Make Up For Ever Los Angeles boutique image courtesy of MUFE

At long last I made it to the Make Up For Ever (MUFE for short) boutique in Los Angeles! I was invited to the store opening, didn’t make it. Went to the “Pro Social/Mixer”, which I wrote about. And finally after having a meeting in the same area (a section of Los Angeles I tend not to go to often) I finally said, “Let me just go to the store and see it for real this time.”. 4-ish on a Tuesday afternoon turned out to be a very good time to visit. The store was busy with clients in the artists chair, but not a zoo at all in fact I pretty much had the store to myself to look, touch and smell as makeup artists like to do.

The store is a wee little space that manages to be fully stocked with items and artists work stations without being cluttered and chaotic feeling. I am assuming that the store carries the entire line both of consumer and professional products, but I am not completely sure as unfortunately none of the artists were available to ask questions. One of the more interesting aspects of the store is that one corner is devoted to being the “Pro Atelier” area. Here they had out testers of all of the products in the store and a lighted, mirrored work area. It is described as an area for “research and inspiration” where artists can try out the products, sketch face charts if desired, etc. Apparently artists are also able to book time to bring in a client. Not sure how that would work exactly as I would guess that since this is the Make Up For Ever store they would want you to use all Make Up For Ever products. In any event I thought that was an interesting idea.
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1 ) Tarte Friends and Family Sale

2 ) Stila Los Angeles Warehouse Sale
NOT to be confused with the online warehouse sale, this is the real deal. Line up early (some folks start lining up at 4am, I think we got there at around 6am last year) or do not bother.

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Nars Cosmetics The Multiple in Copacabana

With the Holiday season in full swing and ladies now focusing on looking fabulous for Holiday parties it is time to turn our attention to one of the more fun categories of makeup; highlighters and illuminators. What is the difference you may ask? Well, definitions in makeup vary as greatly as the person giving the definition but basically speaking both highlighters and illuminators do the same thing: They create light effects on the face. Highlighters are – generally speaking – more concentrated than illuminators and are best used sparingly in certain key areas (brow bone, tops of cheeks, etc.). Illuminators are – again generally speaking – softer and more diffused and used in places where a bold highlight would be inappropriate (under-eye area) or they can be incorporated into foundation and used all over the face for subtle glow and brightening.

I love both highlighters and illuminators. Here are some of the best I have found. Continue reading →

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I previously did an article listing various Black Friday events and then I realised two important things: A ) everyone beauty blogger on the planet was surely giving the same information and that’s assuming followers of beauty blogs did not already have that information from the myriad of Black Friday emails. and B ) I do not really care about Black Friday. At all. There, I said it. I actually often participate in the anti-Black Friday event “Buy Nothing Day” and make it a point to do no shopping whatsoever on Black Friday.

When I do shop, I actually greatly prefer to support small business during this time of year. The Big Girls and Boys are going to get theirs regardless. Small business needs love too. Also if you are a pro makeup artist, there are other things to think about besides buying more product (fun though that may be ). Here are some cool Black Friday / Cyber Monday (my birthday!) sales that you may not have known about… Continue reading →

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As an artist and as a woman I am a minimalist. When it comes to my makeup – both personal and professionally – I have always aspired to carry as little as possible and still be able to get the job done. When I heard that makeup powerhouse Francesca Tolot often carries little more than a small sized Art Bin™ box, she became my patron saint. I do not know if that rumour was ever true but it’s my goal and I am sticking to it!

1 ) Tarte Ring It In Mini Cheekstain Set (pictured above) -
I mentioned these here on Makeup to Go! when they first came out, but these are worth a second mention. As we all know, I think the Tarte Cheekstains are some of the most fab makeup items ever, and this little set in three great shades is just the perfect size for work and play. Continue reading →

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Dolce & Gabbana Perfect Finish Creamy Foundation

Hello hello.

1 ) Dolce & Gabbana Passion Duo Gloss Fusion Lipstick –
Let me join everyone else by talking about this amazing sounding new product. This is a lipstick/lipgloss 2-in-1 product with the outer rim being lipstick, and the inner circle being the gloss. Instead of having a matching lipgloss as these types of products generally do the gloss component of this product comes in contrasting colors which when applied will create a fabulous 3 color with a burst of shine. When I looked at these in person some seemed lower in contrast, and some seemed higher contrast to the lipstick color but that will depend on how pigmented the glosses actually are so more to follow once I actually own a few of these. In any event, these will be fun to play with for makeup mavens and makeup artists alike. Continue reading →

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The Classic - Nars Orgasm Blush

Needless to say, all of the products I’ve mentioned thus far in this “The Basics” series are my completely subjective recommendations. I recommend them based on my usage and generally long-term satisfaction with a product. If another makeup artist were writing these articles, they might recommend entirely different products. That said, things are about to become even more subjective as we move away from skin/foundation products and into the vastly huge world of color products. We begin our look with Cheek colors.

I am starting with cheek color because I find that when it comes to makeup most women focus on their eyes, some of us focus on our lips and then cheeks are generally ignored. This is unfortunate because few things will make a woman look fresher and YOUNGER faster than a well applied cheek color. In no particular order, here are some cheek color products that I love and use on the regular… (for cheek colors specific to women of color, revisit my previous article “Beauty Noir: Best Blushes for Darker Toned Beauties”) Continue reading →

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T. LeClerc Poudre Libre en Banane

I have a confession: I LOVE face powder. Love Love Lovey Love Love. It softens colors, smooths the complexion, helps blending, erases mistakes, sets the makeup, on and on. It’s a wonder product! Yet I find most women simply wonder “What am I supposed to do with this?” Let me assure you: Once you get the right formulation and learn to use it the right way, you too will be a convert. As I have stated before I am planning a series of video tutorials and probably one of my first ones will be using powder correctly but in the meantime in The Basics we will cover some of the best powders out there and what makes a powder one of the best. NOTE: I am really only talking about loose powders in this article. Yes, I know many of you are more used to pressed powders. Pressed powders are great for touching up, but they are not the wonder product that is loose powder. If you are really fixated on pressed powder, most of these brands make pressed powder versions of these loose powder products. I invite you, however, to allow loose powder to sweep you off of your feet… Continue reading →

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Back in when I was a little girl, my mother was a member of several “beauty clubs”. These clubs were advertised in magazines and you filled out a little beauty profile and they sent makeup and fragrance items direct to your door. These were full sized products but they were usually older brands and/or discontinued items. I joined a beauty club when I got old enough, it was a cheap way to try out a lot of new product and every now and then I would score something really great. Every month I opened my box with a makeup addicts glee to see what makeup Santa had delivered. In today’s modern era, Beauty Boxes have taken over where the old beauty clubs left off.

The new Beauty Box craze delivers deluxe samples in pretty packaging to its members on a monthly basis. Whereas the old “clubs” had kind of a hand-me-down feel, the new Boxes are all about premium, high end quality. As far as I’m aware, this new craze was started about a year ago with the advent of Birchbox. Now, of course, there are several services to choose from, all with their own unique twist. Over the next several months I’m going to be joining these various services to see what the scoop is on each of them. Here are the ones I have my eye on… Continue reading →

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Tomorrow (Thursday, September 8th) marks another Fashion’s Night Out event here in Los Angeles and in many cities nationwide, the main of which is – of course – New York.

Both stores had great events last year. You would expect Fred Segal Santa Monica to be great for beauty because that’s where Fred Segal Studio is housed. Again this year the entire complex is going to become one big block party complete with DJ, drinks, munchies, and a photo booth. Continue reading →

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