I’m a reserved kind of girl.  I don’t get overwhelming desires to rush out and buy the latest thing, I like to investigate new products and new brands, but I don’t start talking and buzzing about them that far in advance, but when I heard about a new brand with a concept of using Human Colours as the basis for their colour palette, I couldn’t help but want to know more, to dig a bit deeper, and find out what’s behind this range created by Ellis Faas.

Ellis herself is a highly accomplished makeup artist, starting out in photography before falling in love with SFX makeup and being ‘discovered’ by Mario Testino who took her across the world and into the inner realms of Fashion makeup.

In fact, Vogue Paris have said – “Ellis Faas is one of the most influential make-up artists of her generation.”  And given her forthcoming makeup range, it would be impossible to disagree.

Most women have worked out that not every colour suits them.  Some of us suit a blue based red lipstick, others suit an orange based red lipstick, its a rare woman who can wear both.  With this in mind, and her years of experience, Ellis set out to create the perfect red that would suit everyone.  Her logic took her to the colour that we all have in us.  Blood.  No matter what the colour of your skin on the outside, we all bleed the same colour.

My initial thought was, well yes, we do all bleed the same colour, but do we actually suit that colour red?  Mind you, how many of us cut ourselves and stop and think ‘gosh, I really suit my blood’!  But the logic is there, and she’s taken it a step further, creating products in the shades of a freckle (apparently they are all the same tone!), the colours of bruises, and even the colour of the veins in our skin, her concept is simple, if it’s skin colour or blood colour, or a combination of the two, then it’s a human colour.

As I said before, I’m not normally over excited about a product in advance of actually seeing it.  Yes, I may know a brand well and be looking forward to their latest palette, or seasonal collection, but as far as new brands are concerned, I’m a bit more reserved and will wait and see before I up the excitement stakes.

Ellis Faas however has created a level of excitement in me about makeup, that I haven’t had in a long while.  So much so, that I’ve started telling everyone I know about this crazy, yet clever, new concept in colour design.

You might think it would stop there though, but clearly, Ellis Faas wants to tick all the boxes right out of the starting gate.

While her professional kit, like all professionals, is kept meticulously clean, neat and tidy, she’s clearly a regular woman herself, with a jumble of a handbag where finding the lipstick she wants seems to take forever.  Wanting to sort out “the handbag jumble” as she calls it, she took her ideas to an industrial designer who came up with a concept of making every product, from lips to eyes, into a bullet shaped applicator, and a pistol holder for them all to fit into.  The only one that doesn’t fit this mould is the powder, but this designer is a clever cookie, and made it into a shape to fit as the lid of the holder!

Genius!

I’m very excited about this brand, whilst I know which colours suit me, and those of my clients, not everyone has that training and experience, and for as long as I’ve been championing women to put makeup on, this seems to be something that can help me with my ’cause’.

Sam Donald

www.samdonald.com

So you really want something for your makeup bag for Christmas, but you don’t really trust your boyfriend to get it right.  Well, you can either direct him to this page, with massive hints, or simply print off the page and circle the stuff you want! 

If I take the men in my family as average men (2 brothers, 1 father and a husband!), I doubt any of them would know where to start with buying for their wives, and I would think that many men are like this.  After all, their own pampering routine is shampoo and showergel with a splash of aftershave and deodorant chucked in, and for the more skin savvy men, some moisturiser too.  They don’t have a clue about cosmetics, so we can’t really fault them for not knowing where to start.

If you do however, have a man in your life who does know how to shop for you, can you send him to me, and ask if he does training courses for other men!!!

Okay, now print this out and hand it to your chap, the rest is for him to read!

So what is out there on the market for Christmas gifts?  If your wife or girlfriend wants a new eyeshadow, unwrapping a 1.5inch square box doesn’t really meet the Christmas-gift-ideal, nor does opening a small thin box containing a lipgloss, but put them in a palette or a mini makeup case, wrap them up and put a snazzy bow on, and you’ll have a very happy girl!

I’ve done a little online shopping for you (we women know you men like to use your computers at any given opportunity!), and come up with some ideas of things your lady might like!

You could check out the Estee Lauder counter at your local department store, or larger Boots stores.  They have ready made cosmetics sets – try the ‘Gloss to Go’lipgloss set with 6 glosses inside a luxurious gold bag, or perhaps the ‘Lipstick Luxuries’ set with 5 suit-all lipsticks in a red satin box.

Either of those would go down well with most women, however, if you know she likes her fragrances, why not treat her to some perfume, and get her one of the Makeup Artist Collections.  These are worth a whopping £312, however, when you buy the fragrance, you get the opportunity to buy one for just £49.  Trust me, that would get you some serious brownie points!

Or maybe you want to try Clinique, famous for it’s colour range that just seems to morph and suit everyone.

They too have a gloss set, ‘Long Last Shine 2009′ with 4 glosses in a snazzy pink makeup bag, or my personal favourite (and recent purchase!) 12 mini lipglosses in a wide variety of colours, their ‘High Shine-to-Go’ set.

And if you really want to treat her, then perhaps choose their ‘Best of Clinique 2009′ collection, stuffed full of makeup products, skincare, bodycare, and a gorgeous vanity bag to carry it all in.  Sneak tip here chaps, my husband bought me something similar to this when we got married in 2002.  If I wasn’t already delighted to be getting married, I was doubly happy now with my perfect honeymoon gift!   A great way to start off life as a husband…!

But why stop there?  Let’s shop some more!

Benefit have come up trumps this year, with a collection of ready made ‘guy buys’ for men who don’t know where to start, including their Celebutantecollection, containing lipsticks, benetint, high beam, dallas and eyeshadows.  Okay, so benetint and high beam probably mean very little to the average guy, but believe me, these are cult products, and to get a mini size in a great travel pack, wonderful!

And like Clinique and Estee Lauder, they have also brought out a collection of lipglosses, Glitz and Glam, though all of these are brand new colours in double ended wands, but still a bargain, particularly if you have a lady who loves to be very on-the-button with her trends and colours.

Maybe you want to buy her a piece of jewellery, but aren’t sure what to buy, and equally, you know that she loves her makeup too.  Dior have combined the two this year, with their seasonal dual purpose product.  This is the Cristal Boréal, their crystal gloss jewel.  Working with Swarovski, they have created an Aurora Borealis crystal that houses a shining gloss.

Illamasqua also has a fabulous new Limited Edition Christmas box, inspired by the success of the cult Liquid Metals. You probably remember how much trouble they had keeping this product on the shelves, so they have created a gift around the two best sellers, Phenomena [from Dystopia collection - the lovely shimmering silver] and Solstice [the original metallic gold cream]. 

But there’s still more shopping to do!  Ruby and Millie have got a few new products out for Christmas, 2 eye palettes, a bright and a natural, both are available at Boots stores, and are a nice stocking filler. 

I love the look of theirMetallics set, with shimmer creams, body colours, eye creams and all things to make them look gorgeous and glamorous, perfect for the festive party season.

And once again, following the seasonal theme, there is a lipgloss set, in a cute purse.  These are 3 click up glosses with built in brushes.  Probably means nothing to men, but women love these modern glosses!

And finally, it’s always worth bringing out the glitter in a girl at Christmas time, definitely take a look at the cult brand Urban Decay.  Their coveted 24/7 liners have been packed together in a set of 9 (for the first time gentlemen) in a mini size.  But even better, they’ve put together a set of their Hall of Fame products containing everything from the base upwards.

And to top off the seasonal Urban Decay offerings is the Book of Shadows II with an amazing array of colours for all and every occasion, particularly ideal for a girl who maybe isn’t so confident with her makeup.  This set of colours shouldn’t put her off, given that it contains a mini magazine with makeup tips!

For more glittery offerings and stocking stuffers, Barry M (at Superdrug and online) have put together two ‘get the look’ products, one in candy pinks and purples, and the other in apple green and deep shades.  Very affordable, these would make any girl smile and put a sparkle in the air.

They’ve re-released their glitter eye candy set.  I’ve actually used these professionally in the past.  So easy to work with!  They come with fixing gel and the oh-so-fine glitter and a brush.  Stick the gel where you want the glitter to go, dust on the glitter and away you go!  Very easy to do intricate looks too!

All of these brands have many more products than these few shown here, but these are the easiest shopping purchases you’ll make, and without doubt, your wife/girlfriend/sister will be delighted with any and all of them!

I’ve just splashed out on a couple of the Estee Lauder gift sets brought out for Christmas. I got the set of lip glosses Gloss to Go and the Lipstick Luxuries set.

Both are very reasonably priced and have a good selection of colours. They’d also be good for anyone looking to build up a kit.

And then there’s this one – The Makeup Artist Professional Colour Collection.

I think I’m getting carried away now…!

Fiona K

The pack “Gilty Pleasures” contains 3 shades: Midas (gold), Copper (brown) and Crimson (red). Colours first- now, I’m not a red kind of girl but this red is stunning- dark red with just a hint of purple. Just the thing to brighten up a dull outfit. The brown is a lovely warm shade which is more of a chocolate than a copper- it’s perfect for winter outfits. The gold is very pretty and just slightly glittery.

I wore all shades at various times on my toenails and fingernails and kept them on for a good few days to test the longevity. A busy mum just doesn’t have the chance to redo nail polish every couple of days. I found they lasted beautifully, with my fingernails staying unchipped and smart-looking for 3-4 days, and my toenails for over a week. All shades looked OK with 1 coat but obviously much better with 2 and the colours are very wearable.

Caroline Laver

Credit Crunch Chic.

that’s the strapline for FrontCover cosmetics.  Their range does epitomise that.  With prices ranging from £10 for 3 lipglosses and 3 lipstains, plus a lip pencil, up to£35 for their EyeSpy collection, made cult famous last year, but revamped for 2009.

I’ve been testing the £25 ‘Before the Party‘ collection, with 2 shimmery eyeshadow powders, 2 glitter eyegels, 2 shimmering lipglosses, 2 fat metallic eye pencils, a pair of false eyelashes and the very funky sequinned makeup cases.

At first glance, the lipglosses and glitter gels are small.  They’re the size of a sample lipgloss, but that’s not a bad thing.  You won’t have an excess left over after the season, when the softer colours and looks come in for SS10, but then who wants loads of leftover stuff anyway?  waste of money!

the packaging is rather basic, a little ‘plasticky’ but again, why pay for packaging, surely it’s all about the contents isn’t it?

They’re fun, funky and functional.  You won’t get 16 hours of life out of these, they really aren’t for an all day wear, but then, I’m not sure how many women like to be glittery and shimmery at 9am at their desk, so they do serve their purpose.  The colours are strong and true, and the glitter gel is very buildable.

In fact, Frontcover kits all ‘include makeup artist’!  Well, obviously not really, but they do include tips from Leanne Shaw, who suggests that you slowly build up the glitter in this particular kit, and keep the glitter soft in the socket line and heavinger on the lid.

They are easy to use, the range of products (8 in total) will suit all budgets.  I can see these appealing very much to the gift market for Christmas, and they are ideally placed in Boots larger stores, and Boots online.

I quite fancy a try of the Inky Eyes collection, with smokey shades and mascara, but then the Eye Spy calls to the inner magpie in me, with 15 rainbow shades, 5 further suede colours, glitters, shadowliners etc etc…

With lavish reds and golds and hints of plum, Estee Lauder’s Autumn collection, The Ultimate Red Collection is simply stunning.

I don’t need to talk about the quality, Estee Lauder is famous for it, and never lets us down.  The colours though, are rich and warm, the cranberry red of the lipstick and matching gloss sits beautifully alone, or with a touch of the golden lipstick or gloss over the top, makes a pouty mouth!

And as always, their eyeshadow palettes deliver rich true colours, with soft blendable shades.  No crumble, little fallout, just quality all the way.  I adore my estee lauder eyeshadows, I reach for them first in my professional kit, they never fail, and no matter who I’m working on, everyone always oos and aaahs when they see them too!

Sam Donald

www.SamDonald.com

Dystopia – the opposite of Utopia, the ultimate heaven, and the total euphoria.  Dystopia – the ultimate hell, the worst feeling in the world.

Why would anyone then create a makeup range that symbolises this?  Illamasqua did to catch eyes, to catch ideas and to inspire.

With strong blacks and greys, and vibrant flashes of bright purple and silver, the Dystopia collection is enough to set any makeup artist’s creative juices flowing.

Some people may be put off by the visuals surrounding the Illamasqua stands, but it’s worth stopping and looking at each product individually.

You can’t surely be scared by a purple eyeshadow, and certainly not a silver one.  What about a vibrant pink lipstick?  It’s when you see them all together that it becomes potentially out of your comfort zone and the average consumer wonders just how they can recreate such a look.

But it’s not about recreating the look, that’s just the hook, it’s about picking up a product and loving the look and feel of it, and using it with your imagination and your inspiration.

Stop and have a look; it’s fun, it’s now, it’s very very different, but best of all, the products live up to the hype – they’re amazing – true colours, rich colours, and the colour payoff is exactly what you see in the pan!

Sam Donald

www.SamDonald.com

by Rochelle O’Brien

www.rochelleobrien.com

Illamasqua is an up and coming British makeup brand which launched in Selfridges, London in September 2008 and has slowly since been rolled out in limited stores across the UK and online. Developed by professional makeup artists and produced by Kryolan, Illamasqua is fast becoming a rival for Mac and perhaps no coincidence that their flagship concession is right next to Mac in Selfridges, London. They also give a generous 40% discount to professional MUA’s.

I was so excited when I saw the visual promos for this brand, they are really stunning and unique and unlike anything else we’ve seen. Quirky, like the Carrie Bradshaw of the makeup world. Illamasqua’s tag line is ‘makeup for your alter ego’ and the brand is broken down into four ‘stories’:

1920’s Berlin

Noir

Fantasy

Romance

with a limited edition ‘Sirens’ collection also just launched,

because we’ve all got a hidden siren in us, haven’t we girls?!

I ordered a few things from the regular line and a couple of items from the Sirens collection and I will be doing a FOTD using the products from the Sirens collection soon – watch this space!

The brand has a slightly dark, naughty feel to it and I would have so loved to have been in the meeting room when they came up with the names for all the products (slut, moan, sadist anyone?!). It’s all about bringing out that sexier alter ego we all have. The eyeshadows in particular are unusual in that all but two or three of them are matte shades. It’s so nice to have a brand that has kept the colours striking but simple without shimmer overload. The cream eyeshadows are also lovely. Illamasqua also have a line of pure pigments which have amazing colour payoff. The eyeshadow pans themselves are very generous too, larger than Mac pans and you can customise your own eyeshadow quad by choosing your own colours to go in the four pan palette.

I’m a bit of a Magpie when it comes to gorgeous packaging (hel-loooo Chanel!) and I wasn’t disappointed by the beautiful but simple design of the Illamasqua products. Sleek black compacts with a discreet Illamasqua logo and the pigment containers are particularly novel in their design which stops you tipping out too much (ever had your heart stop when you’ve accidentally knocked over a Mac pigment and seen that lovely stuff all over your bathroom floor?).

If you’re ever in London, get yourself down to Selfridges to check out their concession. You can book a makeover (£30 redeemable against products) and the stand has laptops on each counter so that, say, if you want the MUA to do a certain look for you, you can Google ‘Dita Von Teese’ or whatever floats your boat, and voila! You’ve got a picture to hand. You also get to take away a DVD of your makeover – how cool is that!

Price wise, I would say it’s mid range, slightly more than Mac but not as much as Chanel.

I have to say I really love this brand and think it’s become my new favourite obsession.