Alucard Cosplay Makeup

Hi everyone! I have something different for you today. I haven't posted any of my work in a long time. On Wednesday I was helping a friend pick out some makeup to use for his cosplay for the local anime convention. He didn't know how to apply the makeup so I had to put it on him and show him how to apply it. From there we decided to take some pictures of the complete costume.

I thought it would be really cool to share it with everyone, I think it turned out great. Please forgive the photo quality, this was done without any planning so I had to use my cell phone camera. This is my friend Beckman cosplaying as Alucard from the anime Hellsing. I of course did the makeup for this shoot. 

ELF Haul

Hello lovelies! Today I thought I would finally post my Elf haul. I've said it before, I love Elf so much and I'm always so excited when one of their packages shows up at my door. I'm not just posting this to be like "Oh look at all of the cool stuff I bought that I will eventually review". I would actually really like some feedback from some of you. I would like to know what out of this post would anyone like to see reviewed. Or any Elf products in general you would like to see reviewed. I own so many of their products, if there is one you would like me to review and I have it, I will gladly do a review.

Anyway, onto the haul.

First up, the Wet Gloss Lash & Brow Clear Mascara. I always have a few of these kicking around, I use it to keep my eyebrows in place and it really does its job well. Both ends of the product are the same thing. One of the best things about this product: it's only $1.

The new HD blush in Headliner. I have been wanting to try one of these out so badly. Once I have had the chance to properly test this out, there will definitely be a review on it.

Studio small stipple brush. I bought this just for use with the HD blush.

Mineral blush in Joy. I had been wanting to try out one of the mineral blushes for a while. I had also heard this was a dupe for Benefit's Dandelion blush.

Lip Lock Pencil. This is one of my favorite Elf products. I might do a review of this eventually. Would anyone like a review of this in particular?

                                                               Mineral Eye Brightener.

Eyebrow Treat and Tame. I really wanted to try a liquid brow filler. I haven't tried the treat side yet, but I'm hoping it'll work if I ever over wax my eyebrows.

                                                            Baked Blush in Passion Pink.

Maximum Coverage Concealer. I really wanted another concealer for under the eyes and for when I don't feel like wearing my beloved Hard Candy Glamoflauge.

Essential Brightening Eye Color in Nouveau Neutrals. This was a free gift that Elf sent me for filling out the email referral after placing my order.

So that's everything! Please let me know if there is anything from this post or any Elf product at all that you would want to see a review of.

Weekly Beauty Tip #22: Airbrushed looking foundation

To get an airbrushed look to your foundation, use a stipple brush or sponge with a liquid foundation. Apply the foundation using the brush/sponge with the stippling method.

The only way I apply my foundation is with a stipple brush. I used to use cosmetic wedges, but those went bye bye as soon as I got a stipple brush. I love how my foundation looks when I use a stipple brush, it looks airbrushed and flawless. My stippling brush is one of my favorite brushes.

The most important thing to have with stippling other than foundation is a stippling brush or sponge.  You need to have one of these in order to stipple correctly. I recommend using ELF's Studio Stippling brush


or the Beauty Blender stippling sponge



If you don't want to shell out the money to get the Beauty Blender, there are dupes available.

Once you have the right tools you need your foundation. A liquid foundation will work best. Put the liquid foundation onto a palette (a pallet like a painter's pallet not like an eyeshadow pallet, I recommend using the shiny side of a CD or an itunes card. Make sure they are both very clean before using) then dip your sponge or brush into it.

Next comes the actual stippling. The stippling method is very easy, though it may sound confusing when explained. Simply take your stippling brush/sponge with the foundation on it and bounce it up and down all over your face. You can do it as many times as you like to get preferred coverage. This method will also help you apply your foundation evenly.

Lastly, after stippling you can buff the brush or sponge around your face in a circular motion to help blend it all in.

I recommend using a setting powder when you are finished, I always set my foundation. I recommend using a translucent powder such as Elf's High Definition powder
 


or Makeup For Ever's HD Microfinish Powder.

Pin-up Girl Photo Shoot

Some weeks back I did a pin-up girl photo shoot with a good friend of mine. I have been dying to share the pictures and finally, I have them to share! I did the hair, the makeup and I took these pictures.

The hair consists of an orange bandana, some teasing, bobby pins and a pony tail. Her hair simply would not stay in the bandana a la Rosie the Riveter. So I improvised and teased the bangs, tucked them into the bandana and just had a pony tail go out the back. It still turned out very nicely.

                                  This has to be my favorite picture from the set. She looks stunning!

 

Here is a better view of the face makeup.

 

                                                      Here is a better view of the eye makeup:

 

I love these lashes:

I am unsure  exactly what products I used since these were shot a while ago, but it is pretty much just a nice face to start with (primer, concealer, foundation), eyeshadow primer, white eyeshadow, black cream eyeliner, false eyelashes, some blush and bright red lipstick. To get lips like these with color that stays, follow the tips in my previous post about locking in lip color.

Here is a random shot from the photo shoot that I think is gorgeous, classy and just needed to be shared.

Leopard Eye Makeup

I'm hanging out with a friend of mine that I have known for a very long time. We both have a love of makeup and usually any time we're together we do some sort of theatrical makeup. She loves animal print as much as I do so I decided to do this look on her.

The red eyeshadow I used is Bloody Mary's red pressed eyeshadow. It is a vibrant bright red. For eyeliner and spots I used E.L.F's Studio cream eyeliner in black. And for the lips I used Nyx Soft Matte Lip Cream in Tokyo

Prom!

Ok, so it's been a while since I've posted anything. Sorry! I haven't really had anything to share on here lately. I really need to get going on some reviews though. So this weekend was the senior prom in the town that I live in. I have a lot of really good friends that went. I did one of my best friends, Vicky's makeup. (The silvery looking stuff over her eyeliner is purple glitter eyeliner, it didn't pick up in the pictures very well)

So I've done Vicky's makeup before, when I was in cosmetology school I had her as a model. She is one of my favorite types of people to do makeup on. People that hardly ever wear makeup or just very little. It's so much fun to see them all made up. And a lot of times you get to educate them as you go along. If I do makeup on someone who doesn't know much about makeup I try to explain what I'm doing and give them some tips.

One thing that truly amazes me every time I do makeup is that some cheaper and drugstore brands have even BETTER products than the high end!!! For example, concealer. For personal use I use Hard Candy's Glamoflauge concealer. And this stuff is awesome! It's a heavy duty concealer (which I need for some redness in my face), it's heavy enough to cover tattoos. This stuff covers better than what I use with my kit (Sorme's stick concealers). And what really amazes me is you can get the Hard Candy concealer at Wal Mart for $6!! Where Sorme is harder to find and could cost you around $20 depending on where you buy it. Store brands, brands like E.L.F and NYX are really stepping it up. I don't use MAC, but I have heard from several people that many E.L.F products are comparable to MAC. So Expensive isn't ALWAYS better.

 (I felt the need to post more prom pictures, isn't she gorgeous?) I know I'm a little late here on the prom makeup tips, but I feel the need to cover some basic makeup tips and prom tips.

-For prom I wouldn't recommend wearing a lot of makeup or dark heavy makeup. Something simple yet pretty. Remember you're trying to look classy and elegant, not trashy. Plus, you don't want to be in the bathroom every 20 minutes re-applying the makeup that melted off while you were dancing.

- Don't match your eyeshadow to your dress. A basic rule of makeup application is not to match your eyeshadow to your outfit. Sometimes, yes it can be pulled off. But most of the time it doesn't look right. I recommend using a color that goes well with the color of your outfit, for example like I did for Vicky's makeup. Her dress is blue, I did purple eyeshadow.

-Most women still do not know how to put blush on correctly. Less is more. You want your blush to look natural and like a light flush.

- Also, don't just swirl it your blush around on the apples of your cheeks. Start at the apples and sweep your brush upwards towards your ears. Not straight back like a lot of people do. When you sweep it upwards, it gives your face a lift. (I've been contemplating making a video showing how to correctly apply blush)

-Blend, blend, blend! The biggest problem I see is lack of blending especially with blush. You do not want any harsh lines!

- Cleanse, tone moisturize. I could do an entire post on this. In fact, I will right after this one.

- Do NOT do a dramatic lip and a dramatic eye togeather. It's way too much! Just pick one. Do a bold dramatic lip and tone down your eyes or do a dramatic eye and down your lips.


So this turned into a "let's post Heather's makeup pet peeves" list. But, these are some things that women really need to know when putting on their makeup. I'm sure I could come up with a lot more, but I'll leave that for another day. I hope that you learned something from this post and that you enjoyed the makeup I did this weekend!

If anyone that reads this has any topics they want me to cover, either leave a comment or tweet me   (my twitter: @rainbow_vampire).