Spring has sprung! I love this time of the year! Flowers are blooming and Spring color is popping up every where.
The Spring color beauty stories that I worked on have hit the magazines now. I have had a great time working on each one of them. Since I work on them 3 months in advance, it can get hard to keep my mouth shut th
ough, especially when the people were so great to work with and the images turn out to be soooo beautiful.For this month's issue of Skin Inc magazine, my 4 assistants (from the Makeup Workshop) and I worked with the lovely models from Elite agency. All of the models were beautiful with flawless skin, so it made it easy to created the looks that we needed.
To create the look in the first image that I posted, I used hair products by BioSilk from CHI. I also curled her hair with CHI tools. They are some of the best tools in the business. They heatup quickly, and won't cause the hair to slip and slide up and down the barrel. This makes it easier to create smooth even curls.
For the face, I preped the skin with a spritz of Franche Skin Mist and then rub in some drops of Olay 7 Signs Serum.
The makeup colors were all by Franche. Eyes are in Universal Co. on top lid with a combination of Emerald and Tropical Teal smudged under eye. The cheeks were dusted with Tourmaline. The lips were finishe in Rose' blush and Ice Crystal gloss.
Photographer Jeff White brought in an assistant to help him shoot all of the many scenes we had to do. For this shoot, not only did I get to do makeup and hair, but I also had the wonderful previledge to create the concept and direct the look and style of the shot as the creative director.
This year's color for Spring is not just delicate and feminine. It also has a lot of options to choose from. It has soft shades of baby blue, seafoam green, white and
yellow, but they also had a rich side that is usually reserved for Fall. Rich deep shades of clay, burgandy, egg plant, navy and black were an added surprise. I really liked how versatile that makes it for consumers.....and makeup artists too. In these 2 shots the makeup was provided by Franche cosmetice and Grafton cosmetics.I took my inspiration from the aray of colors and styles of the runway. Fashion st
ylist Isaac King brought in just the right outfits to pull the whole look together. Since the colors were so bountious, the perfect concept for the shoot would be a bouquete of flowers. www.Proflowers.com provided the flowers and the yummy chocolate covered snacks for us to munch on between takes. I think I gained 5 pounds on this shoot, but it was all worth it!Everone had a wonderful time. Music was blazing while the models posed and danced in front of the camera. At the end of a long shooting day, we were able to get the looks that the magazine needed. The editor liked the theme so much that it became the cover! Isn't the cover beautiful! I wonder if our cover model was really sleeping for this shot?.....hmmmm? Well only she will know that for sure!
To see the whole story and more images pick up a copy of the April issue of Skin Inc magazine at www.skininc.com.
This month wasn't just filled with magazine shoots. I also have a great time working with the Disney channel for their Suite Life of Zack and Cody's "Suite Life" Sweepstakes commercial. We went to Wooster Ohio to shoot the winner of the sweepstakes.
The winner received a complete game room filled with full size arcade games, a butler, maid, personal chef and a limousine to take them every where they wanted for a whole week. There are great perks for watching the Disney channel.
Not only did I do a commercial for the Disney channel...but I also worked with one of their teen celebrities actress Brenda Song! Brenda Song, is the teen Disney star from the sitcom "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody".
She plays the London Tipton, the rich daughter of the owner of the Tipton hotel.
You can see more about the show on the Disney channel web site. Even though the character she plays is self centered and snobby, Brenda is warm, upbeat and very friendly.We started our morning of makeup at 4 am. each day. Since she is just like me....a makeup junky and a fashion fanatic!....I couldn't meet her empty handed. So I had to do the only thing any fellow makeup junky would do.....greeted her and her mother with a big gold goody bag filled with skin care and makeup from Olay, Tarte,
Black Radiance and Wet N Wild!No one would want to see me that early in the morning, but Brenda looked STUNNING as usual! Even at the crack of dawn with a 2 hour jet lag, Brenda was all smiles while I went to work on her flawless skin.
I put her new products to good use by incorporating some of them in her look for the day. I used combinations of browns, golds, burgundy with touches of pink. We chatted away while her mother tried the new Olay lotions I brought them. Skin can get pretty dry when you have to keep flying from state to state for appearances, even for the mother of the star.
Time's up!....we had to head over to the ABC studio for Brenda's appearance.
On the second day I wanted to be able to spend a little more time pampering Brenda, so I brought in my assistant Jennifer Chorenziak to help out.
Instead of a typical work day, it was more like a girls day of beauty! We were giving out beauty tips left and right, while we finished getting Brenda ready. We had such a blast...even Brenda's mom joined in. Next thing we knew the doorbell rang and Meagan, and Jennifer from Disney came in to see how we were progressing but instead of leaving for the studio the party just got bigger!
We were all laughing and talking about fashion and beauty. Eventually the limo driver had to call up to the room and make us ALL go back to work. OH WELL....! So off we went to the NBC station so Brenda could talk about being the Health Embassador for the YMCA Healthy Kids Day.
After her tv appearance Brenda went to the new YMCA on 2700 S. Western Ave. (Chicago) to sign autographs and show the crowds how she "kicks butt" as a black belt martial artist. She also used her martial art skills in her upcoming Disney Channel Original Movie, "Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior". We had sooo much fun working together. I can't wait to see her in her new movie. You can read more information about Brenda Song by going to the Disney Channel.
The other tv show that I worked on was for Chicago NBC5 News Today. This time I worked on ME! I had an appearance to talk about "Spring Cleaning Your Makeup Bag" featuring Olay skin care, Noxema, Cosmedicine and Sephora Tinted Moistuizer. If you didn't see it, you can catch a glimpse now by clicking onto the picture.
Now that I have talked about me, it is time to talk about you and your beauty questions.
BEAUTY QUESTIONS
Beauty question: "Hi, Candace! I recently got a digicam, and have started dabbling in taking makeup photos to create my own portfolio. I've noticed with the flash on, the pics have a beautiful turn out, but the makeup seems more toned down in the pics than in person. Is this normal? Should I just add more makeup? "- Jillian in New York
Answer: Light is a major factor in proper makeup application for professional pictures. Light can cause the makeup to look chalky on the skin and light can wash out the color that has been applied to the face. So if you are putting on your makeup to take a picture, when possible, try to see what the lighting is going to be and apply your makeup on in that type of lighting. Then your application can be more accurate.
Beauty question: "How can I tell if my skin is yellow toned or olive? Which brand would work for spot concealing on a (fair skinned) African American woman that covers WELL?"- Jillian in PA.
Answer: Getting your undertones correct is one of the biggest factors in picking proper foundation. No matter what shade you have, if the undertone isn't correct your skin won't look natural. Warm undertones are yellow and orange, while cool undertones are blue and pink. Those that have olive tones can have cool or warm undertones but their skin tends to have a green cast to it.
A great cosmetic brand to try is by Supermodel Iman called...of course...Iman cosmetics. I love her products, but the Iman Cream To Powder foundation
is one of my favorite products! Since Iman cosmetics is specifically designed for a variety of women of color, you should be able to find the shade that you need whether yellow or olive toned.The coverage is seamless without feeling greasy or masky.
Not only does Iman have a great makeup line, but she has a great book as well called The Beauty Of Color. It is a great read....for every shade of woman!
(image of Iman was during Iman's book tour to Chicago-phtg by www.aaastudios.com )
Beauty question: "I've noticed a lot of fashion-forward women (celebs like Kimora and Mariah) wearing blush heavily on the apples of their cheeks. Is this a new look?"- from reader in Philadelphia
Answer: No it's not new. Young kids have been walking around with that great "flushed" look naturally, which is one reason why the look is so popular. It gives the face a fresh youthful look to it without having to use a lot of color all over the face. A great blush to try is Stila's Convertible Color on the apples. It's creamy texture goes on streak-free and it gives the cheeks just the right amount of POP! to look healthy.
Beauty question: "I notice models often have perfect bikini lines. What do they do? Wax? Laser?"- from reader in Philadelphia
Answer: Some models wax and some get hair removed by laser. Unlike shaving, getting hair removed by waxing or by laser can be a little uncomforable, but it's not unbearable. The temporary discomfort may be worth not having to worry about unwanted hair for 3 or more weeks. It might also be the only solution to those who get razor bumps from shaving. No matter which process you decide to use please have a consultation before the procedure to get any additional questions answered.
MY FAVORITE THINGS One of my favorite makeup finds are the Tarte kits. Not only are the colors beautiful, but the cases look so sexy that you want to carry them just to show it off. Some of the sets have rhinestone buckles while others have corset style laced up packaging. When I got them, all I could do is talk about how cute they were! Despite how pretty it was on the outside, the most important thing is the inside.....the makeup! Did the inside let me down?....NO! The colors are highly pigmented and glide on with a smooth even application. I have each set! LOVE EM'!!
See you next month and keep your beauty questions pouring in!
