. There are some gorgeous reds out there at the moment, especially from Armani and Chanel. They know how to do classic colours to perfection. Really well defined lips are seriously in vogue. Sometimes lippy can be a bit of a nuisance, because you have to keep topping it up, make sure to use a long lasting one like the Max Factor Lip Finity and that won’t be an issue.
Max Factor Lip Finity
Powder, Contour and Blush
The camera likes to make things look a bit flat, so to combat this you should always contour. Make the best of your bone structure. Using a Matt bronzer do a C-Shape from the forehead down to the centre of the cheaks. If you are having trouble finding where to place it, just suck in your cheeks. This is a very subtle effect…not to be confused with the early 90s blusher craze! Make sure to blend well. Then to add a flush of colour to your cheeks, smile and place blusher on to the apples of your cheeks, blending using light circular motions.
Then you are done! Easy Peazy! If you find this all a bit too much, you could always get your make-up done by a professional… Give me a shout: Emma 0863274449 for my rates
This is one of my favourite youtube videos, I saw this back in 2006 and showed it to all my friends and they couldn’t believe it, they had no idea that kind of thing happened. Even though I work in the fashion industry I was shocked to see it go to this extreme.
I remember growing up that I was really self concious and unsure of myself. I had moments where I felt fat or ugly or different. I know now that this is all a part of growing up and perfectly normal. I found it hard and time really does help you to gain some perspective on things and of course yourself. I have found that I have finally accepted myself and the way I look and use the skills that I have as a make-up artist to accentuate what was given to me.
It makes me ponder how the kids emerging into todays photoshop wizardy years can cope with the pressure of the superhumans…people that are stick thin but have big boobs, size zero but no ribs protuding, perfect eyelashes etc little do they know that this is all covered up with the brilliance of photoshop.
Fashion, Film, Tv, Theatre, Magazines…its all smoke and mirrors and meant to push the imagination! It is not reality! You wan’t reality check out Big Brother, it’s not that pretty
Ok, so I managed to restrain myself a teensy bit, surprise surprise!
I went to the MAC Pro Store in London, which is located in the heart of West Soho. My visit happily co-incided with the Gay Pride Festival, so there was a fantastic buzz about the place. I really enjoyed the vibrant energy and taking a peek at the wild drag make-up. I managed to “drag” hehe myself away from the parade to pop into the store and buy a few bits and pieces.
I got me some pigments of course…soo hard to resist!
I bought Fuchsia, Neo-Orange and Gold. I am looking forward to using these bad boys! Have a photoshoot coming up which I think will be a good time to experiment, will post the photos later so keep your eyes peeled.
I also got a fantastic glitter pigment called Crystallized Lime, think this will be really cool with the Neo Orange pigment to create a neon raver look!
Of course I needed a medium for the pigments so I got the eyeliner mixing medium, because it is safe to use in the eye area and it has a nice thick consistancy, which I plan to use for some intense colour.
I was also loving their lipmixes, so picked up three of them, Burgandy, which I thought would be great to darken any of the lipcolours I already have. Crimson, because it is such a fantastic femme fatale red and Gold to go with the gold pigment I got…I feel a gold themed look coming up
And of course it wouldn’t be a MAC visit without getting some of the old faithful, face and body foundation. This is one of my favourite MAC products, I go through tons of this stuff. I tend to only use a bit of this in the summer as I like my skin to glow. Also alot of the models I work with have impeccable skin so I only have to use this with a teeny bit of concealer.
Ok it wouldn’t be a a MAC visit without getting a few brushes….hehe well you know what they say, a bad workman likes to blame his tools so I just make sure to arm myself with only the best. I picked up the 188 brush, which is very similar to the 187, but smaller.
This is great for the application of foundation, because its quite small it gives you more control and lets you get right into the inner eye etc, but with it’s duo fibre you are able to get that airbrushed effect and build layer upon layer if needed.
I also bought the 214 brush, this is a nifty little thing for applying eyeshadow without getting any fallout.
I love using it for intense colour and bulding darker shadows. Because of the short hairs you can use it for very controlled application which make it brilliant for applying shadow to the lashline and smudging for that sexy smokey look.
The 217 brush is another tool I added to my make-up belt, it is brilliant for applying creamy colour base and applying concealer under the eyes.
I use it to apply the Hush base that I bought in London and my old favourite Bobby Brown Concealer “Creamy Concealer Kit in Ivory”
I also bought the 219 Brush For precision shading on lid, this is absolutely awesome for any blending that you need to do.
I can’t reiterate enough how important good brushes are. When I first started out as a make-up artist I bought cheap brushes from eBay…they did the trick at the time, but all I can say is that I have really stepped my game up in the last few years because I have invested in good tools which certainly make the job easier.
I also bought some other bits and bobs, but there is no point going into everything. Thank goodness for my MAC Pro card is all I can say, because it all ended up coming to about £300 but with my discount it only cost me £200. Still a lot of money, but a bargain in comparison. Was around €250 with all the conversions.
Sick of carrying a ton of slap around with you, just to maintain the perfect look? Always manage to drop and smash an AWOL eyeshadow, that jumps kamikaze style out of your bulging handbag? Want to try and reduce the space when travelling but can’t give up your make-up?
Well Bobbi Brown have the answer. They have come up with a nifty idea of making your own personalised palette where you can keep all your beauty must haves in one personalised compact. I always keep an eye out for palettes and have been known to buy a few in my time, but I always end up with shades that I don’t use and this can be a waste too. However with Bobby Brown you choose what goes into it. It’s really slim and you can fit nearly everything you need into it, eyeshadow, blusher, lip gloss and even foundation! There is a melted down version of their foundation sticks. This is a great portable make-up kit.
So I decided to get my own make-up palette and bring you through the steps. This one would be ideal for a bride on her wedding day, or for a natural beauty look. I did notice that the colour swatches aren’t an exact representation of the actual colour, so just be careful! I have used alot of these shades before so I know what they are actually like.
1.) Choose which Palette you would like:
2.) Then it is on to selecting the eyeshadows. I have kept them very neutral and matt. The reason that we use matt eyeshadows for bridal make-up is because it looks beautifully natural. I have chosen “Bone” this is a great base eyeshadow and for placing under the eyebrow. I find that this is one of the eyeshadows in my kit that I can never get enough of.
3.) The second eyeshadow to be popped in is Hot Stone. This is a warm brown that I like to place on the lid for a lovely natural, but pretty eye.
4.) The third is Espresso. This is a great defining colour and adds a bit of drama to a look. I use this in the socket and ensure that it is nice and smokey. I also like to use it as an eyeliner for both the top and bottom of the eye. It makes for a nice soft alternative to say a liquid or gel liner.
5.) Just went for a really soft gorgeous blusher called Tawny that gives you a lovely flush of colour. This will suit most undertones.
6.) Lipgloss in Cherry Pink, a vibrant pink that makes your lips look irresistibly kissable. Gorgeous worn lightly during the day or pile it on for a more intense colour at night.
7.) Lipgloss in Pink Cloud, this is a gorgeous marshmallowy sweet lipgloss, beautiful worn for a day look.
Et Voila! Beautiful Make-Up nicely compacted for your handbag, I am an instant fan and I think you will be too. My only little gripe is that I think you should get a huge discount for buying it all together…it gets a little expensive. Thats all I got this time, but I think the next time I will investigate the foundation and also the quad lipgloss set…four miniature pink glosses that only take up one space in the palette, but thats another days work (and paycheck)!
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