In addition to workshop inquiries, I get calls from women like my client, Rin (pictured here), who are seeking help.
By the time they've gotten my number, most are suffering from an acute case of BCA - Beauty Counter Abuse.
Have you ever innocently gone to a makeup counter in hopes of getting an "update", but left with a look that said you were a paid date? That's BCA.
That's not what this client wanted.
Rin and I met for a low-key discussion about her concern areas, her makeup comfort level and how much time she has to fiddle with her face in the morning.
As you can see in her "before" shot, Rin has gorgeous eyes. But her under eye circles, literally, mask the impact they should be giving her.
Rin wanted a wonder product that would hide her circles, even out her skin tone and take five minutes flat to apply. She was also open to a new lip color and some eye shadow, but nothing too bright or too complicated.
Off we went to Sephora. I can't even tell you how many products we tried, but in the end, the magic elixir was Cover FX foundation. I used a sponge wedge to apply a thin layer as foundation, then grabbed a synthetic brush and stroked a little FX underneath her eyes to double as a concealer.
This step alone gave Rin a more polished look, as you can see in her second picture.
But we weren't done. I wanted Rin to learn how she could really bring out her blue eyes, without loading them up with competing colors. I handed her a smoky gray pencil eye liner and a smoky gray eyeshadow. She applied them just along the top lash line. Then stroked a little of the eye shadow underneath her eye to create a "soft" liner.
Perfect.
Then, since we were having so much fun, I asked her to indulge me. I grabbed a dusty pink blush, a baby pink lip gloss and a tube of coal black mascara and worked quickly. When she wasn't looking, I dusted her with bronzer.
She bought it all.
We recreated the look later and engaged in a little photo shoot (notice my professional backdrop - a bed sheet).
From that sexy look she's giving off, I'd venture to say Rin's a satisfied customer.
Note: None of Rin's photos have been retouched or manipulated in any way. That would defeat the purpose of a MAKEUP blog.
