Laura Mercier Portfolio Collection – Just Launched last March 2012

I’ve only confirmed from another source online, Atelier Beauty blog which is Singaporean, that this lovely Laura Mercier limited edition Portfolio collection arrived on their counters last March 2012, I haven’t yet confirmed whether this collection will wash up on Philippine shores or is already available locally.  Info posted is referenced from Atelier Beauty’s FB page.

Laura Mercier Custom Artist Portfolio for Home & Away

- Designed with a rigid outer shell case wrapped in metallic, pewter snakeskin material
- Includes four multi-size mesh cosmetic bags, easily removable with built in magnets
- Features a unique pocketed brush page
- Two refillable 6 and 3-well Custom Compacts that hold your favorite eye, cheek and lip godets

 Wayne Goss demonstrates what the Laura Mercier portfolio case looks like in this video.

Limited Edition collection set to hit counters this March.

Laura Mercier Second Skin Cheek Colour
A micro-fine, innovative pressed powder that delivers natural colour and unprecedented wear with extreme comfort.

Available in five NEW, permanent shades:  Heather Pink, Peach Whisper, Soft Iris,  Honey Mocha,  Sweet Mandarin

Laura Mercier Sheer Crème Colour *limited edition*
A crème face colour that provides a soft veil of colour for a “bonne mine” (healthy glow) effect.

Available in three shades: Pearl Glow Veil, Pink Cheek Veil,  Bronze Veil

Laura Mercier Lip Glaze *limited edition*
A lip gloss that provides sheer colour and shine to lips.

Available in three shades:  Soft Pink, Plum, Lotus Bloom

Laura Mercier Eye Colour *limited edition*

Available in three shades:  Merlot Sateen,  Golden Crème Luster,  Seashell Pink Sateen

My Perfect Warm Pink Blush – Tarte Amazonian Clay 12-Hr Blush “Dollface”

First of all, I’d like to thank Suyen of House of Flair, the online Multiply pre-ordering store for co-sponsoring (item discount) this post.  It’s thanks to her that I now own one of Tarte’s Amazonian Clay blushes, an award-winning blush range which I kind of picked up a yearning for recently.  These Tarte blushes took the U.S. by storm last year and created nearly as big a buying frenzy as the Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters did.

INGREDIENTS: Talc, zinc stearate, tricaprylin, polyethylene, caprylic/capric triglyceride, beeswax, PEG-150 distearate, lanolin, laureth-4, tocopherol, polysorbate 20, tetrasodium EDTA, potassium sorbate, chlorphenesin, ascorbyl palmitate, tin oxide, kaolin, mica, carmine. May contain: Iron oxides, titanium dioxide, ultramarines, manganese violet, bismuth oxychloride, red 6 and red 7 lake, red 27 lake, yellow 5 lake, yellow 6 lake, blue 1 lake.

“These solar-baked blushes are infused with Amazonian Clay…these nutrient rich and skin-nourishing Amazonian clay blushes restore harmony for a flawless finish that lasts all day.”

 

The most popular shade for medium to fair skin ladies like myself is currently “Exposed” but Suyen didn’t have that on hand so I chose this soft warm baby pink, “Dollface” instead.  That little hole you see at the back of the compact near the top is an ingenious mini feature through which you can poke a toothpick, pin, paperclip or whichever to instantly depot your blush if you want to. “Dollface” is a shade I can kind of compare to Rock & Republic’s phased out Contrived Pressed Blush in “Spank” which I gifted to someone 2 years ago.  I’m not into this blush for the 12-hour claim but more for the beautiful soft matte shades with minimal fallout upon application.  Read more to get the full post.

On Set with Xian Lim and Lala Flores – Watch my 2nd TVC airing, Globe SuperFB10

This was technically my first shoot which aired several days after my second shoot (Smart).  I had a bit of a laugh with myself coz of the thought that my first two jobs were suffice it to say almost rival ads.  I was on set as the makeup artist for the two female support talents, but the makeup you see on them a few photos below was disapproved and pared down to a natural school girl look which I never got to shoot at the end.  It was here at this shoot that I got to work on the same project team as celebrity makeup artist Lala Flores and meet the dashing shriek magnet, Xian Lim for the first time in person.

I spy a damp beauty blender and MAC Studio Fix powder in Lala’s hands for Xian’s touch ups Lala’s always so upbeat, she has you at “Hellooohhh”

Xian was a nice and good-humored talent to work with, in between takes he’d begin small conversations with us and crack jokes.  I kind of got a bit embarrassed coz he caught me nodding down when I was tired hahaha!

I wouldn’t have been able to do this shoot without my trusty freelance hairstylist for the day, Eddie Mar Cabiltes (who I’ve been booked with a lot lately).  He’s worked on TVCs, print ads, and magazine editorials for almost 4 years now, was a part of MEGA Fashion Crew, and he also has a hair blog at pinoyhairaffair.tumblr.com where he posts the MANY MANY projects he’s been part of.

Here are the support talents I made up, Krisha and Tasha (L-R) but honestly they’re not quite done yet here, I managed to squeeze in a moment to take their photo, but this makeup look was disapproved and changed to a more minimal look.  The clients had us make them less preppy and more believably schoolgirl fresh.  Watch the really QUICK, as in really quick, actual TVC of the Globe SuperFB10 promo below.  I’ve just recently finished another upcoming telecom ad and have two more shoots booked for next week.  God’s been really good to me.  I’m so happy about where I am right now.  I’d like to thank Provill productions, Cata, Abel, Franny, and Direk Adrian Calumpang for believing in me and giving me a chance to step up in my makeup career.  This is only the beginning of one of the best chapters of my life.

Some Kind of a Quick FOTD – The Makeup Artist slash Wedding Guest

It’s been awhile since I’ve liked a photo of myself enough to make it my profile picture on almost every social media platform I use, that’s because I’m often too lazy to fix my own hair, which is a weakness on my part.  Photos like these are often unplanned, not premeditated, and quite spontaneous.  At a second wedding I did in Batangas last week I brought my freelance hairstylist for the day with me, Tricia Hermosura, who does part time hairstyling to mix it up a bit on the job end.  She’s got an eye for the pretty I can tell ya’ and even though she thinks she’s not yet “that experienced” I’m tellin’ ya I can spot hot talent the way I spot stray hairs in  TVC, ergo quite quickly.

After doing makeup for yet another bride, her maid of honor, and the mothers I was left with just enough time to spare to fix myself.  I did a photography friendly natural look and asked Tricia for some help with my hair.  Here’s my lovely hairstylist Tricia who’s actually a very good advertising pillar of her craft, she looks gorgeous on the job!

When we caught up with the ceremony I pulled a fresh flower from the wedding aisle pot next to me and stuck it behind my ear (an observing secondary sponsor lady from afar even gave me a thumbs up to my surprise LOL!), I then fixed the camera settings, then asked Tricia to take a photo.  Sometimes great photos don’t take an arm and a leg to set up, it’s all about the moment and sometimes it just happens, you just have to be there, Care Bear.  Would you like to know what products I used to create my look?  Natural looks can be deceiving, they photograph like there weren’t many products used but in truth natural looks that improve a dull appearance and render flawlessly on camera are often the most painstaking to create.  Let me know if you want a list

TATCHA Aburatorigami aka Handmade Japanese Beauty Paper – 100% Abaca Leaves and Gold Flakes

Today is the 1 year anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.  It’s difficult for a lot of people to swallow that a year has already passed since that terrible tragedy and Japan, one of the world’s superpower nations, is still reeling from the devastation.  I needed to take a moment and remember the depth, excellence, and focus with which the Japanese do ALMOST EVERYTHING in their daily lives even when it comes to the simplest, smallest things.  I saw this packet of beauty paper by the checkout counter at Beauty Bar and first scoffed at the price (Php595.00 for 30 sheets) because I thought it was ridiculously priced for what I thought was a beauty trifle.  Tatcha is a U.S. brand that distributes this finely made Japanese product.

I was so scandalized by the price in spite of its eye-candy packet that I even threw a quick, cheap remark at it via the saleslady (because I’m quick to judge that way, sadly, workin’ on it), but I hadn’t read what was inside before I did. Read more to get the full post.

Shawill Showcase Blushers – Php99.00 for a pop of matte color

I hovered around SM Megamall’s beauty floor last Friday after the short Kanebo event and was drawn towards the somewhat tacky but brightly colored wares of the Shawill shelf, a Chinese brand according to the saleslady that’s been around for the last decade.  I was first impressed by their many multi-colored, frosty metallic cream shadow palettes that looked detestable at first because of the glitter overspray, then the saleslady quickly told me glitter was only present on top.  I initially wanted to show you those, but I decided to skip those for now and buy something I really needed for my kit.

TOP TO BOTTOM:  7 Natural Beige, 4 Pink Chic, and 2 Beach Bronze

I remembered that I didn’t have an absolute matte pink blush.  What I had were mostly mauve, coral, and peach shades and I had to play it safe and make sure I also had the absolute pink blush option since I had a TVC shoot the next day.  I’ve been badly wanting the Tarte Amazonian Clay blushes from the U.S. but ’till I have the opportunity and money to get those these will do nicely.  I got the Shawill Showcase Blushers in 3 shades for Php99.00 each, 7 Natural Beige, 4 Pink Chic, and 2 Beach Bronze.  Read more to jump to the full post with more photos of swatches and application.

Fur Flush Cat Blush

She’s no cat in the hat.  Cloud Mine…

"What did wee uses, Human?"

IN2IT Pink Alarm Lipstick  straight from my finger.

Benefit Watts Up Stick Highlighter – Beautifully Blendable Sheen

After attending Benefit Cosmetics’ Greenbelt 5 launch last December I came away with two complimentary lovely products.  One of them was Benefit’s New Watts Up Stick Highlighter.  It’s basically not unlike Benefit Bathina in a champagne color, unscented, for the face.

The packaging is cute but a bit gimmicky, what you’re able to see at the bottom is a nifty type of smudger tool, that I don’t use at all.

The only thing particularly irritating is the cap of the smudger always falls off inside my kit.  The product itself though, I likey very mucho.  Voila, mild and intense swatches.  The color is spot on for me and doesn’t come out ashy since it’s not a cool toned highlighter, it’s a pretty neutral champagne beige which I believe will suit most skintones.

Read more to see the full post with the product applied on my face.

Bobbi Brown Neons and Nudes Spring 2012

It’s the talk of the town where Bobbi Brown makeup fans are concerned. News of  Bobbi Brown’s new Spring 2012 collection, Neons and Nudes, is making waves.

Let’s make the wave bigger with a video on the Neons and Nudes collection by the brand’s channel shall we?

NYX HD Grinding Blush, Sangria in Madrid – A New Type of Blusher

I’ve got a handful of “SAFE” blushes that aren’t too good on deeper skintones.  I also noted that I needed more vibrant finely milled matte blush  for more editorial looks that require an instant pop of color on the cheeks.  I purchased this for about Php600+  from the lovely Multiply store Digital Traincase (an excellent local source for U.S. drugstore cosmetics) and they shipped this to my mother’s corporate office in Makati within three working days.

I first saw NYX HD Grinding Blush on Jen Frmheadtotoe’s YouTube feature of it.  It looked really interesting and I promised myself I’d be more daring with color this time. Sangria in Madrid is a deep, slightly cool coral shade.  The other colors in the range are Georgia Peach, Apricot, English Rose, American Girl, Terracotta, Nutmeg, and Menage A Trois.  The formula is high definition, mineral-enriched, talc-free, and paraben-free.

The side of the box reads “Good for all skin types.  Softens lines.  Light diffusing effect is perfect coverage for studio photos or taking fun pics with pals!”.  It’s called a “Grinding Blush” because it comes in a fairly new sort of packaged dispenser that houses compressed/solid mineral blush and shaves the amount you need when you simply twist the bottom.

Read more to see more photos, swatches, and this lovely product’s application .