Product Review: The Body Shop Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter

The Body Shop has always had great products.  One of the products that I have continued using is the Camomile Eye Makeup Remover.  Recently they have come out with new products to the Camomile line.  I decided to try the Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter.  It is great for removing makeup from the full face, but I mainly purchased it for the eye area.

I was low on my personal kit eye makeup remover and decided I would branch out from my normal ones.  I love the Camomile Eye Makeup Remover but wanted to try something in a solid form.  The Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter is made with Community Trade Camomile and can be used on all skin types.

The Camomile Sumptuous Cleansing Butter is an indulgent make-up remover for the whole face.  Developed to gently and efficiently melt away make-up and impurities, and removes all types of makeup.  It leaves the skin feeling clean, refreshed and pampered.  It also works great for sensitive skin and contact lens wearers.  

I used a small dab on my eyes and it removed my mascara with ease and with no eye irritation.  You still want to use a facial cleanser to fully clean your face after using this makeup remover.  The Seaweed Deep Cleansing Facial Wash is a great cleanser to use after this product for combination oily skin people like me.    

You get 2.7 ounces in the twist top tin.  It does have a slight fragrance and is more transparent in color.   

Check out The Body Shop website for further information on the product and others from the line.  

Product Review: Bdellium Tools Bold Lip Brush #542

I have been in search of really good lip brushes for a while.  I started with disposable lip brushes but moved up to e.l.f. concealer brushes.  Those were not the standard I wanted for my kit so the search continued.  I wanted lip brushes that I could line with, angle for unique lip looks and to blend multiple colors.  I have found this with the Bdellium Tools Bold Lip Brush #542.  

Bdellium Tools Bold Lip Brush #542 is a wide, firm-bristled tip brush that helps to define all the contours of the lip with ease and precision.  It works well with all lip formulas and is made with all synthetic fibers.

As a makeup artist and makeup lover, I look for tools that work great for my clients and myself.  This a great product for a personal or professional kit.  I used the 542 brush recently to create and add more dimension to my lips with two colors and a liner.  Applying the two lipsticks directly would not allow me to create the ombre affect I wanted.  Using this brush allowed me to blend out the liner slightly with a darker color after applying a lighter color in the middle of my lips.  

The shape of the brush allows for precision application with ease.  The design and size of the brush is just right and a comfortable fit.... the way it feels in your hand as you apply the products is wonderful.  I love the smooth wooden handle and the firmness of the bristles.  In other words I love this brush and it does what I need it to do!       

Check out Bdelliumtools.com for this and other great products.

BCB LLC

Getting Ready and Staying Ready

As I dive further into my career as a Full-time Freelance Makeup Artist, I am learning how to be a better business person.  We plan for what we want in life.  We schedule months... sometimes a year in advance for events we deem important. That vacation in Hawaii you are going to next month was planned 6 months ago.  The bride you are doing makeup on next weekend scheduled her wedding date and put a deposit on the hall a year to two years in advance.  We as Makeup Artist, Hair and Fashion Stylist, etc. should be doing the same thing.

I am going to the Artist Summit in October this year and some things are being paid off now that if I had planned better earlier would have been paid off sooner.  I could be sitting back and not worrying what I need to do next.  I have learned from this and other experiences(TMS Chicago), that I still have a ways to go in running my business.  I have taken business and accounting classes in college, but have learned to run my MUA business better in the past 2 years. When we took vacations as kids, the hotel, Disney World tickets were paid for 3-6 months.  My parents most likely just put food and emergency money aside the last few months before the trips.

Tripit App I am using to track my MUA events

Now with the changes in technology we have new options.  There are various apps on the mobile phones to track your trips. You can sent up special savings accounts for your trips so that the money is available.  We have to stop making excuses for why we can not achieve our dreams.  If you can plan a family trip 6 months in advance then you can plan to attend The Makeup Shows, IMATS, The Artist Summit, classes, etc.  My 2014 events, I plan to have payments made 3-6 months in advance.  Things happen in life that prevent us from from doing what we want, but we can plan ahead for those events.  When we make planning ahead a habit then we are ahead of the game.

App also allows you to add your confirmations in.

So if we go to our favorite coffee places, restaurants, etc. less and put those funds in a special account for classes, and shows then we can "live the dream"!  With the advances in Technology and all the options out there, we can make our dreams come true if we just  "get ready and stay ready".

BCB LLC

Monday Makeup Must Have: Inglot Cosmetics Eye Shadows

MAC Cosmetics use to be my go to brand for most of my personal kit especially eye shadows but the quality change made me look for new products when I started to upgrade my professional kit.  As I grew and learned more as a professional artist, I also learned more about the products other Makeup Artists were using.  MAC eyeshadows were not as pigmented as they were during the Frank & Frank years.

Inglot Cosmetics started over 25 years ago by Wojtek Inglot,  a chemist and businessman with the goal to create higher quality products at reasonable prices and with the best possible ingredients.  He achieved that and more with this brand.

Inglot shadows are one of the best pigmented brands on the market.  They last over 8 hours with very little to no creasing.  Summer time my lids are greasier than normal so I tend to crease a little.  They are great for photo shoots and fashion shows.  The colors blend nicely and stay in place.  The price is great if you are a professional makeup artist or just looking for a few shades for your personal kit.  

The Freedom system and Z-Palettes are great ways of storing the shadows. The Freedom System has slots specific to the size of the shadows and is magnetized.  They also connect to each other which is great for stacking them in your kit. Also you can stack the shadow palette with the blush palette, etc.  

The Z-Palette give you the option for different products of different shapes in one palette. They also come in various designs and sizes.  Both palettes provide a see through top so you know what colors you have in the palettes.  

BCBLLC

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

Every year Nordstrom has some great products at their anniversary sale.  This year since I have a Nordstrom account, I was able to shop before the sale officially started.  It was cool being invited in the draped off areas to see the sales items in advance.  I mainly stopped in for the cosmetics and checked out shoes also.

I picked up Ciate London's Denim Manicure kit.  This is going to be a great fall nail design.  The Nail Polish paints on a great denim look with one coat.  I will have to test the dazzle portion of the kit very soon and show you all the results.

It comes with Paint Pot in Regatta that drys to give a textured matte denim look finish.  It also comes with glue, studs in gold, bronze and copper, and gold and white stitching nail transfers.

Every year I would normally purchase my limited edition MAC items from the anniversary sale.  Since the quality of MAC eye shadows has changed and I usually have similar colors I have purchased less down through the years.  I was intrigued by the collection this year.  I tested the eye products and was not that impressed.  Packaging is cute but shadows were similar to colors I have from MAC in the past.  The quality is still better than some brands but not a "must have" for me.   MAC always has great lip products so I decided to purchase the nude lip bag only.  

The nude lip bag included Naked Proof Cremesheen Lipstick, Drawn to Chic lipglass and Boldly Bare lip pencil.  The Rebecca Moses illustrated bag has a vinyl feel with a cute lips and ribbons design.  

Some other products that would be great to pick up for yourself or as gifts:

 Mario Badescu "Hello to Clear" Skin care set

 Kevyn Aucoin Beauty 'Iconic Eye' Set

 La Mer Limited Edition Large size  (Product Value compared to actual price is worth the purchase if this is one of your must have products)

Anastasia Beverly Hills "Hold On" Brow Gel Anniversary Duo is a great buy I thought about purchasing also.  They did not have it in my local store but I am still debating on purchasing it online.

I could go on and on with all the great buys they have just in cosmetics... Trish McEvoy, NARS has 2-3 sets that are beautiful and Kiehls Jumbo Creme de Corps is a great buy when you compare the value to the actual price.

If you picked up anything from the sale or plan to please comment and share your views on the products, etc.  

BCBLLC

New Product Review: Introducing Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion +

Forty-five years ago Clinique introduced Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion which became Clinique's #1 selling product until Even Better Dark Spot Corrector took that spot.  DDML is still the best selling moisturizing lotion in Department Stores.  There has not been a single change to the product since that time until now.  After years of through testing, Clinique has a new improved formula, DDML+.  

DDML and DDML+, the third step in Clinique's 3-Step Skin Care system was designed by Clinique's dermatologists to maintain optimal moisture balance for very dry to dry combination skin types.  New formula DDML+ was created for the changes in the world we live in today.  DDML+ is lightweight and easy to  absorb especially when used with the rest of the system.

DDML+ also makes it easier for your serums to penetrate the skin.  It prepares the skin for better absorption.  It has twice the moisture of the original formula and strengthens the skin by 54% in 8 weeks.  It contains Glycerin to attract moisture and Sodium Hyaluronate to bind moisture to the skin without a greasy feel but still has the same texture as the original.  I have been told that the moisture last longer compared to the original formula.

Dramatically Different Moisturizing Gel when developed already contained Glycerin and Sodium Hyaluronate.  It also contains Silica to help absorb surface oil.  DDMG is for combination oily to oily skin.

I have used both and it is important to use the proper one for your skin type.  I have combination oily skin and DDMG balances the oils and water in my skin perfectly especially during the summer.  The Silica is perfect for keeping my oil at bay.

XOXOX
BCBLLC

Monday Makeup Must Have: Ben Nye Banana Visage Poudre and Makeup Forever High Definition Powder

Two of my favorite finishing powders in my professional kit include Ben Nye Banana Powder and MUFE HD Powder.  I am one of those people that love loose powders.  I also love universal products that work on a variety of complexions.

Ben Nye Banana Visage Poudre is great for all complexions, but it is especially great to have for darker skin tones.  It gives a more natural look on darker skin tones when some other powders tend to cast a gray tone when applied.  It now also comes in a pressed powder compact.  

Makeup Forever High Definition Powder is another great product that works on all complexions.  I prefer to use it on lighter complexions, but when used properly it looks great on all skin tones. It should be applied and then a finishing spray such as MUFE Mist & Fix should be used afterward to avoid that famous look most people get when used wrong.  The product is great when used properly.

  

BCBLLC