Dry Skin & Oily Skin

It's been a while guys! I always have these post ideas in my head and I never get a chance to write them out. Sonia and I recently sat down and thought of a list to do in 2016 - writing more for our blog was on that list.

Since this is the first blog post of 2016 I thought I would clear a few things up - There is two of us Fyza is me, writing this lol. I'm the sister that does all the makeovers and live makeup classes. I don't really post any photos of myself mainly because I want the focus to be about my art and not me, I wanted to be the first makeup artist on Instagram that doesn't do makeup on themselves to show off what they can do, rather I would experiment on others so people around the world can see my ability. Women that book me can feel confident and comfortable that I will do a good job on them because I have worked on all typed of people, not just my own skin type.

Sonia models for me, she is basically my muse and she is a beauty addict. She reviews some of the best products out there for you all. We both have different skin and different preferences - complete opposites! I thought this type of post will work well for all skin types of girls.

I will be writing about foundations from different brands that are from full overage to sheer. I hope you enjoy and benefit from this post :)


TOP 3 Full to Medium coverage foundations for Dry Skin

1) Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation
The consistency is lovely, I personally love the way it blends and the dewy finish reminds me of a photoshopped beauty shot. It is a gel like consistency so It's nice to blend onto the skin. The colour range is good, love the tones.

2) Tom Ford Traceless Perfecting foundation
The packaging is SO convenient, It's one of those foundations that is easy to pack when travelling. The formula and colour range is perfect. I like to use a beauty blender to blend this out. For more coverage you can use your fingers since they are your best tool. Gives a pretty sheen to the skin.

3) Yves Saint Laurent Le Teint Touche Eclat
This foundation is an old favourite thats crept up into my future, haha. The scent takes me way back to my college days. It has a nice scent to it, creamy texture, light weight and evens out skin very well. When using this foundation your skin will look luminous and healthy, you can build up the coverage. Lasting power is around 12 hours.

Top 3 Full to Medium coverage foundations for Oily Skin

1) Makeup Forever Ultra HD
This is a foundation I have had in my kit for years since majority of my clients have oily to combination skin. The new formula is brilliant, It's been specifically designed for photo's and videos. Who doesn't want photoshopped looking skin in their selfies?! The lasting power on this is probably one of the best things, It doesn't oxidise and works well with either a brush or beauty blender. Oily skin girls best friend but always bare in mind that it also depends on the primer you are using. Try using more of a gel primer with this instead of a liquid one.

2) Estee Lauder Double wear foundation
I've always called this foundation the tattoo foundation, It's been around for so long and I remember a lot of the women in my family using it. Absorbs all the oil well without giving the chalky look to the skin. Coverage is wonderful and It's best used with a Beauty Blender for a flawless finish. Dries matte. The cons of this would probably be that it dries darker like a lot of matte foundations so be sure to pick up some samples before purchasing. Also the glass bottle is a classic but I personally think they should make it more modern and convenient for travel.

3) Clinique Pore Refining Solution Instant foundation

Another foundation I am familiar with while growing up because a lot of the women in my family have oily skin. I would always see this bottle in makeup bags around the house. It gives an even, matte finish that minimises the look of pores. You probably will only need to do a light dusting of powder as it has good staying power. All this depends on how oily you get and the climate you are in. primers are essential with oily skin. Only wish they had more in between shades.

Sheer coverage foundations for Dry skin

1) NARS Sheer Glow
A popular choice, as it gives a nice glow and "no makeup, makeup" finish. It comes in a range of colours and many people have tried and tested this. The only problem I find with this is that it does tends to separate, I find this with a lot of Nars foundations. As long as you prep your skin well first and set your foundation this is a good choice for dry skin.

2) MAC face and body foundation
My fave Mac foundation that is a must have for all makeup artists for their kits. I love the formula and consistency of this, It's a classic one from Mac and you can't go wrong with it. It a great foundation to mix with your full coverage foundations if you want more of a sheer coverage. It's more to even skin out but is build-able. Use with a flat top brush and set with loose powder. Colour range works differently to regular MAC shades so ask for a few samples to try.

3) Laura Mercier Cream Smooth foundation
Hydrating and creamy. If you suffer from dry or very dry skin this is a good choice, it keeps skin plump and smooth. Makes fine lines and wrinkles appear smoother. I would recommend this for mature women. I like to apply this with fingers because the warmth of our hands helps the product sink in better and gives a glowy finish.

Sheer coverage foundations for Oily skin

1) Charlotte Tilbury Magic foundation
You either like this or love it. I love this for every day! The colours are good and the finish is matte and sheer. It doesn't cover pimples but evens skin complexion out. It comes in a glass bottle that is double glazed which I'm not to keen on because this means there's less product so it gives the illusion of more product because the bottle looks thicker. The pump is useful and I like the texture and how it glides on. I would recommend using a synthetic brush to apply this foundation using circular motions. I set this with a pressed powder.

2) L'oreal Nude Magique foundation
Liquid foundation, very watery, sheer and dries matte. Glass bottle, inexpensive, little goes a long way. This foundation feels like nothing on the skin, feather light and I feel like I could breathe. Shake bottle before using and apply with fingers. You can build up the coverage but it's a great every day foundation for work or school. One of my fave drug store brands.

3) Hour Glass Immaculate Liquid To Powder Foundation 
I love this brand and it's packaging. Liquid to matte foundations are a god send for oily skin! This foundation feels light which is what a lot of us want for day time. The only thing we need to remember about these is that they oxidise, so testing them out a couple of times before purchasing is always best. Gives natural coverage, doesn't give a cakey finish and has long staying power. It contains ingredients that prevent breakouts which a lot of us oily skin girls suffer from. Best to mix it with a tinted moisturiser for day time!

We hope this was a good read for you!

Fyza x

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The Contour Kits Hype!

So since last year the hype of "contouring" hit social media with a bang! 'Contouring' is a beauty method that involves "carving" the face with a darker shade of foundation or powder - creating the illusion of more defined cheekbones, a slimmer nose, shorter nose, slimming the face, temporarily getting rid of a unwanted double chin and it's also used on the body for creating cleavage, abs etc - it's been used in the industry for years! Even Marylin Monroe's Make-Up Artist contoured her nose to make it look more narrow (she had her nose done and they said it still wasn't small enough so that's where contouring came to the rescue!)

using Sonia as my muse.

(This type of contouring is used for photo shoots and red carpet events)

Contouring isn't a new thing for people who have been in the industry for years, it's just become popular to the world because of social media, all the pictures and videos you see being posted on the Internet. I want to explain (my own thoughts) the types of contouring products you can get to use on yourself every day, I don't mean you have to spend two hours every morning drawing lines all over your face, Contouring is meant to be quick, easy, yet effective. If I could do it at the age of 18 with no social media pictures (I would have 15 minutes to get ready for college every morning) so can you! I would use a cheap eye shadow that was COOL toned and a shade darker than my skin to shade the sides of my nose and the tip, a little dust on the hollows of my cheeks too - in 5 minutes my contouring was done, I instantly had a smaller nose and high cheekbones!

Many companies out there have taken advantage of this contouring hype and created contour kits - but do we REALLY need those? do we need all 6 to 8 shades? Yes if you're a Make-Up Artist maybe, but I know of many Make-Up artists in the industry that don't store these contour kits in their make-up kit because there's either products that work better, just as good and they save more kit space. I have used almost every new contour kit out there, powder to cream to those contouring sticks, to realise what makes these so different to concealers and foundations? these companies have just stuck the word "contour" on anything so we buy them, it's the hype, the IT thing, we all want it!

I recently purchased the Laura Mercier contour kit, the shades are perfection, the consistency is heaven and I love how they glide on, but I realised the staying power of this product is not the best, I used it for weeks and I was really disappointed, it melts off after four hours and if you have oily skin it's not the best. People will say set it with powder contour but how many of us have the time to layer our makeup for work, school, college etc? not everyone is a professional Make-Up Artist with a whole day to do make-up and touch up. I decided to write this post to tell people out there you don't need to spend a ton of money on these hyped kits that have contour written on them when you can use any cream foundation or powder that's cool toned and a shade or two darker than your skin.

Many of us probably already have concealers in our make up bags that are a few shades darker because we use them for the summer or we got matched wrong - use those to practise your contour! I will give you a few examples of products that you can use to contour. I prefer cream concealers because they are quick to blend out, make sure they are cool toned - they help mimic colours of the natural shadows on our faces. (check out my post about cool and warm tones if you want to know how they are supposed to look.)

Fave products to contour with - that don't have the word contour on the packaging!

Laura Mercier Camouflage Concealer SC8

It has a warm and cool side - the warm shade is perfect for correcting and the cool is a great contour shade.

Milani Secret Cover Concealer Stick

lovely make-up brand with great products and the shade range for these are great, some cool toned concealer sticks that are affordable.

Cover Girl - TruBlend Fixstick Concealer 

love the tones and the easy use!

LA Girl Cosmetics - HD PRO Conceal

These concealers come in many colours, Love them for contour because it already has a brush applicator! 

Motives Color Perfection Quads

My most used, it's meant to be a foundation but I was one of the first Make-Up Artists on Instagram to use this for contour early last year. love the shades and consistency!

I'm not against contour kits, I have a fave too but for women who love to wear make-up you shouldn't have to break the bank to find the right beauty product. You can still be in trend but you don't have to follow what everyone else is using. Try any of these products and I know you will LOVE at least ONE, they save space in your makeup bag, easy to carry, pack and the staying power of these is much better because they are a concealer formula :)

I hope this helped some of you, I try my best to explain everything without going on and on. I don't always use high end products, I love to experiment with different brands just so I can give my feedback. If you have any confusion about shade picking be sure to check out my post where I explained all of that including powder contour products,

love, Fyza x

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Possibly the best brushes you could own!

Hey guys, hope you're all well. I've been trying a bunch of beauty related products lately and usually wait about two months max depending on the product before I review it. As a beauty lover and Make-up Artist we have to have the right tools, I have been raving about Wayne Goss brushes for 3 weeks now, I even took them with me to fashion week (had to mark each one, ha!) I'm going to tell you guys why these brushes are worth every penny (I'm not just saying this because I'm a huge fan of his and have been for as long as I can remember)

If you follow me on Instagram and take a look at the most recent photos I have posted of my work you will realise a difference in my application of Make-up and that's because of these brushes. On Instagram people are always asking "what foundation, what concealer?!" or "what contour?" it's not always about the products it's more about how you choose to use them and what tools you use with the products.

Amazing quality and they look pretty too!

My favourite have been the eyeshadow brushes, you can tell how much effort has been put into designing each brush, so precise, the hairs are soft and they blend your shadows together beautifully. My favourite one from the smaller brushes is the brush 08 - it's tiny and it's SO good for precision, I use it to get eyeshadow closest to the bottom lash line, to tight line and to fill in eyebrows and create those natural looking "hairs" with brow powder. 

Taped and marked the brushes so they don't get mixed with others!

Everyone asks me about contour! I have started to use a powder only and the most light-weight brush for this is brush 14, it's so light, feathery, gives the most natural contour hollow without the harsh obvious line, fits right into the hollows of the cheeks, it doesn't make the foundation or concealer move at all because of the way it has been created - the shape and length of the brush hairs.

I love the simplicity of these brushes, the way they are not only for make-up artists. They make applying make-up so much easier and I did my own research on these to find they are 100% cruelty free, natural hair bristles (this is why they are SO soft and feel like heaven on the skin) and hand crafted! I love how he just didn't get any old brushes made and stuck his name on them, you can tell that there was a lot of thought gone in to this, he is an artist and you can tell from using his brushes. I've always used a mixture of brushes and recently I have found myself picking at them only. They look so good on your vanity, in your brush belt and I LOVE taking them out on shoots. 

I use brush 20 to smoke out colours on the lash line, brush 15 to apply powder highlight, the white holiday brush to dust face powder and bronzer lightly. The brushes pick up the right amount of product, especially when you are lightly dusting some loose powder to set your makeup.

Here are some of the looks I created using only Wayne Goss brushes - They are available to purchase on www.beautylish.com 

This blog post is my own opinion.

Fyza xxx

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"No Makeup" Makeup

Sometimes we don't want to make the effort with so much make-up and the dramatic look but at the same time we still want to wear make-up to feel good and that's wear the "no make-up make-up" trick comes in.
"No make-up make-up" is basically wearing make-up without making it look like you have make-up on ;) the skin in the main focus. It's all about fresh glowing, healthy looking skin which is perfect for summer and it is pretty simple to do.

I recently shot with a beautiful model from Germany called Lorena and she had beautiful skin with some freckles. When I saw her I just thought "I don't want to do her make-up so it looks like she has it on" I don't want the make-up to be seen when you look at her. She was going to be professionally photographed so I did take a while to achieve the "natural" look on her because it could look quite washed out with all the studio lighting and camera flash but I will be explaining how you can achieve the natural no make-up make-up look on yourself or anyone else for every day.

 


Products to create fresh looking skin:
Use your favorite moisturizer. You can use a primer if you want but it's good to use one especially in the heat. I used Maybelline baby skin primer (£6.99) , For foundation I used Makeup Forever face and body foundation but a really good one is Neutrogena Healthy Skin Foundation ($11.37) It is a cheaper option and gives a beautiful dewy finish. For concealer I used Laura Mercier secret camouflage a little under her eyes and on some blemishes (I used a MAC 217 brush to apply the concealer lightly) A cheaper option would be Revlon Colorstay Concealer (£6.99) It's one of my fave drugstore concealers. I combed through her brows and used Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Brunette (if you are from the UK you can purchase this on cultbeauty.co.uk)  For the glow on the cheek bones and brow bone I used NARS Illuminator in Orgasm, a cheaper option would be e.l.f. Essential Shimmering Facial Whip in Golden Peach ($1.00) To warm up her skin I used Tom Ford Shade and illumnate on her cheeks and sides of her forhead but I recently tried a drugstore foundation (yes foundation!) to bronze/contour and I was amazed! You can try L'Oreal Nude Magique Eau De Teint in 220 Golden Sand (£9.99) It's so light weight and easy to work with especially if you want a natural looking bronze look. To keep the foundation in place I lightly dusted some translucent powder by Ben Nye.

Eyes  
You can skip using any eyeshadow and just apply a few coats of mascara but I used Bonjour Summer Eyeshadow Palette by Too faced, the colors I used are Firefly all over the lid and Sand Dollar on the inner tear duct - I know that Kiko Cosmetics have amazing eyeshadow palettes that are super cheap and have beautiful bronzy colors. I literally used my fingers for this look except for the concealer. I used a Kiko Mascara and for lips I used Heidi D cosmetics Lipstick in Natural rose - I put some on my finger and pressed into her lips to give a natural looking lip tint and topped with some clear gloss and that's it.

I love using my fingers sometimes because it gives the "effortless" finish and it saves time if you are doing make-up on yourself. I always say your hands are your best tool when applying make-up, just make sure your hands are sanitized before you touch your face.

Here's some more pictures of different looks I did. I just changed up the eye make-up by adding eyeliner and smoking out some shimmery black shadow.

 

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. I wanted to recommend some decent make-up that you can buy for way cheaper and still look as glam so I hope that helped :) Tag me in your no makeup makeup pictures on Instagram with the hashtag #soniaxfyza I would love to see! 

xxxx

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