Obsessed!

EXTRA Repair Foundation SPF 25 ($55)

I've been super obsessed with Bobbi Brown's EXTRA Repair Foundation SPF 25. Now, I don't really carry foundations with SPF in my kit for a number of reasons- I don't have the "fear of the flash" titianium dioxide thing, because to be honest, there are plenty of other common minerals in make-up that are responsible for the same effect- Mica? Anyone? Bueller? Typically, I find that a foundation with SPF can end up being fairly compromised, either in the look, shade or staying power. SPF is something I usually reserve for the skin care regime. However, that being said, the Bobbi Brown foundations never cease to impress me AND they usually have SPF in them. I'm kind of a foundation turncoat- when I run out of one foundation, I'll try another. So far my favorites have been the following: Bobbi Brown Natural Finish Long Lasting Foundation SPF 15,  Make Up For Ever Face & Body Liquid Make Up, CoverFX NaturalFX and now Bobbi Brown EXTRA Repair.

The formula itself is infused with Shea Butter and Evening Primrose Oil and I like to layer it over the Bobbi Brown EXTRA Face Oil. I have combination skin that borders on the side of oily, and to be honest, I don't like to be matte at all and I love to use oils in my skincare.

Behind The Scenes: Prager + New York Times

On Sunday, I had the pleasure of working with miss Alex again. Those who read my blog know that I've been working with Ms. Prager for a while now, and it's always fun to be a part of her world. I've done a few shoots with Alex for the New York Times in the past, they are always colorful, quirky and a blast to be a part of and this shoot was no exception. Also, special thanks to our fantastic assistants: Katie, Melissa and Ren.

Feet on set. From top clockwise: Paul, Nichole, Me

One of the best crews.

I love picture cars.

Kind f a beautiful way to store press on nails, no?

Post shoot self portrait on the drive home.

Battlestation- been using a ton of Embryolisse lately and as always the Naked Palette, as well as some of the OCC concealer prototypes and my favorite Make Up For Ever Face and Body foundation.

Voila!

Lately I've been having great luck (knock-on-wood) with turnaround time for jobs. As most artists in my industry can attest, sometimes the wait for images can be a pretty antsy one- especially when you've seen the images from the monitor and you know they are going to be super-dope. I remember when I did hair on an O'Neill campaign a few years ago, and I was so excited for it to be released but it took a couple months of scouring Teen Vogue- then or course once it was out, it was everywhere. But it's the anticipation, really. You might remember these from one of my first posts called Cataloggin', well some of the images were released as a splash on the website today and they turned out so adorable and adorable lifestyle is right up my alley.

A Lotta Escada

Last night I had the pleasure of overseeing a charity benefit Escada trunk show in Costa Mesa. My assistant Katie and I had to get through ten models hair and make-up. Now, to many this might sound confusing but on smaller shows that are geared more towards private clientele, charity or the public (i.e., things that are not Fashion Week) it's pretty normal operate a very small skeleton crew. We managed to get through all of the girls with fifteen minutes to spare. Sadly I don't have any pictures of the models, but I did manage to snag a couple of atmosphere shots (mainly thanks to my assistant's facebook page).

The runway stretched all around the ballroom.

Since I have such an affinity for pictures of my station. Can I just say I love my GHD Styler and T3.

From The Archives: Fox Trap

I feel like whenever I post something from my archives, I describe it as "one of my favorites" but the truth is, most of the stuff that's in my book I really love. I really, really, love what I do and when you love your career, it shows in the fruits of your labor. That's not to say I haven't had a gaggle of less than stellar tests earlier in my career, but the nice thing about being in the game for years is that everything just starts to streamline- you find your style and become a part of a team (or teams) and eventually the ratio of shoots that work out to shoots that just don't mesh become more and more in favor of the positive. To any newer artists that read my blog, just hang in there, develop your style, treat every job like it's a $5000 day rate, do the best you can do and always open yourself up to new learning experiences and always, ALWAYS, make your next test better than the last.

Sorry for the brief side-bar. This episode of From The Archives features a shoot for Eliza Magazine's Winter issue... 2009... I believe? We shot at the beautiful SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. Our vibe was a 60's party girl getting ready to go out. It was a beauty story, so it's a shame you cant see a lot of the fantastic pieces the stylist pulled.

Amber Kerns, doin' some hair.

I know Tyler isn't a huge fan of "action shots" but, I just love this one.

One of the set ups. 

 

MAC provided the color product for this shoot and three of my favorite MAC products played center stage:  Strobe Cream, Lipstick and Fluidline.

MAC lipstick in Chatterbox, a beautiful creamy bright pink

A long time personal favorite of mine is MAC lipstick in Lady Danger- a beautiful technicolor red-orange.

MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack is ultra-smooth and longwearing and I love using gel liners to do the classic cat eye.

Strobe Cream is phenomenal on the face and on the body- it provides the perfect sheen and gives a stellar luminescence.

L.A. Fashion Weekend

L.A. Fashion Weekend Sponsored by Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (R to L):  New concealer palette prototypes, my new favorite brushes- love love love!, My collection of airbrush guns, mostly Sparmax and a couple of Iwata Revolutions and a few of the new OCC shades.

One of my models, wearing Flawed Loose Colour and a mixture of Francine and Grandma Lip Tar. Francine hasn't been released yet, but it is SICK. A super bright beautiful neon deep orange pink.

Another one of my models, airbrushed with OCC Skin, high light is OCC Shimmer in Golden and OCC Lose Color in Burning, Lip Tar in NSFW.

If I were to show you some of my weird crew related hoarding habits, I have almost every credential, lanyard and badge from the start of my career in a box in the closet.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in NSFW

OCC Loose Colour Concentrate in Flawed

From The Archives: Great Lengths

 

Stila Convertible Color in Poppy

This shoot was so last minute, but one of my absolute favorites. We had to climb down this awful hill to get the location, which wasn't as bad until the end of the day... when we had to climb UP the hill after shooting. Dallas has this effortless felinesque look to her and along with the bright dresses and her bright hair, I wanted the make-up to me impactful but simple. I opted to use Stila's Convertible Color in Poppy on her lips and a pale gold on her lid.