MAC Tartan Tale

Och Aye!

Check out MAC's new 'Tartan Tale' collection. It includes eye, lip and face kits plus brush sets and individual tartan eyeshadows.

Stunning packaging and innovative technology allowing the tartan design to run all the way through the eye shadow pan (not just the top layer). Not only that, but all £20 of the retail price of the Viva Glam gift bag (£20) goes directly to the MAC Aids fund.

Products will be Limited Edition, out November.

Sian's Balmoral Wedding

Here are a few shots from Sian Campbell's wedding at the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh. It was a real treat to do Sian's make-up as I had also done the wedding make-up for her sister, Laura and her bridesmaid, Gail a few years ago. Needless to say it was a lovely gossipy girly morning catching up on everyone's news.

For her bridal make-up, Sian wanted a glamorous look with soft, smokey grey eyes and perfect skin.

For her eyes I used Stila 'shore' with Bobbi Brown 'steel' worked into the lashline, outer corner and socket. Graphite gel liner defined her top lashline and Urban Decay 'gunmetal' was used to create softness under the eye. Some lash inserts were added to create a subtle lift.

Sian has beautiful skin which was enhanced using Bobbi Brown 'skin foundation' and Chanel bronzer. Illamasqua 'hussy' blush was added to give her a healthy flush of colour. A light application of Bobbi Brown 'sandwash pink' lipstick finished her look off. She looked absolutely beautiful as these photo's by Parris Photography show.

LOOKLOOK Photo Booth

This is just TOO cool.

LOOKLOOK was set up in April 2010 after a friend of fashion photographer Darran Barton had attended a wedding in New York and said the photo booth was the main attraction of the evening.

It is the first company in Scotland to offer a fully, high end digital photo booth service. LOOKLOOK hire their photo booths, which feature professional studio lighting designed by Darran himself, out for weddings and events. A 'booth butler' will supervise the booth and help guests capture their shots for the duration of the hire.

It's also possible to get 2 copies of every photo so the bride and groom have a keepsake guestbook of their evening. Another possibility (albeit for the brave) is projection of each photo to a wall for everyone to see.

LOOKLOOK hire starts from £650 which includes 4hr hire, 100 instant prints, hire of 'booth butler', web gallery and a disc with all high-res images. There is currently a 15% discount for all events in July and August 2010.

The booths have already enjoyed bookings at Glasgow's recent 'GLAM in the city' and Edinburgh's 'TASTE' festival.

http://www.looklook.co.uk/

Make-up Alley Website

This is a website that I have used for year's that I wanted to share with you. Time and time again it has saved me wasting money on products that are not up to the mark. Whenever a new product catches my eye, I'll quickly check it's rating on here before I part with my cash. Most premium and high street brands are listed and, on the whole, I tend to agree with most of the reviews. If something takes your fancy (or not) as the case may be, you can leave your own review to let others know your thoughts. Check it out next time you see something you are thinking of splashing out on.

www.makeupalley.com

60's Inspired Bridal Look

After receiving these last week, I wanted to share a few shots of the lovely Leah Dow who got married in February this year. I have done Leah's make-up several times for various occasions so we had a good idea on what worked well on her. Leah's has fantastic skin, it's practically poreless, so many foundations would look great. For her big day she wanted 'flawless skin with great coverage' so we settled on Laura Mercier's 'silk creme' foundation.

On Leah's eyes I used MAC 'shale' and 'sketch' shadows to really bring out the green in her eyes. They were then lined top and bottom with Urban Decay rockstar 24-7 pencil. Strip lashes were used to add intensity to the lashline. MAC 'pink swoon' blush gave a beautiful flush to the cheeks and lips were kept simple with 'juicy rose glow' by L'Oreal. The overall look worked really well with the 60's inspired hair. I just loved the simple ribbon detail fixed with a gorgeous brooch. So simple but very effective.

Photography was by Absolutely Fabulous.

Twice as Nice

Paula McDonough who got married back in December 2009 forwarded on some beautiful images to me this week, courtesy of Scott at Premier Photography (http://www.premierphotography.co.uk/).

As an identical twin, Paula was concerned about her make-up as she wanted to look quite different from her sister Caroline. Both girls wanted natural looks so the obvious choice of going smoky with one and dark/bright lips on the other was not an option. We agreed that the use of shadow colour and application of lashes would be used to create difference.

Soft light shadow was used on Paula's eyes, defined with gel liner and topped off with a full set of lashes. For Caroline a darker shadow was used but we kept her lashes natural. The end result was both girls looking fresh but still quite different.

It's now Caroline's turn to get married this year. Looking forward to seeing them both again and working out more make-up idea's.

Best Eyeshadow Primers

Now that we're heading into summer, keeping eyeshadow in place all day can be tricky. A lot of people complain that their shadow disappears by lunchtime, particularly in the crease line. In most cases this problem can be resolved by adding an eyeshadow primer before applying any shadow. In addition to holding shadow in place, a good primer will also help the colour stay true all day and bring out the colour pigment.

Here are a few of my favourites..

Urban Decay Primer Potion (purple bottle)

A cult classic. It's completely clear so you can add any colour on top. Ideal for people who like to change their eyeshadow colour on a regular basis. A variant of this primer has now launched, named 'sin' (gold bottle). Although I haven't tried this yet I'm sure it will also be great and ideal good for those who like to wear gold toned colours. £11.50 (Boots)

MAC Paint in 'stilife'

This is my 'go to' primer when I'm using warm toned colours. It's a light champagne shade which adds a gorgeous shimmery champagne sheen to the eye. It's very pretty to use on it's own but comes into it's own when shadow is applied on top. £13

MAC Paint Pot in 'painterly'

When I'm looking to create a sophisticated matte eye, this is the primer I use. Goes on super smooth and is a perfect base to most matte colours. £13

More Great Brushes

Already a fan of Louise Young brushes, this week I tried out her new socket brush LY38 (£16). Eyeshadow brushes are probably the most important brushes to get right. They need to be nice and dense when you place them against the skin to avoid shadow falling where you don't want it. Some cheaper brands may be OK for some brushes (i.e. loose powder) but I find the bristles will often splay when I test them against the back of my hand. This makes them very difficult to control.

This brush is great. Not only are the bristles tightly packed but there is no hint of splaying, even after washing. The dome shape makes applying any crease shade a doddle.

Tip: Use a matte shade, keep your eyes open, look straight ahead in the mirror and let the brush sink in to the natural crease. Run the brush into this socket line using a lighter hand as you go towards the inner eye.

I'm also loving the mini socket brush LY13 (£10) for applying a soft sexy smudge of shadow under the eye.

For the quality, the price of these brushes are brilliant. The LY38 is very similar to Laura Mercier's excellent eye crease brush which retails at £26 and as much as I love my MAC 217 (£14.50) for blending, the LY38 is superior for adding colour.

Both available at www.louiseyoungcosmetics.com

Lisa Eldridge Bridal Week

A treat for all brides looking to do their own make-up for their wedding. Top make-up artist Lisa Eldridge will be posting hints and tips plus bridal tutorials all week starting today. Lisa is one of my favourite make-up artists who's signature style of flawless skin and understated modern approach echo's my own views on make-up.

Check out the first video here for some great common sense advice.

http://www.lisaeldridge.com/video/7475/bridal-make-up-tips/

Revlon Matte Lipsticks

My oh my, I think I'm in love with these lipsticks.

Lipstick is definitely having a moment and bright matte colours in particular just looks so great right now. Paired with simple eyes, a slick of liner and dewy fresh skin, it's my favourite look for Summer '10.

Revlon have come up trumps with this range. My favourites are 'strawberry suede', 'really red' and 'pink about it'. All very Betty Draper.

£7.29

Stila Secret Sale

Still mourning the loss of Stila in the UK? Take a look at this secret sale which starts today until Monday. Some of my all time Stila favourites are listed such as Shore and Twig eyeshadows, brow powder and the Illuminating Foundations and Tinted Moisturisers. All over half price.

http://secretsales.com/registration/?invite=7845596

Barry M Ice-cream Nail Polish

I've used Barry M nail polish for years. It's amazing value for money (£2.95) and is really hard wearing so no surprise to see it has won a Best Beauty Buy award from InStyle. Their recent ice-cream collection is fabulous. I picked up the 'berry' and 'mint green' a few weeks ago and have lost count the number of times someone has asked me what's on my nails. Got my eye on 'lemon' next. Delicious!

Available at Superdrug.

Louise Young Brushes

Louise Young is a make-up artist for film, fashion, TV and theatre.

After reading many glowing reviews about her brushes, I was keen to pick up a few to test for myself. I ordered the LY34 foundation brush (£22) and LY24 (£10) fine liner brushes. I was not disappointed.

Never a huge fan of foundation brushes, this has changed my view on them altogether. First of all, it's massive, so makes make-up application super quick and secondly the bristles are so soft it feels incredible on the skin. Despite it's huge size, as it's tapered it fits just as well round the smaller areas of the face i.e nose and mouth. I just love it and I'm considering buying another for myself. Always a good sign.

The fine liner brush is also excellent. I find it particularly good for achieving a super thin line on top and bottom lashline. It works really well with both gel and cake liners.

The brushes are available to buy at http://www.louiseyoungcosmetics.com/.

Kimberly Wyatt Make-up

After being unable to get the insanely catchy 'Candy' out of my head all week, I thought I'd do a little blog on Kimberly Wyatt.

I was fortunate enough to meet the drop dead gorgeous ex Pussycat Doll, Kimberly Wyatt last October. She was visiting Glasgow for the MOBO's and I did her make-up for the event. Sitting cross legged in her hotel room, barefaced and tucking into poached eggs on toast she looked like a typical girl next door (albeit a very cute one).

However, it soon became apparent that she has exactly the type of face that shows make-up off to it's best. She has the most incredible eyes that come alive with liner and shadow. Her dress was grecian inspired so I used warm neutrals on her eyes (Nars 'corfu' and MAC 'patina'), lined them with Bobbi Brown black ink gel liner and topped them off with a strip of Eyelure 'Kimberly' (what else!) lashes.

My friend and fab hairdresser Louise worked wonders with her hair and managed to keep calm as Kimberly presented her with a gold Reebok shoe lace that she wanted tied around her head as a head band.

After some final tweaks including covering up some nasty bruises on her ankles from her cage shoes she wore the evening before, she was good to go!

Check out 'Candy' (Aggro Santos ft Kimberly Wyatt), out now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87BXqO9iENY

My Hall of Fame Make-up Brushes

I'm often asked to recommend make-up brushes to Client's. Here is a list of my favourites which have stood the test of time. They are not cheap but investing in good brushes will dramatically improve your make-up application, some even do a lot of the hard work for you.

Take care of them by washing regularly (twice a week) in mild shampoo and leave to dry overnight, overhanging a table (so no bristles are in contact with the surface). Be careful not to let the water get into the handle of the brush as this can damage the glue.

Eyeshadow - MAC 239

Brilliant for packing on colour to lids. No splaying.

Socket brush - Laura Mercier crease brush

Fantastic shape for working colour into the crease.

Blending brush - MAC 217

Can either be used as a socket brush or just to blend socket colour.

Blush - Illamasqua brush 1

Perfect dense bristles for the apples of the cheeks

Concealer - MAC 195

Great flat shape for all those imperfections

Powder - Shu Uemura

Holds it's shape really well

Eyeliner - MAC 266

Fab for gel liner application or to use shadow as a liner

Smoky liner - Laura Mercier smoky eye liner

Brilliant at blending out pencil liner for a smoky effect

Brow - Shu Uemura

Super stiff bristles make brows a doddle

Lips - Shu Uemura Kolinsky

Absolutely the best lipbrush I've ever used

Make-up Shopping

Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by the choice of make-up brands now available?

Have you ever felt pressurised into buying products that you don't need or particularly love by pushy sales staff?

Are you keen to try different products/brands but don't know where to start?

Fed up wasting money on make-up that lies in your drawer unused but don't have the heart to throw away?

A make-up shopping experience can help with all of the above. I meet you beforehand to have a chat about your current make-up and what you would like to improve. After going through your make-up bag, I'll help you weed out the products that need to go and we'll decide what can be saved. We'll agree a budget, then hit the shops.

Being freelance, I have no allegiance to any particular brand and will only direct you to the products I know from experience work. These are likely to include some premium brands as well as some high street gems.

All age groups are catered for. It's a fun and useful experience for teenagers to grandmother's and everyone in between.

£60 for up to 2 hrs. Combined with a one to one make-up lesson £120.

Latest Lindsay Fleming Shoot

Archibald photography (http://www.archibaldphotography.co.uk/) have very kindly sent me some further images from the stunning Lindsay Fleming 'All That Jazz' collection (http://www.lindsayfleming.com/). The shoot took place at the Voodoo Rooms in Edinburgh with the gorgeous Lois Weatherup (http://www.coloursagency.com/). Grace is such a talented lady, the dresses have since been featured in several magazines and a little bird tells me they may be making their way onto the big screen.

The shoot was a continuation of the previous collection with hair and make-up 1920's inspired. I love working with this team of people. Mark is a joy to work with, not only does he produce incredible, award winning photography but his calm approach brings out the best in everyone. He even managed to keep smiling after we ran WAY behind schedule following M8 roadworks, before then discovering every window of the venue was blocked by scaffolding. It's no wonder his bride's love him!

The Best Lip Balm Ever

I'm hearing lots of girls complaining at the moment of very dry chapped lips as a result of cold weather/central heating. Many of whom are using Vaseline or other petroleum based lip balm. Although these will offer some short term protection against the elements, they only sit on top of the skin as they are unable to be absorbed. As a result, they are actually ineffective in adding any moisture to the lips.

Enter, medical grade lanolin. Designed for nursing mothers, this miracle in a tube will work wonders on sore dry lips. And at just under £10 for a 56g tube, it will last for ages too. Get it in the baby aisle in Boots, Morrisons and Sainsbury's to name a few.

Winter Wedding

At the end of last year in between Xmas and New Year, I seemed to have a wedding almost every day. Although the horrendous winter weather proved a challenge at the time (e.g. trying to get to Perthshire in a blizzard for 8am), it has given many brides some beautiful shots. Claire's wedding was no exception.

Naomi and Ryan of Norma Ann were in charge of photographs and the results speak for themselves.

Claire wanted a 'full on' glamorous look so I gave her a smokey grey eye with a full set of lashes. Laura Mercier silk creme foundation and MAC pink swoon gave her picture perfect skin. I loved the end result, she looks Oscar worthy in these shots.

Karen's Vintage Wedding Look

For all the brides who think I'm delusional when I embrace their natural pale colouring, here are some shots from Karen Fisher's January wedding. Not only does she look utterly beautiful but the pale creamy tone of her skin gives her the most fabulous flawless complexion that works so well with her vintage themed dress and hairpiece.

Don't get me wrong, a little bottled or natural tan can look great on some, but there is a definite trend now towards a lighter, more natural skintone.

Thank you to Trevor Wilson (www.silverphotography.co.uk) for the stunning photo's.

Pixiwoo

These girls rock!!

For the past year I have become completely addicted to regular make-up tutorial video's by Pixiwoo (Sam and Nic Chapman) on You Tube. They've covered every look you could shake a brush at. Plus, they add new ones several times each week. A must for anyone interested in make-up application. Subscribe now! You won't be disappointed. You can also check out their video's at http://www.fashionface.tv/. AMAZING.

Bridal Make-up Lesson

Here are some shots that Lucy Deeley has sent me from her wedding in November 2009. Lucy came for a bridal lesson last year after wanting to do her own make-up on the big day.

Lessons are great if you are either unable to have an artist visit you on your wedding day or would prefer to have the knowledge to do it yourself. Not only will you know how to acheive step by step flawless make-up for your wedding, but you will be able to re-create it yourself every day.

I'm sure you will all agree she did an amazing job. She looks absolutely stunning. Well done Lucy!

For more information, please see the page 'The Bridal Lesson' on my site.

Photography by Logan from Deeside Photographics.

Look Good ... Feel Better

Just back from another Look Good...Feel Better workshop at the Maggie's centre in Glasgow. It's a fabulous charity set up for women to learn make-up application skills to help them cope with cancer treatment. We had an amazing set of ladies this week, very courageous and excited to be presented with lots of new products. Not everyone who has treatment for cancer gets to here about it so if you, or anyone you know would like more information, please go to http://www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk/. It's completely free for all ladies who take part, and is always a fun and informative afternoon. We are always needing more volunteers to help run the workshops so please check the website if you think you can help.

Lindsay Fleming shoot

Just back from Edinburgh where Mark Archibald was shooting 4 stunning new dresses from Lindsay Fleming. Can't wait to see the photo's, our model Lois looked incredible. Hair and make-up were both 1920's inspired. Love working with those guys, great fun.

Photo's from Liz's wedding

Liz Wilson who got married in December 2009 has sent me some fab photo's of her day. I love the ones of us all having breakfast. Many thanks Mr and Mrs Wilson for the delicious croissants! Photography was by Iain McLean.

This week

Wedding went really well yesterday. Karen looked incredible with natural glowing make-up and 50's style hair. Lidia from Volume Hair did a fantastic job and the ever brilliant Trevor from Silver Photography was there to capture the day. Can't wait to see the photo's.

Busy week at the studio with trials and make-up lessons. Doing a group lesson on Wednesday for a mum with her 2 daughters which should be fun.