2013 Flashback - 60s Jet Set Shoot

Seeing as my last post was a bit depressing, I thought I'd better tell you about some of the fun things I got up to in 2013!

One such thing was organising a photo shoot featuring my beautiful niece, who happens to be teen actress Lucinda Mason. Not only did I design the hair and make-up, I also acted as stylist - sourcing the clothing and accessories. I put a lot of work into this shoot, and I'd like to think it paid off!

The first thing I did was come up with the theme. I was inspired by my model rushing around, travelling between home, school, Sylvia Young Theatre School, castings and photo shoots. She's a busy girl! So I decided to go with 'Jet Set' - an in-demand young model/actress, flitting through the streets of London, from social events to jobs, all the while maintaining a calm, sophisticated elegance. I was inspired by the charm and poise of film stars from yesteryear, such as Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn. I decided to base the styling and make-up on the early sixties.

I headed over to Pinterest and compiled a mood board of inspiration images. I sent these to Lucinda and our photographer, so we would all be on the same page.

Mood Board - Pictures via Pinterest

Next, I set about scouring the shops and eBay for the clothes and accessories. It would have been easy if I'd had a bigger budget!

Our photographer was the talented Stephanie Yt Chan. She takes amazing pictures and is an absolute joy to work with. I cannot recommend her enough! We did the make-up and hair at Stephanie's apartment in Chelsea, and shot in the surrounding areas.

Would you like to see the final images?

Blouse - Spitalfield's Market. Skirt - H&M. Gloves - Vintage. Bracelet - Vintage. Bag and Headband - New Look. Shoes - Peacocks. Sunglasses - Festival Specs

Dress - Dorothy Perkins. Earrings - Peacocks. Headband - New Look

Top & Headband- New Look. Skirt - Dorothy Perkins. Bag - Primark. Necklace & Shoes - Vintage.

Dress, Earrings & Suitcase - Vintage. Headband - New Look. Sunglasses - Festival Specs

Headband - New Look. Jacket - H&M. Dress - Forever21. Shoes - Primark. Earrings & Necklace - Vintage. Hat Box - Maison Michael.

Headband & Jacket - New Look. Top - Primark. Jeans - Oasis. Satchel - LYDC. Shoes - Peacocks. Jewellery - Vintage.

Make-up Breakdown!

Face -

Gosh Velvet Touch Foundation Primer.

Illuminare Concealing Extra Coverage Mineral Foundation - as concealer.

OCC Skin Airbrush Make-up for foundation, highlight, contour and blush.

ELF HD Powder in Clear.

Eyes - 

Shadow and Brows - white and taupe Yaby shadows.

Black Liner and Painted lower lashes - Yaby black cake liner mixed with ELF Studio Lock & Seal.

White Liner - Barry M white kohl.

Mascara - Barry M Intense Black Mascara 3 in 1.

Lashes - Ardell.

Lips - 

OCC Lip Tars, custom blended, mixed with Barry M Lip Gloss Wand in Clear.


For the hair, I started out by curling Lucinda's hair using large barreled tongs, putting each curl into a large velcro roller as I went. I used Superdrug Style Expertise Heat Spray beforehand, and Superdrug Hairspray Ultra Firm Hold afterwards. I then dressed out the hair, forming a small beehive on her crown and fixing it with bobby pins. I gave it a final spray with the hairspray. For some of the pictures, I pinned Lucinda's long hair up, twisting it into a french pleat.

I hope you enjoyed this post as much as we enjoyed the shoot! 

Stay tuned, there's a review coming up!

Emma
xXx

Where Have I Been? A Confession

The more observant among you may have noticed that I haven't been a very frequent blogger. Me and blogging have a kind of long distance relationship - it's great when we're together, but we spend too much time apart. So I've decided to write this post to get you up to date and tell you the reason I haven't written a post in over a year! 

Now this is quite difficult for me to admit, because I've been hiding it or downplaying it to all but my closest friends and family. 

I've been ill. 

I suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and depression. There, I said it. It's in the open. That wasn't so hard, was it? So why have I been so reluctant to tell people? Because I'm vegan. Let me explain.

A lot of vegans, myself included, feel like ambassadors - representing veganism to omnivores wherever we go. To a lot of my friends, clients and acquaintances, I'm the only vegan they know. If the only vegan they know is sick, it doesn't give a very good impression. And if somebody chose not to go vegan because of me, that would be awful. The animals they ate - their blood would be on my hands.

Of course my illness isn't caused or contributed to by my vegan diet. The diagnosis of CFS is reached by eliminating other causes of fatigue until there are none left. The first thing they check is your diet and blood for vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Multiple blood tests came back completely normal, and the dietitian I was referred to said I had the healthiest diet of anyone they'd seen!

In all my research I've only ever come across one other vegan with CFS. (She's lovely, by the way, a real inspiration.) I'm a member of many vegan groups and forums, too, and found the vast majority to be in the best of health.

I didn't want to be the stereotypical pale, skinny, ill vegan.

But I knew that wouldn't matter to people. They were going to take one look at me and make a connection in their minds between illness and veganism. I couldn't let that happen. So I hid it. When you work freelance, it's easy to have a rest between jobs and outings to allow yourself to recover.  Every once in a while you can put on a smile and hide the debilitating tiredness, knowing you'll pay for it tomorrow. However, as time went on, the gaps between working grew wider, and the depression that has afflicted me since childhood worsened. There are few things more frustrating than being unable to live the life you want, be active and do the things you love. 

Because there is no official consensus on the causes or cure for CFS, the NHS simply don't treat it. They don't even try. All I have ever been offered is occupational therapy, to help me adapt and cope with my limitations. So out of desperation I began my own research online into treatments.

There is a vast array of information and misinformation out there about CFS treatments. I can't tell you how many hours I've spent reading and researching, how much money I've spent on supplements and herbs that had no effect. I've pored over every post in every forum, desperate for some glimmer of hope. 

In the course of my research, I came across what I believe to be one of the main causes of CFS. Methylation problems. Put simply, the methylation cycle is the way the brain uses folic acid and vitamin B12, converting them into a range of chemicals needed by the brain and body. This process is controlled by certain genes, and mutations in these genes can cause illness. Looking through the list of diseases caused was like looking through my medical history - CFS, depression, anxiety, IBS, ADHD. It is also said to cause autism, autoimmune diseases, birth defects, heart problems, and a host of other conditions too numerous to mention. So I immediately set about learning all I could about the methylation cycle and the associated genes. I mean, how hard could it be?

OH GOD MY BRAIN HURTS!

I got my DNA tested at 23andme and ran the results through geneticgenie and nutrahacker. I found that I had a lot of mutations in the genes responsible for methylation, and in genes that research has linked to depression, IBS, and CFS. 

So, with my GP's blessing, I have begun a treatment plan, a 'methylation protocol'. The supplements recommended vary depending on your specific mutations, but usually consist of methylcobalamin and methylfolate, easily absorbed forms of B12 and folic acid. They advise starting with low doses and gradually increasing them, with some doctors and experts recommending many times the RDA. 

I haven't been taking the supplements for long, but I have been noticing subtle improvements.

Hopefully my health will continue to improve, and I will be able to work more often. In the meantime, I intend to resume blogging. So watch this space for new posts...

*** Disclaimer - The info here is provided for entertainment purposes only. I am not a doctor or medical professional, consult your doctor before you start any supplements and never self-diagnose! ***

For more information, look up Dr Amy Yasko, Rich Van Konynenburg, 'Methylation Made Easy' on Youtube, and the Phoenixrising.me forums.

Photographs from Google Images. 

Arabic/Indian Bridal Look Breakdown

Whilst contemplating ideas for a blog post, I realised something. My blog is entitled 'The Life of a Vegan Make-up Artist', yet it doesn't give you much of a look into my life. So today, I intend to change that. Through the power of the interwebs, I invite you to join me on a photoshoot! Ready? Awesome.

We arrive at Great Portland Street station on a cold January morning, and make the short walk to the hotel where we'll be getting the model ready.

The Melia White House Hotel. Fancy. Pic via Google images.

Once there, we meet with the photographer, Angelica Roberts - all the way from America, and our model Kaahi. After friendly greetings, complaints about the weather, and assuring the photographer that the curiously named 'porridge' she'd ordered from room service was in fact oatmeal, we set up and begin our make-up.

The theme of the shoot is Indian Bridal, and I decide to go all out and do a dramatic red and gold cut crease look, with deep burgundy lips. Yay! 

After cleansing with B. Pure Micellar Water (love this), I apply a thin layer of OCC Skin Primer before applying a little Kett Fixx Creme under the eyes with a concealer brush. Then I airbrush a couple of layers of OCC Skin Foundation. I highlight the cheekbones, forehead and chin with Pris, a palest pink shimmer, and contour under the cheekbones with Taupe. I like to leave this to set before powdering, so I move on to the eyes in the meantime.

I prime the eyelids with E.L.F Mineral Eyeshadow Primer, then define the brows using a charcoal coloured Yaby shadow and an angled brush. With a tissue under the eye to catch fallout, I begin to cut the crease using the same brush and charcoal shadow. Once I'm happy with the shape, I bring out the line slightly on the top edge, blending it out with a dark taupe Yaby shadow and a Cozette pencil brush. I paint the lid with gold and red shades from my Yaby Pearl Paint Palette , mixing the shadows with a little E.L.F Studio Make-up Lock & Seal in a mixing palette to intensify the colour. I run a little of the taupe shadow under the lower lashline, and line the eyes with Yaby cake liner mixed with E.L.F Lock & Seal, extending the line dramatically at the outer and inner corners. 

After curling the lashes and applying BeautyUK LashFX Mascara, I cut some Ardell lashes down to size and apply lash glue. Whilst we wait for it to go tacky, let's do the lips!

I mix OCC Lip Tar in NSFW with a touch of Fondue to get a deep burgundy, then apply BeautyUK Lip Lust in St Tropez to the centre of the lips. 

I apply the lashes, then add more mascara to blend the fake with the natural. Now it's time to do the hair! 

I backcomb the front section of the hair to create a massive beehive, then plait long extensions into the rest of the hair. I curl some wispy tendrils around the face. Finish with lots of spray!

Now for the finishing touches! Now the foundation has set I apply E.L.F HD powder and Barry M blush. We add some jewellery to the hair and I make some last minute adjustments to the liner.

All done! Now photographer Angelica and her assistant Rita can really get to work! First we get some shots in the room.

Then Kaahi braves the cold to get some beautiful shots outside!

Good job, team!

Til next time,

Emma

xXx

Vegan Faces Review and Swatches

What's this, a new post?! You'd better believe it. 

This time I wanted to share with you some products by an awesome, certified vegan company, Vegan Faces. The company was started when, exasperated by the lack of vegan facepaints available, facepainter Metala Theart decided to create her own. The range now boasts 15 shades of greasepaint, plus a beautiful selection of mineral eyeshadows, lipsticks, blush, mascara, glitter and cleanser. They are all made of natural ingredients and mineral pigments, making them ideal for little'uns or those with sensitive skins.

I was delighted when the lovely Metala gave me some products to try when we met at an event a while ago!

L-R Blush in Lychee, facepaint in Purple , eyeshadows in Passionfruit, Fire and Water.

Swatches Top L-R Lychee blush, eyeshadows in Passionfruit, Fire and Water. Bottom - facepaint in Purple.

My camera definitely doesn't do these colours justice, they are wonderfully vibrant in real life. The mineral shadows and blush are finely milled and buildable, meaning you can apply a little to achieve a subtle wash of colour, or 2 to 3 layers for a stronger, brighter shade. I love 'Water', a palest pistachio green that looks stunning with brown or green eyes.  I'm impressed with the blush, it's a flattering shade with the perfect amount of shimmer to give the cheekbones a beautiful dimension. The facepaint is highly pigmented, and easy to blend and apply. Once it has been set with powder it has wonderful staying power. It works well as both a lipcolour and a base for eyeshadows - I do love a multi-use product!

Mineral Lip Plumper in Rose Shimmer

The Mineral Lip plumper in Rose Shimmer is very moisturising, perfect for the winter when most of us get chapped lips. I like to use it to top a matte lippie, or to balance a strong eye.

Here's a couple of eye looks I did with the Water and Passionfruit shadows. I would have worn the blue shade (inexplicably named 'Fire'), but blue clashes with my colouring and gives me zombieface :(.

A wash of Water on the lid, and Passionfruit in the crease. My camera washes out the green :/

Passionfruit on the lid - it really brings out the green in my eyes! :)

I can't wait to try more products from Vegan Faces - I need the full range of facepaints in my life! I'd love to see her bring out more products - namely water-based facepaints, and perhaps foundation, concealer and primer? 

Plus, what with it being the festive season and all, I'm thinking the Brush Set or the lippie would make great gifts! 

Be sure to check them out - it's important to support small vegan companies! 

Til Next time,

Emma

xXx

*Products were given to me for review purposes, however this does not affect my opinions of them.

Update - New Vegan Cosmetics on the Scene!

What's this? Why, it's a new blog post! Yes, it's been quite a while! Sorry, my life lately has been quite ... how should I put it ... character-building. 

But enough of that, what I came here to talk about is some exciting new vegan make-up that has come to my attention!

Majorly late to the party on this one, but at the end of July, Lush launched their new range of colour cosmetics, Emotional Brilliance!

The range consists of 11 lipsticks, 6 cream eyeshadows, 11 liquid liners, mascara, powder, and 2 new skin tints, all of which are certified vegan.

The idea was inspired by Lush's spa treatment, Synaesthesia. The idea is, that you choose three colours from their spinny wheel instore or online, based not on your colouring or preferences, but on what stands out to you at that particular moment. 
The colours are all supposed to represent something about you emotionally. It's a nice gimmick, but personally, I like to keep my therapy sessions and my make-up bag separate. I don't know about you, but I have enough to think about without worrying that my emotions are clashing with my eye colour! My advice is to stick to what flatters your skin, hair and eyes.

They are rather pricey - shadows, liners and lipsticks are £14.50,  mascara, powder and skin tints are £12. You do get a good amount of product though, and they are multi-purpose - liners can be used as shadows and vice versa, and the lipsticks work beautifully as blush.

I bought their cream eyeshadow in Sophisticated, which is a shimmery taupe. It's beautifully pigmented and crease resistant, providing a lovely base for other shadows. Definitely one of the best cream shadows I've used. 

I'm rubbish at photography - in real life the colour is a neutral, suit-all shade - cooler than the bottle pic, but warmer than the swatch. Beautiful.

My second purchase was their Eyes Right mascara. I was very impressed with this one, deep black, non-clumping, serious thickening and lengthening. It's great for building up the coats for a full, dramatic look. It's not water-proof but water-resistant, however I experienced no smudging or flaking. 

I only have one problem with it, and that problem applies to the rest of the range, too. 

The packaging. 

Weird glass dropper bottles. What were they thinking? Glass is heavy and breakable - if you're like me and carry your make-up in your handbag this is just annoying. And how are you supposed to get to the last of the product when it runs out? Also, the powder doesn't come with a sifter - that's just an accident waiting to happen.

The packaging is just about passable for the other products, but it gets a but ridiculous when it comes to the mascara. Let me show you.

What is this!? A mascara wand FOR ANTS???!?

Wow, that is seriously small. Too small to use comfortably, if I'm honest.* 

I've smudged it a fair few times trying to maneuver it around my inner and bottom lashes.

My advice to Lush would be to scrap the bottles and switch to tubes, like OCC's latest lip tar tubes, and Eyeko's mascara. I know recycled and recyclable packaging is important to them, but I'm sure there must be a way to make a recyclable tube? Eco-friendly packaging is a major plus, but it shouldn't hinder my use of the product.

Products are available from Lush stores and online. Lush kindly sent me some swatches to give you an idea of the shades, but I encourage you to pop into the stores and have a play with them.

New post coming up, featuring Vegan Faces!

Til then,

Emma

xXx

Products were purchased by me.

*That's what she said.

Review - Lily Lolo, Bdellium Tools and cutECOsmetics

Earlier in the year, I came across a website called cutecosmetics.co.uk. It seemed pretty awesome - they are an 'online eco, organic & cruelty free cosmetics specialist'. They have a dedicated vegan section, and nothing they sell is tested on animals. Big thumbs up from me! So you can imagine my glee when I heard via their twitter they were looking for bloggers to try out some of their products. I volunteered, and soon afterwards, I received a package!

Lily Lolo Mineral Foundation in China Doll (£12.49) and Bdellium Tools Green Bambu Vegan 959 Powder Blending Brush (£12.95) :D


The powder brush is soft and dense, but not as fluffy/silky as my favourites Cozette or OCC. It's great to apply and blend powders - I've used it for foundation, blush and bronzer and it works well. It's particularly good for stippling on liquid products - you need a slightly firmer bristle for that. I've washed it a fair few times and had no problems with colourfastness or shedding. The green is adorable, but I kind of wish it matched - the bristles are mint, but the handle is lime - they clash horribly. Of course that's just me being picky, it obviously makes no difference to how  well it works! Overall I'd recommend it, but it is worth it to splash the extra cash on a Cozette, in my opinion. However, I'm still eager to try some of the other brushes in their Bambu series. 


On to the foundation.


China Doll is the second lightest colour, and it matches me perfectly. It's a neutral shade, with just the right balance of yellow/pink. The silky fine powder gives a beautiful matte finish, with no sign of that horrible sparkly look some mineral foundations have... 

Not quite the natural look I was hoping for! (via Pinterest)

The thing that really sells this foundation for me is the coverage. Tap the excess from your brush, then buff it in for a beautifully even complexion. If you have a little more to conceal, use a combination of buffing and patting/pushing it into the skin, adding a second layer if you need to. Flawless! It's seriously the best coverage I've seen from a mineral foundation, and you'd need to be plastering it on with a trowel to get the dry, cakey look I've seen with other brands. 


With all this, plus SPF 15, it's certainly earned it's title as my Holy Grail mineral make-up, even before you consider the price. 10g for £12.49. Let's compare that to, I don't know, BareMinerals? 8g for £24! That's double the price, and frankly, last time I tried it I wasn't too impressed.


But don't just take my word for it, here's a swatch, and a pic of me wearing it. 

L Swatched with finger, R Blended out

Why am I wearing a teal wig? Because why the hell not?!

It should be noted that I suffer from both acne and eczema (lucky me) and it covered like a dream :) 


Both products are available to buy from cutECOsmetics.


Thanks for reading!
Guide to vegan make-up shopping coming soon!


Emma
xXx


Disclaimer - The products in this post were provided free of charge by cutECOsmetics for review purposes. This is not a paid review/promotion - all opinions are my own, honest thoughts. Have a beautiful day, you're awesome :)

UPDATE - Urban Decay Backs Down!

Epic win for animals and lovers of cruelty-free make-up! Urban Decay have released a statement announcing they will no longer be going ahead with the move into China, saying they couldn't "...comply with current regulations in China and remain true to our core principles." Click here to read the full statement.


Whilst I'm delighted about this turn of events, I can't help but think that they only changed their minds due to the outcry from their customers (I like to think my email had something to do with it).

However, I've noticed something curious. Since the news about Urban Decay selling in China broke, YouTube gurus and beauty bloggers have been abuzz with criticism and opinions about it. This is a stark contrast to the tight lipped silence that met the news about Estée Lauder, Avon and Mary Kay. Arguably, that should have received more coverage - Estée Lauder owns a lot of companies, their decision would bring many more animals to the labs than Urban Decay. So why did the online beauty community ignore Estée Lauder but criticize Urban Decay?


Hypocrisy. Urban Decay have always made their cruelty-free status a selling point, printing it on all their packaging and shouting it from the rooftops. Avon, Mary Kay and Estée Lauder's crew never made a big deal out of it, they just stated it discreetly on their websites. You aren't shocked when you walk past a restaurant and see some guy tucking into the remains of a cow, but when you see me chowing down on a chicken leg, you're gonna do a double-take.


The point is, the animals don't care who is hurting them and experimenting on them. It could be Hitler or Ghandi, it makes no difference - they just want it to stop. And so do I. 

Urban Decay's backtrack shows us that when enough people talk, big companies listen - if only to save face and stay in the public's 'good books'. So I ask everyone reading this to sign and share my petition against Estée Lauder, Avon and Mary Kay testing on animals, and join me in boycotting them until they agree to stop selling in China - where animal testing is mandatory. Post on their Facebook and Twitter pages, blog and vlog about it, message your favourite beauty guru about it.

Although I'm sure Urban Decay wouldn't have changed their minds were it not for the consumer backlash, I want to commend them for listening to their customers, and not being too proud to hold their hands up and say 'Ok, you're right, we made a mistake'. 


Urban Decay is available in the UK via Debenhams and House of Fraser - check out their list of vegan products here.


There are more posts from me coming soon! 


Until then,


Emma
xXx