Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Makeup for my sister's senior portraits

My sister Mariessa graduates from high school AND with her AA from community college this June! She's my mom's youngest, so of course she went all out and did her senior portraits :) I did her makeup using the Urban Decay Naked Palette. Mariessa is 19 but she looks like she's about 14 in real life, so I wanted to make sure I didn't take her too far out of her comfort zone. Plus, she doesn't wear makeup on a daily basis so keeping her very neutral and enhancing her features were paramount in this look. I used Virgin under her brow to highlight, Buck in her crease, Smog on her lid and Darkhorse in the outer "V". I used her own foundation which was Studio Fix Fluid in NW50 but normally I would NOT recommend it because it can make the face look lighter than the body in photos. But I didn't have time to take her in to get matched with a more preferable foundation. I used Flirt 'n Tease blush by MAC and a little Pearl Cream Color Base to highlight the tops of her cheekbones. I think she ate off all her lipstick by the time the photos were taken :) but I used Polished Up lipstick by M.A.C. and Blacktrack Fluidline in her waterline. I think she looks gorgeous and I'm so proud of her accomplishments!! Her photographer, Colleen Pfeilschiefter did an awesome job, like her FB page to see even more great images!

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Eczema...Let's talk about it.

I've been plagued with eczema my entire life.
When I was a wee lil thing:
...I had it on the insides of my elbows and on the backs of my knees. It got so bad that I had a secondary infection. It was then that my mom discovered Dr. Michael J. Scott. He's an osteopath and he is able to make the medication for me each time I go in. No other doctor I've seen has been able to help me. Now that I'm older, it's only on my hands which is super unfortunate for a makeup artist!! What I've learned though is that this ugly pest doesn't define me. I'm a great artist and I can't let it get in the way of my success. So there it is world, I am done hiding it, done being embarrassed. What about you? What outward physical 'problem' keeps you from your destiny?
Hugs,
Danielle

Friday, May 20, 2011

Family Friday

I just wanted to introduce my little family to those of you who don't know us! I'm the mama, Danielle (and no I do not endorse duck face pics)







My domestic partner/semi spouse/substitute parent/man of the house/DJ extraordinaire Devlin: aka Papa Bear:



Then there's this guy. The love of my life/bain of my existence/carrier of my DNA: Isaiah



We recently adopted a chihuahua named Daniel (Devlin got to name him,and apparently this dog is the K9 incarnate of myself)



So that's us, in a nutshell. I'm thinking every Friday will be about my family in some shape or form.
Have a good weekend peeps!! (Assuming the Zombie Apocalypse doesn't happen!!)

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Brow Highlight Colors

If I need some shimmer under the brow (not often, but occasionally) I always reach for M.A.C. Ricepaper. It has the prettiest yellow/gold sheen and it really looks great with oranges/deeper berry shades.




If I'm going all matte I prefer M.A.C. Brule shadow, it really just looks like cream on the skin.

Finally, if I really want to give some serious definition under the brow without the fuzziness a matte might give or the shine/glitter some of the other highlights give off I reach for M.A.C. Studio Finish concealer in a few shades lighter than the skintone I'm working with. It's so creamy and gives that eye opening, brow lifting effect.



Happy Highlighting!

Bathroom Rant


Holla if you feel me. I work in an office with 16 floors. Each of these floors has a bathroom with 6 stalls in it. Help me understand why in the world ladies must come and sit in the stall RIGHT next to mine when there are 4 other stalls completely void? What IS that? SCOOT.OVER.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

The lives I'd like to live/overdue introduction

True to my all encompassing Piscean personality, I gather inspiration from any and everything that passes by my sphere of being. (read: I am easily influenced.) If I watch a movie and the protagonist sells all her worldly possessions and moves to Italy, I instantly hypothesize about how that’s what I’ve been looking for ALL.MY.LIFE. I saw the first 3 or 4 seconds of a commercial yesterday that started out saying something about the ‘simplicity of Montana’. I was transported to a log house surrounded by snow and cooking stew over a woodstove (those of you who know me in non blog life are laughing hysterically right now). My longest enduring girlfriend moved to New York last year and I could NOT WAIT to make plans to join her. Living in a tiny one room apartment with little food and no furniture? SIGN ME UP! Never you mind I have a 13 yr old who’s taller than me and eats three to five thousand calories per day: where do you put a mammoth that size?? Not New York City. What I’m getting at friends, is while I know what I want to be in the long run (beauty editor anyone?) the things I have wanted since I was young were to be rich, beautiful and loved. Not high minded or anything J
What I AM is a makeup artist, a mom, a semi-wife in Seattle working in the health insurance field which is MILES away from anything fulfilling. So I’m starting here. With this blog…I’ll do makeup tutorials since that’s what I’m good at, I’ll talk about my teenage son with ‘the feet’ (size and smell: a whole other post), being the semi-wife of a Chicago transplant DJ, my crazy United Nations (but predominantly Mexican) family and my baby Chihuahua Daniel (or D2) whatever else lights a fire under my ass to get out of this 9-5 and on to actually LIVING life!

Recommendations

I'm going to answer some questions I get all the time in regards to makeup, skincare, etc. I won't go into too much depth here but will elaborate in future blog posts!
Here's what I think are key for the non professional's makeup bag:

Brushes: For higher end (and longer lasting) makeup brushes M.A.C. outshines all competitors in this arena. With both synthetic and natural hair brushes each one is tailored for a specific use but can be improvised upon to serve other purposes.
M.A.C. Brush Cleanser is also a must, no matter what brand of brushes you use! Due to their cost, it is definitely an investment for each piece but well worth it. For less expensive options try the Sonia Kashuk brushes from Target or Sigma Beauty Brushes(available online, some consider them high quality M.A.C. knockoffs)

Skin Care: The key to any makeup look is skin and the health thereof. For department store budget I recommend Estee Lauder They have proven over time that their products do wonders to treat all skin types and conditions. For a more budget friendly line, try   Boots(available at Target) and ask the representative there to do a skin analysis and make some recommendations. 

Foundation: Consistent with the key to any makeup look is skin philosophy, foundation is crucial to evening out skin tone and covering any blemishes or discoloration. My preference for higher end is Makeup Forever Mat Velvet +which comes in a wide array of shades suitable to all ethnicities. For a budget conscious consumer L'Oreal Paris True Match Super Blendable Makeupis always a top contender (budget or not!)

Shadows/Eye primers: Hands down,  M.A.C.  has always put out the best in eye shadow primers and shadows themselves. Their Paint Pots are a creamy consistency and dry down to a nice finish that holds onto the pigment from the shadow without making it difficult to blend. The shadows themselves have always been on the forefront for pigment, color pay off and range of finishes and color choice. Makeup Forever has recently made some gains in this arena with their varied colors, including a bright neon pink that no other manufacturer has matched. Their shadows are slightly more expensive but they are also larger. I don’t tend to recommend drug store shadows as I haven’t yet found one that rivals the higher end brands but I am always open to lower cost alternatives. In this regard, your shadow palette is an investment. You could potentially have these colors for years to come if they are tended to properly.

Mascara: I am not partial to any single mascara, be it brand name or drugstore. I will say however, that I am not too fond of the new technology called ‘tubing’ mascaras. This new formula (available in many brands, high end and budget friendly) wraps a ‘tube’ of mascara around each lash. I’ve found this to cause my lashes to feel quite stiff and they tend to clump easier on me than any other formula.

Lipstick: My trusty companion M.A.C.. wins this competition hands down. With their reasonable pricing ($14.50) and amazing selection of color and finish, they are unmatched. While I do love higher end brands like Chaneland  Guerlain, I simply cannot justify the cost of one of these lipsticks unless the color is simply so different I cannot match it anywhere else.

This is just the beginning of reviews and things I have to share so keep checking back and we'll talk Beauty's Best Scoops!!