October 2012 – MUAHbyAlex

Frankenstorm Sandy

Unfortunately myself and my fellow North Easterners are currently being affected by what has been named “Frankenstorm Sandy.” I honestly didn’t think this whole Frankenstorm was going to be a big deal, but after watching many news reports and hearing heavy winds picking up and banging against my house, I was finally convinced I should run down to Shop Rite for some supplies earlier today. We are prepared and have my house as ready as possible. I’m absolutely addicted to Yankee Candle so I didn’t have to splurge on candles since my house is already filled with fall scents such as pumpkin pie, and apple spice ! If I’m going to be in the dark, it should at least smell good! Unfortunately, I expect power and internet to go out (I’m shocked I’ve lasted this long without power, I’m usually the first to loose it)… so why not do a quick blog post while I sit and wait ? I’ve spent most of my day riding this storm, curled up on my couch in a comfy t-shirt that I’ve stolen from my boyfriend, catching up on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, enjoying an antioxidant mask by Hylunia, loading up on ~~junk food~~ (womp womp) and reading fashion blogs by scented candle light. With all my guilty pleasure snacks all stockpiled and ready to go, I pulled out a few other rainy day essentials to enjoy. My favorite hurricane accessory thus far? Without a doubt, my fuzzy warm socks. I am also keeping my MacBook Air and iPhone plugged in at all times, so if and when the electricity goes out, I’ll still be able to blog and tweet before I loose contact with society. I keep thinking about online shopping but almost too distracted by the news for that. For some reason I keep noticing every store having hurricane sales? Weird. Not sure if thats sick or genius…

My 10am facial appointment booked in Rhinebeck tomorrow morning was obviously post-poned until next week, along with a dinner date with my friends. But I am thankful I haven’t had any water damage (yet, I don’t want to speak too soon) but my heart does go out to every one that is being affected by this disastrous Frankenstorm! Tons of my friends and family in NYC are dealing with crazy floods right now, I’m hearing there is so much damage, and can’t believe my eyes watching the news! Ugh! Sandy is not messing around.

All I can say is that my thoughts are with all of the people that have/are going to be affected by Sandy. Please show your support to them and the aftermath of this awful storm. Although, I suppose Sandy is forcing all of us to spend some extra time with our family, friends and/or loved ones. I must admit this storm put a stop to all of our everyday hustle and bustle and force us to bond and spend time together. Jeeze. Frankenstorm please go away, but in the meantime I guess I will cherish this time to hang with my man and furry babies 😉 Hoping all outdoor animals and strays found shelter and are safe. Also my dad who is stuck working in this severe weather. 😦

Hurricanes are stressful. Sit tight my beauties! If there is no power tomorrow, I will attempt to reorganize my closet…. again.. Ugh! Stay safe !

Eyes Need Special Care

Hello beauties! Thank you for reading 🙂 This week has been crazy, busy and so hectic! It feels amazing to wind down with an exfoliating facial on, and lay on my couch with my furry friends. This week was filled with bridal makeup… Weddings, trials, more weddings, & more trials. I’m now booking bridal makeup for 2013. I am happy to announce that I am soon to be, a featured vendor on The Knot! The knot is an exclusive website that contains everything you need to plan your wedding. Dresses, ideas, photos, vendors, inspirations, etc. I’m currently in the process of setting up my profile, but by next week it should be up. My profile will also be featured on Kleinfeld’s site, which carries the largest selection of beautiful, couture wedding dresses and gowns. I quickly posted Friday morning, of an incredible wedding video which I did makeup for. If you haven’t watched it yet, please do! The video was done beautifully by Moving Pictures. Definitely made me cry both times I watched it. Sniff, sniff.

Here is flowers from Friday’s wedding, perfect for Fall and so pretty! And photo of Saturday’s bride, Lindsay. I love her! Also a photo of Erin, one of my past brides who just got her professional photos back!

I can finally say that I have completed all my weddings for October. I only have a few weddings booked for next month and the following. During the winter months is when I’m really recommending my future brides to set up trials, while I have the open slots and free time available. Because once spring comes, I’m back in full force busy for the wedding season. Seems that everyone is getting engaged! If you are, or know anyone that is please send them my way and have them check out my site if your in the tri-state area 🙂 When wedding season comes to an end, it allows me to pick up jobs doing makeup for runway shows, commercials, events, films and shoots. I have a lot of exciting projects coming up within the next two months, which I can’t wait to share with you when the time comes 🙂 Besides from bridal makeup, I’ve done my fair share of Halloween makeup this month and I’m finding a lot of my clients wanting completely different haircuts and styles for fall! It’s nice to change it up! I’m working on Halloween this year, so I had to celebrate my Halloween last night. I went to Studio square in Long Island city. Music was so good, view was gorgeous, the set up was done great and we got there early to enjoy all the drink specials. Through out the night it got busy but wasn’t too crowded where you can’t breath or move, thank god because I like my space, nothing worse than a room filled with hot, sweaty strangers in costumes dancing and rubbing against you. ugh! Music by Ed Polido & then Miss Jennifer. ❤

Follow me on Instagram @Alexgill !

I decided to be a kitten, since 1. I only had 10 minutes (literally!) to figure out a costume and throwing on old black leggings from Metropark a couple years back and a black tank top were KEY & 2. all my friends and coworkers have been calling me the “cat lady” since I rescued these adorable two little kittens that were living in my yard. I just HAD to take them in, it was getting so cold out and it’s been so rainy, they would crawl up into my car to stay warm from the heat in my engine. What kind of person would I be to deny these cute little creatures a warm, loving home, as they sat outside my windows looking in?! I had to keep them. When we took them to the vet, he said that there was quite and age difference (buddah just over 6 months and banks around 2-3 months) and also informed me that they were not liter mates, and told me how incredibly rare it is for these two stray kittens to find each other, and interact with each other becoming best friends. Once I took them for shots, and brought them inside I had to introduce them to my pup Sonny. He adores them. He’s so gentle with them and I’m pretty positive he thinks he’s the kitten’s mother, which is perfectly okay with me.

Friday night, my good friend Monica and I attended a fundraising event at Marlene Weber Day Spa, in Poughkeepsie. We purchased a $25 ticket which was donated to Miles of Hope and included two complimentary services, along with raffles, food and cocktails. Is that an amazing deal, or what?! Even better, since it goes to such a great cause. Of course for one of my services, I booked a massage, hunching over all day doing makeup is obviously not the best posture for my back. For my second service, I booked an eyebrow grooming with my glamorous friend Stephanie (who has the best brows EVER may I add) If you need your brows waxed and groomed and you live near the Poughkeepsie area, I definitely recommend you going to her. We all know how important our brows are, which frame our faces! Remember thin, is NOT in anymore. This year full, thick brows is what it’s about. So try to grow those brows in and go get them shaped! I wish I took more photos of the event, but I was too busy indulging delicious food, complements of Rossi’s, Brasserie, La Puerta Azul and more. To make the night even better, I won a raffle for a wash, cut & blow-dry and waxing. Oh la la! I never win raffles so I was beyond excited. Marlene Weber Day Spa was also offering 20% off gift cards, and since my birthday is next month, why not treat myself to an early birthday gift?! I purchased an $80 service for $64. Good deal! Over all Beauty Night Out was a success, many donations made to Miles of Hope, I won a raffle, and got to enjoy time with my girlfriends while being pampered!

Fall headband piece perfect for these cold months ahead!

So how do I cut & style multiple clients hair, do makeup trials on my future brides, apply makeup to brides and their full bridal parities, wander off to NYC, attend beauty fundraising events, along with many meetings, dinner dates and errands in between without looking tired, even though I’m BEYOND EXHAUSTED? By taking special care of your eyes of course!

The skin around your eyes is much thinner than the rest of your face so it requires special attention! Dark under-eye circles can make young people look old and tired. Womp womp. They can be treated very successfully with prescription topical creams and lasers. But I obviously prefer natural eye care.

~~Puffiness:~~ under eye puffiness can be caused by a variety of reasons including diet, allergies or extra fluid in your system. In the morning to treat puffiness, Splash your face with very cold water. Tap gently around your eyes to help move away fluid in eyes. gently press along your eyebrow and around your eye socket with your middle. Place a cold compress under your eyes for 15 minutes. I like to use cold green tea bags that i keep in the freezer over night or cold cucumber slices. Tannin, which is found in teabags, will lower the swelling and discoloration around the eyes. You need to place two teabags in the fridge overnight to chill them; in the morning, get them damp, and then lie down with them on your eyes. Keep your eyes closed and body still for 10 to 15 minutes each day – you’ll see results immediately 🙂 If you don’t have teabags, use an ice cube wrapped in a cloth. Never put ice directly onto the skin around your eye because it can cause blood vessels to burst, which causes more dark circles and discoloration.

~~Dark circles:~~ The skin under the eyes is so thin that in some people the blood passing through the teeny tiny veins near the surface show through, giving that area a bluish or gray cast aka dark circles. Heredity, fatigue and illness and make under eye circles dark as well. Sleep and concealer is the best options. Make sure you get at least 8 hours of sleep each night. Beauty sleep is NO MYTH! If you want to look good, do everything you can to get a good night’s sleep. And perhaps invest in 100% silk pillowcases. Always use natural eye creams morning and night.

Lush lashes: All your hair, grows in cycles. Eyelashes grow for approximately six months then falls out by a new lash. Never rub your eyes. Even when removing makeup. Be gentle. Before bed, treat your lashes with castor oil or other light oils to keep them clean and conditioned. A friend recommended I try a product called Lash Max which was a conditioner for your eye lashes making them grow longer and healthier. I tried it for about a month and loved it.

Remember to always wear sunglasses in the sun. One of your best beauty tools. It also prevents crow’s feet and eye wrinkles! I like the eye cream by Hylunia and Lilly B. Lily B has a great natural eye cream I adore, which is infused with vitamin K and arnica that helps reduce any puffiness and under eye circles! Lily.B Skincare Multi-Action Rescue Ultra Eye Cream is a great eye cream for those looking to remedy tired, puffy eyes. It’s non-jar packaging makes it an eye cream I highly recommend to anyone!

My favorite under eye concealer is Erase Paste by benefit. which is a concentrated, creamy brightening concealer for eyes and face. Application is key. Use your finger and pat the product from the inside corner of the eye and out to give a smooth, natural coverage. You only need a little because too much concealer can actually bring focus to the under eye area. Always start with an eye cream first to hydrate the eye area before applying concealer so it goes on smoothly and evenly. For extreme under eye darkness, start with a concealer that is pink or peach in color. Pink concealers help to brighten a dark blue or purple under-eye, and peach colored concealers brighten a green or gray under-eye. Don’t use a beige or white concealer, It’s only going to make the darkness look gray. Once you have applied the pink or peach, layer concealer that matches your skin tone on top. Dust the under-eye with a sheer, pale yellow powder to help to set the product and make sure it doesn’t crease.

Okay, time to remove my facial mask off and get my blankets ready to sleep on the couch, with my tea! Everyone be safe during this hurricane sandy storm! Hopefully it doesn’t hit us too hard. Perfect opportunity to stay inside and enjoy “me” time! Xoxo

Laura’s Bridal Video

Just a little something to hold you over until Sunday’s post. This video is the most impressive video I’ve seen documenting a wedding. Moving Pictures created this bridal video for Laura. I did her wedding makeup as you’ll see in the video, and Chelsea Harris did her bridal hair! Her wedding looked so incredibly beautiful. This is definitely a tear jerker, so please have a tissue present! I’ll post this on my bridal page also.. Off to do weddings all weekend ! Enjoy 🙂

Morning Rituals

“Beauty is how you feel inside, and it reflects in your eyes. It is not something physical”

Hey dolls! Thank you for taking the time out to read my blog 🙂 I am genuinely thrilled about all the messages, emails and other feedback I’ve been receiving since I started blogging. I’m glad some of my home remedies has helped some of you! I have so many beauty secrets to share and it definitely keeps me motivated that your willing to continue to read what I have to say and try some of these remedies I have to offer at home. The best feeling for me, is making other people feel good about themselves. I LOVE when people feel good about themselves. When you look good, you feel good.I really stride to make other ladies feel beautiful on the outside, as well as the inside. This is probably why I love doing bridal makeup so much, because I really work to achieve the brides goal by making them look and feel NATURALLY beautiful by bringing out their best features. Make sure to always look at the bright side of things, stay positive, count your blessings, avoid negative people, and never talk bad about others, some pointers that can help anyone feel good! With that being said, please feel free to ask me anything to do with my career field, I am very open to conversation and a pretty good listener 😉

I had two other brides but didn’t take photos, so I’ll have to wait until they send me the professional pics 😉

This past weekend I was booked with bridal makeup, as I also am this coming weekend. One of my favorite eye shadows I use on a handful of brides is Sable by MAC. The only liner I use for my clients is MAC’s Black Track gel liner, which is applied using a small angled brush. MAC is one out of a million product lines I use. Walking into a store like Sephora is definitely relevant to a child walking into a giant toy store. I can say I use at least one product from every product line in that store.

So I’ve received a lot of messages recently about my “morning routine”. After I wake up & wash my face in the morning, I have my morning ritual of herbal tea, lemon water and vitamins before breakfast. People ask me all the time exactly what vitamins I take, probably because I post photos constantly on instagram (@alexgill) of tea and vitamins in the morning lol ! I am not a health expert or a nutritionist, I just consume what the talkative, saleslady at Vitamin World is always selling me at the mall. Right now I’m talking a multi-vitamin, Vitamin C chewable vitamins (which taste so good, like sweet-tarts), Biotin, Omega & Folic acid. I take vitamin C because it is EXCELLENT for your immune system, and helps prevent and fight common colds. Vitamin C is a powerful and effective antioxidant that protects our bodies. I take biotin because it is great for your skin, nails and hair 🙂 Folic acid is mostly found in leafy green vegetables and is useful in fighting acne, it’s also great to take if your pregnant (I’m not preggo, but just thought I’d throw it out there for anyone who is) My doctor recommended Omega-3 Fish Oil. If I can exaggerate slightly for a quick minute, it’s probably the closest thing we have to a miracle pill. I think everyone should take these no matter what their diet is like. Omega-3 reduced risk of heart attack, stroke, lowers blood pressure, reduces joint stiffness, lowers cholesterol, prevents (or improves) alzheimers disease, depression, heart disease, arthritis, adhd, and SOOO MUCH MORE, I could go on, and on. I will add it that taking this, will better your skin and hair and it helps eczema. I also take raspberry key tone which is not necessarily a “vitamin” but a natural supplement made from red raspberries. It’s considered a super fruit and burns fat, and excess calories. I first saw Raspberry Keytones on Dr. Oz and read up and did my research. I bought it and love it. It’s part of my every day routine.

I drink green tea every morning. It seems scientists discover a new benefit from green tea every other week! I stock up on green tea! I drink Yogi’s Green Tea that I buy from Nature’s Pantry or Mother Earth. Green tea aids in weight loss by boosting metabolism, it also has amazing benefits for your skin. It is full of antioxidants that prevent skin cancer and protects against free radicals that age skin. Green tea is not a cure but a preventive, so KEY is to start drinking it at an early age and drink it every day. Many believe it has antiaging benefits. I drink 8 cups of water daily and 2-4 cups of tea. They also make green tea supplements that also work well for the body. If you add lemon to your cup of green tea it increases it effectiveness. Second, green tea is an anti-inflammatory so an application of green tea soothes irritated skin or a mild sunburn. I don’t recommend drinking green tea after 6pm if you don’t want a good night sleep ( or any other products that contain caffeine this is why I only drink green tea in the morning ) I also use green tea bags to help my under eye circles! I place them in the freezer at night and place them on my eyelids in the morning, WAH LAH! Say bye to tired eyes 🙂

After my vitamins, and green tea, I chug a warm glass of water with lemon and a teaspoon of honey. I think honey is the key to beauty. Honey is great for your skin. Sometimes I’ll add it into a facial mask and apply it to my face, it really hydrates the skin. Honey soothes sore throats, calms coughs, boots immunity and is excellent for your digestive system. It also contains tons of enzymes and contains antioxidants. I buy my natural honey from a local farmers market. Always support and buy locally !

My last post I discussed products from Dr. Alkaitis Holistic Organic Skinfood, which I really am loving. My skin feels so fresh. I discussed how I used one of their masks. Then I read on their site that if you use

1 tbsp of Dr Alkaitis Universal mask, then ADD 1 tbsp of raw organic honey, 1 tbsp of organic goat milk yogurt and 2 pumps of Dr. Alkaitis Organic Nourishing treatment oil then your skin will be even more amazing! Mix it up and apply to your face using your fingertips, Allow yourself to relax and love your skin ❤

Phone shot of what my phone alarm clock looks like… Hello, #LifeOfAMakeupArtist

I decided I’m going to do a blog post every Wednesday and Sunday, and sometimes I’ll post fun weekly photos in between! Remember to take a moment every day to stop, breathe, and get back to the core of who you are and what you believe in.

Thanks for reading! Xo

Halloween time

Hi 🙂 Thanks for reading! This week has been crazy, busy.. I had bridal trials this week, brides yesterday, halloween makeup applications booked, and more brides today & Sunday! Like I said in my last post, Fall is one of my favorite seasons. It is also my busiest season. I find that my skin becomes more dry during these cooler months, so I find myself spending a little bit more time taking care of my skin in the morning and night than I would in the summer or spring. I recently been experimenting with new product lines. As far as skin care lines, I really love organic and natural products. I know what exactly I’m putting on my skin, and I know it’s not harmful.

I have been using Dr. Alkaitis Organic & Holistic line. It truly works wonders! I talked to them about my job and my blog, & they were willing to send me samples for my guests to try at my blog launch and I’ve been getting great responses. *There is also a sample cleanser in my goodie bag for my October giveaway! “If you can’t eat it, don’t put it on your face” is what Dr. Alkaitis promotes, and I agree!. Health IS the essential foundation of beauty! You can purchase a sample pack online at alkaitis.com and the samples last about 3 weeks. It is very light, containing coconut, jojoba, shea, sesame oil, and other raw, natural ingredients that work wonders on your skin. I used the organic enzyme exfoliating mask and I saw a difference in my skin immediately. I liked how you had to mix the mask your self, taking 2 tsp of the mask mixing it with equal portions of water. It brightened my complexion and helped even out my skin tone. I’ve been using these products every day starting with the cleanser, following with toner, moisturizer and eye cream. At night I’ll add their oil to my moisturizer, so when I wake up my face feels fresh and soft. I should also add that I grew up having psoriasis. Which is when you get very, dry patches all over your skin. Since I’ve been using natural products, my skin really has improved almost 100%. (also eating clean and drinking lots of water!) So if you suffer from this, I can relate! And definitely recommend trying out this line!

I also tried out an exfoliating mask from Karuna. OMG! I will continue to use this mask once a week. Karuna masks comes in a packet, it’s a all-natural fiber cloth which helps retain moisture. Your supposed to leave the mask on for 10-20 minutes, but I left my mask on for a solid 30 minutes. Once you remove the mask, their is no need to rinse off your face. Karuna is a line of “convenience”, one-step, no rise product. It felt a bit slimy afterwards but I just massaged all the residue into my skin and onto my neck. Immediately my skin felt fresh, clean, smooth, brighter, and plump! All my friends sent me photos of themselves wearing the mask, and I took some myself, but it’s a bit scary, and alien-ish so I’ll hold back on posting those. LOL I also would recommend these for your weekly mask. You can also receive one in my October giveaway goodie bag!

Now that I shared my fall time skin regime with you, let’s talk makeup! I know I posted about Collodion in my last post, and I’m so excited that I finally tried it out! My friend Justine wanted me to re-create my creepy doll halloween look from last year. It’s so fun doing beauty makeup for brides all day, then coming home to do fun, halloween makeup! Take a look below 🙂

Another EASY, fun way to spice up your Halloween look is to mask your own mask! I participated in a hair show last month, and I had to do the makeup for a butterfly. I really was stumped and didn’t want to be corny and paint on a butterfly, so I tried to get really creative. I took some puffy paint (found at walmart or any craft store, for like $1 a piece) and started to paint on a laminated folder 2 wings. I free handed “a face” on the folder, so I knew exactly where the eyes were and started to paint. I made a thick layer, threw on some sparkles, even using some of my MAC pigment colors. It took a couple hours for it to completely dry. I peeled it off and wahhh lahh! I had my butterfly “mask”. It was so simple to apply. I tested one out on myself first. I just took eyelash glue and applied to the back of the mask, letting it become tacky before putting it on my face. Once I tried it on myself, I sent it to Aly (the hair creator of the butterfly) and she loved it! She said she was incorporating lace so I made another mask, this time applying lace. I cut out the lace to fit the mask and once this mask had dried, I put the lace on using fabric glue. Check it out! This is fun, esp. for kids!

You have to love fall and Halloween time because of the exciting costume ideas, the colors of the season and the beginning of the holiday season. One of my favorite fruits of the year is the pumpkin. It’s the perfect fall symbol, an amazing color of orange, it’s tasty—and it’s fun to carve. Pumpkin tea, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin EVERYTHING! Fall is one of the BEST times to make your own at home skin care treatments because of the tasty delights and seasonal goodies that come around. What’s better is that natural skin care is always a great choice for you.. Have fun with it! After you and your girlfriends, finish carving your pumpkins, use those guts for a good cause 😉 Pumpkin facials!

Pumpkin facial mask

Take 3 tablespoons of pumpkin puree and add 1-2 tablespoons of honey
Add 1 tablespoon of milk (regular for oily skin or buttermilk for dry skin)
Optional-add plain yogurt to mixture
Spread paste onto your face and keep on for 10-15 minutes.
Rinse off with water.

*Be sure to make your mask thick enough that it’s not dripping off your face.

Both of these at home skin care recipes using natural pumpkin will leave your skin smooth and glowing. It’s a festive way to help get the most out of the seasons with the nature around you.

Me & my friend Jessica at the Jane Hotel this week, holding up our “No No” signs ! LOL

Okay! Off to a wedding. Time to get the bride beautified! LOVE MY JOB!!! Thank you for reading.

Cure to Chapped Lips!

Hello again! Thanks for checking out my blog 🙂 Hope everyone is keeping warm and drinking lots of herbal teas on these cold, breezy fall nights!

So many people have been asking me about Halloween makeup… I’m booked with Halloween makeup this year, and I’m absolutely stoked about it. Halloween is my FAVORITE time of year!

I went to the The Great Jack O’Lantern blaze in Westchester last weekend. It was freezing, but so fun! So much to look at, & gets you in the Halloween spirit for sure! I definitely recommend going.

Ahhh I love this season! Yesterday I was in New York City with a friend, and randomly met up with my friend Jason. We met last year, both doing makeup on set of a movie. He was on this season of SyFy’s Face Off, which is a special FX makeup show, where the contestants have to complete challenges every week, creating a character based on a a movie, director or some sort of cool inspiration! He now works for Saturday Night Live, making and applying prosthetics. Sweet! So after he left the NBC studios yesterday, he took me to a small makeup store in Manhattan.

There, I bought a few supplies I’ll be needing for a Halloween application I’m doing on Friday evening. I purchased Collodion, a syrupy solution that is often used in theatrical makeup. You can create old-age wrinkles or scars with this product. I’ll definitely post photos of all the Halloween makeup once I complete the applications, and share application tips with you 🙂

Jason, Harry the video guy, myself and our model on set of a photo shoot..

Halloween makeup I did to myself last year!

I wasn’t sure if Batman and Patrick from Spongebob were walking around in costume because it is Halloween time… or maybe because it’s NYC and it’s pretty much ALWAYS halloween time in the city… lol

Mirror photo at the W… Red blazer from H&M

Although I adore Halloween and Fall, this time of year is definitely Chapped lips season. (ughh gross) I have to share a remedy that I use and find really helpful to fix chapped lips almost immediately! I have to say, I am a fan of a lip scrub called Sugar found at Sephora, but it’s definitely pricy for a tiny amount of it.. This remedy works JUST as well, if not better. If you try it, let me know what you think!

1/2 teaspoon of honey

1/2 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon of castor oil

Mix all ingredients together. Spread over your lips and leave on overnight. In the morning awake to smooth, soothed lips! Any extra that you have left over should be stored in the refrigerator because it contains fresh lemon juice which can spoil. To exfoliate your lips take a bit of honey mixed with a pinch of sugar and lightly scrub in circular motions. Apply lip balm after.

****I tell all my brides to do this the night before their wedding so they have smooth, kissable lips.

My favorite lip balm is Simply Bee~utiful’s all natural lip balm. Their lip balms are made from beeswax and honey.

Okay, time to get comfy and get ready for the return of American Horror story tonight!! Love that show, Can’t wait 🙂

Don’t forget to subscribe to my blog, like my fan page and leave a comment telling me why breast cancer awareness is important for a chance to win a goodie bag filled with products!

You can also now add my website to your home screen on your phones, by typing in my website, clicking add to home screen, then my icon will appear! Enjoy!!

ps. here’s a new video of Samantha DeRosa singing a new original…. She’s one of my wonderful clients! Check it!

Highlighting & contouring

Hello again 🙂 Thank you so much for visiting my blog! It was an amazing feeling waking up this morning to over 1,200 hits on my very first blog post! My blog launch event took place yesterday at Maizie’s Tea Room. Most of the attendee’s are local, independent, young girls who are business owners that I will eventually be doing posts on. I think it’s incredible that such motivated, young girls are filled with such different talents, making a career based on what they love to do! I think it’s so important to do what you love. Businesses that are built around your strengths and talents have a better chance of success. It’s not only important to create a profitable business, but it’s also so important that your heart is in it! That way your happy managing and growing every day. I was so happy to have my guests come together and network. I love to surround myself with positive people, and advisors who will nurture and support you to become a better businessperson. It was a great afternoon, sipping on lavender, chamomile, and blue eyes tea, surrounded by successful, knowledgeable individuals that all share common interests and mutual business goals that see value in each others work. I had goodie bags for every girl who attended filled with ton’s of beauty products for them to try. These goodies are also some of my favorite skincare or makeup products that I will be doing posts on soon. I wanted my guests to try them, and get familiar with the products! I will be doing giveaways of goodie bags! This week I have a goodie bag featuring a full sized Model In a Bottle Setting Spray which I adore and use for all of my bride’s. This week’s winner will also receive everything that’s pictured below:

The Giveaway:

Me with the give away goodie bags in my closet!

Photos from yesterdays event

Again, a big thanks to the businesses working with me on this, guests, and supporters!! With all that being said, today I was hired to do a DJ Promo Shoot for my friend Ryder. The shoot was directed by Michelle Barone, the Owner & Operator of Exclusive Events & Promo, and photography by Giacomo Photography. The studio was gorgeous. Driving up to the building it looked like an old, abandoned, factory built of bricks during the early 1900s. Inside, was a whole different story! Gorgeous. I wanted to give Ryder a good “night life” look. I gave her a strong contour, really bringing out her cheekbones & jawline. Contouring & Highlighting can totally transform your face by playing up your beautiful features and downplaying your flaws and they usually go hand in hand. Darker colors push back areas while lighter colors bring them forward. I applied my primer & foundation to her first, smoothing out her face. Then I contoured using cream products from hourglass and makeup forever. When you contour and highlight, you really want to blend, blend, blend!! Lets be serious, who wants severe lines all over their face? Not cute. So blend well! To contour, you will need a color that is one to two shades darker than your foundation. To highlight, you will need a color that is one or two shades lighter than your foundation.

Areas to Contour

* Under your cheekbones

* Along both sides of your nose

* Bottom of your chin

* Jawline

* Creases of your eyes

* Temples

Areas to Highlight

* Front of the forehead

* Along the bridge of your nose

* Right above your cheeks

* Inner corner of your eyes

* Brow bone

* Center of your chin

LOL her shoes were not in the shots, so please ignore her socks with the heels! haha!

Here is from another recent Bridal shoot I did, also using highlighting and contouring techniques …

Once the professional photos come back from Ryders Promo shoot, I’ll post a few so you can see the makeup in better lighting, and better quality than the quality of my iPhone! Any Makeup questions on highlighting or contouring feel free to leave a comment or email me!

Required Entry to Goodie Bag:

1- Subscribe to my blog & leave a comment letting me know you have done so.

2- Become a fan on Facebook if your not already, at http://www.facebook.com/muahbyalexandria

3-Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, tell me what Breast Cancer Awareness means to you & why it’s important to be aware!

4- Entrants must leave me a valid email address, so I can email the winner & please only enter once!

Good Luck!

Hello world!

Hi! I’m Alexandria and it’s a pleasure to meet you 🙂 Thanks for stopping by my blog! I’m happy to have you here.

People ask me all the time where I went to school to be a makeup artist. To be honest, I never ‘went to makeup school’. I went to cosmetology school for hair but to be a good makeup artist, I believe you just have to have the eye for it. Go to as many classes and makeup schools you want, the eye for makeup can not be taught, it’s within you 😉 It’s something you just have..

Through experience I’ve learned I definitely have my own style of makeup. I’m in to beautiful skin. I like to give the skin lots of glow and smooth, soft texture. I love to highlight the skin. I think this is what my brides love the most about my style of makeup. I won’t cover you up by masking you with makeup, but even your skin tone, highlighting your best features and enhance your look.

I love big lashes, sharp brows and a strong contour.. To achieve this look its really important to already have healthy, glowing skin. Make sure you eat clean, drink tons of water and take care of your skin by cleansing daily and using weekly masks.

If you look at top models and celebrities, notice they don’t look like a made-up doll.. They have a natural skin tone with fresh skin thats glowing, and not sculpted like crazy with makeup products. When you wear makeup, you want it to look minimal so your skin looks radiant.

I’m constantly learning through experience and working with other professional makeup artists. There is ALWAYS room for improvement, no matter what you do. I love makeup, I’m constantly getting inspired, and coming up with new ideas and looks. It’s a great feeling to have a growing clientele and hearing your peers talking positively about your work and supporting you!

I will be posting weekly about tips, advice, home remedies, and much more! I’ll be having give aways of samples of my favorite products, so please stay tuned!

Thank you so much for checking out my blog, I’m new at this so bare with me 🙂

I want to give a special thanks to Cocktail Perfume, Dr. Alkaitis Organic Skin Food, Onesta, Primitive Makeup, Somme Institute, Lucy B Cosmetics, Harney & Son’s Tea, Model In a Bottle, Hylunia, Osmia Organics, Simply Bee-utiful, Lily B, Kiss My Face, Karuna Skin, Maizies Tea Room, Scentsy, & all the attendee’s of my blog launch party!!! Thank you!