The Makeup Mole

Alexa Davalos by Kay Montano

Makeup by Kay Montano

There’s a new starlet in town and her name is Alexa Davalos. She is Andromeda in the new film Clash of the Titans, and this week in London she’s been lighting up the red carpet in a dress by Ralph Lauren and diamonds by Van Cleef & Arpels.

Makeup artist Kay Montano was inspired by the makeup at the recent YSL show, which was very matte skin with a bright, glossy lip, and a hint of shine on the eyes and the cheeks.  Juxtaposing textures creates a look that’s beautiful, polished and fresh – perfect for the red carpet.

Base – Chanel Pro Lumiere in 20

Concealer – Laura Mercier in Secret Camouflage 3

Powder – Chanel Poudre Libre in Translucent 20

Cheeks – Becca Blossom Crème Cheek and Lip Color

Eyes

• Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream on lids for shine
• Clinique Naturally Glossy Black mascara

Lips

• Chanel lipstick in Enthusiast
• MyFace Lip Pop Gloss in 136

Just because:

a) it’s the yummiest collection I’ve seen for awhile,

b) it reminds me of summer

c) it’s makeup artist Peter Philips’ little ‘holding collection’ to tide us all over in those gasp! makeup-collection free days in between the Spring and Summer makeup releases

d) it’s Chanel.

‘Nuff said.

On counter in the UK May 10, 2010

Photo courtesy of Kay Montano

This is an instant sugar-rush of perfect rose toned powder to give you just the right healthy flush, and I’m loving it this time of year as it’s the perfect transition into warmer summer makeup.

This is the latest in Benefit’s line of blushers (although they will call them face powders, but blusher it is). Following on from last year’s massively successful Coralista, this I one of those products that might look a little confusing at the counter but you love when you get home.

It has four shades that you swipe together, and the colors themselves look even a bit confusing to a makeup artist, but put all together they give a very slightly shimmered rosy glow to the skin. And it’s not too vibrant for even pasty, winter-white skin (what? Who, me?) The four colors are rose pink (with shimmer), a brighter strawberry pink (with less shimmer), an apricot heading towards mustard AND a cool toned mauve. Sounds hideous right? But swiped together it’s gorgeous and it’s a timely reminder that often it’s the strange colors that can be the most flattering. Because it has the four colors together it will work on a variety of skin tones as well – also a winner. I don’t know what makeup genius came up with this little cheek candy confection, but boy is it working!

Makeup by Kay Montano

Claudia Schiffer was radiant in a gorgeous Temperley dress on the red carpet last night, where she accompanied her husband, Matthew Vaughan, to the premiere of his new film, Kick-Ass.

Kay used mostly Myface cosmetics last night to create Claudia’s red carpet look. Myface is quite a new range to the market, but I like everything I’ve tried from the range – there are more reviews coming up!

Skincare – Jurlique Soothing Herbal Recovery Gel

Base – Myface Mymix foundation in F2

Powder – Myface Mymatch Powder in Fair

Blush – Myface blush in Paradisio Pink

Eyes

• Myface Black eyeliner smudged into lashlines
• Myface Soulful Shades in Midnight Hour (black, silver and grey)
• Max Factor Lash Extension Effect mascara in black

Lips

• Nude lipbalm
• Myface Lip Pencil in Fair
• Myface Vintage Pink lipstick

I loved this show – incredible clothes (what we have come to expect from Alber Elbaz), and I found the aesthetic to be really interesting. This season the Lanvin team were playing with the idea that everybody is starting to look the same, which I think we can all attest to – the incredible rise in plastic surgery creating a veritable army of clone-like female “beauty”. By giving the models the same hair and a robotic black eye, Elbaz eloquently makes the point that fashion should also be about diversity. It might be beautiful, but surely we don’t want everyone to look the same? Nice to see a really interesting ethos behind a show. Hats off to Elbaz, Guido on hair and the redoubtable Pat McGrath on makeup (who, quite frankly, does it again).

For those viewers at home who would like to take this look for a spin, I would recommend:

• Bobbi Brown Black Ink Gel Eyeliner plus MAC Smolder pencil and MAC Carbon shadow to create the black structure to the eye
• MAC Pro glitter in Gold and Reflects Antique Gold for golden shine on the lid
• Benefit Hoola bronzer for contour under the cheekbones (no blush)
• Estee Lauder Vanilla Truffle lipstick for an expensive beige mouth, and Estee Lauder Clear Gloss for shine

I don’t know about you guys, but I for one am Officially. Over. Winter. In my mind it’s done – I’m sick of the scarves and coats and hats and ready for some tropical style—ee warm weather.

So if I can’t have summer in actuality, I’m going to fake it. Which means getting into the color on everyone’s lips and cheeks. Yep, coral. A shade you might be frightened of, quite rightly, because you think “Oh my God, Nana”. But like lots of things (such as clogs and double denim) that are so wrong they’re right again, coral is the lip color for spring.

Why? Because it’s just really gorgeous and flattering, and it’s more interesting than pink and not as full on as red or orange, so you can feel like you’re making a statement and flirting with a trend yet not feeling like an escapee from Disney’s Small World. Coral is pretty, flattering and lady like. Call it the Mad Men effect.

It’s no longer a color for Mrs Slocum. It’s more a modern version of Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief. (For really, who DOESN’T want to be cuddled up in a convertible with Cary Grant on the Riviera?)  It’s true, it’s a color that had its heyday in the 50’s and 60’s, called something clever like “Shrimp Cocktail”, and everybody’s gran had a tube of the stuff in their bathroom. But now with the improvements in technology and a wider range to cater for all skin tones, it’s possible to find a shade of peach for everyone.

Corals to Covet

Bobbi Brown has a whole Coral collection out this season, called Cabo Corals. I’m loving the Cabo Coral Pot Rouge, which is the yellow-er sister to Calypso Coral Pot Rouge (which has a bluer undertone.) Cabo Coral would be beautiful on anyone, but it’s gorgeous on deeper skin tones, and those with more yellow-ish skin. The Cabo Coral lipstick and the shimmery nectarine Sunset Beach gloss are pretty spesh as well. I even like them all together – call it the Double Coral Face! Bobbi Brown  Lip Crayon in Coral Pink is also on my wishlist – it’s gorge.

Benefit – Coralista blush, which came out last year but is still right on trend for 2010. We do love Benefit’s blushes,( although why they insist on calling them “Face Powders” is beyond me –  I think it’s confusing and misleading.) But call them a blush and they are DIVINE. Coralista  went straight into the Top Ten of Benefit’s prodiucts as soon as it was released, so I’m clearly not the only one with a love of all things peachy.

Illamasqua – Obey lipstick, the perfect 60’s peach lip and Excite powder blush, a vivid apricot, are my top shades in their range.

Paul & Joe Cheek cream in 03 – this gives you that watercolor, lit from within glow.

NARS – Casablanca and Barbarella lipsticks are both classic corals, plus the new Summer 2010 collection which I’m BEYOND excited by, has Love Devotion Lipstick, a sheer guava stain, and Enchanted, a coral cream blush (which J Lo, and  Zoe Saldana  wore to the Oscars.) And let’s face it, full monty coral needs luminous skin, so add a bit of Orgasm Illuminator whilst you’re at it. Oh and you could add NARS lipgloss in Orgasm whilst you were there. You know, if you wanted.

How to Wear It

Even though grannies are cool again (witness the incredible resurgence of grey hair and the lavender rinse that Kelly Osborne has been sporting lately), still there are limits to how Gran can you go? Let’s think about it instead as how Grace can you go?

So I would advise  going coral strongly only on one feature – for instance, if you’re sporting a coral cheek, just do a peachy stain on the lips, and vice versa. There is no need to become a Technicolor Shrimp Cocktail billboard! I love it with a soft, neutral shadow on the eye, something like NARS Cyprus or Estee Lauder Cinnamon single eyeshadow. And natch, neat brows, lovely skin and lots of ladylike lashes (but no clumps please, this is the Riviera).

Serendipitously, I found a video from the new NARS Youtube channel that is the look from the Autumn/Winter 2010 Marc Jacobs show that has, drumroll please, Lilac Eyes and Coral lips together in one look!

Colored mascara is generally a pretty tricky proposition. The idea is that by wearing color on your lashes, it will make your eye color pop – which is great in theory except for the fact that most colored mascaras make you look like an escapee from Fame or like you are completely stark raving mad (or fourteen years old – remembering my teens, that might be synonymous, but anyhoo…)

I love the Le Metier mascara because it’s a beautiful mascara that doesn’t smudge or flake, and you can really build it. It’s not a bonkers mega lash mascara (like Lancome Hypnose or Diorshow), but it has a super fine, full brush that Just. Won’t. Clump. No stripper lashes here! The brush is just the right size to get into the base of the lash and wiggle it around to get extra pigmentation (which is where you want it), and it allows you to take it out to the tip of the lash without weighing it down. Even with multiple coats there is no scary Tammy Faye Baker lash going on.

It reminds me quite a bit of Shu Uemura Basic mascara, which is another great, simple, buildable mascara. But the le Metier is COLORED! I have Aubergine (a blackened plum perfect for green or brown eyes) and Midnight, (a deep navy/black which is a winner on blue eyes). What I love about it is the color is so subtle that it enhances your eye color, without shouting to the world – HEY! I’M WEARING COLORED MASCARA! CHECK IT OUT Y’ALL! ON MY LASHES IT’S 1985! So you don’t have to have 80’s flashbacks (thank goodness, God knows there are enough of those around already, peach lace bodysuits and high waisted acid wash denim anyone?) Like the Chanel Exceptionnel range of slightly colored mascara, this is colored mascara for grown ups. J’adore.

I couldn’t resist putting up this gorgeous video of Vanessa Paradis in her new Chanel ad:

• Because she’s beautiful
• It’s really cute
• I’ve been singing the tune in my head all day imaging myself as some chic, Gallic, gap toothed beauty
• The lippie is ace, and the color she’s wearing in the ad (Rouge Coco in Mademoiselle) is now my signature shade! Not sure how much it makes me look like her though…