The Makeup Mole

Foundation – Chanel Vitalumiere in Clair 20

Concealer – Chanel Estompe concealer in Light (Claire was joking that she needed lots of this after having an amazing night at the BAFTAS!)

Powder – Chanel Translucent 1 Loose Powder

Blusher – Chanel Les Tissages de Chanel duo blush in Tweed Rose

Eyes - Chanel Ombre Essentiel single eyeshadow in Liberty washed all over eye, with Irreele eyeshadow duo in Aqua-Alta (the dark grey from this) along lashline and in a soft, wide sweep under the eye for a subtle Kate Moss rock n’ roll eye.

• Chanel Le Crayon Kohl in Noir lining the inside of the eye
• Chanel Ecriture de Chanel liner in black on top lid only

Mascara – Exceptionnel de Chanel mascara in Smoky Noir (although apparently Claire’s lashes are already looking phenomenally lush thanks to Latisse, the new US potion that makes your lashes grow, and from all reports, it’s amazing!)

Lips – Chnael Rouge Coco lipstick in Beige Felin

“Oh she’s an Easy Lover, she’ll get a hold on you, believe it, she’s like no other, and before you know it you’ll be on your knees…”

Just because it’s Monday, and it’s rainy, and what’s cheering me up is this super-shiny hot pink gloss from NARS that makes me think of ice creams and roller skates and sunshine. And its name (we all know how much I love the names of NARS cosmetics – if makeup isn’t fun then good Christ, what is it? It sure ain’t neurosurgery), well it’s another classic from our friend in Bora Bora. (Did I mention Monsieur Nars has a south Pacific island? Well he does. A whole island to himself. That’s a lot of eyeshadow!)

Plus it’s a top excuse to post one of the best songs to come out of the 80’s – for your viewing pleasure, I give you Phil Collins’ Easy Lover. Worth watching just for the scary 80’s hairdresser halfway through and the power-mullet of the roadie, plus Phil Collins giving it some true rock-star style from the decade that taste forgot – in golfwear. In a helicopter. Awesome. And it’s a rocking tune to go with a rocking gloss. And did I mention that it’s raining, and it’s Monday? Enjoy.

So one of the bonuses about doing the shows (apart from major adrenaline surges, not having time to eat, living on caffeine, seeing all your makeup artist and hair mates and working with the most amazing clothes on the planet), is getting to see the new makeup goodies before anyone else. And let me tell you, MAC are not going to disappoint in their upcoming collections.

The one that has me going is the aptly named Art Supplies (be still my beating heart!) They have shiny grease eyeshadow crayons in a jumbo pen – yes, a jumbo pen! – that can be used as an eyeliner or a shadow and the colors are gorge – shiny pewter, deep aubergine, shimmering navy, lovely jade green and of course, the archetypal black. They go on like a dream, have a beautiful sheen to them and aren’t as greasy as a paintstick, so they are easier to handle. Yum, yum, yum, want, want, want!

And the other thing I got excited about is these jumbo lip crayons that are coming out (very, very similar in style to CoverGirl’s Outlast Lip stain markers, but I guess great ideas are ripe for the nicking…) – they give a gorgeous base to a lip and last for ages, so you can chuck them in your handbag and never have a lipstick-less look again! Art Supplies will be out in April 2010.

Here is a link to an excellent makeup blog, www.temptalia.com that has all the details about upcoming collections and is a must for MAC lovers. Ch-ch-ch-eck it out.

Daisy Lowe at a film premiere

Last week the unfailingly gorgeous Daisy Lowe was being shot at London’s Spring Studios for photographer Jacob Sutton, with the best of the upcoming season’s new trends from Vogue’s fashion director, Kate Phelan.

Kay Montano was doing her makeup, a sexy rock n’ roll look that’s perfect for Daisy’s modern It girl style. She used Chanel Vitalumiere foundation in 20 Clair on her skin, Myface black eyeliner and Bobbi Brown Black Ink gel eyeliner for smudgy, sexy eyes, and Nude lipbalm and Chanel Rouge Coco lipstick in Beige Felin to finish off a modern bombshell. Hairdresser James Pecis used Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray to get the perfect rough texture on the hair. And voila! Who knew Spring was around the corner?

myface.cosmetics- blingtone

This week I was taken through the whole Myface range of makeup, and the more I’m trying from this brand, the more I’m liking it. I’ll be posting about other Myface products in the coming weeks, but on Friday shooting London It girl Yasmin Mills (who is already naturally so gorgeous), I used lip gloss in Lip Pop and a touch of the cult product Blingtones on the eye to give her gaze a hint of shimmer, and honestly, this product has to be tried to be believed.

It’s crushed pearls – yes, real crushed pearls, in an oil base, and it is a totally new technology for eyeshadow – Kay and I have never seen anything like it. What it means is that with one finger swipe of product you can create sparkling, glistening lids instantly. When it’s on, it looks so shiny it appears wet. “Oooh!” I hear makeup artists around the world squeal. How we love a bit of wet look shine (I know, there’s a tacky joke in there somewhere, but this is a makeup blog people, keep it clean). To get this effect, until now we relied on either using shimmer shadows or pigments with a wet brush, or adding Vaseline or eye gloss once the powder shadow was on, but with Blingtones you just swipe it on with a finger, for instant, glamour eyes. And the effect can be just a touch of pixie dust or full on metallic foil. It comes in a range of colors – silver, gold, deep purple, amazing teal blue, bright blue, white and beige copper.

Can you tell I’m smitten? I have a feeling I’ll be using these bad boys all the time. They are perfect to throw in your handbag or your desk drawer if you’re going out that night to punch up your look, and they don’t need a brush – they actually go on better when applied with your fingers.

The only thing I would say is that the pearl particles are so fine it does drop under the eye somewhat, so I would recommend doing the eyes first, before your foundation, then using some sticky tape around your finger to pick up any fall out, before proceeding with the rest of the makeup. (This is also a great trick if your smoky eyes start out more panda than pretty!)

And the best part? It’s available at Boots – yes, Boots the chemist. I so rarely get excited about anything I buy at the chemist (unless they’re in Paris, or the US has some ace stuff also), that to find a range at drugstore prices that has anything I want is already an achievement in itself.

You can check out the full range at www.myfacecosmetics.com

Until the 25th of February Myface cosmetics is offering a free concealer with every Myface foundation, available throughout the UK at Boots Chemists.

Makeup by Kay Montano - Photos by Carter Smith

Skin Prep – Ren toner, Liz Earle Superskin Moisturiser

Base – Chanel Teint Innocence in 20 Clair

Powder – Chanel Poudre Universelle Loose Powder in 20 Clair

Blush – Chanel Joues Contrast blush in Imprevu

Eyes

• Chanel Eyeliner in Brun Cuivre
• Chanel Kaska Beige eyeshadow quartet
• Chanel single eyeshadow in Sand
• Chanel Ecriture de Chanel black liquid liner on top lid only
• Chanel Inimitable Obscure mascara in Black

Lips

• Nude Skincare Lip Balm
• Chanel Lipliner in Natural
• Chanel Coco Rouge in Beige Felin

I love the design of this eyeliner – like a Sharpie pen for eyes, it has a nice sharp nib (not too floppy!) that when it works, does make lining eyes a cinch. Sadly however, whether it works or not appears to be optional.

The fantastic design is courtesy of the guru makeup artist, Pat McGrath, as she is the resident makeup artist at Procter & Gamble (who own Cover Girl.) And it is cheap (about $7 USD). But the after my experiences with it, the only way this dude is going near my kit is if Chanel, MAC and NARS cease and desist from production of liquid liner forever.

Friends of mine recommended it to me, and the first couple of times I tried it, I thought fab! This is ace! I gotta get me one of those! And off I went, forked out my seven dollars, and got it home (or back to my friend’s house actually). And you know what? Maybe for some it’s amazing and cat-lined Cleopatra kitty eyes in one easy stroke are all yours – instant transformation into Angelina Jolie – grrrr – or, like what happened in my case, I was Angelina Jolie for two days thinking wow, I have to post about this on my blog – and miraculously one week later it became thin, watery, anemic and grey, and not worthy of lining my cat’s dirty litter tray. As was the spare one Cover Girl thoughtfully provided for me. (I managed to get my hands on a double pack – two for the bin then, instead of one).

But my friends who recommended the product to me have had theirs for about two years and it’s still going strong, and reading reviews on the internet (like the ever useful MakeupAlley), I am not alone. So it turns out that it’s really luck of the draw. I know it’s only $7, which in the grand scheme of things is not that much, but I’d rather have given it to a homeless person or to save the moon bears than basically literally putting it in the bin.

And this is why I have a blog – because I think it happens a lot – women buy products that are crap, or crap for them, and then feel bad when they don’t look like Jennifer Aniston or Cheryl Cole. And they pay for the privilege. And it’s not good enough! We want products that work, and we’re happy to pay for them. But please help us buy the right ones that make us feel pretty, and not like a sucker, an idiot, or even worse, less gorgeous than when we came to you.

Quite frankly, that’s just not good enough, Cover Girl. Why do some of these eyeliners work, and others, not so much? And let me tell you, I have had far pricier brands’ liquid eyeliners do the same thing. Please don’t manufacture products that die after two uses. It’s just not on. It makes me furious because we as consumers are being taken for a ride, and to my mind, if you can’t make pretty much every product perfect, don’t bother manufacturing it. ‘Nuff said.

BIN IT!

And by the way , if you’re curious about why I talked about moon bears, I found out about this amazing charity the other day – it’s a charity that is restoring the sight of moon bears rescued from Chinese bile farms, where they are kept in captivity and milked for their bile (prized in some Chinese medicines). It’s as hideous as it sounds, but these veterinarians restore their sight. All together now – awww! If you’re interested in finding out more about the moon bears, the website is www.sightforsoreeyes.org.uk. I know where my next liquid eyeliner purchase money is going – and it’s to someone a lot cuter and fluffier than Cover Girl.

This is another new(ish) brand to the market place, and what I’ve tried from the range I find exceptionally high quality. The standout favourite for me has to be the Loose Powder though, as it’s super finely milled, lightweight, and cuts shine without adding surface texture (for powder nerds, you will know this is no easy task!)

The container is a jumbo-sized sifter, and unless you have a face like the Exxon-Valdez, it should last you years. The brand itself was created by a duo with an extensive background in the beauty and fashion industries, from the ethos that only the highest grade ingredients and the newest, best technology from around the world would be applied to each product – an interesting idea and one that so far the brand has lived up to.

The founders of Le Métier de Beauté discovered a lab with a research chemist that produced cosmetics of exceptionally high quality, and together they researched the globe for more chemists to match this high standard, in order to produce the best of every type of cosmetic. Their products are created wherever the best labs and factories happen to be – so far over twenty worldwide. Each product is produced in small batches to ensure that the quality is of the highest level, and they then field research it with makeup artists, beauty editors and other industry experts to ensure that it meets the most stringent demands. No wonder I like this powder so much!

The powder is paraben, talc, and oil-free and has been triple-milled, so it goes on super-fine but keeps the skin matte yet fresh looking. Up until now if I wanted to really mattify the skin I used Shu Uemura Matte loose powder, but now I’ve switched to Le Metier.

Rumour has it that Le Métier de Beauté will be collaborating with design duo Marchesa (whose makeup I had the pleasure of touching up at the last Fashion Rocks in London, and if the line is anywhere as gorgeous as she is, we’re all in luck!)

The only thing I don’t like about it is the color selection which I don’t think goes deep enough – as you know I like powders that cater to all skintones, and this range could do with a number four in it’s range of three colors. However sometimes products can surprise you, so I’m going to slip the darkest color into my kit for London Fashion Week and see how it fares.

So it’s BAG IT!