10 Things Every Makeup Artist Should...Have in their handbag!

Being a good makeup artist isn't all about what you can do with a brush and the products you carry in your kit. If people find it hard to get in touch with you, you turn up late (whatever the reason), or you are unorganised and unprepared you probably wont get that call back next time they need an artist.

Here are the essentials I don't leave the house without...

1. Business Cards - You never know who you will meet so be prepared and have your business cards on had. I carry both my bridal and makeup cards in a small business card holder to keep them looking like new. Remember first impressions count.



2. Blackberry or iPhone - I'm a Blackberry girl but both these multi functional phones have push-email services which alert you every time your inbox gets a new email. With one of these you will never miss out on a job because you replied too late. Always remember to back up regularly so you don't loose your contacts or appointments if something happens to your phone.



3. Satalite Navigation - Never miss another turning again! Ever struggled to read directions on the way to a location at the crack of dawn in the dark? I can plan the best route and get from A to B with the assistance of my TomTom.
   


4. Directions - Technology can fail so always have a back up. I use multimap.com
   


5. Travel Card - Just about every city in the world is a nightmare to get around in by car so if you have good transport links use them and get a travel card. If you are traveling in London you can use the TFL Journey Planner which will give you a choice of routes and even tell you how long the walk from the station to your destination.
   


6. Diary - Okay so the Blackberry has an excellent organiser but I'm old school and a stationary geek so I cant give up my Filofax. It also helps me for some reason to see the week right there in front of me when I'm planning. Whether you prefer a paper diary or electronic make sure you have it with you so you can answer people on the spot if you get asked about availability



7. Note Book - Having a note bookis great for emptying all your thoughts so you can come back to them later. You never know when inspiration is going to hit so have somewhere to write it down whether its ideas for a shoot, a list of to do's, a new website you want to visit...well you get the picture.



8. Snacks - I always have a bottle of water and a banana because you don't always know when or if you will get a break for lunch.



9. Lip Gloss/Eight Hour Cream/Vaseline - I keep makeup natural when I'm working so I find a quick slick of gloss or lip balm makes me look pulled together when I walk into a shoot. I also like to keep my lips in tip top condition so my Eight Hour cream doesn't leave my side in the winter months.



10. Cash - Always have a little cash on you in case you have to pay for parking or if someone is doing a coffee run.

What are the essentials you need on a job that aren't found in your makeup kit?

My Kit: Prep and Skin Care

Take a look at the skin care I carry in my makeup kit.

1. MAC Strobe Cream - Great for dewy skin and highlights
2. Dermalogica Active Moist
3. Smashbox Photo Finish Primer
4. Derma Guard Skin Protectant - Can also be used for fixing mistakes with a cotton bud.
5. Anti Bacterial Hand Gel
6. Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream
7. Dermalogica Multi-Active Toner
8. Palmers Body Gloss- great for glamour/bikini shoots.
9. Vaseline Intensive Care Aloe Body Lotion
10. Dermalogica Ultracalming Cleanser
11. Pore Minimiser
12. Dermalogica Special Cleansing Gel Sample - in case someone wants to wash their makeup off.
13. Dermalogica Oil Control Lotion Sample - To matt out oily skin.
14. Brow Palette
15. Tweezerman Tweezers - Excellent grip and great for precision
16. Scissors

All my big bottles of lotion have been decanted into small Muji pumps to reduce weight and save space which has made a huge difference. I have also replaced the 12 colour Screenface Eyeshadow palette I used to cart around because I used 3 of the colours for brows by making a small customised palette. I also carry samples of products I very rarely use so I'm prepared but don't have to waste space.

Here it is all packed up in a little 19cmW x 15cmH x 5.5cmW I got from John Lewis for £5 (if I remember rightly) for a set of 3.

If you have a skin care or prep product you think is a must have that I need in my kit or you have a question or comment on one of the items I do carry let me know by posting in the comments box.

N.B. Sorry for the poor quality of the pics. I will update the posts at some point in the future when I upgrade my camera!

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My Makeup and Light Hairstyling Kit

Angel Graves Guide to Traveling with Your Kit

Chapped Lips Be Gone

My Makeup and Light Hair Styling Kit

I am pretty sure all makeup artists, like me, love snooping in each others makeup kits to see how they are organised and what gems they can find. I'm going to give you all a look inside my kit in a series of weekly posts with a breakdown of products I carry.

I will start this series of posts off with a look at my kit as a whole and will follow it with a post on the skin care products I carry.

I have been working hard to condense my kit and everything fits into the 50cmL x 30cmH x 25cmW holdall with wheels below.

If you have any questions along the way post a comment!

Little Black Book: Muji

Who: Muji

What: Simple design and function led travel essentials, stationary, products for the home and storage.

Where: UK, Europe, Asia, North America and Online at Muji.com

Why: I have always liked Muji for the simple minimalist design of their products and have been buying sketch books and pens there for years. So why am I writing about the Japanese equivalent to Habitat or Ikea on my beauty blog? Because they sell the best products I have found for down sizing my kit!

I am yet to find another store that sells not only clear travel size 100ml flip top bottles and sprays but pump bottles which are perfect for filling with your body lotions, and skin care products. They also do pots including those that screw together to create a stack which are perfect for storing lashes.

These bottles and pots feel sturdy, durable and are pretty resilient considering what my kit goes through when I travel on the Tube. I am sure it is possible to find something similar cheaper elsewhere (prices start just under £1) but in my opinion they are worth every penny for the quality and good design.

What do Muji say?....
NO BRAND QUALITY GOODS
The Company’s basic principle is to develop new simple
products at reasonable prices by making the best use of materials while considering environmental issues. Through the careful selection of materials, streamlining manufacturing processes and simplifying our packaging, we have continually introduced high quality Muji brand products onto the market, at lower than usual prices. Presently there are more than 5,000 Muji products sold in Japan. Muji's natural and simple design complements today’s lifestyles perfectly.
Find out more here.

If you have any travel size finds post them in the comments box and share with me and the other readers...

Karl Lagerfeld Interview: "if its not the way I see it, I prefer not to see it"

Radio 4 is probably not the station of choice for the young fashionista however my Mum bought to my attention an interesting and slightly unusual interview with Karl Lagerfeld which is definitely worth a listen on the BBC iPlayer.

The Creative Director of Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld talks architecture, handbags, cosmetic surgury, size 0, the economy, fur and much more....

Taken from the interview, Lagerfeld's thoughts on....

4x4's... "I Love them"
Man bags... "Horrible!"
The Economy... "Horrible but healthy..."
Size 0 ... "...lets take care of the zillion too fat before we take care of the percentage that's left."

The badly dressed... " I don't judge people. I think they were in 7th heaven when they bought that shit, its not up to me to judge...I am blind to that."

Blackberry or iPhone... "iPhone"

Evan Davis's interview with Karl Lagerfeld is only available on BBC iPlayer until the 9th January 2009 and starts at 2hr20mins in so you will need to skip forward!

Enjoy...

Picture Source: Greg Kessler/Style.com

Tried and Tested: Maybelline Colossal Volume Express Mascara

I have been a fan of Maybelline's Volum' Express mascara for several years now as I love that it makes my lashes look thicker and fuller but I have been bowled over by Maybelline's latest edition, The Colossal Volum' Express Mascara.

My first encounter with this mascara was whilst shopping for munchies with a friend who bought it on an impulse.

With just a couple of strokes her lashes look a.m.a.z.i.n.g and seemed to double in length. She doesn't wear that much makeup in the day so I thought perhaps it wasn't all down to the mascara and that maybe she just had fabulous long lashes I hadn't noticed before....

Fast forward to Jan and I actually got my hands on some and I am really, really impressed. Every mascara says 'no clumps' on the tube but that's not always strictly true in practice. I can actually confirm there were no clumps and after wearing all day it didn't flake either. This mascara added length to my lashes and looked incredibly light and natural on close inspection.

I tend to think its the brush that makes all the difference to the look of the lashes after application which is why I don't carry high end brands in my kit. I was surprised then to find that even when using a disposable wand to apply to one eye you couldn't tell the difference between the lashes I used the Maybelline brush on.

At only £4.84 at Boots right now don't take my word for it try it for yourself and let me know what you think!

What Maybelline say....

• Creates 9X the volume, instantly.
• Patented MegaBrush + Collagen Formula plump lashes one by one
• Dramatic Volume with no clumps
• Washable

For Best Results Sweep brush upwards from root to tip to plump individual
lashes and achieve dramatic volume. Continue building lashes until you reach
your desired look. Do not let dry between coats. Repeat for lower lash line.
Removes easily with soap and water or Maybelline® New York Expert Eyes® Eye
Makeup Remover Towelettes.

Looking forward to hearing you thoughts. Leave me a comment below...

Picture Source: maybelline.com

Angel Graves Guide to Traveling with Your Kit

Travel can be an amazing perk of the job for a makeup artist although it will probably wrack you with nerves having to part ways with your kit at check in!

Fellow creative Angel Graves has done her fair share of globe trotting so I asked her to write a guest post giving us some of her top tips and advice for traveling with your kit.

Here is what she had to say on the topic....

Liquids

Anything I can retrieve upon arrival easily is left at home. This includes things like removers, cleaning products, etc.

Anything I must have or can't buy on site goes in a small quart sized Ziploc (freezer type so it's extra sturdy).

I picked up small clear travel sized containers at the dollar store just for this reason, they fit well into these bags and during the right travel alert levels this is the acceptable way to carry the minimal amount of liquids in your carry on as well.

Use clear bags so the items can be seen and removed easily at security. Make sure to label these items if you aren't the OCC type I am as this helps you up front if asked and later when you need to use them.

Aerosols

Anything aerosol is also left if it can be helped. If I must take something aerosol it is in a small travel size or it is stowed in my main bag safely stashed in my clothes and fingers crossed nothing bad has ever come from this.

I stocked up on the gift sizes of my favourite aerosol products (Worked Up & Hold Me Tight to name two) and these also fit the criteria of acceptable sizes if the travel alert day is in your favour. These just travel better for me also and I'm glad of their existence :)

Palettes

All of the palettes I have are covered inside with Glad Press and Seal wrap, sounds silly but has saved me so many potential disasters you have no idea. This has become one of those little tips I learned from a fellow artist and I feel compelled to pay forward to other artists. It keeps possibly loose products in it's place and will keep any accidentally broken product in line until you can sort it out :)

Essentials

Anything I absolutely can't do without just in case the luggage is lost is tucked into my rather large carry on bag. These are items I can't replace in short notice if they are lost.

It pains me to have to tuck my shears into my main suitcase when I travel but they pose more problem than traveling with firearms so it's either to lose them at security to an angry TSA agent or cross my fingers that they will arrive safely in my luggage at the end of the day. . . touch wood no mishaps!

So in this list I include, my brushes, essential hot tools, and essential hair tools, anything else I can replace or is already in my carry on.

The Bag

So here's where it gets tricky, I have a few of these.

I have two Heys cases, a TNA bowler type bag, an off brand gym bag. . . It's hard to choose sometimes which one is The One so I repack this at least twice...lol

If I am taking my laptop, this counts as one carry on so I must pack wisely! Generally speaking the smaller shoulder Heys is not enough room so it's the larger rolling Heys if I'm doing double duty and must take both hair and make up. If it's just hair tho I typically just take the TNA bag and call it a day.

Ground Shipping

I can say this for ground shipping, it will save you the hassle of packing for travel if you have the downtime enough to ship your kit. I can also say this, it will need to be packed as tho it was going to be used as a rugby ball and possibly kicked about. Pack the kit inside and out with cushioning as tho it was heirloom china!

You laugh but I promise you this is no jokes, in the unload process your lighter weight box will be at the possible top of the load and is prone to fall from a significant height. It is also going to go through a possible 4-6 stops in this load and unload process so you really can't be too careful, it is your bread and butter after all!

I have never shipped my kit and likely won't ever either, I'd rather deal with TSA and Customs than to have to worry what UPS or Fed Ex are doing to my kit :(

So I guess in summary,

• Invest in Glad Press and Seal wrap and Ziploc freezer bags, I can't impress on you enough how much they have saved me :)
• Invest in a decent carry on sized bag, wheeled if possible to save your back :)
• Invest in a good shoulder bag, you'll need it for snacks and the iPod/book entertainment (or shield from irritating neighbors) ^^
• It's always going to change on you at the last minute with alert levels so make sure you can toss any liquid or aerosol items easily into checked baggage if you have to!

And above all CHEERS! to you, you're a 'Have Brushes Will Travel' ARTIST! It's a pain to pack but I promise you at the end of the day, you'll be glad you're there and have made it to this place in your career :)

Travel Safe and Happy ^^

~angel~

Check out Angels new blog at http://www.angelgravesstylist.blogspot.com/

Hairstyling for Makeup Artists

Like Amy Allen many makeup artists would like to become more proficient with hair so as to increase their job opportunities. In many markets makeup artists are often expected to wear both hats so hairstyling is a really desirable string to add to your bow.

This time last year I had a little basic hair training under my belt but it was more geared towards achieving period styles and I had no confidence when it came to styling. I hated doing hair and found it really hard and quite daunting to tell you the truth.

I decided to take an evening class at the London College of Fashion which was specifically tailored to makeup artists. I wont lie, hair takes a lot of work and practise but I left the course confident in my abilities and able to take part in tests or accept work that required some light hairstyling. With practice my skills have been going from strength to strength ever since.

The tutor was a pro stylist currently working in the industry with her finger on the pulse, which is important if you are doing any kind of fashion training as the industry is constantly changing. The classes were really fast paced so I learned a lot in a short space of time and focused on techniques that you could build on to achieve different styles. Click here to see a break down of what this short course covers.

I really cant recommend this course more highly for an mua looking to learn the basics and how to build on them to achieve on-trend styles. I now actually enjoy doing hair and like to challenge myself to recreate more adventurous styles!

Picture Source: style.com, Picture Credit: Maria Valentino

"Influence" by Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen

Whilst browsing at Borders this week I came across a beautiful new coffee table book by the Olsen Twins Mary-Kate and Ashley called Influence.

The girls got to pick the brains of those that have not just inspired them in life and business but that greatly influence the world of art, film, fashion and photography.

The book edited by fashion and arts writer Derek Blasberg transcribes interviews which give great insight into the lives of the likes of Karl Lagerfeld, Terry Richardson and Lauren Hutton amongst other creative giants.

The book is beautifully designed by Rodrigo Corral and has a very personal feel. I love that hand written notes and snap shots are included along side the slick photography of Rankin who shot the cover and many interior shots.

Although the book will appeal to those who have followed Mary-Kate and Ashley’s career as the book contains photographs from the Olsen’s personal collections as well as their thoughts and anecdotes the books focus really is on celebrating those interviewed and gives fascinating insight into the world of those featured.

I am a real book worm and a sucker for a good coffee table book so if you have any recommendations for books that you think would be a beautiful or inspiring addition to my collection leave a comment below….

Picture Source: amazon.co.uk

Learn to Airbrush

Many of us will have set a goal to learn a new skill this year and like fellow blogger and makeup artist Ashley, airbrushing is top of the list.

Kick start your year by taking a class taught by top makeup artist and OCC founder David Klasfeld at the Rouge Makeup Studio, New York.

OCC is running a series of beauty focused all day intensive airbrushing courses which should give you the practical skills and techniques to start airbrushing right away.

Temptu also run monthly workshops at their New York and LA offices or you can catch an airbrush seminar this month with Kett at locations in New York, Hawaii or Miami.

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