Alex Box and Rankin Book

I have been wanting this book in my little make up world for sometime now, ever since I saw it at Illamasqua’s counter in Selfridges about a year ago.

I am very happy to now have this book (courtesy of my partner for my birthday), I would say for any Make Up Artists or creative in the industry this is a must. At the moment it is a tad pricey on the Internet but it does go up and down in price, three months ago it was roughly £32 and now on Amazon it is priced at £500, which is a huge jump. But if you would like this book keep checking Amazon and other related sites as it will come down again.

The books quality is just amazing, and the quality of the content is even better, the book is quite large. It showcases all of Alex’s creative masterpieces, which are just fabulous reference points. She has some fantastic colourful images, which are very pleasing to the eye. Rankin also show cases some of his skills in the book, obviously his photography first but he also shows off his creative input for the editing as some of the images are digitally moved around on the models face. Which is quite interesting.

I have put together a few on my favourite images from the book; these are images I have not seen on google so I thought you might like to have a peep to

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Girls Aloud False Lashes - My tips on application and pictures

 Girls Aloud False Lashes – Nadine

Hi All, I opted for some different lashes this weekend, I like to try new ones to test them out, so I thought I would share them with you all.

I have previously used Cheryl’s and Sarah’s from the Girls Aloud range which looked beautiful. This time I thought I would try Nadine’s I can’t have favourites now can I They were so very easy to apply, they were really bendy (not stiff at all) I find the bendier ones easier to apply as you have more flexibility. 

How to apply

• Firstly measure them to your eye size, I tend to find that for myself on most strip lashes I only really need to cut off roughly half an inch just enough so they are not glued right into the corner of the eye as this can be very uncomfortable and will irritate you.
• Apply some of the glue, to the back of your hand and wait for this to go tacky (roughly 30 seconds) I use Duo Eyelash Glue.
• Whilst waiting for the glue to work, curl your lashes and apply one layer of mascara.
• Run the lashes down the glue, just a thin line you don’t want too much on the lashes as it can get messy.
• I find it easier to stick the outer part of the lash down first then grab a cotton bud. Whilst still holding down the outer eyelash stick the inner corner down with the cotton bud this way you have control over both ends.
• Once it is stuck into the correct place, which is as close to the lash line as you can get. Use the cotton bud to just dab down the lashes all the way across just to make double sure they are stuck into position.
• Then apply another coat of mascara just to make sure they blended in with your own lashes

Everyone has their own ways of applying that is best for them, the above application is how I do it and this is the way I find works best for me. I have tried numerous other ways but this has come out on top.

Give it a try; I hope you find this application easy.

You can buy Girls Aloud lashes from Boots or Superdrug priced at £5.35, the Duo eye lash glue I purchase from ebay and this is between £4.00 - £5.00 (but lasts forever) I purchase the clear glue, so it comes out white but dries clear – Genius

Have fun xx

Alex Box - Italian Vogue Shoot

WOW I am amazed by this work again by the SUPER SUPER talented Alex Box.

These images are breath taking, so inspiring. I can’t get enough of her work, it amazes me everytime i look at Alex’s new and old work.

My favourite is the top left

Hats off to her everytime x

Red or Black TV Show - Working alongside Pixie Lott

Red or Black is back on ITV soon, this brings back great memories of me working backstage last year at the london studio alongside pixie lott and one of my Make Up inspirations, Caroline Barnes MUA to the stars. I got the chance to meet Pixie and to see all the glitz and glam of the team working backstage. Best of all i was part of the team. Amazing day.:-)

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Prepping the lips for a lucious clean base

Hi Ladies,

Today I thought I would do a little blog post on creating a nice clean base for your lips ready for your lipstick application.

I know some of us do not always have the most perfect soft lips on a day to day basis, mine do tend to go dry and sometimes which if not treated can make your lipstick look cracked, dry and flaky.

Below are a few tips for you to follow which will result in super soft lips.

Preparing your lips prior to applying lipstick (to remove any dry or flaky skin)

· Gently exfoliate the lip’s, a good treatment for this is Hollywood Lip’s Sweet Sugar Scrub.

· Finish off with a cool lip balm to heal the lips and protect them, I use Carmex Original Formula, this heals, protects and soothes and leaves your lips feeling really cool and fresh.

Preparing your lips ready for lipstick application:

· When applying your foundation do not skip your lip’s, make sure you brush the foundation over your lips, this creates a perfect canvas ready for your lipstick.

· Lipstick will stay on longer if the whole lip is filled in with lip liner. This will create an extra layer of colour.

· Apply your chosen shade, apply one layer then blot with a tissue, apply a second layer again blot with tissue. Grab a dusting brush and dust a small amount of transculent powder over your lips this will set the lipstick.

· To make your lips pop add a touch of gloss to the centre of the lips.

TIP - Matte Lipsticks tend to last longer but can dry out the lips, to avoid this and still use a matte lipstick mix the lipstick with some lip balm then apply to the lips.

After following these simple steps your lips should look super luscious, J

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Make Up Setting Spray

Graftobian Make Up Setting Spray

Wow what a genius product this is, another great product for keeping your make up in place all day and smudge free.

I know there are a few of these setting sprays out in the shops, one in particular I hav
e seen is the Urban Decay setting spray, this retails at £19.50 whereas this little beauty comes in a bargain price of £5.44. The bottle is smaller (36ml) than the Urban Decay spray but will still last you a very long time as you only require a couple of sprays.

You can apply this spray before your make up or after. I like to apply the spray after.

If you apply it before your make up application make sure you do your usual moisturising routine.

Hold the bottle 8-10 inches away from you face and spray a couple of sprays over your full face, it will feel a little tight at first but that feeling goes away as soon as the spray sets in.

This is great for preventing foundation rubbing off on your clothing, and in my case on my boyfriends t-shirts which he is not best pleased about ;-)

This setting spray also helps prevent sweating.

This Graftobian product can be purchased from Applied Cosmetics at www.appliedcosmetics.com

If you are working professional in the industry you can apply for a trade discount with Applied Cosmetics which means you will get it even cheaper than £5.44.

Applied Cosmetics also stock a full range of HD Products including HD Foundation Palettes, HD Cream Blushers, HD Concealer Palettes, HD Lipsticks, HD Powders and many more. Head over to the website for more details on how to apply for the trade discount.

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