My magic concealer combo

They say age is just a number but now that I am dangerously close to 30, I want to disagree. Although I still feel 17 at heart, I can see the difference in my skin. Those crow's feet and frown lines are getting just a little too deep for comfort and it seems like I'll never again not have blue circles under my eyes.

This means that I have had to up my game when it comes to concealer under my eyes. I have been taking serious notes from the YouTube guru's lately trying to find the perfect concealer that does not crease under the eyes. I have tried the drugstore holy grail, Maybelline Fit Me concealer (which is great but it does not have enough coverage), MAC studio fix concealer (it's a cream formula and way too thick), my Kryolan dermacolor (cruelty-free) and Essence's coverstick (cruelty-free). It did not work for me.

So in the mean while, I've decided to go cruelty-free on all of my cosmetics. This narrowed my choice of concealers down considerably. Luckily the LA Girl Pro concealer came highly recommended and checked the cruelty-free boxes so I started my hunt for it in Dischem stores. After finally finding an LA Girl Pro concealer in my shade the other day,  I found the concealer that works for me.

Of course, any concealer's potential to stay crease-free is only as good as its setting powder and so I've been setting it with Catrice's Prime and Fine translucent powder (cruelty-free). I was happy with the results but this week I grabbed for my Essence All About Matt fixing compact powder in a hurry and suddenly it was magic!

Assuming that I've been good and used a moisturising eye cream as a primer, the LA Girl concealer with Essence powder does not crease. Not even if I try really hard. Here's what I do:

I apply the concealer with my fingers - I find that a sponge or brush absorbs too much product and leaves the coverage too sheer - to the first eye bag and immediately set it using pressing motions with the powder and a powder puff, before moving onto the next eye.

The staying power is not bad and I don't touch up during the day but might re-apply if we are going out again for the evening. I feel like I'd rather compromise on the longevity than on the coverage.

I am super thrilled with this combination not only because it makes me look not-so-close-to-thirty but also because it is cruelty-free, inexpensive and magic. I feel like I've discovered a unicorn.

Rebuilding my make-up kit for animal love

I have recently signed up for the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet programme because I figured that if I feel super guilty after a spending spree at Woolworths, I can at least console myself in that a portion of my money is going to a good cause. I have been wanting to sign up for a long time and every time that I'm at a Woolies counter, I take one of the application forms (and I even filled out one of them once) but I have never actually submitted a form. I hadn't realised that I could so easily sign up for one online here.

If you're not familiar with the programme and live in South Africa, please take a moment to click here and go look at what it is all about. It might just convince you to sign up too.

In deciding which charities to choose, I came across Beauty Without Cruelty who is actively trying to prevent animal cruelty in South Africa. (WARNING: If you don't know what the word "vivisection" on their website means, don't try to Google it like I did. You'll be disturbed until next week.)

I absolutely support their efforts and have nominated them as one of my preferred charities. This, of course, made me think of all the cosmetics in my make-up kit that might be tested on animals.

Now, before you argue that it has to be safety tested somehow before it is sold for humans, please explain to me why, if they are using ingredients in their products that might not be safe and has to be tested in the first place, you would want those ingredients on your body at all? 

My day job is in the medical field and thus I am not completely oblivious to the necessity of using animals for testing. Without animal testing, we cannot possibly advance our medical research but beauty products are a luxury and I do not see the need for animal testing unless they are adding some crazy, carcinogenic, chemical stuff to my make-up.

Over the last few weeks, through some of my favourite make-up guru's, I have come to the realisation that many of my favourite cosmetic brands are being tested on animals. In this video at 04:00 minutes in, Samantha from Batalashbeauty explains why you might think your cosmetics are cruelty-free when in fact there is some animal testing going on behind the scenes. She also visits Lush HQ in this video so you can understand why Lush is truly such a great brand. (And why we NEED a Lush store in Johannesburg...)

It has been bothering me but I am now committed to do something about it. Before I buy a product, I want to do research on which cosmetics are indeed cruelty free. I am also slowly replacing non-cruelty free make-up in my kit as I run out of it although it is difficult to find good, professional quality alternatives for some of the products.

Beauty Without Cruelty has a list of cosmetic brands which they endorse. Their criteria is very strict and specific so you know that it is guaranteed cruelty-free. It is also worth reading through your favourite cosmetic brands' mission statements on their website to see whether they are against animal testing before making a purchase.

I am a bit of tree hugger and I am hoping that you might become one too but if you are still not convinced that animal testing is not ethical, maybe you should Google "vivisection" and click on the Images tab.

Coverstick Basics

Life lesson #415 that I learned: sunscreen and make-up don't always mix. I wrote about it in my How to rock orange spotted skin post. After I eventually cleaned my face and weighed the long term effects of UV ray damage against the importance of covering zits, I reapplied my sunscreen and went bare faced. For a while.

It didn't take me long to start looking through my cosmetics bag for something else to cover my blemishes with and found my Essence coverstick in 06 Matt Ivory.

I love coversticks. They are compact and thus perfect to carry around for touch-ups during the day. They are also a cream formula which means that they give full cover over blemishes and does not oxidise which is why it was perfect for above mentioned dilemma.

I do, however, feel compelled to cover a few coverstick basics as I see too many women using their coversticks as if they are crayons.

Despite the lipstick tube format that coversticks come in, they are not meant to be applied to your skin the way you would lipstick to your lips . Because of their very heavy, creamy consistency, crayon application of your coverstick concealer is a foolproof way to make your skin look cakey and unnatural. The idea is to conceal your blemishes, not to replace it with an odd-looking splodge on your skin.

When applying your coverstick, dab a sponge or concealer brush on the coverstick tip and apply the concealer with the tool. If you don't have any of these handy, a clean finger will do. This is a good technique for three main reasons:

1. Pressing the coverstick directly onto your blemish transfers any of the bacteria on your skin to the coverstick. By contaminating your concealer, you are not only shortening the life of your make-up but aggravating your acne or zits.
2. Dabbing your tool over the blemish creates a lighter, more even application which blends into your skin or foundation.
3. You are pressing the concealer into the skin and therefore prolonging its wear, as opposed to concealer just sitting on top of the skin with crayon application.

It is also necessary to set the coverstick concealer just like you would your liquid concealer and foundation with powder.

Coverstick concealers were meant to disguise blemishes and discolouration but that does not include the blue bags under your eyes. You are sure to get heavy creasing if you attempt to use this under your eyes. Rather use a liquid concealer for your eye that is known for its non-creasing quality.

I find that it is not necessary to spend a lot on a good coverstick. Most drugstore brands' coversticks are great and inexpensive so adding one to your cosmetic collection won't break the bank. The Essence coversticks are R36.95 and you can pick up a Yardley Oatmeal one for about R59.95  at Dischem and Clicks. Just don't let their containers tempt you into lazy application.

Tuesday shopping!

When doing make-up on a client, I mostly use Kryolan foundation because it gives full coverage and depending on the application technique and what you mix it with, can become dewy, glowy or matt. I also have a range of 10 colours with which I can mix the perfect match for my client's skin tone. So, imagine my distress when I ran out of my favourite two light tones a while ago.

This afternoon I suddenly felt desperate to replace those two colours: Felo and Ivory, and so I did. I quickly popped into my Kryolan store and bought new pallette size foundations for my make-up kit. 

Thing is, Kryolan's Dermacolor Créme foundation is so affordable that I am tempted to go back tomorrow for a full size Felo foundation for myself. Why pay R250 for the Revlon Colorstay (I'm currently wearing daily and is great) when I can wear professional make-up with the same and better qualities for R210? 

Don't be surprised to see me rocking Kryolan Felo on the daily.

(This pic has been through an Instagram filter or two so these foundations look much darker than they actually are. Ivory, left and Felo, right.)

How to rock orange spotted skin

After spending the past weekend in Kwa-Zulu Natal, I've concluded that I truly belong to the sea. It's no surprise really because I was born in Port Shepstone and the first breath I drew was salty, humid sea air. That being said, I don't see myself moving to a seafront cottage soon but a girl can dream and maybe one day when I need false teeth and lashes daily, I'll have a seaview. For now, I'll stick to Johannesburg where I'm close to family and where my concealer doesn't oxidise. Because, let me tell you, some weird stuff happened to my skin this weekend.

I'm very pale which means that sunscreen is my friend and the only thing preventing me from burning tomato red. I use the Nivea face sunscreen with SPF50 when I know I'll be in the sun all day and this weekend I applied it generously in the South Coast sun but for the first time ever, it made my skin break out. These break outs caused me to freak out and I turned to my trusty Maybelline Fit Me concealer. The Maybelline Fit Me concealer is a favourite of anyone who has access to it (hard to find in SA), but no one has ever mentioned the bright orange it becomes when mixed with sunscreen! Bright. Orange.

I, of course, did not notice the colour changing magic that happened on my face until my fiancé stared puzzled, at my chin in Wimpy after I'd already ordered a coffee and smiled at various people looking at (orange spotted) me. I can only imagine what they were thinking...

The other disconcerting thing about my orange spotted skin was that sunscreen, I found, is an excellent setting primer as it makes removing concealer very difficult. Wiping at it with a tissue, did not cut it and so I had to wait until I had access to my make-up remover again before I could fix it.

The only solution that was left to this make-up moment was to remind myself of third world problems and tug my neckline lower to focus attention away from my face.

I won't go into any of the other beauty issues I had to deal with because the weekend was well worth the worries but the highlights include sand, sweat and hair stuck to my face. Luckily no mistake is without lesson so I learned that I still need to master make-up in humid weather and while my heart belongs at the ocean, my skin clearly does not.

Orange spotted face essentials

Foundation woes on a Sunday

I could have easily walked out of Woolworths today with both a Smashbox Liquid Halo and a Stila Stay All Day foundation. I also had my eye on the Smashbox Favourites collection which is a sample size pack of Smashbox's best products but due to lack of service and testers, I left empty handed.

I haven't tried either of the above mentioned foundations yet and because I am in the market for a foundation, I felt like trying one I haven't before. This means that I also had to do some serious colour matching and went with a bare face so that I can find the perfect fit.

I usually go to Woolworths Clearwater when I do feel like my W card is burning a hole in my pocket but because I wanted make-up, I drove the few extra kilometres to Cresta as Clearwater does not stock any high end cosmetics. While I was absolutely vulnerable to spend a great deal of money on make-up on a Sunday, Woolworths just wasn't interested in taking advantage of it.

Upon walking into Woolworths, the Smashbox stand winked at me and I immediately started unpacking the shelves for a tester to try on myself but there were no testers available for my skin tone and so without panicking, I scanned the cosmetic section for the nearest Woolworths employee. No one seemed to be around but without being deterred, I turned towards the Stila shelf. But despite my excitement, I ran into exactly the same problem - no tester and no employee to assist with the no tester problem.

Annoyed, I walked around the cosmetics section for a bit looking for someone to help me. I finally caught the eye of an employee across the aisle in the clothing section and smiled brightly but instead of being encouraged to approach, the employee looked in a different direction.

Should I have asked for the manager? Should I have waited for the cosmetic section employees to return and then complained? I could've but I chose to leave with a frown on my bare face and vowed to never buy from Woolworths Cresta again.

A while ago I wouldn't have been able to keep this vow but luckily Foschini is now stocking Smashbox and if I am still convinced that I need the Stila foundation in my life a month from now, I can buy it from Truworths and Stuttafords. Woolworths clearly does not want my money so why in the world would I get upset if I can't give it to them?

Glue that shadow!

Ever bought an eyeshadow because of its magical, vibrant colour and were then disappointed upon applying it because despite its high price and quality brand name, the colour just does not give off like it promised? Ever applied an eyeshadow with great success only for it to crease and fade three hours into your day?

It might be because you did not prime your eyelids.

When you apply your eyeshadow to your naked, clean lids, you are exposing it to your natural oils and eye cream.  The natural oils on your lid makes for a slippery canvas and gives the eyeshadow a transport medium to those fine lines and eye crease. It is therefore necessary to prepare your canvas as follows:

-  Absorb the oil from your lids.
Whether your oily lids are from your freshly applied eye cream or natural oil producing skin, blot your eyelids with a tissue. If you are particularly oily, try oil control paper. It is inexpensive and you can carry it in your handbag to also use it during the day on your T-zone.

- Apply primer.
There are many different products you can use to prime your lids including concealers, eyeshadow primers, eyeshadow bases and cream eyeshadows.

You can use a liquid concealer that does not crease to conceal the veins on your lids and match your foundation. The best type of concealer for this function would be one you'd usually use for the under-eye area. Try:

MAC pro longwear concealer (MAC stores, R240.00)

or LA Girl (Cruelty-free) pro concealer (Dischem, R45.95). 

If you are wearing shimmery or glittery shadows or an eyeshadow that is very powdery, you want something with a stickier texture, like an eyeshadow base or cream eyeshadow. Cream eyeshadows and bases will conceal any discolouration and veins on your lids as well as create a base colour that you can wear by itself or apply shadow over. Try:

MAC paint pot in Stormy Pink (MAC, R220.00)

NYX Eyeshadow base (Clicks, TBA)

Eyeshadow primers are colourless and is therefore perfect if you don't want your eyeshadow colour altered which above mentioned products tend to do. When I am in the mood to go all out on my eyes, I apply a concealer and a primer for coverage and intense colour. Try:

Smashbox Shadow primer (Woolworths & Foschini, R230.00)

Palladio (Cruelty-free) eyeshadow primer (Dischem, R74.95)

And if you are in need of magic but you have none of the products above? Use eyeliner. 

Just try it:

NYX Jumbo eye pencil in Milk (Clicks, TBA)