Making Myself Look Purdy

I mentioned here that I am planning to do my own makeup for the wedding. With my engagement session coming up next month, I thought I should go ahead and get my makeup trial/lesson/consultation taken care of so that I can be fully prepared to doll myself up when the time comes. I scheduled an appointment at the MAC store near me and showed up there last weekend, fresh-faced and ready to be transformed.

BEFORE: Hippo sans makeup

I showed the MAC makeup artist, Danny, my two inspiration photos and explained what I liked about them and what I was hoping to achieve.

He went right to work, pulling out several brushes and a ton of colors. After applying moisturizer, he went to work on my eyes. Wait, what?? My eyes first? No foundation? No concealer for my dark circles? I am so confused! Danny explained that by doing the eye makeup first, the foundation, concealer and powder will pick up any shadow traces that are left behind. That made sense. He used an eye primer as a base coat, which he says will make the shadow last longer and not crease. He then used three eye shadow colors, did a ton of blending and added eyeliner to just the bottom lashes.

After the eyeshadow was done, he applied foundation followed by concealer. I know! That’s what I said! I thought the concealer went on BEFORE the foundation?!? Danny explained (so yes, this truly was a makeup lesson) that concealer under the foundation is fine for everyday wear, but for a special occasion when you’re trying to “highlight” this area, it should go on top. He also said it would help for pictures to really “highlight” instead of “conceal” these dark areas. Who knew?

After the concealer, he used a light powder all over my face, which he said would “set” the makeup and make it last longer. He then applied contour (a darker, more neutral blush color) below my cheekbone and along my hairline to create more dimension, and then used blush on the apples of my cheeks. Lastly, he applied mascara and lipstick (with no lip liner, what?). Here’s the final look:

AFTER

My self-portraits weren’t doing the makeup justice. Thank goodness Danny took the camera from me so you can see the true greatness of his work.

Up-close, you can see his masterful blending.

So, I think the eye is a little too dark, but I can definitely adjust that a bit. I also asked for a natural lip, which I got, but I think I want to add a little bit of shimmer to it or perhaps a lip liner to define it a little more. I love the blush color he selected, and overall, I’m really pleased with the result. I don’t have fake lashes on here, but I’ve worn them many times, so I know they will open up my eyes more.

I left the store with this handy-dandy instructional sheet for what colors to put where and the order for application.

Then…seven hours later, I checked to see what my makeup looked like and snapped this pic:

OK…so, yes, I’m super duper shiny, but a little powder will fix that up. And I clearly have no lipstick left, but all in all, I think the staying power is pretty impressive. In fact, I think I like the eye makeup better now then I did when I first got home. This is definitely going to work…that is if I can recreate it.

The makeup lesson experience was great, and I have a few take-aways I thought I should pass along to the hive:

Your makeup will only look as good as the artist who applies it. Danny was great, and there were several women who walked in the store (without appointments) asking when he would be free to help them out. One woman even interrupted our session to dish to him about how someone else did her makeup on a day he was out and it was a disaster. As we chatted, I also found out that he is already scheduled to work 8 shows for New York Fashion Week later this month. I totally lucked out!
Telling your makeup artist you want to be able to recreate the look is key. Because I was upfront with Danny and told him right away that I wanted to be able to do the look myself, he really made a point to explain things step by step, including telling me what brushes he was using along the way. This was definitely a lot more work for him than just slapping on makeup, but I was there on a mission!
Get your consultation done well in advance. I’m so glad that I took care of this early, ’cause I can practice, practice, practice. Danny even suggested I do a trial run and then stop by the store so he can take a look and give me some suggestions. Sweet!

How was your first makeup trial/lesson/consultation?