Pin Up Shoot

Model: Maggie Page
Photo: James Brophy
MUA: Me.

Pretty self explanitory really!
This model was easy to work with as shes just so pretty !
I'm a complete eyebrow nazi, I love eyebrows and they have to be perfect with a perfect arch, I think they're the most important part of make up.
Trish had naturally very blonde eyebrows, so I loved the fact I had free reign asto how her eyebrows would look.
I think they look natural, yet defined in the finished result, which is what I was aiming for. They frame her beautiful face :)

One thing I would change, would be to use a different matte black eyeshadow.
I paid €20 for a single black matte eyeshadow from Make Up Forever.. and everytime I use it, it creases, on every skin type! For a tiny little eyeshadow, that's a lot of money, I wouldn't buy it again!

Make up tattoos

Model: Irina
Photo: Peter Griffin
MUA: Me.

This shot was just an experiment really, the model really wanted to know if I could do tattoos with make up, i've never done it before, but thought it would be a challenge, so I said I'd do it.
I just used some black and a small make up brush and drew the tattoo out of my head really!
If I were to do it again, I would do it differently, I'd use a different brush, and do something with more detail and colour.
But this was just testing out if I could so it really!

Read my lips. Budget friendly lipstick

Recently I've been testing out a lot of lipsticks, I, like most make up artists and girls in general favour MAC's lipstick ranges, as the colours are so intense and they're very moisturising, but as I never get the time to visit MAC, i've been shopping around in my local chemist/drugstores to see if I could get any colours that compare to MAC's pigment and quality.
And surprisingly I did !

The first lipstick that caught my eye was one by Barry M.
I've always wanted a bright pink lipstick, but as I was afraid it wouldn't suit me I decided to try out a cheaper brand to test it out.
The shade I bought was 145 Punky Pink.
A bright pink lipstick with a slight purple tinge off it.
Straight off it reminded me of MAC's Girl About Town (one of my favourite lipsticks that I never got around to purchasing).
The price came in around €5, so I thoughtit would be worthless, but turns out, I really love it !
Here you can see it againt MAC's Girl About Town:



Left: MAC girl about town
Right: Barry M in 145 Punky Pink












It went on very smoothly, very moisturising and it had a gorgeous gloss finish.
I applied Illamasqua's sheer "Divine" lipgloss over it to finish it off.














Results:

Girl about town ----------------------------- Barry M's 145 Punky Pink












This colour could be used in various ways, never team it with a bright eyeshadow, the rule in make up is that either your lips, or your eyes should be the main feature. Like if you're wearing lime green eyeshadow, a natural lip should always be worn so the eyes are the focal point, if you're wearing a bright lipstick, then the eyeshadow should be neutral. With this shade I think a grey smokey eye would be very complimentary.




Revlon Colourburst lipstick:

I spotted a revlon advert at the back of a magazine and the shade Jessica Alba was wearing seemed to be the exact colour I've been searching for, yet I still doubted it as I dont trust make up from adverts, they're over photoshopped!



The shade on the advert stated it was Crimson, so I tried it out for myself and fell in love with the shade.
You still have that bright red lip, but it's a more wearable shade than some of the brighter red lipsticks on the market, it has more of a blue tinge so it also makes your teeth seem whiter.
The packaging also attracted it to me, it has a lovely quilted, classy packaging giving a much more expensive feel to it.
The lipstick itself glided on, and stayed in place a LOT longer than some more expensive high end brands.
This is the only product I really like from Revlon however, their foundations smell like paint stripper and go on just as bad!! The price? Only €11 !
This shade is AMAZING on porcelain skin teamed with a simple black liquid liner and defined brows. With this shade you really have to keep the make up to a minimum.
I will definetly be purchasing more shades, I was very impressed!

Here is a shade chart for these particular lipsticks:











The Fuschia lipstick looks gorgeous! I might have to buy that!

I think Crimson is nearly identical to MAC's classic Russian Red lipstick.


MAC Russian Red ---------------------------- Revlon's Crimson.














I think some of the shades this lipstick comes in can be compared to a lot of higher end lipsticks..
So if you want to buy a variation of shades, with a cheaper price tag than a lot of lipsticks, this line is fantastic!


Revlon's baby pink ------------------------ Viva Glam Gaga

Cannibal Cheerleader

The following pictures are from a shoot I did last Sunday.
I really really enjoy working with Carl at Red Tree Studios and model Trisha, we can all read each others minds and visually have the same tastes.

*Pics courtesy of Red Tree Studios (www.redtreestudios.ie)*

Bloggery

I've been lagging behind with the whole blogging thing.
When I created it last year I thought I'd make posts every week..
Its been a year and I've made about 5 posts, this is going to change.
From today, I promise I'll post more things :)
Photoshoots I've did, fashion that inspires me, nails and hair.

Illamasqua The Art of Darkness

The Mistress of Ceremonies

"With her authoritative aura, all eyes are drawn to the Mistress of Ceremonies. It is she who ensures the forces are balanced and the gods appeased. Her body is a patchwork of mythical symbols and semi-precious stones - a walking celebration of the earth and the heavens..."


So this is Illamasqa's new collection, so far we have only been introduced to the new liquid liner (which I might buy today if its instore)
It seems like Illamasqua are steering away from their 1920's Berlin expressionism style, this new collection along with their last collection Body Electrics, seems to be more futuristic and fantasy, I think I prefer their older style.

I have a feeling this line is going to be all about liquid metals, amber shades and dusty blue hues.
Still, Im excited about the fact there are going to be new products, but I think they should focus on their darker imagery, I think it works better for this brand.

I have an interview with Illamasqua on Thursday for their new headquaters in London, very exciting ! I cant wait to just meet the crew, maybe even Alex Box *dies a little*.
The guy told me on the phone that Ive been one of the 8 selected out of a few hundred, so I hope I live upto their expectations, I also cant wait to see the other candidates and their skill.


*Edit*

I got the job ^___________________^

I was so so nervous going in to the point I felt phsyically sick.
But as I got in there and the introduction started, I knew, deep down, I was going to get this job.
They started off with a video about how they based the brand on German Expressionism art..
My eyes lit up as I did my degree piece on German Exprssionism and its my all time favourite art movement, of course I didn't hesitate on telling them this.
After that, i was extremely confident and knew I could get:)
So im still waiting on this weeks rosta when I start ^_^
So excited as this is my dream company, everyones lovely and we all share the same aesthetic.
YAY!

MUA FAQ

Recently, I've been getting a lot of people asking how they can become a make up artist / what course I did etc..
So instead of answering these questions over and over I'm gonna write some little lists and facts.

Going back to the start, I started doing make up when I was a child, basically.
One of the first presents I asked off Santa was a make up kit, and was devastated when I woke upto a plastic make up kit under the tree! True story.
I started studying make up when I was about 14. I still have really dodgy 90's make up books in my room that I bought when I was younger. I used to study them back to front.. which honestly taught me everything I know now, and I started doing other people's make up back then.
When I left school I didn't persue make up as there was no career options in make up back then so I studied art and design for 5 years and then did my make up course. Some people in my graphic design course were so passionate about design, they spent all their time practising it and ate breathed and lived design. I LOVED my course but felt that I was as passionate as them about make up, not design and knew that make up was what I was meant to do.

I started a make up course in October, finished in Feb.
It taught me sweet fuck all..no actually, it taught me nothing (except how to avoid infecting people!!!) I started working on photoshoots whilst I was doing the course and learned more that way.



So. Here's some guidelines to know if this is the career for you.


Do you feel that you aren't fantastic at make up, but that a make up course will teach you make up?

Then it's not the course for you. Courses teach application, professionalism, how to use materials, it does not teach you creativity, passion, talent. You have to be born with it.
If you can't put make up on your own face, why would people pay you to put it on their face?
Think about it.
If a person that can't draw decides to do an art course to teach them how to draw and comes out after a year of studying art ..... would they call themselves professional artists?
An artist is born an artist, courses will certainly teach them how to expand their skills, but it's something you're born with, not something you can create.


Are you an artist / are you good at drawing/painting/sculpting/design ?

If you are, then its just about looking at make up as your materials and the face as a blank canvas and using your creativity and I think that if you're a good artist you can become a great make up artist.
I find mua harder than art because in art the canvas doesn't move!
If you can't draw/paint/ aren't creative then you're gonna have a hard time, I think anyway.
Look at body painting/face painting. Its still art, just with different materials.
























Do you people compliment your own make up and ask you to do their make up constantly?

Then you definitely should persue a career.


Are you extremely passionate about make up and a total make up nerd and secretly spend hours on end practising it?

Then go for it!


Do you want to become a make up artist because it seems like a cool, glamorous and easy career?

Lady, step awaaaaaay from the make up before I stab you in the eye with tweezers!!!



I certainly do not know everything about make up..im still learning, I need a lot of practise still, but I've just had so many people ask me these questions, I felt they needed to be answered.
I think too many people think this career is easy & that it's glamorous.
At the end of the day, it isn't about how many make up qualifications you have, it's about the looks you create for your portfolio.