Fashion Pulse Daily » MAC cosmetics

Carmen Marc Valvo Fall 2011 Backstage Beauty

admin — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 13:00:54 +0000

[Image via Elle.com]

Carmen Marc Valvo‘s inspiration for hair and makeup at his F/W 2011 show was a ballerina just after a day of rehearsal. The designer teamed up with Ted Gibson Salon’s Devin Toth for a casual take on a pulled back look that is designed to move. The makeup team, lead by Romero Jennings for MAC Cosmetics, gave the models a fresh, wide-eyed look with a pop of blush on the cheek.

[Backstage images by Jen Paelmo]

To get the look:

Hair Products/Tools: Ted Gibson‘s hair sheet, build it blow-dry spray, beautiful hold hairspray, blow dryer, round brush, 1 inch curling iron

How to: Start with TG’s hair sheet to tame fly aways and eliminate static. Use the blow-dry spray for volume and movement before blowdrying hair using round brush to give volume to the root. Pull back a half-ponytail section of hair, twist close to scalp and pin to secure. Curl bottoms for extra bounce and movement. *Tip* Low on time? Devin says a securing hair in a top knot before bed will give the hair similar movement for those of us rushing out the door in the morning!

Makeup Products/Tools: Mac cream colour base, fascinating eye kohl, cremesheen lip glass, Mac 219 pencil brush, brownish taupe eye shadow

How to: Start with a good, dewy foundation and powder where needed. For the eyes, dust the browningh taupe shade over the lid with a fluffy eye shadow brush and take the color under the eye using a pencil brush like the Mac 219. Use the Fascinating eye kohl (white eye liner) on the bottom rim of the eye for a wide-eyed effect and apply mascara only to the top lashes to emphasize the look. Use your fingers to tap a pinky/peach blush onto the apples of your cheeks and finish off by tapping excess cream blush onto the lips and topping with Mac cremesheen lip glass.

-Jen Paelmo

Backstage Beauty: Vena Cava, Costello Tagliapietra

admin — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 09:47:52 +0000

[Images via NYMag.com]

Backstage at the Vena Cava show this season, hair, makeup and nails were glamorously modern and perfectly polished.

Ted Gibson, key hair stylist for the show (and many others this season) created a beautifully textured, modern chignon finished off with a head scarf twisted in a fresh new way. To get the look he first used Tame It Shine Lotion from his own product line, Beautiful Hold Hairspray and a flat iron to get the hair sleek and smooth then pony-tailed it close to the nape of the neck. He then teased the ponytail for texture and worked it into a chignon using large hair pins. A long scarf was wrapped around the head once then twisted to give an added layer of texture.

Christian McCulloch For Mac Cosmetics keyed the Michelle Pfeiffer from Scarface inspired makeup look. Models had on a full face of makeup with a metallic navy smoky eye, coral blusher and a matte orange lipstick pressed into the lip. The look was kept modern and fresh by using minimal foundation or none at all and keeping the brows full and natural.

The nails were done by Nonie Creme with Butter London and were actually press-on nails for the show, but you can get the look on your own with a half moon of black (Jack Black) at the base of the nail and a mushroom taupe (Yummy Mummy) on the other half of the nail.

Overall the complete look was beautifully done; modern, glamorous ,and wearable, a perfect pairing with Vena Cava’s strong yet feminine designs.

[Images via Jen Paelmo & Style.com]

I loved Nelson Vercher’s (key hair stylist for Rita Hazan Salon) description of the hair design for this season’s runway. In a failed attempt to be swanky by using my “professional” hair stylist lingo, I described the hair style as something that looked “floral inspired.” Nelson thought for a minute and replied…”hmmmm… I was really going for ‘HAT.’ I had to giggle a little. The look was actually beautifully wearable (I ended up wearing it the next day) with a new, flatter dimension and fresh unkempt texture, hat hair for all to enjoy! Simply place your chignon off to the side and higher then ear level, tease your ponytail and pin the chignon very flat in order to create that ‘hat-like’ shape.

The makeup was minimalist but beautifully fresh. With almost nothing on the skin, Lisa Butler for Mac Cosmetics created a look that used shadow from colors already found in the skin and inspired by the ‘sugared almond’ color that ran through Costello Tagliapietra’s collection. What I thought was especially new and cool to try out was the mascara placement which Lisa concentrated through the center of the eyes on the top and bottom lashes. This creates a really doll-like roundness to the eye. I want to give a shout-out to my friend Moises who was doing makeup backstage at the show (he’s the one in the black hat) he’s a FANTASTIC makeup artist and a wonderful friend

Anyways, go ahead – try out the makeup look and wear your hat hair proudly!

-Jen Paelmo

Holiday Nail Polish Picks — Purples & Metallics!

admin — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 15:54:42 +0000

I’ve never really been a person to wear holiday sweaters or the designated colors for each passing event (red, white & blue for the 4th of Juliy, red & green for Christmas, etc), however I will slightly alter my beauty regimen to bring a little holiday cheer into my look. This year, it revolves around fall/winter nail polish colors – I won’t be caught without a shade of metallic or purple on my fingers and toes! Metallics are relatively festive and have been looking incredibly smooth and much more fluid than they have in years past – my two favorites are Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen’s “Stormy Blue” and the N.Y.C. New York Color Metro Metals Collection in a deep metallic shade that slightly resembles gravel or extremely dark sand. As far as purple polish goes – I will settle for practically any shade! I particularly love the medium hues, sans sparkle or sheen — matte colors are definitely preferred. On my wish list are the “O.P.I Purple with a Purpose” and Sephora’s L18 Raisin shade.

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Beauty Buzz: Get the Zac Posen Spring 2009 Purple Lipstick Look

admin — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:14:50 +0000

Before and After

We’ve still got Zac Posen’s s/s ’09 collection on our minds, and it’s not just because of the fabulous clothes. We were intrigued by his use of electric purple lipstick contrasted against the pale pink garments, that made even the sweetest-faced models look fierce, and of course instantly cool. Beauty experts agree that purple is the new “it” color for makeup this season, so we decided to put our favorite sheer lip gloss aside, and try this bold new look.

We found out that MAC did the makeup for the Zac Posen show, so in order to truly mimic the look, we first filled in our lips with the MAC Magenta Lip Pencil, ($13, Macy’s), as a defined base. Layered over the pencil, we took the big step and coated our lips with a thick and even stroke of the nearly black MAC ‘Cyber’ Lipstick ($14, also Macy’s). To soften the intense color and to add shine, we finished with a few finger dabs of the fuchsia MAC ‘Violetta’ Pro Lipstick, that can be found at MAC Pro stores (7 West 22nd St. in New York), or you can substitute with the Urban Decay Trainwreck Lipstick ($22,Sephora).

After our transformation, our reflection in the mirror was barely recognizable, but we loved it! To get the complete Zac Posen look, use a neutral colored eyeshadow, like a slightly shimmery brown, to make the purple really pop. MAC also created a light pink lip style for the show using MAC ‘Viva Glam II’ Lipstick, and MAC ‘Nymphette’ Tinted Lipglass, both $14 at Macy’s. However, if you’re looking to spice it up, or reinvent your habitual style, we think the purple lip is the perfect way to do it!

–Sarah Ferguson

Courtesy of MAC