Here is a lip make up trick I’ve been employing since Ye Darque Ages, which should be useful to anyone who’s ever looked at their eye shadow collection and woefully exclaimed, “Why can’t lipstick come in these colors? I, MAQUILLAGE MASTER, COMMAND IT!”.

Though, yes, it could, and does, sort of, the coverage and staying power of these products often leave much to be desired. Which is fine, because it’s ridiculously easy to create your own custom shades and, using a simple technique, ensure that they stay on as long as you please.

THE TOOLS

• lipstick brush
  
• lips gloss or creme lipstick
• loose eye shadow of your choice
• lip or eye pencil liner in a similar color

THE METHOD

• line your lips, then fill in with pencil
• in a small dish [or on your bathroom counter, for that matter] mix eye shadow with a dollop of gloss or lipstick
• apply with lipstick brush, staying away from the very edges of your mouth to prevent feathering
• Ta-da!

Seriously, that’s it. Infinite color freedom in just a few minutes. You could brush on some She Laq for extra durability, but the liner bonds the gooey mix so well, that I usually don’t bother and carry a little gloss-and-shadow mix in my purse for [infrequent] emergency touch-ups. A reader adds: Check the pigment list for safety. Pigments containing Chromium, Ultramarine, or Ferric Ferrocyanides (usually blues, greens, or dark cool purples mixed with the blue pigment) are not safe to use on your lips. There’s an ongoing list here with a lot of the common culprits, and notes on products that are safe for multi-purpose use.

Below, I gothed it up and lined my lips with black, going over it in with a mix of fuchsia lipstick, gloss, and Sugarpill’s Hysteric loose shimmery eye shadow. Modeled in my finest sock monkey pajamas before and after several hours out with no touch-ups.

It’s likely that some of you have also been employing this method for ages, but for those who have not, a whole new world of experimentation awaits! Gold, green, teal, violet, yellow, orange, opalescent white, that perfect shade of raspberry – everything is permitted. Try this technique with liquid foundation and just a dash of eye shadow for lighter and pastel shades.

                          

Continuing the recent red theme, here is a fiery eye shadow look I did over the weekend for the Jessica Joslin opening reception at La Luz De Jesus gallery. At a glance, it’s somewhat similar to the Strung Out look from a earlier this year, but this is actually much warmer and a little more complex.

This is a dramatic look that incorporates four different eyeshadow colors, but it’s actually pretty easy to execute. We start out with a bright orange base, and then accentuate it with hot pink, bright red, and shimmery highlights.

TOOLS

• Wide eyeshadow brush
• Medium eyeshadow brush
• Small smudging brush
• Flamepoint by Sugarpill
• Love+ by Sugarpill
• Dollipop by Sugarpill
• Shimmery highlighter from a random Tokyo drug store

METHOD

1. Using your wide brush, apply Flamepoint all over your eyelids, blending up+out. This brush is key if you want to achieve an almost airbrushed look.
2. Using the medium brush, apply Dollipop to your lower eyelids, blend out
3. With the medium brush, brush Love+ into the creases, blend up and out
4. Highlight the inner corners of your eyes using your medium brush
5. Using an angled brush, fill in and shape your eyebrows
6. Add a little Dollipop to the brow-bone, blend [blend, blend!]

I realize that I did it a little backwards this time around – you’re welcome to apply your eyebrows first [or last] – whatever feels right. Lastly, apply your mascara of choice, and your eyes are done!

My base in these pictures is MAC Studiofix in NC20 [as I may have said before, I do not recommend this for everyday wear, but it's great for special occasions] and my mascara is CoverGirl’s LashBlast Volume, which I smudged with a smudge brush for a little light contouring. I also used a little Sugarpill’s Dollipop and Flamepoint with clear gloss on my lips, and Birthday Girl on my cheeks.

I leave you with a question: I generally use drug store brushes and spongy applicators, but might be ready to expand my arsenal a bit – what are your favorite make-up brushes?

                          

A few years ago, I worked as a professional make-up artist. My passion was for special effects, and every once in a while I get to play with the skills I learned in those days. This year, I was too busy to plan a Halloween costume. Originally I wanted to dress as Pris from Blade Runner, then realized that Hot Topic no longer sells micro-mesh tops and didn’t have enough time to investigate further. Fail. However, since I was going out to the West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval, I had to do something, fast.

So, I busted out my Sugarpill eye shadows and created a super-quick look I can only call “Fashionably Bruised”, because the rest of my make-up remained intact and I didn’t add any puffiness or much redness. Far more work is needed for real-deal Beat-up Face, which I’ll try to remember to show you guys in the future. For now, here’s how we get fashionably Bruised!

THE TOOLS

• Medium eye shadow brush, and these Sugarpill eye shadows:
• Poison Plum
• Midori
• Buttercupcake
• Love+
• Tako
• Ben Nye stage blood – this is the best blood for this look, because it dries and crusts up just like the real thing.

THE METHOD

1. Decide where you want to have been battered
2. Using the medium brush, contour with Poison Plum. Don’t overload the brush, you won’t need much
3. Add some low-lights using Midori
4. To add an irritated, fresh look, very lightly add the tiniest bit of Love+, and blend. I wanted to look like a drunk businessman wandering in after a 48-hour bender, so my bruises are meant to look slightly older. Once the blood dried it looked nice and crusty, too.
5. Highlight with Buttercupcake and the slightest hint of Tako. The more yellow you use, the older your bruises will look!
6. For a realistic-looking bloody nose, use a cotton swab and be sure to coat the inside of your nostril. Your challenge is to avoid picking at it for the duration of your outing.
7. For added realism, add a bit of red and purple to your knuckles!

Voila!

                          

No Make-up Week is almost over. Already!? It’s been my most rewarding week of blogging on Biorequiem, and I’m infinitely grateful to Rachel of RabbitWrite for inviting me to participate, and everyone who had the chutzpah to share photos and speak up about their relationship with make-up, even when that meant digging up old fears and nasty experiences. I didn’t expect to have such an honest, raw and thoughtful response, so THANK YOU!  Seriously getting verklempt over here.

And though it is almost over, there is still the mighty weekend. That’s two days of potential outings and being around people, all without make-up. Can you do it? I plan to. Actually, I went out with a bunch of fabulously made-up girlfriends to a swanky night-zone on Wednesday night, and surprised myself when I felt just fine. I wore a three-piece pant suit, played up my short hair [while conveniently hiding my non-existent eyebrows, natch] and channeled Tilda Swinton as best I could without looking anything like Tilda Swinton.

If you’re playing catch-up over the weekend, check out all my No Make-up Week posts and, especially, the amazing responses:

My request to you is to take pictures once you’re all dressed up to go out, and post them in the comments section, along with your experiences while out. Maybe there won’t be much difference, maybe there will – finding out is why we’re taking part in this experiment, after all. Whatever the case, I’m very curious to see how we all do it up without make up for nights out or hangin’ with friends, and think it would make a nice Monday morning collage, something to commemorate No Make-up Week with.

I leave you with one final No Make-up Week question: has participating changed the way you feel about make-up, and, if so – how?

                          

Today, let us take a break from writing and indulge in a visual feast. In honor of No Make-up Week, I was going to dedicate this post to different types of gorgeous make up artistry out there, but instead I’m giving it all it to Eric Lafforgue. Eric is living one of my dream lives as a full-time photo journalist and his work has been making me swoon ever since I joined Flickr a few years back. In his travels, he’s captured incredible amounts of make up and face paint, a small fraction of which I present to you now. The man is brilliant. Brace yourselves.

Words sort of shrivel up and float away. No need for them, anyhow.

                          

Last week I received this email:

Title: I had a girlfriend who penciled in her eyebrows

Body: and you would both look a million times better if you didn’t. But then, I’m from a small town and hate the way makeup looks. Au natural!

It’s no great surprise that I’d never heard from this person before, but what on earth made them feel comfortable sending me an email like that remains a mystery. I suppose the anonymity of the internet gives everyone great big balls of judgment! In my day-to-day life, I’ve actually heard much worse. Some folks have very complex, ambivalent relationships with make-up. They’re attracted to us in our peacock mode, but if they get to know is, or even just get past a few dates they suddenly feel comfortable telling us it’s too much, or it looks cheap, or it’s unnatural, or, or, or.

I remember an old boyfriend smudging a painted eyebrow of mine with his finger while we were out, then laughing, amused with himself and with how mortified I was. It’s a multi-layered offense, really. First, it shows disregard for my comfort zone, second,  disregard for my opinion of how I wanted my face to look that day, third, disregard for the time I put into it. Overall, it shows an astounding lack of respect and consideration. Just that  single action. And this example is just the tip of an iceberg. I can’t even recall all  the ways in which I’ve been belittled and infuriated by people throughout my life for the ways in which I choose to make up my face. At the end of the day, I know it’s no one’s business and haters gon’ hate, but I’ve often wondered why. WHYEEEEE!!!

Why is make-up so repellent to some people? My current guess is that as with most things, it has to do with individual association. Because of prior experience, do some peeps automatically think that those who wear make-up must be insecure victims of the cosmetics industry? Is it possible that anyone could still respond to make-up by recalling the loose woman stereotype? What’s the obsession with make-up looking “unnatural”?  There’s the old argument that wearing shoes, riding bicycles and eating ice cream is unnatural too, if you go back far enough. I guess it’s different for everyone.

So if you have time and aren’t yet sick of typing about make-up, if you have been antagonized over make-up, or if you have love/hate, or hate/hate feelings toward make-up, I would love it if you could talk about it in the comments. No Make-up Week so far has been an illuminating experience, and I wan to keep the ball rolling. There’s still more to explore.

Read more No Make-up Week articles at the home base, here.

                          

Wow! Really amazed at all the make-up histories popping up in the comments of the two NMUW posts here, so far. Many similar tales, and quite a few opposing ones, too. Some peeps grew up hating make-up, some were pressured to wear it by their families, others never really liked it to begin with and don’t much bother with it now. Interesting stories to be found here and here. Also, the ladies over at Auntie Wicked have a write up a la mine, and of course there is No Make-up Week’s home base, here.

First, as promised, here are the brave Biorequiem readers who decided not only to participate in NMUW, but also to share their naked faces with the world. Can I get a collective Rarrr!? Thank you all!

Now, today’s menu: men who wear make-up and the pesky, persistent stigma surrounding this concept. This topic is as irritating as it is attractive, so I’ll be augmenting my mini-rant with stimulating imagery.

Dylan Monroe by Christine Lewis

So, my first crush was on a sad harlequin doll. I was maybe 6. I talk about this in an ooold Coilhouse post, where I blame my love of painted boys entirely on that doll and Pierrot. Childhood fantasies aside, I find made-up men infinitely attarctive. And I’m not saying that boys without make-up aren’t alluring, but well applied make-up just does it for me.

Identical twins Tom and Bill Kaulitz, fashion week 2010, Milan

Somehow, make-up on men is still not exactly commonplace today. Sure, it’s around, it’s just not quite “normal”. We have lots of great man make-up in fashion photography and a few celebrities in so-called “guyliner” [Not a fan of that term. Also, remember Richard from LOST?] are sprouting up here and there, but, despite all the context of ancient Egypt and the Elizabethans and the decades of glam rock and drag, today this is still an exception.

Devendra Banhart

Make no mistake, it being an exception as opposed to standard is part of the appeal, for me anyway, but I very much wish make-up on men was just… accepted, so that our powdered pretties could wear nail polish to the office without fear of reprimand and meet our parents without dads sternly scrunching their eyebrows in unified disapproval.

While we’re on the topic, a few links, from my googlemancery of the day:

• The History of Cosmetics on Wikipedia
• Why Did Ancient Egyptian Men Wear Cosmetics?
• Male Cosmetics in the Spotlight, a 2007 article, predicts a resurgence of make-up for the “metrosexual male”
• 4v00.com, a website specializing in men’s make-up and skin care. Their philosophy claims men are better-endowed than women. Sigh.
• Make-up for men, an especially annoying article about why men should wear make-up to boost confidence

Rrr. Is that the best we can do, internet? It irks me to see terms like “metrosexual” being cooked up to define someone who wants to throw on a little eyeliner and bronzer, and it depresses me to see that the same old confidence-blasting “you need make-up” nonsense is being fed to men.

Clint Catalyst in Mother of London by Dirk Mai

So many questions surface in my weary brain, like: do we really need definitions and separate lines of men’s cosmetics? Can we agree that make-up is fun and leave it at that, or do we require degradation to be made into loyal customers? Personally, I think including men in cosmetics campaigns, along with removing words like “flawless” and “better” would do wonders, but I suppose that’s a naive opinion that doesn’t factor in Maximum Profit. Either that, or I’m correct and everyone should listen to me right now. Whatever the case, with an open heart I keep hope alive that kinder, more accepting times are fast on their way, and twenty years from now man make-up with be at least as prevalent as, say, hair extensions.

In lieu of instant change, I hope you’ve enjoyed the brazen objectification herein. Last, but not least, Miyavi. A distant relative, perhaps?

                          

Hello, and welcome to No Make-up Week! NMUW is curated by Rachel over at RabbitWrite.com. Rachel blogs about sex and intimacy, and all sorts of other stuff, too. When she invited me to participate in No Make-up Week, I jumped at the idea.

NMUW is all about exploring our relationship with make-up, and as a person who’s worn make-up since the age of twelve and who dedicates a fair portion of her blog to make-up tutorials and advice, it’s not just a topic I think is important – it’s a topic I connect with on a [very] personal level. As I said in my introductory post on Saturday, I believe it’s healthy to examine anything we decide to need or love or fear, and that’s just what we’ll be doing this week. You can keep up with official No Make-up Week posts on the project’s home page, here: http://rabbitwrite.com/no-make-up-week/.

I’m going to kick the week off by sharing my history with make-up.I realllly hope at least some of you do the same.

• Moscow. I’m seven and my mother is a very glamorous woman. Always has been, as far back as I can remember. One of my fondest memories is of her coming home to find me with a face full of make-up and denying having raided her dresser. Man, I loved going through that dresser. Jars and tubes and bottles and brushes and that unique smell of lipstick, powder, and perfume.
• Los Angeles. I’m twelve and in junior high and all my friends are Mexican. I try to wear my face as they do – foundation, powder, eye shadow, lips lined dark with a lighter color fill. I don’t figure out how to apply liquid eyeliner until a year later. Other kids give me crap for wearing so much make-up, but considering the fact that they give me crap for almost everything I do, it doesn’t make any difference. Make-up becomes armor right around then. I get suspended for nearly breaking someone’s nose.
• Lafayette. I’m fourteen and people keep calling me a witch because of the nearly-black cherry nail polish I’ve taken to wearing. My hair is bleached and my boots are large. My style icon is Courtney Love.
• Denver. I’m fifteen, goth as fuck, and I shave my eyebrows off, along with most of my hair. The jocks pick on me, a lot, so I keep my look somewhat toned down at school, compensating for it on the weekends. On weekdays, my make-up alternates between black cat eye liquid liner and black shadow raccoon eyes. I haven’t left home with a bare face in years.
• Los Angeles. I’m seventeen, and finally perfect blending and begin to figure out how to draw my eyebrows on properly. Sometimes I grow them out, sometimes not. I’m going to an arts high school and no one picks on me anymore. I wake up at 5am to spend an hour on my face each morning, parading the results like a proud peacock. Armor in full effect, shiny and impenetrable.
• Chicago. I’m twenty and in art school and the weather is repulsive, year round. I tone down my makeup and grow out my eyebrows for good, defeated by the elements. I hate Chicago.
• Los Angeles. I’m 26 and working at a hip & happening office. I’m free to dress however I like to work, which leads to a fashion column. It also leads to occasional oversleeping and having to rush to work, sans maquillage. I begin to like my bare face, first out of necessity, and later on principle.

It took me fourteen years to begin to accept and display my bare face? Dayumn. That’s not to say I’m no longer vain and don’t despise unflattering photos, mind you.

Today, I adore make-up, and am much better at applying it than in the past, thanks to a short-lived career in professional make-up artistry. I love artifice and pomp – dressing up and creating new looks is still one of my favorite things to do. I wear make-up 75% of the time when I leave the house, but! I’m also really into the fresh-faced look. I don’t panic if I wake up at someone else’s place and don’t have a full kit with me. I don’t feel crippled by running out of foundation. Because of all my years of covering up, it’s almost a little perverse, like baring a coquettish ankle in Edwardian times, and I like that. Most importantly, I no longer need make-up.

Sweet freedom is mine.

And you? Share your stories, photos and experiences, and if you blog about it, include links, too! All photos of bare faces will be included in tomorrow’s post.

                          

I know it’s Saturday and thus an officially unfavorable blorghhging time, but I seem to have gotten sick [again, I know] and must take advantage of a sudden surge of power to write, so!

Next week, September 20 – 27 is No Make-up Week. A whole little network of interpeeps will be sharing their thoughts on this subject across the ‘wub, myself included. I also won’t be wearing any make up, which is actually perfectly normal for me these days, so halt your squeaks of terror, please. As for you, you’re welcome and encouraged to participate however you like, be it by simply not wearing make up, writing about your experience with make up, etc.

Why is No Make-up Week important? It’s just cosmetics, who cares! Well, I’ll tell ya, lots of humans do, and not just because it’s pretty and fun. It’s likely that we all know people who will not leave their home without it, others who become ostracized for wearing it, and folks who are just plain repulsed by it. Obviously, I am the last person to tell anyone make up is bad, but I do believe it’s healthy to examine anything we decide to need or love or fear. So, I’m looking forward to No Make-up Week and talking about some facets of what I find to be a fascinating subject. Skin care, boys and make-up, boys in make-up – these are some of the things you can expect to see here. And worry not – I’ll make up for it with a new tutorial or somesuch, when NMUW’s over.

                          

Q: I’m an albino and it seems nigh on impossible to find a foundation to suit me. I was using the lightest shade by Lorac but I find it’s simply too sheer and I would very much like more coverage. (I’m 37 and my skin hates me.)

A: Your skin does not hate you! Might I recommend Lancome’s Ageless Mineralé in Ivory 10 or Ivory 20? Super-light and offer full coverage! Both appear lighter than Bare Escentuals’ Fair,  but Lancome does cost a bit more. This foundation even comes in a starter kit. The shade selection begins at Ivory 20 – still very fair though! I think it will help you and your face come to a consensus.

Edited to add readers’ pale foundation brand suggestions:

• Shiseido
• Manic Panic

Q: Along the same vein, I dye my hair a bright cotton candy pink (no bleaching, woo!) but even with my natural white shade, I look like I have no eyebrows. I tried drawing them on at one point but being legally blind as a result of the albinism, well… let’s just say it didn’t go according to my cunning plan.

A: You’ve got a couple of options here, the first being eyebrow stencils! The cool thing about these is the have adhesive on the back, so you can get ‘em exactly where you want ‘em, stick, and then get to work!

Another option is cosmetic tattooing. If you decide to go with this one, do a ton of research and be very careful, since you like to dye your hair an unnatural color. You’ll want something light and neutral enough for future colors, too.

                          

This edition of Blush Response is brought to you by the lush eye shadows of Aromaleigh [again] and the recent Master and Margarita session of Sketchy’s NYC. I was going for an updated super-vamp look when shooting the promo image for this event, with soft curls, dark, smoky eyes and deep cherry lips.

HAIR

1. Separating 2-inch-wide sections, curl with a medium-barrel curling iron
2. Spray each curled section and let cool – I use Big Sexy Hair Spray & Play
3. Once hair is curled and cool, run your fingers through it to transform curled sections from doll-like ringlets into softer waves
4. Use a comb to tease and mess
5. Pin with bobby-pins to taste

EYES

I used Aromaleigh* Victoria’s Revenge eye shadow line for 75% of my look, including blush and eyebrows.

1. Prime. Prime, prime, prime! These shadows do not do well without a base.
2. Dust Cyanide Sorrow all over the upper lid, blending out near the brow
3. Use Magick & Metal to accentuate the crease & lower lash line under the eye
4. With Ruthless Indulgence [hawtt damn I love this one] accentuate the outer creases, blending up and out
5. Highlight the inner lid corners and brow bone with Infernal Chaos
6. Using Prestige liquid eye liner, create a cat eye, then carefully and minimally line around the entire eye
7. Use a small smudging brush and blend under the eye with a bit of black shadow. I used Sugarpill’s Bulletproof.
8. Mascara! Lots of it. I’ve just switched to CoverGirl’s LashBlast Volume, with that adorable rubber brush and I may never go back.

LIPS

9. Line with a dark red liner, then fill in with dark red lipstick — I used cheap-o drug store brands for this and it worked out just fine.

CHEEKS

10. Brush Magick & Metal on your cheeks and blend

SKIN

11. I used Bare Escentuals mineral foundation in Fairly Light. Sometimes I apply my foundation first, sometimes last, depending on how much cleanup I think the eye makeup will need. In the case of extra dark shadows, I tend to do the foundation last.

*Sadly, Aromaleigh is going out of business, but the good news is that they are offering a 35% discount on their site right now, with the code ADIEU35. Go forth and order, before it’s all gone forever!

                          

Interrogation Station is here to answer questions from YOU. To give it a go, just submit a question through my Formspring page. You can ask anything you like, it doesn’t have to be about style or art. All I request is that you check out my FAQ and previously asked questions beforehand. I can’t guarantee that I’ll get to every single question, but I will certainly try. You can see previous installments of I.S. here.

I´m intrigued by the glimpses of your living space. Any chance for more photos of your home?

Timely question! This space just might be done with very soon. It’s almost inconceivable. I lived here when I went to high school, and again for the past nine [!] years. It’s seen enough roommates, drama, and action for several lifetimes. This apartment is saturated with so, so many memories that it almost feels like a part of me. It is a part of me, really, except that it’s a “me” that existed and will continue to exist in another time. In the present, Ales and I want to make a home in a place that’s ours, not mine, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. So, to answer your question, there will be moving photos and, eventually, photos of our new quarters.

Were you ever an angsty teenager with sub-par self confidence? If so, how did you get past it and what helped you grow into the person you are today? Any advice for some of us angsty teens?

1. Mhmm.

2. Hesitated to answer this one, because I don’t exactly want the mothers of the internet on my tail, but ultimately I’m not here to skim over the big stuff, so pull up a chair, and grampa Zo will tell you a little tale. See, I did it by putting myself through some deep, reckless, irresponsible shit. For years, at that. From the time I was a kid and until about the age of 20, I felt a compulsion to experience and understand things I knew no one would ever teach me at home, or in school, but I sensed were lurking just below the surface. Things I knew couldn’t be taught, and had to be lived, sonny! Having sufficiently traversed the aforementioned shit-mountain, I emerged aware of my capacity to endure, and thus self-assured.

3. Obviously, I do not advise anyone follow that route. Here is some advice I wish I was given, instead: do what you feel, as long as you maintain a balance and can be sure you’re not hurting anyone. That usually means a degree of openness and a lot of self-examination. Avoidance is the enemy.

Also, read more books and eat your greens. Grampa has spoken.

I’m pretty down in the dumps now, and you feel like a strong (emotionally) lady. Have you been heartbroken before? (If yes) How did you get over it?

I’m sorry to be answering this late. It’s been Coilhouse Issue 05 madness and I haven’t peeped at Formspring in a bit. But let me say now, BOY, have I. It’s tough to conceive the depths of the dumps of my past, dude. I’ve been in megadumps of such proportions that I couldn’t even begin to describe them here, nor should I, really. Suffice to say that I got over it because I had to, and not always in the most constructive ways. These days, I do have a specific way I get over things, and that’s by looking at the bigger picture, always. Living is all we humans get, and the less of it we spend being heartbroken, the better. It can be an exquisite, lovely pain, but indulging in it too much is just like any overindulgence – you end up missing the point.

How many hours do you sleep regularly?

At least 6, ideally 8. I love early mornings and have a hard time staying asleep once awake, and my husband wakes up at 5:30am, which generally springs me to life, too. On undersleepy days, I try to nap for an hour around 1 or 2pm. Often unsuccessfully.

What´s the idea or inspiration behind the “reflection” style photos?

I’m pasting my statement from the glorious fail of a contest that was The Power of Self, because it sums things up:

I try to pin down and preserve dream states, like the moment when you look at the warm sun through the red of your closed eyelids and drift. The ambiguous in-between minutes separating lucidity and sleep. The tricks our eyes play in dim light and then, the way we wonder if the world is quietly opening its shutters to grant us a peek at another side and then another. Often, the hours of friendly discourse over too much coffee on the subject of what might happen if every reflective surface was Lewis Caroll’s looking glass.

Were you planning on selling more clothing on Ebay any time soon?

As a matter of fact yes, NOW. I listed a bunch yesterday, though two sold already. Ch-ch-check it out!

Where did you learn the delicious make-up skills? Self-taught? I’m an avid fan of your “Blush Response” segment on your website. It gives me inspiration to do strange things to my face!

Nyarrf, thanks! Can we have some pictures of the strange things you’ve done to your face? Entirely self-taught when it comes to beauty make up, and apprenticed with an established artist in special effects make up, prosthetics, exploding heads and the like a few years ago, too.

A lightning-fast job I did for a W.A.S.T.E. photo shoot

Do you have a haircut you really regret?

Non, je ne regrette rien.

[P.S. Several questions about my camera set up and glasses this week. Naughty birdies didn't read my FAQ.]

                          

We meet again, my fellow aesthetes. The occasion? I just got my hands on a myriad of Aromaleigh eye shadow samples and it’s been a while since the previous edition of Blush Response, so I decided to try the new stuff with an eye look I wear all the time: burnished smoke.

It’s a quick and versatile method that’s worked on every face shape I tried it on, back in my professional face-paintin’ days. If you’re not doing this already, I encourage you to attempt it.

I went with shimmery graphite [Soul Takes Flight] and pearl [Air & Light] pigments from Les Papillons collection, and Bette [an instant favorite, just look at it] from the sultry Bete Noir collection. You probably love the product names as much as I do.

Here’s how I engineered this look:

1. After applying mineral face powder and eyebrows, I lined my water line with a black pencil, then added a little liner to the outer corners of my upper eyelids, blending it out with a smudging brush
2. With a sponge applicator, swept a layer of Soul Takes Flight all over my lids and a little under the eyes, then blended out with a brush
3. Brushed Air & Light on to the inner corners of my eyes, then blended a bit over the inner corners of the upper eyelids
4. Applied Bette to the outer creases [under the brow bone] and blended out.
5. Used a bit more of my mineral face powder to highlight along the eyebrows
6. Applied mascara
7. Finished the look with some E.L.F. lip gloss

Somehow, I didn’t have any experience with Aromaleigh products before getting these samples [madness, I know], so today I spent a bit of time poking around their website, and am thoroughly inspired and impressed by the vast array of not only colors, but types of make up. All sorts of eye shadows, eye liners, eye shadow cremes, primers, concealers, powder foundations in an extensive range of shades, skin treatments, etc. – and all mineral. The mind and wallet boggle.

Image from Aromaleigh’s description of their Papillons collection

Verdict: These are among the most multi-dimensional, richest, and longest-lasting eye shadows I’ve used. I’m going to tear through these samples like an SR-71 Blackbird, and return for more.

                          

It’s International Women’s Day, and to celebrate, I’m introducing a new feature. Titled “Interrogation Station”, it’s here to answer questions from YOU. I got the idea after trying out Formspring – there were so many similar questions, it made sense to integrate them into Biorequiem, for all to see. To give Interrogation Station a go, just submit a question through my Fromspring page. You can ask anything you like, it doesn’t have to be about style or art. All I request is that you check out my FAQ and previously asked questions beforehand. I can’t guarantee that I’ll get to every single question, but I will certainly try. Onward!

How Do You Keep Your Skin Looking So Perfect?

Thank you – my skin isn’t perfect, in that I have scars from piercings and the neurotic cats of my childhood, but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve!

1. Sleep. Getting enough sleep is a crucial step to looking and feeling your best. As you all probably know, people who sleep enough and regularly [not too much, not too little] live longer, look younger and are generally healthier than those with erratic sleep patterns.
2. Water. You hear it everywhere and by Einstein’s balls it’s TRUE! Drink water whenever you can, literally.
3. Hyaluronic Serum. Whuhh? Oh yes, you heard it here first! Rejoice my squidlings, because this stuff will do things to your skin you didn’t know where possible! I’ve been wanting to tell everyone about it for months, but I wanted to give it a good test run before recommending it. And now – I recommend it. In my experience, this product is not so good under makeup so I try to use it before bed or on no makeup days [I have plenty of those, don't gasp at me that way]. This is the brand I’ve been using. You can thank me later. On make up days, I use Oil of Olay Deep Hydration Regenerating Cream.
4. Avoid processed food. You already know it’s bad for you, so just stop. Eating real food is good for every aspect of your being. If your insides are stuffed with frozen pizzas, gummy bears and hot pockets, your skin will show it.

Does your hair dye ever rub off on things, like pillowcases or clothing? I can never seem to keep my color really vibrant without it leaving it’s mark everywhere.

Honestly? Possibly, but I wouldn’t know it. My bedsheets are all dark and so are my towels. It does help to rinse your hair with ice-cold water  after shampoo and conditioner, to close those follicles god and proper. I’ve heard of people rinsing with vinegar to help keep the color stay put, but haven’t personally tried it.

Do you gravitate towards certain colors? I understand black is the ultimate color. Do you handle other colors (red, green, etc.) well and can you wear them?

Actually, I firmly believe that anyone can wear any color they want, as long as they do it with style and confidence. As for me, I currently prefer wearing mostly black and gray, but have handled color just fine in the past, as demonstrated by these old-school style photos:

What places do you typically purchase your make-up from, especially foundation? Your make-up and skin are flawless!

In my recent Blush Response, I said that I’ve been using Prestige’s Skin Loving Minerals powder foundation. It’s half the price of Bare Escentuals and more matte, too.  When I can, however, I go for Bare Escentuals, and I never-ever use liquid or non-mineral foundation. You can find Prestige at drug stores that carry the brand, and I buy Bare Escentuals at Sephora.

You mentioned that you sometimes curl your hair with a curling iron. How do you manage the shorter hair in the back with that a-line? I can’t ever get it right.

I curl it under, in rows, starting from the bottom up, then I make it a little messy and go. Looks better than leaving tight curls back there – those make me think of The Golden Girls.

I would love, if you have the time, to tell me how you did your hair, particularly in the Sugarpill post and Style Dispatch 008. Product, pointers, how you dried it, or an essential step. I would really appreciate any advice.

1. Air dry! Always air dry.
2. While wet, distribute a little bit of TiGi’s Curls Rock Curl Amplifier through hair. Scrunch.
3. Once dry, curl just a few pieces on top and around the face with a medium-barrel curling iron.
4. Once hair cools down, separate tight curls with fingers for a softer, fuller look.

And that wraps up this installment on Interrogation Station. More soon.