Fab Foundation And Powder

What would you give for a foundation and powder that is light as a feather and takes years off your face? No, this is not a hoax. Makeup Forever has developed High Definition (HD) foundation and powder that is so light that it feels like you are not wearing makeup. Coverage is even and so sheer that it looks like you are born with great skin.

Developed for professional use with high definition TV and films, this product looks like it is going to be a huge crossover commercial success. What is HD foundation and powder? And what is so different about these two products compared to the others on the market?

The introduction of high definition films has stressed out many makeup professionals. This is one instance where technology is more bane than boon. So sharp is the resolution that it is putting the skills of makeup artists to the test. Poorly laid foundation and sloppy eye shadow blending are obvious on screen although it may not be to the naked eye. No longer can makeup artists depend on digital imaging to bail them out.

Answering the plaintiff cries of these professionals, Makeup Forever has launched their specially developed base and powder. Foundation and powder are talc free thus eliminating that cakey look and feel that you get from regular off-the-counter makeup. To ensure streak-free application, the French makeup company has developed a special sponge and foundation brush. The sponge is almost poreless unlike many found in pharmacies and therefore does not excessively absorb colour. So all you need is just a little foundation and your entire face can been sufficiently covered. The foundation brush is made of nylon as natural bristles, being organic, will suck up the moisture in the product and result in a streaky application. While the foundation comes in 15 shades (10 more to be added by end of the year) to suit different skin tones, the powder comes only in one colour: white. Made of micro-fine particles of silica, mica and zinc oxide, the powder smoothens fine lines, reflects light and protect skin from harmful UV light. And the good thing is that you don't a lot of product to set the foundation; all that is needed is a little dusting with a specially developed Kabuki brush.

At a special seminar for makeup artists, Makeup Forever's trainer applied the products to half a face of a volunteer who is in her 40s. You can barely see makeup on the model's face, but the side with HD foundation and powder looks distinctly younger and fresher. The product is also suitable for men wanting great looking skin. I got the trainer to paiint my face and after the session I caught up with some friends who could not tell that I was wearing makeup, but they did comment on how good my skin looked.

Retailing at $75 per bottle of foundation and $55 per container of powder, Makeup Forever's HD foundation and powder is certainly going to be a great success.

New Magazine Spread

This is a special feature with Peak Magazine for True Yoga. The concept is truly interesting using models in yoga poses and superimposed onto images of timepieces.

The male model is from Brazil and has a really nice lean and toned body, and of course, strong features. I only needed to powder his face and conceal some small blemishes on face and body. As this is a workout shoot, hair was also kept simple and neat.

The female model is actually Australian-educated, Chinese model who is also a yoga instructor with True Yoga. She has the typical delicate features and porcelain skin, but don't let that fool you. This yoga instructor is tough and extremely flexible. As she had great skin, I used Missha's Skin Color which enhanced her natural skin tone. I followed up with L'Oreal's Mineral Powder in G3 which gave her skin a flawless finish.

With the Body shop's Brow Shadow Duo, the dark brown tone gave her nice softly defined brows. I had to use a darker brown as this is a black and white photoshoot and black would be too harsh. I used :'Oreal's ColorAppeal Reminiscenc Collection eye shadow quad. I brushed her entire eye is in Lusty Pink, and then loaded my brush with Caramel Charm and applied the colour from lash line to just past the crease line. Dark Chocolate is used as a liner to define her eyes. To give eyes that 3-D look,Silky Beige is applied to her brow bone.

The model's cheeks glow tih Revlon's Rose Rapture blusher. The gold in the blusher helps to give the face that healthy shimmer. Her lips are lined with Maybelline's Line 'n design auto lip liner in Toast 5 and filled in with L'Oreal's Taffeta Caresse 517 (Aishwarya Rai's lip colour). Then Pupa's Splendor Extreme Ultra Brilliant Lipcolor is slicked on to give her lips fullness.

For the hair, I decided on her simple bun. The model's long hair was rather dry toward the ends and the dark roots of at least 10 cm were showing. First, I tied a high a high ponytail. Then I separated the ponytail in two.I applied a little leave-in conditioner and sculpting lotion and twisted the hair into a two-ply 'rope' and then twist it into a bun.

Moulin Rouge

This shoot was done a quite sometime back when the movie was showing to packed theatres all over Singapore. Makeup artist friend, Christina and I decided to collaborate on an homage to Baz Lehman. Actually, we needed pix for our portfolio. Chris and I had dreams of setting up a makeup artist/hairstylist agency, but that didn't happen. Oh, we didn't fight, just that we sort of let that dream evaporate.


Anyway, the photographer Soon Tong from Calibre got us this Mongolian model from Carrie's. The model had stunning Oriental features that spoke volumes and a great attitude albeit aloof. That quiet dignity really worked for us.





Chris gave her strong smoky eyes courtesy of M.A.C. and lined her lids with Bobbi Brown's cream eye liner. She gave the model several lashings of mascara before she decided that fakes still gave the picture that certain drama. A deep wine blusher from L'Oreal was lightly stroked on to emphasise the model's high cheek bones. For that intense glamour puss look, M.A.C.'s Russian Red lipstick was slicked on. As Russian Red is a matte lipstick, the look was too painted and not very vogue, so Chris applied the Body Shop's iridescent lip gloss on the lower lip to accentuate the pout.

Don't you just love that headdress?

Then it came time for me to give her that showgirl hair. The model had stringy nape length hair - a result of brutal slicing - with a severe fringe. I gave her a ballerina chignon so that I could anchor the feathered headpiece to. Three luxurious ostrich feathers were fanned out and pinned to the bun. A short strip of black feather boa was cut and attached to the back to conceal the pins. A strand of hair was deliberately left down to give that angular face some softness.



Outfit from Baylene



Contacts:


Makeup - Christina 96886761


Fashion & Hair - Lawrence Yuan Chen 97629399


Photography - Soon Tong 98227956