Getting even more social and more 2015!

I do the blogging thing, granted not so often these days but I do get around to it as often as I can, as well as ample bouts of Twitter-ing @nadiramakeup and FB'ing nadiramakeupandhair which I'm quite frequent with as I give up to the minute snippets of beauty info, thoughts and news at your very fingertips.
Since, moving from Blackberry to Samsung - I know, I just couldn't get a grasp of the no keyboards thing but realised I was even more in the dark ages by not signing up to Instagram, the fastest growing social media portal.
I'm not one for too many selfie's but I thought I AM missing out.  Oh back in the day, I was always slightly ahead so I'm ashamed to say any technology these days stresses me out like nothing else.  I literally do need to phone a friend, geek or in extreme cases show rage at my local phone store. However, in my attempt to get with the program I saw that BB does have its own version which I downloaded and signed up for.  At least I tried and tried, then thought not even the brainiest geek will be interested, they'd say, "switch to an iphone."
I don't wanna!!!!!
I even went to great lengths to rectify this matter by emailing them andothing!

Nothing else for it,even the geek squad in the sky, ok, cyber space must have been looking down on me saying," its time for an upgrade, Nadira, like now!"
So I did, then I installed Instagram and guess what?
I registered to an account whilst waiting for the sales guy at the store to sort out my tariff and you'll never guess what happened then?
I turned on, downloaded and signed into my Instagram account on my new tablet that had been offered with my upgrade.  Yes, I know, I did and I believe I have now arrived in 2015 with feet firmly in this western world and all its crazy social media antics too.
I must admit, I miss my keyboard as I was darn quick on it but I've moved to this new world of tapping on imaginary keys and it has about the same effect. All hail predictive text.
There you go, I did it.  *Anyone under 35 will be rolling their eyes, if not rolling on the floor laughing.*
Well, you do that, I get it but sometimes the old ways are always here to stay.  One day they might bring out a new phone, slim, sleek and with KEYBOARDS - ya, so retro.  There is always something new and well marketed for us to gawp, gaze and grizzle at but some designs just remain such as my eyelash curlers; haven't changed in design for...well, like forever!!
See you on INSTAGRAM - nadiramakeupandhair

My Portfolio Memoirs: Haunting Beauty

I vaguely remember this shoot actually happening but I recall the experience of skillfully working towards this test shoot and the moment in the make up room.  The wonderful Stylist, Tessa Wright had sourced some sensational choices, we'd chosen a model called Sam, I think but sorry to the photographer, I cannot think of his name!
My hair and make up input was created based primarily on the sheer nature of the Preen blouse and blonde, pale model; I was aiming for something quite monotone in all aspects which is why the photographer lit softly.  The chosen top was embellished and stunning, something unseen on the high street ten years ago.  The model had very, very long hair and a lot of it so I was keen on an up-do to show off the details in the lace collar, therefore, I began to section off the top part, put that aside, then slick the rest back into a ponytail and out of the way.  I then came back to the top by taking a hairband and partly pulling hair through it to the shape you see in the image, then stray hairs around the face I kept as is and even pulled some out of the loose ponytail for a slight veiled effect.
The complexion is almost dead-pan, no contouring, not even a distinct lip colour, just a line of shade cutting down the bottom lip.  At this time, I loved sculpting hollow eyes and used a bronze shade right up to the brows and plenty of eye liner. False lashes were applied but I became frustrated as they were not long enough.  Thinking on my feet, I took a pair of scissors and sliced through a small section of my hair.  Was I nuts?
While the hair dropped onto the tissue, the model, stylist and whoever else was in the room looked perplexed possibly worried.  I wasn't too sure this would work but I probably gave my hairdresser at the time a bit of a head start.
I twisted a few strands so that one end looked irregular, the other I snipped off evenly, then dipped into a small drop of Duo lash glue. Hands still steady, I held the lashes of locks at the centre of the lower eye and gently held it in place till it felt secure.  It was a moment of 'I need longer lashes' and it worked so I carried on, feeling more and more sure this was going to look unique, creative and be a winning image for my beauty portfolio as well as a step towards pushing my artistic boundaries to test and try the weird and wonderful ideas that would pop into my head.

If there is an image from my portfolio you'd like to know more about please get in touch.

www.nadiramakeup.com

On the quest for youth...and a quick fix?

I've often said this and will repeat myself, we women are so hard on ourselves especially as we hit milestones like our 30's, 40's and 50's.  I do my damnedest to ignore these myself, its not easy but I don't beat the living daylights out of my growing older.  I often receive very harsh messages from friends, even friends of friends hitting a panic button to ask for advice on a 'turn the clock back now' product.
They must hate me, I begin with explaining how working on a routine, method and outlook is a healthy place to start.  It is often dashed with the 'but you must know a product that works?'

I do. I know plenty that work but like I say, this banishing the lines and open pores is part of an on going process and we are not all blessed with good genes, cheekbones and a non surgical skin specialist in the family.
Saying this I love my job and my dedication to the cause by testing out every skincare product I recommend, review and rave about, I honestly do.  I have to love it to love you to try it!  And I'm no snob about price either - there are star products out there and some are cheap as chips and other that are a good investment such as Gazelli Triple Youth White Oil REVIVING EYE CREAM.

At £40 for 15ml, I will start by saying a little amount on your ring finger tapped around the eye contours am and pm does mean a little goes a long way, in addition to it's qualities of soothing and nourishing the delicate eye area (bless the White Oil), de-puffing (thanks Black Tea) and one of my favourite things when it comes to these good skincare products, brightening (much obliged Rose Extract)!

Of course, I am not out slaying dragons, just testing the large youth pool of products for myself and whoever's reading or listening and I will keep repeating myself, a good place to start is with a routine, a method and attitude towards healthy skin not just quick fixes!

Check out Gazelli now if its not on your beauty radar!

www.gazelli.com 

Urban Retreat Harrods

The Josh Wood Atelier

Beauty Alert: Amazing Face? You got it!

If you still haven't quite opted for a skincare routine that includes full blown deep cleansing let alone double cleansing then I'd suggest you take a step in the right direction with a facial wash such as Emma Hardie Amazing Face Moringa Foaming Cleansing Wash  We all have busy lives but beg for our skin to gleam in good condition, be grime-free and immaculate with little effort.

The foam is made up of essential oils to condition and balance your skin, yes, no feeling of your complexion being stripped dry, plus there are clever fruit enzymes along with the Moringa extracts which gently exfoliate leaving skin brighter, smoother and positively amazing.  Simply disperse a ten pence coin size to the palm of you hand, massage over you face, neck and decollete, then rinse off with warm water.  

Read more about Emma Hardie products on my blog here and get yourself familiar with super cleansing techniques including the dual action cloth; its an essential!

www.emmahardie.com

Beauty Alert: I spy something beginning with EYE!

I'm full of regret these days. As I get ever closer to my mid-40's *gulp* I recall moments of pure, unadulterated bravado and stupidity in my 20's.  "I won't get sucked into buying eye creams!" and "I will never dye my hair to cover the greys, that's so vain!!!"

  I am virtually slapping my face right now, like the scene in Airplane, when they all queue up to take turns.  What was I thinking, was I going mad?  

Since I've embarked on the path to parenting I pine for time and minimal effort to make myself appear less frazzled.  Eye creams for one have never taken on a huge role in my routine, instead, I have concentrated on the general appearance and quality of my complexion.  Roll on sleepless nights literally due to over-tiredness and I find concealer doesn't always cut it, although effectively disguises shadows but does little for the sunken eyes.

QVC is at times like being rocked to sleep by a soothing voice you can trust with the gravitational pull of easy payments and it was during one of those nights I was lured by the lullabies of the presenter who mentioned Joan Collins Timeless Beauty up next.  

I am a fan, not just of Ms Collins herself but I have reviewed her Divine Lips and Nail Lacquer not so long ago (view here) so I couldn't resist an eyeful of more luxury items to drool over.

I almost immediately received upteen text messages from friends and relatives watching our 'Joanie' on QVC that night (must have been a full moon) when her Timeless Beauty Contra Time 'Eyelift in a bottle' SuperLift aired and they pretty much all asked the same thing 'Do you think it really works?'

I was struck by the texture I saw glistening ever so slightly when she smeared the opaque formula onto the back of her hand.  There was only one way of knowing, I had to try it for myself!

Whether its the plant extracts or cermides (our friendly, waxy molecules) or the gentle tapping upwards around the eye area, Superlift leaves a healthy suppleness by de-puffing those delicate parts with the added bonus of brightening too. 

So yes, it does work and achieves much more.  I have more eye products I've spied and tested, plus some positively phenomenal skincare products to have you racing to my favourite beauty destinations...look out!

My Portfolio Memoirs: Blue Eye

Blue Eye, photographed by Giorgio Kstakis

There are so many incredible and inspiring Make up Artists' with decades of experience, some of which I've had the pleasure to meet such as the awesome and technical creative genius, Sharon Dowsett and I've even made up the 'super' skin expert herself, Ruby Hammer for editorial shoots.  Their portfolios overflow with iconic images, precise and dynamic artistry, always catching my eye and curiosity; how did that 'look' come about?  What's the story?  Why use THAT texture there?  What's was the intention for applying a colour there in that way?  So many questions but we rarely get that insight.

Last night, while suffering a bout of insomnia,  I scanned through a Pro Make up Artist group and came across a comment regarding Val Garland's online make up school, Mastered.com.  Seems there are mixed reviews on whether an online masterclass, aimed towards working artists', would truly offer up valuable knowledge, practical tuition on application and techniques or just squeeze the purses of upcoming individuals via a glorified 'You Tube' like tutorial.  

I wouldn't want to get negative about Ms Garland, her work is innovative, clever and at times so artful it makes me wish I had been more confident throughout my career.  With this in mind it lead me to accept this online approach a very good idea to master make up to a brief, with a chance to make mistakes to then develop an understanding and purposeful approach towards a look, sometimes under pressure, just like the real world.  I would have relished in such an intimate class as a newbie, most likely thrived with more confidence too! 

The idea of such a make up maestro, I'd have online access to, showing me the thought process behind each and every application excites me further, as I am hungry to understand the narrative towards the final look, much like as in art exams where you include your prep work, makes sense to me.

I'd like to go through my archives for you every now and then to tell you about how the final image came about.   To begin with, this image of the Blue Eye was an idea I visualised in the middle of the night about 15 years ago, I remember the moment I scribbled a quick drawing on a post-it note placed beside my bed; a handy habit for my creative ideas.
Once I scouted a suitable model of Caribbean descent who was blessed with a smooth, cinnamon complexion and had approached the testing photographer keen to push his skills further, I knew we'd produce a number of beautiful images for our books.
Mimicking a lash shape along the eye lid was easy, it took minutes but finding the right shine to stay in place with a splash of colour but I experimented with lipgloss and MAC gloss in a tube, though finally settled on the consistency of Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream, originally created in the 1930's and today's iconic hero.  At the time my initial vision was of a peach-apricot shade on dark skin but instead I opted for a peacock blue eye shadow by MAC, from my rather meagre 'starting out' palette, which I'd crushed with the end of a make up brush then added to the balm-like substance to make a rather gloopy consistency and voila!
Back then the photographer shot on film, a painstaking process to some now but I miss it.  We'd sift through his edits from the shoot which would always be accompanied by lots of work chat, gossip and coffee.  We finally decided on 4 very strong photos all of cropped as much as aesthetics would allow, therefore, Blue Eye remained the focal point  in this instance (excuse the pun).
Some time after this image hit my portfolio and it became a signature image for me,  the photograph had been used without permission for an art scene coffee table book for a rather famous publishing house.  No, not even the photographer was credited, however, it proved to us this picture had strength and impact and so it remains in my portfolio to this day plus continues to receive much praise and the question I've been asked now for well over a decade, "What did you use on her eye?"

Beauty Alert: SPRING forward with 8 Hours sleep!

This Sunday we lose out on 1 hour of sleep!!!

I hear you moan and groan, though in my quest to find products that assist my tired skin back to appearing healthy with the bonus of being treated to 8 hours of good sleep (but really hanging onto short, deep naps), I have yet another Erborian discovery, from the brand I'd recommend everyone keep a close eye on, after all they are an ever evolving innovators in the beauty market and with a staggering 50 new products in their sights and in time Erborian will cater to all your needs soon from head to toe!

I digress, I'd like to reveal Erborian Sleeping BB Mask my night aid for well rested skin; its a night time mask which achieves the 'Baby Skin' skin we all crave - refined, replenished and repaired.  Apply a thin layer before bed and say nighty night to dull skin!

Discover Erborian Sleeping BB Mask at SPACE NK and more products in SELFRIDGES

Mother knows best about beauty!

My mother, a complete beauty expert in her own right, turns to me the other day asking if I know of a 'foundation that's not like the texture of a foundation but can even out skin without looking heavy or matte. ‎Nothing masking but that will make my skin look fresh, less tired and not sit in my pores. I don't want it to feel like I've got anything on...'

I've probably heard this a trillion times and often  faced with a client who is unrealistic about requesting a quick fix, who instead really needs more coverage and a skincare overhaul and injection of beauty-sense. But this was my mum, someone who taught me about routine and maintenance for my skin.

My mind mulled over a few products such as BB creams, which I hastily dismissed as 'too make-uppy' for my mum. Plus any sign of 'colour' and she'd ‎give me that look that only mum's do!

Some weeks ago I attended the launch of Erborian, to the UK, an event I could not and would not miss.  Although very under the weather I would have camped outside the venue in order to make it‎.  Why?

I'd come across the hybrid formulations and intriguing technology on a work trip to China a few years ago‎ whilst researching for another brand in Sephora.  Erborian literally excited me on the spot, serums and cleansers with textures I'd not seen. Not only was I convinced I'd arrived on my Beauty planet Asia, a destination that is so advanced in skincare, it was also apparent that Koreans know beauty and we have a lot to learn!

Katalin, one of the two creators of Erborain ‎personally showed me some of the range and even her desert island must-have, BB Flash Essence.   I was a little sceptical on hearing the CC Creme worked for caucasian to very dark skins.  Hmm, it's hard enough finding a sun lotion that doesn't appear ghostly on mid to dark complexions but I placed a dot of CC onto the back of my hand that Katalin had confidently handed to me in its silver tube with a smile, then smoothed the white cream, yes, it squeezes out white and dense, much like a high factor sun cream.  As I massaged the cream into my skin I watched it blend and become seamless in developing to flawless soft-focus skin. I'd found it! Mum, your wishes have come true, all boxes ticked, Erborian CC Creme it is and here's a - the photos tell it all album -  YOU WILL BE AMAZED and the best child a mother could ask for when you start purchasing this brand from two fav beauty portals Selfridges and Space NK. 

Instant skin gratification Erborain CC Creme

Bright white formula

Cleverly changing colour

Smoothed and seamless

 Have you discovered Erborian yet?

The essence of Melvita!

T'was 9 days before Christmas and I surrounded my senses by extraordinary woody, zesty, sweet and floral scents these days...no, not mulled wine, something more exquisite, sophisticated and natural than that!  
Melvita have ravished my sense of smell with the rich and inviting L'Or Bio fragrance, a 50ml eau de toilette that could convert any Scrooge into the most Christmassy mood.  It's a heavenly scent of citrus cutting through from the Italian Bergmot, sensual fig tree leaf along with the added sweetness of delicate flowers, Jasmine and Tiare, a pure delight.

L'Or Bio is certainly an enviable fragrance, in an equally pleasing bottle...hmm, great gift idea me thinks!
Intoxicate yourself with the essence of winter for all your body care needs too; Extraordinary Oil, Sparkling Oil, Illuminating Cream and Extraordinary Shower.  Clever peeps, they've thought of everything.

Melvita is for all your life, not just for Christmas!

Post Party Beauty Alert: Make Up Eraser

You've spent time planning your look, 'should I go for RiRi, Swift or Kardashian?'
Then sourced high and low for those finishes touches and there's the ultimate finale, the make up!  Go glitter, colour splash or nude?
You're ready to party, then after a bonkers baubling night of fun-fueled festivities your 'party pleasing outfit' hits the bedroom floor (or hallway) then straight to bed.
Hands up if that's you?
Guilty, we've all done it and know why we shouldn't sleep with a full face, however, if only on those occasions I'd been kitted out with Make Up Eraser cloth, I would no longer be guilty of practicing one of the biggest beauty no nos.

Whether you're a gym freak, like to travel light, addicted to face wipes or just into the latest beauty must-haves investing in this wonder cloth is a good idea for swiping off lasting foundation and even the toughest mascara (yes, it does, I've tried it) in no time.  So, for those of you with a severe case of lazy-itis you will be in full recovery once you've added water to a section of the pink cloths short nap side and gently erased make up; you can even exfoliate using the other side.
At only £15.99, that's a great saving in cleansing products; although you don't get deep cleansing, I think this is a useful addition to my toiletry bag on those odd times I need swift make up removal whilst not laden with a heavy bag skincare.
Would you swap your cleansers for a facial cloth?

 Available at makeuperaser.co.uk and victoriahealth.com