NDUSTRI Photo Shoot

NDUSTRI is a Montreal-based event that celebrates urban fashion. I was fortunate enough to participate in the promotional photo shoot and here are some photos from the day...

Green & Brown Smoky Eye

There's nothing I love more than a colorful twist on a smoky eye... My lovely cousin & model graciously let me beat her face and rocked a green smoky eye with style!!!

Black Fashion Week Montreal

I had the pleasure of being a volunteer makeup artist at this year's Black Fashion Week Montreal. The looks created were both editorial as well as colorful and wonderfully complimented the designs. The collections featured were created by brilliant Montreal designers who call Africa and the Caribbean home. Here are some of the event's highlights (from my vantage point, of course!)...

Smoky Brown and Silver Look

I love a soft and subtle smoky eye so I usually opt for an espresso shade as my outer 'V' and crease color. Here's a look using just that...

PRODUCTS USED

Foundation: Lancôme's Teint Idole Ultra 24H in 500 Suède

Eyeshadow (crease): Cargo's Eyeshadow in Bavaria

Eyeshadow (outer 'V'): SLA's Eyeshadow in #81

Eyeshadow (eyelid): Inglot's Pearl Eyeshadow in #434

Eyeshadow (inner tear duct): SLA's Eyeshadow in #31

Blush: MAC's Blush in Rhubarb & Devil

Lipstick: MAC's Lipstick in Half n Half (paired with MAC's Lipliner in Chestnut)

Makeup Trial

Here's the result of a makeup trial for one of my beautiful clients I had the pleasure of working with today!

Favorite Red Lips

I really love red lipstick in the spring and summer so I thought I'd share some of my favorites (other than MAC's Ruby Woo)! So here's my list from least to most expensive...

1. Wet n Wild's Mega Last Lip Color in 965 Cherry Picking (3.99$)

 

2. MAC's Lipstick in M.A.C. Red (19$)

  

3. Pupa Milano's Diva's Rouge Matt Lipstick in 02 (20$, no longer available)

 

Which is your favorite? What are some of your favorite red lipsticks (other than MAC'S Ruby Woo!!!)?

A few eye looks...

It's been an eternity since I last posted anything so I thought I'd share a few eye looks from the past few months... Enjoy!

Budget-Friendly Weekend Look

Long time no post! I've been busy these days... Busy discount shopping! Here's a look I put together for a Sunday evening, chilling with the fam... And the awesome thing is that every piece of the outfit was under 40$!

MAKEUP

FACE

• Corrector: Ben Nye's Media Pro Blue Neutralizer (NB-4)
• Foundation: Make Up For Ever's Mat Velvet + (70)
• Concealer: Ruby Kisses' 3D Face Creator (Level 12)
• Concealer Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)
• Foundation Setting Powder: MAC's Studio Fix (NC50)
• Blot Powder: MAC's Pressed Blot Powder (Deep Dark)

EYES

• Primer: Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Eden)
• Blending Color/Crease: Cargo's Bavaria
• Outer 'V': L'Oréal HIP's Gilded
• Lid: Urban Decay's Smog
• Inner Tearduct: NYX' Champagne
• Gel Eyeliner: Essence's Midnight in Paris
• Eyeliner: NYX' Golden Olive
• Lashes: Ardell's #117

EYEBROWS

• Eyebrow Pencil: Milani's Easybrow (Dark Brown)
• Concealer: Iman's Second to None Cover Cream (Sand Medium)
• Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)

CHEEKS

• Blush: Fashion Fair's Bronze
• Highlight: Black Radiance's Gingersnap
• Contour: MAC's Blunt

LIPS

• Lip Liner: MAC's Chestnut
• Lipstick: Wet n Wild's Peachy Keen

 OUTFIT

• Blouse: Mossimo (Target)
• Tank Top: Forever 21
• Jeans: American Eagle Outfitters
• Belt: L'Aubainerie
• Shoes: JustFab's Christian
• Handbag: 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target
• Earrings: Walmart
• Necklace: JustFab's Saving Grace
• Watch: Pure by Alfred Sung
• Bracelet (right from watch): Joe Fresh
• Bracelet: JustFab's Saturn Link
• Ring: JustFab's Classic Threads

Date Night Look: Taupe & Purple

Here's a look I wore on a date night with the hubby... Actually, it's very similar to the makeup I wore on our wedding day! So it's very versatile: will take you from the first date all the way to your wedding day (just don't tell him that on the first date)!

FACE

• Primer: Gosh's Velvet Touch Foundation Primer (Classic)
• Corrector: Ben Nye's Media Pro Blue Neutralizer (NB-4)
• Foundation: Lancôme's Teint Idole Ultra 24H (500 Suède W)
• Concealer: MAC's Studio Sculpt Concealer (NC45)
• Concealer Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)
• Foundation Setting Powder: MAC's Studio Fix (NC50)
• Blot Powder: MAC's Pressed Blot Powder (Deep Dark)

EYES

• Primer: Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Eden)
• Blending Color: Ben Nye's ER-54 Dark Brown
• Crease: Inglot's #115R 
• Outer 'V': MAC's Sketch & Wet n Wild's Lust ColorIcon palette
• Lid: MAC's Satin Taupe
• Inner Tearduct: Wet n Wild's Lust ColorIcon palette
• Gel Eyeliner: Essence's Midnight in Paris
• Eyeliner: MAC's Feline
• Lashes: Ardell's #120

EYEBROWS

• Eyebrow Pencil: Milani's Easybrow (Dark Brown)
• Concealer: Iman's Second to None Cover Cream (Sand Medium)
• Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)

CHEEKS

• Blush: Milani's Fantastico Mauve
• Contour: MAC's Blunt

LIPS

• Lip Liner: Annabelle's Boisenberry
• Lipstick: MAC's Plumful
• Lipgloss: MAC's Viva Glam Gaga

Nude on Nude

Here's an all matte, all nude look...

FACE

• Corrector: Ben Nye's Media Pro Blue Neutralizer (NB-4)
• Foundation: Lancôme's Teint Idole Ultra 24H (500 Suède W)
• Concealer: Bobbi Brown's Creamy Concealer (Golden)
• Concealer Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)
• Foundation Setting Powder: MAC's Studio Fix (NC50)
• Blot Powder: MAC's Pressed Blot Powder (Deep Dark)

EYES

• Primer: Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Eden)
• Crease: Ben Nye's ER-54 Dark Brown
• Outer 'V': Faces' MES015
• Lid: SLA's 03
• Inner Tearduct: Urban Decay's Naked
• Gel Eyeliner: Essence's Midnight in Paris
• Eyeliner: Rimmel's Taupe
• Lashes: Ardell's #117

EYEBROWS

• Eyebrow Pencil: Milani's Easybrow (Dark Brown)
• Concealer: Iman's Second to None Cover Cream (Sand Medium)
• Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)

CHEEKS

• Blush: Wet n Wild's Heather Silk
• Contour: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Ebony)

LIPS

• Lip Liner: MAC's Chestnut
• Lipstick: Wet n Wild's 902C

I'm BAAAAAACK! (Pink & Purple)

After nearly a yearlong absence I've decided to update my blog! I'll be posting different makeup looks (as much as possible) and listing all products used... Enjoy!

FACE

• Primer: Benefit's The Pore Fessional
• Corrector: Ben Nye's Media Pro Blue Neutralizer (NB-4)
• Foundation: Lancôme's Teint Idole Ultra 24H (500 Suède W)
• Concealer: Bobbi Brown's Creamy Concealer (Golden)
• Concealer Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)
• Foundation Setting Powder: MAC's Studio Fix (NC50)
• Blot Powder: MAC's Pressed Blot Powder (Deep Dark)

EYES

• Primer: Urban Decay's Eyeshadow Primer Potion (Eden)
• Transition/Blending: Cargo's Bavaria
• Outer 'V': Wet n Wild's Dutchess Lounge palette
• Lid: MAC's Semi-Precious
• Crease: Crown Brush's Matte Palette
• Browbone & Inner Tearduct: Urban Decay's Naked & Virgin
• Gel Eyeliner: Essence's Midnight in Paris
• Eyeliner: NYX' Pretty Violet
• Lashes: Ardell's #117

EYEBROWS

• Eyebrow Pencil: Milani's Easybrow (Dark Brown)
• Concealer: Iman's Second to None Cover Cream (Sand Medium)
• Setting Powder: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Banana)

CHEEKS

• Blush: MAC's Rhubard
• Contour: Ben Nye's Translucent Powder (Ebony)

LIPS

• Lip Liner: MAC's Chestnut
• Lipstick: Kiss New York's Nude Beige
• Lip Gloss: MAC's Cremesheen Glass (Boy Bait)

Meet Marc the MUA

Marc and I were just chilling at my house last night and I suddenly had a genius idea... There's a tag on Youtube that was initiated by emilynoel83 this spring that consists of allowing your man to do your makeup. Men don't realize how much goes into [a nice] face of makeup! And I also wanted to put Marc to the test... Just how much does he pay attention when I talk about makeup (which is ALOT)?

So here's how it went down: Marc selected products from my makeup collection, without any help from me... Because it was rather late, I told him to skip the foundation and just use concealer and powder (which, believe it or not, I do once in a while)... Here were his choices:

Brushes (from left to right):

• Blush brush by Eco Tools
• A random concealer brush that came in a set I bought at Winners
• Eye Smudger Brush by Quo (used EVERYWHERE but initially selected for my CREASE)
• Eyeshadow brush by Elegant (which is actually a fantastic brush!)
• Prefessional Lip Defining Brush by e.l.f.

So before I actually get into the other products, here's what I looked like after our amateur MUA was done beatin' my face:

By the way, there is no eyeliner in my waterline... It looks so dark because I was crying of laughter.

And here's a closeup:

On the eyes:

• Eye Trio Shade in Sundown Glow by The Body Shop
• Eyeshadow in Serpent by Smashbox
• Eyeshadow in Asphalt by NYX
• Master Drama by Eyestudio in Midnight Master by Maybelline (used to line my upper lid AND fill in my eyebrows which look like flipped over parentheses)
• High Definition Separating Mascara in Extreme Black by NYC

Marc had a vision... A sultry look for a Saturday night out... I think he wanted there to be a gradation of color from light champagne (from The Body Shop trio) to golden (NYX shadow) to a dark green (Smashbox shade). The positioning was a little off from the get-go, hence the mish-mash of all three colors, all the way up into my browbone. However, I have to commend Marc on the perfectly straight eyeliner application. I actually felt him making small strokes (and not a disgraceful stroke)! And the mascara is not that bad either! Now for the eyebrows... I don't know what to say nor where to start...

On the face:

• Duo Mat Powder Foundation in shade 216 by MUFE
• Dream Mousse Concealer in Latte by Maybelline
• Sheertone Blush in Pinch Me by MAC

SMH... The powder was applied properly (after I told him to press the puff into my face because he was stoking my face in the mildest way ever, as if powdering a baby)... But the half-moons of concealer absolutely KILLED me!!! My sister was watching the whole process (because it was entertaining as all hell!) and her expression when she saw the concealer was priceless! The picture doesn't really show it, but blush was applied all up the side of my nose... Who knows, Babe... Maybe you can start a new trend: contouring with a pink blush...

On the lips:

• Black Label Lipstick in Apple by NYX
• Super Lustrous Lipgloss in Nude Lustre by Revlon
• Lipliner in Burgundy by Annabelle (which was used AFTER the lipstick and lipgloss application)

Kudos for selecting a lipstick and lipgloss that I would actually wear together, Marc! Apple is a very orange red which is definitely a statement shade, so green eyeshadow may be a little too much... It can be done, but it's a little much!

The artist and I...

... and me feeling myself!!! Being fierce! UdeS sweatshirt, messy hair and all!

This is a great exercice to do with your man! This way, he will never again complain about how long it takes you to get ready!!!

Marc, you're such a good sport!!! I haven't laughed that hard in a while! And please, pretty, pretty please, do not quit your day job!