First of all, I recommend you forget everything you think you know about anti-aging beauty and start fresh.
I find that 90% of my clients email me with the same two goals:
- They need some intense personal training for their skin to solve a variety of skin issues.
- They want their skin to look smooth and even-toned with the least amount of effort.
These two goals are not difficult to achieve but as a makeup artist I have seen many of my clients trying to do far too much to achieve these goals. It is just not realistic to keep up a 5-step skincare ritual, nor is it productive when your skin is already reacting to something. Women come to me with very frustrating adult acne, rosacea, and some unexplained conditions. It is heartbreaking for me to see because I too had bad breakouts when I was younger and watched my sister go through it as an adult. It is easy to become consumed with trying to find a cure and becoming somewhat of a skincare junkie. I cannot recommend our skincare and makeup as a cure for acne, or any skin condition. But if nothing else, it helps your skin detoxify and re-balance so that it can better heal itself.
The second thing I find is very important is to just give your skin a rest.
I point out to my clients often how well men age. The average male does not invest in a lot of skincare products and yet, not only do they have a lot less issues with their skin, but they seem to age quite gracefully. It is true, they do not deal with all the hormonal fluctuations women do but still, it is something to think about. In my own search for truly anti-aging beauty, I have not found one product that does it all. I do, however, see the most incredible results with my clients who have embraced a more holistic approach to life as a whole. I encourage everyone to give it a try. I work with holistic allergists, personal trainers, and naturopaths as well as psychologists and massage therapists because everything plays a part when it comes to your body’s largest organ.
Back away from the frost.
Frost was fun for awhile. Then I started to notice it enhanced everything from scars, to fine lines and large pores. It seemed strange to me that as a makeup artist I was trying to enhance that glow-from-within look that you get from a great workout or an amazing weekend detox, by putting chunky shimmer particles on my mature-skinned clients. So now when someone tells me they are feeling like they need some ‘shimmer’, I recommend they try the BALANCING MIST and the COCONUT CREAM. Both are not only hydrating but they bring back that pretty, youthful sheen on the upper cheekbone and smooth away any fine lines. Staying well-hydrated and eating lots of plant-based, healthy fats also makes a noticeable difference.
It is a daily choice that accumulates over a lifetime.
In the documentary Food Matters, David Wolfe points out how we can choose to eat the most toxic cocktail of food-like substance or we can choose to eat the most nourishing, healing, super foods in the world and it takes the same amount of effort each day. For a natural beauty consultant like me, I automatically want to translate that statement to say, “We could choose to put the most toxic blend of synthetic chemicals on our skin each morning or we could choose to apply the purest, most organic, super-powered plant extracts and oils, and it takes the same amount of effort.” I have three ingredients I have found to be incredibly remarkable. Glacial clay, Organic Coconut and Organic Aloe work synergistically with the skin to bring it back to life and maintain natural radiance.. Because of the dramatic results I have seen on mature skin, I have infused these ‘super foods for skin’ into all my formulas.
Women seem to focus so much on wrinkles when it is actually a lack of ‘contrast’ that can make skin look aged.
Our lips, eyelids, cheeks, and eyebrows lighten a little more each year. But hold on, before you slap on the brightest red lipstick and smokiest grey eyeshadow, there is actually a delicate balance that must be achieved. Too much contrast can look heavy and put an even brighter spotlight on fine lines and wrinkles. This is why I have incorporated custom-made vegan tools to accompany our makeup products. You can only get one type of coverage when using your fingers and quite often it is a little too much. With the right brush you can get the lightest, smoothest and quickest application and feel like your own professional makeup artist. Even my clients who have come to me never wearing makeup before in their lives and being ‘minimalists’ see the importance of the brushes I recommend. Using a vegan brush also prevents product waste and the transporting of bacteria that can cause breakouts.
The key is blending everything well with the appropriate brush.
This means no harsh lines and no demarcation (that 80’s looking makeup mask around the jawline). When it come to color on lips, cheeks and eyes, choose a color that compliments your skin tone and apply it to lips, eyes, and cheeks with the appropriate brush. Because the skin tone on these three areas varies, it will not look like exactly the same shade, just in the same realm of color. If you are not sure of the right color, just ask a professional! It makes the most dramatic difference when you have the perfect pop of this monochramatic color. You can achieve this with just one or two of my products instead of four or five conventional makeup colors because all of our ingredients are safe for the lips, cheeks and eyes.
The no makeup makeup look.
You know that heavier type of makeup application that can take hours, make skin look perfect, but also look an odd color, and seem so caked on that there is no freckle, no sign of life? Well, our classic HAUT LOOK is the opposite of that and takes about 10 minutes. Less is more as we get older! Here is an example:
In the above photo I have chosen only two Aloe Cream Tint shades:
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:
FACE: Apply our COCONUT CREAM MOISTURIZER (A FRESH START BRUSH) to prime skin, followed by BB CREAM (A FRESH START BRUSH) and BIO-MINERALS (PLUSH KABUKI BRUSH) for the smoothest, most long-lasting coverage. If you need extra brightening, your BB cream application should be followed by our CUSTOM BRIGHTENERS to eyelid and all around eyes, all around nose, and a touch to corners of mouth to create a lifting effect.
EYES: Apply MARTINI ALOE CREAM TINT (DEFINING MOMENT BRUSH) to thicken and define brows and hold brow hairs in place. Apply HE’S THE ONE ALOE CREAM TINT (BRUSH WITH GREATNESS BRUSH) to eyelid from lash line to brow bone. Follow with a light dusting of BIO-MINERALS (BRUSH WITH GREATNESS BRUSH) for staying power. Blend MARTINI ALOE CREAM TINT (THE ICING ON THE CAKE BRUSH) into upper and lower lashl ine, start with inner water line, upper and lower and blend into lashes for a soft smokey effect. Apply MARTINI ALOE CREAM TINT (BRUSH WITH GREATNESS BRUSH) to crease area to create some dimension to eye, softly blending out. Curl lashes, apply a coat of your favorite black mascara, two coats if necessary.
CHEEKS: Apply HE’S THE ONE ALOE CREAM TINT (SMOOTH THINGS OVER BRUSH) to fullest part of cheek and blend out like you are tracing a cinnamon bun’s layers. If needed, apply a touch of MARTINI ALOE CREAM TINT to outer cheekbone to sculpt the face.
LIPS: Apply HE’S THE ONE ALOE CREAM TINT (SMOOTH THINGS OVER BRUSH) to lips and line lips softly with MARTINI ALOE CREAM TINT (THE ICING ON THE CAKE BRUSH) and blend all over lip if you would like a darker but still neutral lip than just the HE’S THE ONE ALOE CREAM TINT alone.
FOR ADDED GLOW: Apply a touch of COCONUT CREAM to upper cheekbones and temples (SMOOTH THINGS OVER BRUSH) .
xoxo,
Joanne
