Because I Love My Lips!

Here are some of my current favorites. I love the Everyday Mineral Lippies. They are really soft in color and have a wonderful minty flavor. They can be worn everyday and are really nourishing. I actually wear the nude color Fauna to bed all the time when I can't find my chap stick. 

The Naked pots are fun. You can make any color you want by mixing their color with their lip gloss base.

Here I am wearing the Tarte Lip Creme Pencil in Peaceful. It was a limited edition color at Christmas. It is a very moisturizing and it has a minty tingle!

This is after I had my snakum. Tigi Joystick in Fiesty is a lip pencil and a lipstick in one. 

I usually only buy natural/vegan products. This is a Lancome gloss I bought in an emergency situation because I needed a hot pink. It's called Electric Pink.

I used the Naked Mineral Pot in Sierra Nevada to make this golden gloss. I do look like a goddess straight from Mt. Olympus.

Everyday Minerals Super Smoocher. I love to wear soft pink.

Everyday Minerals Fauna. Now I am off to bed!

The Throop Bridesmaids

Three beautiful teenage bridesmaids. I am not a photographer so these images are have not been corrected at all.  They were taken in natural direct light.



On Emily I started with Burt's Bees Pomegranate Night Cream. Them I primed with OCC's Airbrush primer. I also used a coat of Smashbox photo finish primer. I airbrushed with OCC's system.

On Emily's eyes I used Everyday Minerals black powder eyeliner. On her brows I used Everyday Minerals Silver/Gray brow color. Her shadows are a mix of browns from Everyday Minerals. Mascara is Waterproof  Dior Show. Cheek color is OCC's airbrush blush in hush. Lip color is Benefit Lip gloss.

Jaime was a little challenging in that she has teenage skin! She had a few prominent breakouts and bumpy texture. I did the same prep work for her that I did for Emily. I also concealed with Bioelements M/L concealer. Her base is also OCC's airbrush as is her blush. Jaime's eyeliner is Everyday Minerals Dark Brown Powder Eyeliner on top and bottom. I did use a wet angled brush to give her the tight line. Her lipstick is Everyday Minerals Lippies. Why didn't I write down the color? She bought it and it's in her purse.

Sarah is the most dramatic of all the sisters and wanted a really bright eye. She also tried to self tan her own face with the tanning lotion. It was not a pretty sight. I prepped her the same as the other girls. Then I did a layer of airbrush. I finished with several mineral bronzers from Everyday Minerals to blend everything in.

It was very satisfying and challenging and fun. I am proud of my work!

The Morgan/Malicke Wedding

This was a great wedding to do. The bride Katie was very easy going and willing to let me do what I wanted to do. She has such a great heart and is so beautiful it made the day pretty easy. Also there was a Sephora across the street from my hotel. That was a bonus! Thank you to Two Birds Photography for their amazing photos.

 The up style Katie chose was a simple side chignon fastened very loosely with a flower broach. 

I love the strands that are falling out of the style. It makes the look so romantic.

 I did use OCC's airbrush makeup on Katie. She wanted a really natural look but she had some skin challenges. We used Smashbox Photo Finish Primer first after a layer of Crucial Moisture from Bioelements. I was very happy with the finished result.

This picture was taken at the end of the night. She is a tad shiny but still flawless.

 The very happy couple getting ready to make a getaway.

Here I am cracking up and making someone else laugh as usual.

I love you Katie Morgan!

The Makeup Show Chicago

What can I say about the show? It was like a delicious cold drink after wandering in the wilderness running from bears and mountain lions. I mean a cold drink like Organic black tea infused with wild raspberry. I really didn't think it would be that great. I thought it would be a lot of over dressed and over made up consumers purchasing and growling like black Friday at Walmart.

I was pleasantly surprised by a few really special things that I saw there.

Here is Jon Hennessey talking about his philosophy of beauty.  I kind of sat drooling over how handsome he is for a few minutes before I listened to what he said. Then I felt kind of guilty because I am married. Then I felt kind of relieved because the parts of him that are so handsome to me remind me of my husband.  Anyway, he really just spoke my beauty language. I love to make women beautiful using their own unique traits. It so important to me to have integrity when I work with a client. I guess I could talk about that for a long time. I encourage you to take a look at some of Jon's work. I wish he was my pal because we also have the same taste in music.

Who can resist the power of OCC cosmetics? There is no escape. This is a really special company. They are totally cruelty free and use many natural ingredients in their products. Their color selection is to die for and they really cater to artists. Their booth had a really good vibe. There were too few natural/vegan companies at the show so I was excited to see them there. I watched their airbrush demo and so enjoyed the honesty and humor from the artist who did it. His name is failing me right this second but I was pumped about him!

O.K. I guess I will have to do a part 2 because I have steak on the grill. See you soon!

Pre The Makeup Show Chicago Activities

It was pretty fantastic and incredibly overwhelming.
I was sure on the way north to the show that Armageddon was approaching. A deep sense of foreboding in the deepest part of my soul was telling me that I would never see my husband or children again. This is not a new feeling for me. I always think that something catastrophic is going to happen when I leave home.  You know like Yellowstone erupting and filling our atmosphere with ash for years destroying all life.

I could not think of anything else more calming than to go to Unique on 159th. I am so glad I did because look at what I found there.

 A fabulous gold sequined scarf for 3.99$.

 A wonderful black knit top with gold Herons.

A black pencil skirt with fringe.

Last but not least a pair of Franco Sarto shoes for 15.99$. They are brand new and totally timeless.

After these score purchases I felt much more relaxed. The rest of the drive was great. I spent the whole evening laughing with friends and eating Thai food.