BTS: Vintage Floral shoot

So recently I got in the studio with a great team and we decided to do a floral shoot.

I'm also an amateur florist and love fresh flowers. So when the photographer asked me to style the shoot, I was super-happy!

By the way, we used fresh flowers like Heliconias and Gingers. The models couldn't believe they were fresh flowers becauseof how they looked and felt!

I'm going to give a shout out to some Maybelline eyeshadows which worked great without any primer, smooth and blendable. I grabbed some MAC, Nixie and MUFE eyeshadows and lipsticks. It's great to have a kit that one can rely on.

Check out the full spread, now on Bella Naija, "Vintage Floral".

BTS: Geometric shoot

So I got to work with a new photographer and some stunning new models. It was fun!

I really like my old staple, Black Opal cream stick foundation, though it's quite oily. Model Temi was a dream to shoot, so very unique-looking and lovely!

Creative makeup

Hey bellas. How is this rainy weather treating y'all? Please do NOT say "Weather for 2", your mates in other countries are seeing this type of weather and thinking of planting crops and making money. You're dreaming of something else. Mschewwwwwww. LOL.

I thought I'd share some interesting work I did last year. I was going for a colour splash concept.

When it comes to creative makeup, there are rules to follow. You've got to be super-creative, research everything, tell a story. It's a good time to try out new techniques and play with colour and texture. Don't just throw your entire kit at the model and call it a day, crazy lashes does not make work creative.

I really love this picture, the photographer Hakeem Salaam is one of the best in Nigeria (he's shot every major job out there) and the model, Comfort, 16 and incredibly talented.

What d you think?

Brushes, Brushes, Brushes. Part Deux

Hello everyone.

We continue our look at brushes, and today, we look at foundation brushes.

So, as you can see, these all have different shapes and materials. I sound like a school teacher, abi?

What I want us to focus on is the shape. The white haired one (shu Uemura) is gorgeous for blending, but too small to go over the entire face (unless I have all the time in the world and feel like exercising my wrists); the flat shaped, regular looking ones (like the Smashbox brush, red handle and the Bobbi Brown, yellow handle) do a decent job, but they're placement brushes, not blenders. A lot of people will shoot me for this, but I' not a huge fan of the MAC 187 (the duo-fibre one), in fact I only just learnt how to use it end of last year. It does blend well, and has multiple uses.The Adesign has that amazing pointed shape to get into tiny corners around the face, but it's quite thick and I keep it for cream foundation.

So who's my bestest brush? Why, the Real Techniques Core brush (orange handle).

I use it to blend (and it does that beautifully) and gosh, does this lay powder nicely as well. Just right. If this brush was a dude, he would be described as husband material, no cheating no pimples lives in 1004. #Gbam.

This is just my opinion, and I have seen one of my Oga at the top use her fingers to create perfection with foundation (her name is B....sshusssshhh don't tell her!), but for us who don't have her levels of experience, we can start from here.

Daz all.

Brushes, Brushes, Brushes

Hello people.
This post is all about brushes. Like my collection below. (Brush porn picture coming up in......aaaahhh, right there.....)

Nowadays, pretty much anyone seems to be making brushes. But most aren't great, a lot are scratchy and they certainly don't last. I decided to do a post on them. First things first, how to select brushes:

1. Decide what you need. Are you a makeup artist or a gal with a makeup bag? Do you know the difference between cream blush and powder blush? What that means, is what's your skill level? If you're someone who doesn't use a lot of makeup, don't buy a 24-piece brush set. Get only what you need.

2. Look for multi-tasking brushes. A blush brush can double up as a powder brush, same with concealer and lipstik brushes. Don't overspend, but at the same time....

3. Invest in good brushes. I've had a brush for 16 years. That's what you get when you buy quality and take care of your brushes. Don't buy pricey name brands and don't go for cheaply made stuff. Check its quality by lightly tugging on the hairs of your brush, if it falls out, it's no good (ELF brushes, I'm looking at you), run it across the inside of your wrist, if it feels scratchy there, it'll feel scratchy on your face.

4. Wash your brushes with shampoo once a week. Unless you're a makeup artist, I don't see the need for you to own a brush cleanser, because you're not sharing your brushes. Makeup artists, invest in 70% Isopropyl Alcohol and a brush cleaner, as well as shampoo. Some days will pass when the Lord will bless you with so much work (AMEN!!) you won't have time to wash and dry your brushes.

5. Don't buy a brush set. No vex, but I have rarely seen a brush set which came with brushes I loved totally, some were good, others were not so good. I prefer buying individual brushes. And btw, MAC does NOT make a brush set. That's fake MAC.

These are just my opinions, take them with a pinch of salt. I'll randomly mention companies I think make good brushes: Hakuhodo, MAC, Sue Devitt, Essence of Beauty, Adesign, Japonesque, Cala, Shu Uemura, Bobbi Brown, Real Techniques.

Yeah, some of those are cheap and can be bought in Nigeria (Cala is at Casabella, Essence of Beauty is at most shops in Lagos and I found a Sue Devitt brush for N600 at my coded Makeup store in Balogun).

Till next time, ja na.