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Thursday, May 17, 2012

Hair Growth Journey... Slow but sure!


Hey guyssss!

What was I thinking, cutting my hair all short?! MADNESS!!

Let me remind you. October 2010 I had hair like this:



Then I did something I now consider a dumb-dumb move...




I actually CRINGE looking at this. I realised my boo-boo pretty much immediately and set off growing it out again *le double sigh* I also got some highlights thrown in for whatever reason...




And today I have hair that looks like this (screen grab from recent YouTube video - It was an eyebrow tutorial and this was BEFORE the eyebrows were placed on so please disregard those two sorry excuses for eyebrows on my forehead!)...




So my hair is definitely still thick and relatively healthy. I scrapped the highlights, couldn't be dealing with bleach while trying to grow my hair too. So it's dealing with this awkward length while throwing in clip-in extensions for nights out/special occasions for the next while...

Got any tips to help me grow it out faster? I hear castor oil is a hair growth stimulant?


*SIGH*



x




Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay in Place Foundation - Friend or Foe?




About time! Another blog post. On a foundation. A foundation that came SO CLOSE to holy grail status for me. Alas no. And I am about to elaborate just a bit J

So let’s start, I’ve had about 5 sample bottles of the Estee Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Foundation. Not because I’m scabby, but because I could never decide on a shade. I’ve tried: Fresco, Desert Beige, Ecru, Shell, and Bone. The sample bottles they give you at the counter are BRILL, they honest to goodness lasted me about a fortnight each! THUMBS UP LAUDER GROUP! J


Pros of this foundation:

  • Long wearing. So long wearing. And still looks very close to perfect at the end of a long day at work.
  • Great for oily skin. Once it sets, it SETS. It ain’t going nowhere, regardless of how much gunk your skin produces (gross. I hate the word ‘gunk’)
  • Fantastic range of shades. From the most transparent of pales to the darkest of mochas.
  • SPF included. SPF 10 which isn’t IDEAL but it is better than nothing. It protected my skin from the 30degree sun in New York! (neck burned but face didn’t!)




Cons of this foundation:

  • It is a b*tch to get off. Like seriously. See my Clarisonic Mia below. Bear in mind I had performed a DOUBLE cleanse prior to using my Clarisonic on it. Also this clarisonic has been washed before this photo was taken. The bristles are STAINED.





  • As a result of above note, breakouts are imminent unless great care and effort is taken in removing the foundation. I learned this the hard way. I used to just use the Olay Daily Facial Cleansing Cloths to wash off my makeup late at night after work. Thought I had it all off. Result? Breakout. BAD. No wonder!
  • Looks bad in photos, the other side to having an SPF in a foundation. 


So... Long story short, I shall be using this again, but ONLY when I know I shall need long-lasting coverage, such as when I know I'll be having a long and active day at work. Other than that I'll be using one of my other foundations that don't offer the same flawless coverage but are a heck of a lot easier to remove!!

What's your skin type and your holy grail foundation?

x


Bridal Makeup


Good evening! :)

I am REARING to practise all my newly acquired makeup confidence, so I dragged my sister into my bedroom and I worked my magic. Getting progressively happier with all my looks. What do you think?

Before:




During (Primer, foundation, concealer, contour, powder):





After:




And with some extensions thrown in for sh*ts and giggles:





Laura x



Step One on my journey... The Training


Hello to all and sundry,

The purpose of this blog is to document my journey to hopefully becoming a fully-fledged makeup artist. Here is my story so far:

I've always had a penchant for makeup and beauty. Always interested in new products and reviews, via websites such as www.beaut.ie, www.makeupandbeauty.ie, www.buynowbloglater.com, and lots of other blogs also. So around three months ago I said to myself  'f*ck it Laura, book a makeup course'. So I did. €595 later and I was booked in for a Module 1 course with the L.A. Makeup Academy on Chatham Street (the top of Grafton Street), to commence on 2nd April 2012. Last week. This post will more or less be a review of my experience participating in Module 1. 

So into the L.A. Makeup Academy Agency studios I trotted on Monday morning last, the 2nd of April, lugging an awkward silly bag with me, containing my 100,000 makeup brushes, cleanser, toner, moisturiser, cotton buds, cotton pads, false lashes, etc. as instructed. Day one was nerve-racking. I did not realise how precious time is in that class. We were launched straight into the rules and regulations of the classroom by our tutor Jenn. Jenn is scrupulous when it comes to cleanliness and hygiene and being organised. Seemed a little anal at the start but at the end of the week I could see the method in her madness. On day one we were told that every single morning there would be a makeup brush inspection, where the tutors would sporadically check out brushes to ensure strict cleanliness. Our work stations were also to be spotlessly clean and tidy at all times. Jenn was assisted by a lovely girl, Amy, for the first two days. On day one Jenn did a demo on a student showing us how to create the perfect base. This included cleansing, primer, foundation, cream blush, contouring, highlighting, powdering, and then a very very basic eye look of a wash of colour over the lids. Looked simples! When it came to the crunch however I soon realised that working on someone else is a LOT more difficult than working on your own face! We worked on each other, partnering up, and products were provided for us to work with, such as MAC, Make Up Forever, Inglot, Clinique, as well as some lower end brands too! We concluded the day by cleaning up and off we went our separate ways. Let me tell you, I was EXHAUSTED that evening and every evening during this week-long course.

Day two was recapping on the base again, and we moved on to a classic simple bridal look. This was what I created on a fellow student:






During this we also learned about individual lashes, and just how flippin' EASY they are to apply. Well I found them so easy to apply. Others struggled a little bit I think. Overall I was generally happy with the look I created and could feel myself gaining a little more confidence. 


Day 3 was an evening look. Again, Jenn did a demo showing us how to create a basic smokey eye for someone who was going on a night out. Jenn was assisted by Ailbhe on day 3 and 4. We were also shown how to apply false strip lashes. Something I found a lot more difficult than the individual lashes, surprisingly!

This was the look I created having watched the demo intently:




  

I was EXTREMELY happy with my work on that day. The student I worked on however had great skin and amazing eyebrow structure (JEALOUS!). 

On Day 4 we focused on a much much smokier eye, where Jenn demonstrated how to use an eyeliner pencil all over the lid, and smudge and blend it using other coloured shadows to create an uber funky smokey eye. She instructed us to re-create this look but that we could do it the traditional way using just shadows, which I chose to do. I hadn't the confidence to try the eyeliner just yet! 

I did not manage to get a photograph of this look as we were very pressed for time. Unfortunately. 

On Day 5, our last day, we had a guest speaker, a lovely woman by the name of Adrienne who has worked in TV3 for 11 years! Watching her demo, we went back to bridal and re-did this look, but threw in a contemporary spin, either smoking out the eyes slightly more OR by using a bolder/brighter lip. Lips are my downfall. Oh my God it is so so difficult for me to get the lip-line correct. It's something I have to work on. I didn't manage to get any photographs of my creation on this day either. Raging now. :(

At the end of Day 5 (after a horrendously rushed day!) I was presented with my certificate. Have a look:




  
I was and am so so proud! I realise this is only a minor award but we have to start somewhere, don't we?! Onwards and upwards is what I say! I intend to do the Module 2 course with L.A. Makeup Academy. I am so so excited and will be practising like crazy between now and then. I shall be posting the photos on here and will be looking for constructive criticism and ideas for looks. 

I highly recommend L.A. Makeup Academy if you are just starting out with makeup OR if you wish to acquire new skills. Although I knew most of the things we were taught (from watching YouTube, reading blogs, etc), it was great to put all these skills to practise and show the tutors what I could do. The hours were 10am to 4pm with lunch hour from 12.30 to 1.30. Let me tell you, the day FLIES in. You blink and it's clean-up time. Scary. I made fantastic friends while I was with the academy and I hope to stay in touch with them in the future. Some very skilled ladies let me tell you! :)

I have a full-time job and this is merely a hobby. A hobby I would hope to possibly further as much as is possible for me. And I love it. :)

You can read more about L.A. Makeup Academy here: http://www.lamakeupacademy.com/
If you have any questions for me about L.A. Makeup Academy just leave them below. 

Thanks for reading! :)

Laura
x

Monday, August 8, 2011

My hair growth journey... slowly but surely!!

Day THREE, man I am on a ROLL! J

Golly golly gosh my topics are very random, first a dog, then a chef’s tool dispenser, now my hair! Ha ha!

Well I wanted to show ye all the progress of my hair growth conquest. You might remember that I had a more-or-less pixie cut last October. I grew out of loving that verrry quickly when I realised how high maintenance it was! Washing it every day, straightening it every day, etc. Nah, not for me!




But just LOOK at how quickly it has grown! I haven’t had it cut since February mind, but it almost all goes back into a ponytail now and I am so thrilled with it. It’s not in the BESTEST condition ever at the ends but I’ll get the nasty ends snipped probably in the next month or so. That stylist will be STERNLY told not to chop any more off than necessary LOL!


I have to owe the health and growth of my mop mainly to this product: MoroccanOil. I love this shit. It’s amazing. I use about a 20 cent sized amount of it all through the mid-lengths and ends of my hair when it’s wet, I allow my hair to airdry, then I straighten it and use some more of the oil for shine through the ends. (I do of course use a heat protectant also previous to straightening… a VO5 one in a red spray bottle) MoroccanOil is magic. Much better than Argan Oil in my opinion.




LOVE!

What do you swear by to keep your hair healthy?


Laura xx

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Product rave!! Tool Turnabout

Second day of blogging, woah, this is weird ha ha!

Well today’s topic will be quick. I want to rave about my makeup brush storage. My beloved “Tool Turnabout”. This can be purchased in the U.S. of A. relatively easily from pamperedchef.com (http://www.pamperedchef.com/ordering/prod_details.tpc?prodId=15585&words=tool), however for us Europeans, eBay appears to be our only option. I nabbed this baby (second-hand but in brill condition) for 20 odd euro including shipping and haven’t looked back!



I cleaned it off with baby wipes first of all, then decided where I wanted all my different types of brushes to go. Then I went and bought the cheapest bag of rice grains I could find (€1.19 in Tesco!) and filled the different compartments with the rice to help the makeup brushes to stand. 



This is by far the best makeup brush storage I have found. The tool turnabout swivels so it makes it sooooo easy to find the makeup brush you are looking for. As you can see from the photo, I have plenty of variety and storing them on a brush belt, in a vase, etc, wasn’t ideal by any means! Also my MAC brush cleanser fits in the very centre section perfectly! J



How do YOU store your makeup brushes/tools?


Laura xx

Saturday, August 6, 2011

I've been inspired to blog again!

Hey to all and sundry,

I am a shite blogger. I'm a shite YouTuber too. Bit better at the videos though cos it's funner in my opinion.

My aim is to get back into blogging, particularly this: I'm going to take one photo every day and post it on here, be it with only one or two words to accompany it, or a boring old farty story.

My inspiration for this was from the blog: http://www.joannelarby.com/ What a beautiful, personable, and down to earth girlie! Woah! She's a professional makeup artist based in Dublin with loads of top notch experience, plus she's going to start making YouTube videos soon also. (Now that I've said it, you HAVE to Joanne! You simply can't make me out to be a liar!) ha ha! :)

Anyways, if you follow me on twitter you'll know I made a little teensy investment on Thursday.

I have a new baby! And I love her... So I suppose y'all be wantin' a preview huh? I will be making a video featuring her but for now a photo will have to suffice.



She sleeps ALLLLL the time, in between pooping and playing with that little toy that she's obsessed with! Speaking of obsessed, I am obsessed with her. She was crying like a baby the night before last so I crept downstairs and took her onto the sofa with me, she snuggled up to my heartbeat and fell asleep listening to it. I was awoken at approximately 5am with her licking my eyelids. Cute on hindsight but not so fun at the time ha ha!





Her name is Lucy and she's a pedigree Golden Retriever... Less "golden" and more "white" in my opinion! Her mother is pure white too, so I hope she stays this colour!

TOO TOO CUTE!

Have you any cutie pie pets?

Any tips for how to cease her incessant crying at night time? It breaks my little heart to hear her :(


Laura  and Lucy x