Color Me Inspired

*Whew*.  It's been a while and I apologize.  There was the trip to Tokyo (I am working on getting those pictures and story together--it's an epic task) and then a trip to Vancouver for a music video, and then day after day of work.  So here I am on Memorial Day, taking a minute to update my blog, before I have to go to work this afternoon.  Beauty knows no holiday.

I've really been thinking about color a lot lately.  Maybe because you don't often get to seriously play with color on the red carpet or on celebrity.  But god I love a little color!  The blue on Anne V's lips above is so pretty with the lavender eye and bleached white brow.  And the gold and purple eye in the second picture literally makes my mouth water.  

Is anything sexier than a deep bronzy skin tone (artificially achieved of course!).  Daria's skin here looks soooo chic with that red lip and sparkly green eye.  It makes me want to do a full face on the next person that sits in my chair.  

Just as strong, but surprisingly simple, that lavender lips and big black brow look so beautiful on Sasha's paled out skin.  None of these looks are really wearable, but that's the fantasy of makeup.  Plus a little soap and water and it comes right off.  I'm going to dip into my colors the very next chance I get!

Dying for It

I am gagging to get my hands on the new Tom Ford lipsticks (a collaboration with Estee Lauder).  That man has such an incredible eye for detail, and I can't wait to see how that translates into a lipstick.  He did a small capsule line with Estee Lauder a few years back and the colors were total perfection.   I expect these lipsticks will be equally amazing and the colors wonderfully chic.

The Beauty of Geishas

I am heading to Tokyo this month and am beyond excited.  It's been over a decade since the last time I went and even then I was only there for 48 hours, so I am thrilled I get to be there for 5 whole days.  That's still not a lot of time, but it's all I could sneak in--this is a very spontaneous trip and I am basically going for the sole purpose of makeup shopping.  Of course I will be posting LOTS of photos of all of the Harajuku girls and hopefully will be posting video too.  Just to whet my appetite I've been pouring over images of geishas, as well as watching lots of Japanese films..... Can't wait to report back on all of the amazing treasures that Tokyo has to offer!

Get the Look: Alexa Davalos

Last month I did Alexa Davalos' makeup for the Clash of the Titans premiere.  We had worked together when she was doing press for "Defiance" and I was so taken by her stunning natural beauty....she has a classic face and bone structure to die for.  I was thrilled to work with her again, this time for press and the premiere of Clash of the Titans.  For her premiere we kept the look simple and elegant.  A red carpet look doesn't always have to be about a strong eye or bold lip, it can also be about a beautifully chic, sculpted face.  I kept the palette in warm peach tones so she radiated a fresh glow.

I did a thin application of tinted moisturizer followed by a light dusting of translucent powder.  A little warm nude blush under the cheekbones gives a pretty soft sculpting without looking hard.  A touch of luminizer above that, on the top of the cheekbones brings light and radiance to the face.  For the eyes I used a warm peachy shadow and went a bit above the crease, toward the brow.  I used a matte taupe shadow in the crease and very gently blended it so there was just a hit of depth, and then used the same taupe shadow under the lower lashes, again for the feeling of depth.  I pressed black pencil liner into the upper lashes and then did a thin swipe of black liquid liner over it, with a little flick past the lash line.  Lots of mascara on top adds the final touch to the eyes.

Alexa has naturally red lips (I know, it's just not fair) so I used a light peachy lip color so as not to make them darker, and to tie the look together.  The effect is an effortless beauty that compliments her stunning features.


Foundation:
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer in "Nude"


Powder:
Laura Mercier "Translucent" Loose Powder


Highlighter:
Laura Mercier Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer in "Bare Radiance"


Blush:
MAC powder blush in "The Perfect Cheek"


Eyeshadow:
Josie Maran "Parfait" and "Valentine"


Liner:
Chanel Precision Liner in "Noir"
Il Makiage cake liner in "Black"


Mascara:
Lancome Virtuose in "Black"


Lipstick:
Smashbox Sheer Lipstick in "Splendid"

Goats Wearing Pearls

Honestly, this is just so sweet and silly.  It has nothing to do with makeup, but these are pictures I have on my inspiration board because it makes me smile.  Don't they look adorable in their ribbons and pearls..... They make me happy.