Festival Fun

I love festival makeup. You can be as creative or as natural as your heart desires. It really is a free-for-all and anything goes, so have fun with it!

This image has been going viral on social media this week. The stunning Brookelle McKenzie (@bybrookelle) absolutely stayed her festival creation, not to mention her Instagram feed of perfection.

So I thought I would try and re-create my own version of this look. 

I may have had to scrub this all off to go take the dog for a walk. I think the neighbours would have given me a few side eyes with this one. 

Coachella Dreaming

  

       

Not all of us are going to be lucky enough to go to the world famous Coachella festival in the US but at least we can dream. The teepees, the ferris wheel, never mind the beautiful people. It looks like the festival to be at. 

So while I'm stuck here in rainy Ireland, I thought I could at least try and look the part. 

       

With this kind of look, I wanted to keep the complexion soft and dewy. I mixed in a pea sized amount of MAC Strobe cream in with my moisturiser before applying my base. I applied my foundation with a damp Real Techniques beauty blender sponge so the foundation can be absorbed by the skin rather than just sitting on top. This gives a more natural effect yet you can still achieve a full coverage if this is what you like. 

                                   

A small bit of powder highlight on the top of my cheekbones using MAC Soft & Gentle and a mix of Pink Swoon and Peaches Blush also from MAC on the apples of the cheeks. You don't need to use two blushes, mixing the two just got me the colour I wanted to achieve, but any peachy toned colour will be fine.

       

I wanted to keep the eyes simple. If you were at a festival the last thing you need at night in a tent is to remove gel eyeliner, that's just asking for morning panda eyes. 

I used Makeup Geek Creme Puff Matte eyeshadow as a base all over the eye with a big fluffy brush. Using Deep Skin from the same brand, I applied this to the socket of the eye with an Inglot 6SS blending brush. With a Sigma E25 brush, I applied Caramelised to the outer corner of the lid and winged it out slightly. I filled in my brows using MAC Dirty Blond Gel Creme and a 31T angled brush from Inglot.

                                     

Add a coating of Soap & Glory Thick & Fast Mascara to the lashes, any mascara will do but don't apply too much as your false eyelashes won't sit right if there is too much mascara. 

I applied the short individual lashes from the Primark range all along the lash line with one or two of the longer length on the ends. I personally don't apply mascara to false lashes as I think they can clump together very easily and look really unnatural but to each their own. 

        

I used Inglot 57 lip liner to line the lips and fill them in. I then used Kiko lip liner in 309 in the centre of the lip to add brightness giving the illusion of a fuller lip. This changes the tone of colour to a more plum colour.

I have used two lip liners here to achieve this and to give the appearance of fuller lips. This is not necessary, if you just want to use the one colour that is fine. 

 

  

Mini Makeover

So a little while ago, I went to trusty old IKEA with a friend of mine and I may have bought far too much than my wallet would allow. Heading inside, I couldn't help but notice a trend that us women love to go to these places and act like a kid in a candy store browsing through endless interior goodness. In the mean time, the male goers look like they are entering the gates of hell and would prefer to be getting a very invasive prostate exam than bare the aisles of IKEA's finest. 

First on my list of must haves was a clothes rail. I don't have any drawers for clothes so I have to hang everything. This being said I don't have very much room in my wardrobe. After searching through pages and pages of incredible Pinterest inspiration I came across lots of external stylist racks and knew I had to join in on that band wagon. 

At the base of the stylist rack, I have laid out some of my black footwear for all occassions and these are all placed on an IKEA faux fur sheepskin rug. This rug is so soft and now my little staffy puppy has claimed it as his bed when I'm doing my makeup. I'll forgive him though, cause he's a cutie.

One of my good friends surprised me with this deer skull as a birthday present and it is honestly now one of my most prized possessions. Anyone that knows me knows I have an unhealthy obsession with skulls. I don't know what it is but I find them fascinating. This bad boy definately needed to take his proud place on centre stage so is now the focus piece in the room.

As I have almost everything in the room white, I thought I would add some sort of pop of colour and inject some pastels with my clothes hangers. I am a little OCD when it comes to hangers and hate when they are all not the same, I have to admit I even arranged them into colour code for this picture... I know, I'm sad.

This woven lampshade is everything! When I saw it in the store, I wasn't so sure. The more I looked at it though, I knew I would regret it if I didn't bring it home. I brought it home,oped it up and fell instantly in love. At night, it's even better as it creates a textured light effect on the walls giving you the feeling of being in a giant basket .... Something to that effect anyway.

On the shelving, I of course need my skull head money boxes. I don't know if anyone else is the same, but I hate coppers and small change in my purse so these guys look after my needs and take the burden off of me. These I got in Urban Outfitters.

On my desk I have my Muji acryllic drawers for my earrings, jewellery, lipsticks and lip glosses. Here I also keep my everyday makeup brushes in a glass vase and my magnifying mirror to do all my makeup. 

Up on my Alex drawers, I have my excess brushes that don't really get used that much, a picture frame that desperately needs a photograph inside and my latest sunnie faves that I am desperately dying to wear when we get a bit of sun here in Dublin.

That's everything for my mini room makeover. 

Love Jen xx

Seven Eleven

The chaos that is my everyday makeup bag!

 

Everyone that knows me, knows that Revlon Colorstay Foundation is my holy grail of all foundations. If you love a full coverage that doesn't budge throughout the day, then give this a shot. I have quite oily skin and not many foundations stay that well for a full day around my nose area, however, this foundation doesn't move whatsoever and I don't have to worry about powdering on the hour every hour. I mix Natural Tan and Buff to achieve the colour I like. I would say that the combination to oily version is the one that I use, I have tried the dry to normal however I found it was like water. 

I love this Mac Pro Sculpting Powder in Definitive for contouring. It's the perfect cool tone to achieve that sculpted shadow under the cheekbone. A shadow on the contours of the face would naturally have a cool undertone. Many people make the mistake of using colours that are too warm however by mixing in a cooler shade you will see an instant difference in your sculpting technique.

As I don't have much tan on today, I mixed Inglot 502 and 505 HD sculpting Powder to warm up my face and blend out my contour. 

Mac Blush in Melba is the perfect peachy tone for nearly all skin tones. My kit is never without this little gem. I also love to use this to warm up colours and blend out eyeshadows.

So when doing brows we clearly need some Queen B on in the background. I am obsessed with this song at the moment. I use Mac Dipdown Eyeliner in my brows and set it in place with Essence Clear Brow Gel which is less than €3. 

I store all of my lipsticks in my Muji Acrylic Drawers facing bottoms out so I can see what colour I am selecting.

Finally a bit of sun here in Dublin even though it is still cold out. The finished look including my essential aviators.

Love Jen xx

Ruby Who?

Coming home, even after just a month, is definitely a transition. In a place like Central Phuket, you find out a lot about yourself. You find yourself in so many ways, but you can also lose a part of yourself too. It's important to live your life as you. Nobody can write the chapters of your story except for yourself, so get creative.  

I have gotten myself into a bit of a rutt when it comes to makeup. I missed being dramatic and adventurous with my appearance like when working in the industry, so I am starting to put more of an effort into my creativity again and glamming it up!

Growing up, I was always under the impression that a woman with a red lip was the definition of confidence. I have gone through tonnes and tonnes of red lippes but I always go back to my trusty Ruby Woo. I am willing to sacrifice dried out lips for the matte finish that I love. If you're not a fan of your lips feeling like they have graized the deserts of the Middle East for days.... a matte finish may not be for you. However, I love matte because I know it is going to stay on my lips all day without moving. There is nothing worse than catching a glimpse of yourself and seeing your teeth with a beautiful corner colourfully coloured in with your favourite red. Or that perfect defined line you spent ages to achieve for that Angelina Jolie shape has decided to drift off to the side to have a chat with your nostrils. Never a good look. Ever. 

To achieve the perfect lip, follow these top tips:

I always do my lips as the last stage of my face, I feel like it brings everything together and finishes the look perfectly. While doing the rest of my makeup, I always use a good lip conditioning balm to nourish my lips before sucking all moisture out of them for the rest of the day with my matte obsession. By the time you get around to doing your lips, they will feel smooth and soft and perfectly prepped for your choice of colour. I always pat my lips down to get rid of any excess balm before applying my liner or lipstick as this will dilute the colour if not removed.

I always apply my lip liner before lipstick. This will define the shape and size of your lips while also keeping the colour strong , vibrant and will last make your perfect pout last longer.

After applying your lip liner and lipstick, line the edge of your pout with concealer. Make sure your concealer matches your foundation colour, you are not trying to highlight, just make your lines look nice and crisp.

Pop a bit of matte bronzer under your bottom lip creating a shadow which will make your bottom lip look fuller. A tiny dab of highlighter on your cupids bow will also draw the eye to your upper lip making it appear bigger, just make sure your not heavy handed as if you apply too much you're going to look like a Sweaty Betty.....never a good look!

Hope these tips are useful! Love Jen x

Road Trippin'

This weekend me and the boys headed down to Cork for a Muay Thai Boxing event. We thought it would be a good motivation trip before heading to Thailand to do the same ourselves with the natives. Eek. The boys were there to support some of their Thai Club friends and they did really well so it was a good trip all round. 

Here is the makeup I wore. It was a little rushed 'cause I did it at half nine in the morning and it had to last me until midnight. My outfit, I went for Topshop Joni jeans, a Topshop crop top and a flannel shirt I picked up in Singapore. I also had Timerland style boots from Penneys on.

Colour Pop Candy

Lately I've been feeling pretty strongly about the 'bare look' eye and a statement lip. Be it a strong pop of colour or a daringly dark nude, it should always make a statement.

Today's details are some of my favourite products. I decided to go with a slightly lighter eyebrow shade as I have a bit of false tan on today. My weapon of choice is MAC Dirty Blonde. Alongside a perfectly carved brow goes a daringly perfect pout. Candy Yum Yum always steps up to the plate and no matter what skin tone you have, she never fails! 

It's all in the Detail

Today's makeup details:

Foundation: Revlon Colourstay

Concealer: MAC Select Cover

Powder: MAC Studio Fix

Contour: Inglot 504 Powder

Blush: MAC Melba & Pink Swoon

Brows: MAC Dipdown 

Eyeshadows: Makeup Geek Bitten, Coco Bear and Corrupt. Inglot 46, 405.

Eyeliner: Inglot 20

Mascara: Rimmel Extra Super Lash

Lipliner: MAC Whirl

Lipstick: MAC Blankety

Jen xx

The Perfect Palette

Being a makeup artist can be a a good thing and a bad thing when getting ready. Although having all the good tips and tricks from my trade, sometimes, it can be a nightmare having TOO much makeup. I know, I know, first world problems, but every now and again I get myself into some kind of a rut with my makeup routine. 

To help me get out of this rut, I've decided to re-jig my everyday makeup palette.

Cosmetic brands make palettes to make it easier for the consumer to create a whole look with one purchase, however, they team their best sellers with their worst so you find yourself never using the full palette.

I use the MakeUp Forever Empty Magnetic Palette. Now I can build my own palette with all my favourite products and brands to suit me and my makeup taste. These are my go-to colours for anything from a natural day look to a dramatic evening style.

In my palette, I have three of my favourite Inglot blushers, two new Inglot contour powders, my favourite MAC contour powder, three highlighting eyeshadows and fifteen coloured eyeshadows.

From top left to right:

373 matte eyeshadow. Great for a matte highlight under the brow.

330 matte eyeshadow. I use this for an all over base when doing a natural eye

390 matte eyeshadow. This is fab for naturally contouring the socket of the eye.

337 matte eyeshadow. A great shadow for blending out other shades.

357 matte eyeshadow. A medium toned warm brown. Perfect for almost anything!

327 matte eyeshadow. A warm, chocolate brown. Goes with all skin tones.

363 matte eyeshadow. A cooler medium brown tone. Love using this tone when I don't have tan on.

326 matte eyeshadow. A dark, purple toned brown. A beautiful alternative for black.

393 sheen eyeshadow. My favourite shade when I want a strong highlight or for inside of eye.

361 matte eyeshadow. A light peach tone perfect for blending out a adding warmth to your look.

51 matte eyeshadow with glitter. Mixed with your neutrals, perfect for adding colour to a neutral eye.

335 matte eyeshadow. A burnt orange will warm up any warm toned brown.

450 sheen eyeshadow. The perfect cranberry. Used with others or alone, really brings out blue eyes.

74 matte shadow with glitter. Mixing this with orange tones gives you a stunning sunset toned eye.

325 matte eyeshadow. I call this Cadbury purple. My all time favourite purple, ever.

362 matte eyeshadow. A bubblegum pink, beautiful for blending out purples or to use on the cheek.

46 sheen eyeshadow. My all time favourite highlight. A pearlescent tone suitable for any skin tone.

63 matte shadow. The blackest black I have ever used. I use this for smoking out a look or wet as liner.

505 matte contour powder. Cool toned contour for when not wearing tan. New product.

502 matte contour powder. Warm toned contour for yellow toned skin.New product.

41 matte blush. I rarely use this on my cheeks. I love it as a red toned shade on my eyes.

29 matte blush. A bright, medium toned coral. Beautiful on most skin tones.

47 matte blush. A bright, peach toned coral. Suitable for light to tanned skin tones.

MAC Pro Definitive Contour Powder. Beautiful for light, pink toned skin. 

Hope you enjoyed

Love Jen 

xxx