Ultimate Christmas Make Up

Look who is Guest writing for us?

Caroline James is a Make Up Artist who is talented enough to of worked with Celebrities such as Katie Melua, and most recently worked with the X Factor contestants on a photo shoot!

During my 15 years as a professional Makeup Artist, my work has taken me worldwide working with glamorous celebrities, hugely successful singers and musicians, popular TV shows and international live tours.

I have now moved to beautiful NorthWales where the new challenges and opportunities are just as exciting.  I am privileged to be working with Artists such as Katie Melua, Paul McCartney,Charlotte Church, Jodie Kidd, Dannii Minogue, Amanda Redman, Rachel Stevens and Yoko Ono to name just a few.

I now want to bring my expertise to you offering private one–to-one makeup lessons giving you the confidence to try new ways of using the products you already have, but may not know how to get the best from.  I will bring my experience to you by giving you the confidence to try new ways of using the products already in your make up bag, and giving you hints and tips.

So here are my tips to The ultimate Christmas Make Up!

This is the time to be bold and have some fun with Makeup now the party season is upon us.

Some useful tips to get you ready for the party:

Keep the foundation light and dewy and as fresh as possible, you don't want your skin looking dull! A tinted moisturizer or light reflecting foundation is perfect.

 This is the time to perfect the seductive smoky eye as above - using greys, charcoals and lots of blending.  Keep the colours on the eye lids lighter and darken the eye socket and the top and bottom lash line finishing with a black khol pencil around the lashes.  Don't forget to finish the look with some killer lashes, there are so many to choose!

After the glamour shoot with the X Factor contestants recently I think everyone should try a red or wine colour lip to really stand out at the party! But keep the edges of the lip soft. You use your finger to gently smudge the edges for a more "worn" look.  

The Bandana

Recently seen posing for one of the most famous 'girl power' shots of the century, Beyonce rocked a bandana in the recent picture, showing that not only is it coming back in to style, it's also actually quite functional... Want to wear one?  Here's how!

Wear it like a headband 

Fold into a triangle and roll into a band, then tie at the nape of the neck, this is great for a casual look, teamed with denim or a summer dress.

Wear it as a top / side knot

This look is the classic, and can be used to keep hair off the back of the neck whilst adding a chic touch to some casual outfits, pick brightly coloured prints to add some volume to otherwise plain t-shirts and tops.

Rihanna made this also work for a more dressed up affair, by matching a black bandana with the dress and cape jacket.

The Retro Pin-Up

Beyonce showed this recently as mentioned above, and it's a great combo with most summer outfits.  Add volume to the fringe or the top of the hair to accentuate the  piece and really add that retro feel to your hair.

The Bonnet

This is something that can disguise a multitude of hair sins if you are having an off day!  Fold into the triangle, and place at the back of the head and tie, tuck the bandana in and if wearing a quiff, then secure with pins or tuck underneath the bandana.  If you want to do it loosely this will also protect curls / pinned hair from too much movement before a night out!

Style Stealers - Quiff

We have been a little shy with our male audience recently so we thought that we would introduce a new section of the blog for replicating styles that we have seen over the last few days. 

The quiff is an absolute kick ass hairstyle that shows male confidence to hold their head high, and in 1950's hair fashion, men weren't shy about using their hair to get noticed. 

image courtesy of Men's Health

As the last issue of Elle dropped into the Salon we all sat there admiring the front cover.... A half naked, dripping wet David Beckham, walking out of a lake.  Whilst half of them were discussing the athletic tone of his body and the eye catching tattoos, suddenly a voice popped up " Ooooh I like his hair".   Imagine the rather puzzled looks on everyone's face, David Beckham is half naked in front of you, and you are looking at his hair?!  You can take the stylist out of the salon but you cant take the keen eye of a hairdresser out of the stylist, evidently.

image courtesy of Men's Health

Certainly not shy of getting attention through hairstyles is Mr David 'Golden Balls' Beckham himself.  I personally am so glad he's bringing the quiff out of the 50's and back into the 21st Century.  Want to steal the style?  Here's a how-to so you can get the quiff quick!

Using a comb, sweep back the hair, to achieve the cute little drop on the side / front, then twist the hair slightly in the front section to achieve the curl.  Using a soft wax / pomade such as Aqua Slide from our Osis range, or Essensity Texturising Cream also from Schwarzkopf, put a tiny amount on your fingers and run through the mid-length and ends of the hair to achieve a soft but natural shine and hold, that will make your hair look healthy and shiny. 

Slick back the sides and you are ready to ROCK AND ROLL!  If you don't have the necessary products then raid your lady's hair collection and find a hairspray, spray lightly and mould the hair using the above method, and simply pop a little more on for hold.  BE CAREFUL, with hairspray less is more, or you may come out looking like you have a plastic wig on.