the art of the flawless beat: Pt.1

Skin is the answer.

Here’s the deal, I love makeup. That’s an understatement…I live, eat, and breathe makeup artistry! It has been my truth since I ventured into the beauty industry as a Professional Makeup Artist at the tender age of 18. Over the last decade-plus of working in the industry, and now as a Master Makeup Artist, I’ve learned that as much as I love makeup, I know that in order to get the desired results, makeup really has to have a healthy canvas to be applied on.

In fact, having healthy skin to apply makeup on has many benefits such as the convenience of using less makeup, the makeup will lay smoother, and better self-confidence even when you’re not wearing makeup. Some of my favorite tools to use to achieve a natural healthy skin look when using foundation are semi-dense (stippling or kabuki) face brushes instead of face sponges. Most of my makeup clients hesitate when I say this because everyone uses sponges. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love beauty sponges and they’re fantastic tools that create a lot of coverage on the skin. However, as the health of the skin improves, through the consistent use of a customized skincare plan, there’s less need for more coverage and beauty sponges (which can be quite costly and constantly need to be replaced).

Imagine having smooth, flawless skin with no bumps, lines or texture. Now while I can’t personally relate to this (and I know most women can’t especially around that time of the month, God help us all), this is the goal most people have in mind when creating a flawless face. In fact, most of my clients think the way to create this “flawless-texture-free-skin” is to layer makeup product on top of makeup product. Layering lots of product to cover imperfections surprisingly calls more attention to what you don’t want to be seen.

So how do you get healthy skin? The traditional answer is to cleanse, exfoliate, moisturize and don’t forget about that under eye cream (I personally enjoy a Multifunction Eye cream). Although skincare is essential to achieving healthy skin, an immediate solution to achieving a smooth canvas for a more flawless makeup application is using a primer. Now I know what you’re thinking, “wait, another product and layer, but you just said layering more product calls attention to things we want to hide.” Well, my friends, yes, that’s true, but recently there has been an emergence of fabulous priming moisturizers (I love using the Rodan + Fields Moisture Replenishing Cream as my priming moisturizer). Priming moisturizers are a game-changer because they do two jobs, prepare the skin for makeup, and moisturize in one product meaning a quicker way to get out the door in the morning.

Healthy skin is happy skin, it boosts one’s self-confidence and makes the makeup application easier if you choose to wear makeup. One little reminder, take the time to find skincare products that work for YOU. Sure, it’s great to consult other people for product recommendations but don’t forget to listen to your body because it’ll tell you, through its appearance, what does and doesn’t work for you.