Gimme Some Skin!

Hey chicas! Hope your week has started off as good as mine! Last night I went to a rehearsal for a gospel jazz band and it was awesome! That was my first rehearsal with the group and we all vibed really well together . We did a funky remix to an old gospel song to jazz it up. I love singing and I've always wanted to do something outside of the regular Sunday morning church service but I never had the opportunity until now. Can you tell how excited I am?! :-D

Okay, before I get off track let me move on to today's blog post. I get a lot of questions about what I use on my skin (mostly my face) because it's really clear and even-toned, so I think this blog would help answer some questions. I think your skin is the most important part of your body, but sadly, most of us fail to take proper care of it. So I'm going to talk about some ways to show your skin just how much you appreciate it.

The weather is biggest adversary when it comes to skin care. We all know that the cold winter air can suck the moisture right out of your skin, but the summer heat can be just as unforgiving. So its crucial to take care of your skin year round. Good skin care always starts with cleanliness! Try to use non-abrasive soaps and body washes (Dial, Zest and Irish Spring...you ARE the weakest link--goodbye!) This is especially important if you have sensitive skin like mine. Check it, some of the products that I use and recommend are Dove (if you've been using "regular" soap, you will tell a difference the first time you use it), Oil of Olay body washes are great, and lately I've become a fan of the new cream oil body washes. These are fantastic because you're getting a 2-for-1 deal. Its like a 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner for your hair, but for you body!! I also like to body washes that have micro-beads, so not only are you cleaning but exfoliating and getting rid of dead, dry skin.

When it comes to cleansing your face (dare not use the same products on your body for your face), choose a cleanser that's specific to your type of skin. Follow that with a toner. Toners remove excess dirt and oil from the face that cleansers can leave behind. If you have oily skin, you'll want to use a moisturizer that's oil free & non-greasy. On the contrary, for dry to normal skin, you'll want to use a product that is oil based or extra-moisturizing. Make sure you get products that are hypo-allergenic! If you're fair skinned, go for products that include sunscreen (UVA/UVB protectors). The face should be cleansed, toned and moisturized twice a day. The payoff will be worth it. It would also be wise to invest in a good eye cream/serum; the skin around the eyes is the thinnest and needs its own special care & attention.

Exfoliation: this is a key component of skin care. Things like waxing, shaving & exposure to free radicals can cause damaged skin cells. Exfoliation gently removes dead, damaged cells on the surface of the skin to reveal a fresh layer of skin giving you a glowing, rejuvenated look! Don't overdo it though--once a week is sufficient enough.

So, in a nutshell, great skin can be achieved in a few simple steps:

• Cleanse
• Tone
• Moisturize
• Exfoliate once a week
• Get 6-8 hours of sleep - I def don't wanna leave this out. If you find it hard to get enough sleep at night, take a quick nap during the day (even if its 30 minutes on your lunch break). When you sleep, the body goes into "repair mode". Skin is regenerative, but the body needs sufficient rest to do its best work.

Side note: I tell all my clients to start this process two weeks before they're having their makeup done, especially brides.

Hopefully this doesn't sound too high maintenance for you. Once you get into the routine of skin care it will become easier, and very much worth it. You should start to notice a difference within 1-2 weeks. Leave comments and let me know how it goes. I'll be back with another post either tomorrow or Thursday! Until then chicas, take care and take charge! :-)

P.S. Don't forget to become a follower of my blog!

FCC disclosure: I was not paid to endorse or mention any of the products specifically discussed in this blog, nor am I affiliated with any of the companies.

The 10 Essentials

Hey chicas! Hope you had a great weekend cause tomorrow it's back to the daily grind of the nine-to-five! I almost didn't get today's blog post up because my computer is crazy slow; I'm thinking its time for an upgrade-this laptop is about 6 years old at least! I know...that's dinosaur age in the technology world! I'll have a new one in the next few weeks though.

Anyway, today I wanted to share you with ten essential things every woman should have in her little bag of cosmetics. Even if you are the type that doesn't really wear makeup, these 10 essentials can be used on a daily basis for basic beauty enhancement, not anything over the top. So let's get started:

• Foundation - try to choose the foundation that matches the closest to your skin complexion. If you have uneven skin tone, you may have to get two different shades to get the right color balance. You actually may want to have two shades regardless, because the skin color tends to be darker in the summer months than in the fall and winter, and you'll need to be able to adjust to that slight color change. You can choose either liquid or power foundation, but make sure its a good brand/product. Don't take the cheap way out or you'll end up either looking "pasty" or having to reapply before the day is even over!
• Blush - for blush, don't go with red no matter what your skin tone is! If you're fair-skinned, go for a peachy color. If you're more brown-skinned/dark-skinned, choose something from the burgundy/wine color family. Always apply your blush with a light hand, started on the cheekbones and sweeping upwards following the contours of the cheeks. The reason I suggest applying with a light hand is because you can always add another layer of color if needed; that's easier than having to wipe it off because you had a heavy hand the first time around.
• Highlight/Bronzer - This is what will give you a fresh, glowing look. It should always be applied to the T-zone (forehead, bridge of the nose, & chin), and can also be applied just over the cheekbones (under the outside of the eyes) to make your eyes look brighter. Makeup artists use highlighters and bronzers to bring attention to the center of the face.
• Neutral Eyeshadow Colors - You'll want to have at least two neutral tones to start, one lighter and one darker. Make sure the colors compliment each other. With neutrals, you can add some definition to the eyes without adding too much color or drama. This is great for daytime looks, and perfect for those women who don't really wear makeup. The lighter color should be applied on the eyelid, up to the crease of the eye; the darker color should be placed on the outer corner of the eye.
• Lip Liner - Not black!! Go for a color that is one or two shades darker than your lips. In a later post, I'll discuss how to apply lip liner if you have full lips or thin lips. Don't follow the example of Kim from the Real Housewives of Atlanta--Ugh!
• Tinted Lip Gloss - I love glosses that are tinted pink or cherry. But go for one that suits you and compliments your complexion, and that will blend in with your lip liner.
• Black Eye Liner - This one is self explanatory. Lining your eyes will define their shape and should always be used, unless you're going for a clean look (which I'll also discuss the clean look in a later blog). I love eyeliner because you can give your eyes any shape you want, or give the illusion of them being wider/smaller!
• Mascara - Choosing a good mascara can be trial and error. I can't tell you how much money I've thrown away trying different mascaras. A lot of make claims that aren't true. I hate those types! From my experimenting with different types/brands, I've found that the rubber applicators are my preference. I hate the traditional bristle brushes. Unfortunately, it's probably going to be trial and error for you too.
• A good set of brushes - This will probably be the most expensive, but it'll be worth it! You can save money though...I love the Essence of Beauty brushes that you can find at CVS! The quality is just as good as the professional, more expensive brands, but at a fraction of the price! Always wash your new brushes with warm water & mild soap before using them!
• Oil Blotting Sheets - Everyone may not need these but they'll come in handy especially for those women with oily skin. If you don't have oily skin, you may still want to have these in your bag just in case (especially in summer when you may perspire more often).

So there you have it chicas! Those are the 10 things every woman must have in their cosmetics bag. With these items on hand, you can achieve a natural look that can be worn everyday without overdoing it. Stay tuned for more beauty tips & advice and of course more before & after pics! In the meantime, take care and take charge! Later chicas! :-)

Wedding Makeup

Hola Chicas! I was trying to figure out what to post for today. I normally have time to sit down in the afternoon and get it typed out, and then just post it when I get home, but today was so crazy busy that I didn't even have a chance to do it! So I started going through my camera and looking at pics of previous makeovers I've done, and I decided to share one I did a few months ago for a friend who was a bridesmaid. Here are the before and after pics:

please don't mind the towels in the background, LOL. I tried to crop the pic but the cpu was acting funny!









and here is the after. She wanted something soft and pretty, and she emphasized not wanting too much color on the lips.








So sorry but I don't remember what I used. It was a combination of products from MAC, Coastal Scents, and Cover Girl. And of course I set it with MAC's Fix+. We actually met up later that night to go skating and her makeup was still flawless although it was applied around noon that day!! :-)
I was so proud!

Well that's it for today's post, hope you enjoyed it. Oh, let me leave you with a tip: if you have fuller lips, you may want to go with a softer color (or none at all, just lip liner)...you may want more attention drawn to your eyes. If you go heavy on the eyes, then take it easy with the lip color; if you're going with a natural eye (no eyeshadow, or just eyeliner only), then you can dare to be a bit more bold on the lips! Til next time, later chicas...take care and take charge!

Beautiful From the Inside, Out!

Hey chicas! Hope you had a great day! Mine was long, but it was great! I'm kinda pooped right now, but I couldn't rest until I posted a blog entry today. I wanted to talk about what it means to be BEAUTIFUL!

Being beautiful isn’t just about looking great; actually, I think looking great is only a by-product of the qualities you must have in order to call yourself truly. The looking great part only happens when everything else falls into place. I’m talking about who you are inside, and how you present yourself to everyone. So let’s start from the inside, out. After all, beauty is only skin-deep, right?

I’m sure all of us have known women, and perhaps we’ve been that woman at one point, that was absolutely gorgeous…great hair, beautiful skin, a face to die for, and a smile that could blow you away; but when you really looked at her for who she was, she was “fugly”. I mean just plain dreadful! True beauty is something that emanates from within and can’t be compensated for. I call it, your “divahood!” And it’s something that can never been taken away (makes me think of Whitney Houston’s song, “no matter what they take from me, they can’t take away my dignityyyyy”).

Foreheads will wrinkle, eyes will droop and probably get bags, breasts will definitely sag, but poise, confidence, self-worth, self-respect, humility, compassion, virtue…these are all things that won’t tarnish with time. Besides, people aren’t gonna remember you for how beautiful you were, or how nice your hair always was, or how you always dressed to impress…they are going to remember you for how you treated yourself, and those around you…how beautiful you were on the outside would have been only a bonus, the icing on the cake! And I know I want my cake and eat it too! :-)

Until next time ladies, take care and take charge! Later chicas!

New Year's Makeover

Happy Monday Chicas! I'm so glad to be off work for the MLK holiday; it was great to sleep in a little bit! For today's post, I wanted to share with you a makeover I did for my friend Tiffany on New Year's Eve. She was going to church for the evening (not the club, lol) and wanted to go into the New Year with a new look.

It was a last minute makeover, literally. And this was a kind of a dramatic change for Tiffany because she doesn't really wear makeup. It was also a bit of a challenge for me because I had to mix a few foundation colors to get an exact match since she has somewhat uneven skin tone. Halfway through the application I was thinking, "Okay, this is not turning out right! What am I gonna do???" But, then I remembered some of the secret tips of makeup artists and I was able to pull the final look together. Whew! In the end, I think it came out fabulous and more importantly, Tiffany loved it! Here are the before and after pics:

Tiffany before

Tiffany after!!

Okay, so I'm going to try to remember all the products I used:

MAC Knight Divine e/s

MAC Silver Ring e/s

MAC Carbon e/s

MAC kohl eyeliner in Smolder

L'oreal mascara (though I don't remember which one)

Coastal Scents concealer palette

MAC Prep+Prime Transparent Finishing Powder

Graftobian Hi-Def Creme Foundation

MAC Sculpt and Shadester Sculpting Powders

Coastal Scents 10-blush palette (peach color - unfortunately their colors aren't named)

NYX Cocoa lip pencil

ULTA brand clear lip gloss

MAC Fix+ (love this stuff!)

Please leave comments and let me know what you think! I'll be back tomorrow with another post! :-)

How I Got Started as a MUA

Hola Chicas! This is my first blog entry and I'm really excited, and kinda nervous! I was trying to figure out what to post for my first entry...after some thought, I decided to to talk about how I got started as a makeup artist.

I wasn't always into makeup, especially growing up--major tomboy! I actually didn't really get into wearing makeup until I was out of college. Yes, I was a late bloomer. :-) After trying different products, mostly drugstore brands I'd pick up from Wal-Mart, I learned what colors worked best for me. I started looking at how other people did their makeup, paying particular attention to the eyeshadow, and I'd go home and practice using two or three colors I had. I went through this whole trial and error process for a while, not to mention spending a lot of money and ending up throwing away products that I didn't like (of course, now I don't throw away anything because it may be something I can use on one of my clients, although I don't like it for myself). I got pretty good at my personal application technique, and my confidence began to build when I'd go out and people would ask me, "are you a makeup artist?" Getting that question so often made me start to think this was something I could really do, so I started reading up on the subject, and practicing on myself more and more. I eventually started giving tips and doing makeovers for some of my friends and family, and word started getting around that I knew how to do makeup!

I was able to make some great connections with photographers, hair stylists and wedding planners and began getting referrals here and there. That's when I realized I needed to become "official." And so Beauty By Virtue, LLC was born. I got a friend of mine, Antonio Orsborn--great photographer and awesome graphic designer, to create a business card for me. Here's what he put together:

Handing out business cards, and with the help of friends and word of mouth advertising, I now have clients calling on me for makeovers, photo shoots, fashion shows, and weddings.

It's been a long process getting things started, and its a constant effort to keep things going. One of the cons of being a freelance makeup artist is that there are times when there is no work; but I use that time to keep practicing and trying to better myself, study and learn new techniques. So, that's the short version on how I became I makeup artist! I hope you'll come back to visit my blog. I'll be adding new post at least four times a week, and you can expect to see me talk about a range of topics from skin care, how to choose products, tips & techniques on applying makeup, how to build your personal makeup kit, and much more!!