Erin's Faces Holiday Gift Guide 2015

"It's the most wonderful time of the year" - I LOVE the holidays you guys!!  I have always enjoyed taking pen to paper and writing up my Christmas Wish List (complete with a request for a pony for about 12 years running).  At this point in the game it's a short list (this calendar and this scarf) but I can officially tell you that I would be thrilled to get anything on this cruelty-free gift guide because I can tell you from personal experience, every single item is awesome (I'm totally biased but still) - here we go:

MINI MASON JAR SOY/BEESWAX CANDLES - $5 each
These are fantastic for teacher/nurse/postman/caregiver/client gifts, in bathrooms, on holiday tables - you name it.  They're a hand-poured soy/beeswax blend with cotton wicks and phthalate-free fragrance oils.  This size comes in a hexagon jelly jar and burns for 5+ hours.  Scents are
APPLEJACK CIDER - apples and citrus zest mulled in cinnamon and spice
BLUSHING GRAPEFRUIT - a true grapefruit - tart and bright with hints of jasmine and vanilla
FOREST CRUNCH -  freshly cut pine and evergreen
ORANGE CLOVE -  Valencia oranges, cloves, chili pepper, bergamot and cassis - a beautiful pomander
SUGAR & SNICKERDOODLE - it literally smells like cookies baking in the oven - vanilla, maple syrup and creamed butter with cane sugar and cinnamon

HANDMADE SOAPS - $7-7.50
Lye-free and made with filtered rainwater and olive and coconut oils instead, these vegan soaps don't strip your skin, foam up beautifully, are colored with mineral pigments (not dye) and double as an awesome shave bar (seriously).  Scents are:
PEPPERMINT - exactly what it sounds like
LAVENDER - same story
LUMBERJACK - Spruce, Fir, Cedar with a hit of Cinnamon and Wheat Bran
SPICY COCOA BUTTER - Cocoa Butter, Cinnamon, Orange and Cocoa Powder

LIP BALM TRIOS - $10-13.50
Great for boys and girls these are a fabulous stocking stuffer as is or you can break them up and spread the love.  The USDA Certified Organic Lip Balms are avail in Coconut or Peppermint Trios ($10) or you can throw a Fair Trade Certified Tinted Lipbalm in Flushed with a pair of the Peppermint or Coconut and get some color in there ($13.50).

AROMATHERAPY SPRAY SETS - $18
You should know I am obsessed with these and literally take one on every trip.  This vegan set comes with three 2 oz. scents in Grapefruit, Peppermint and Lavender.  They are made with essential oils, instead of synthetic fragrance, and are great for bathrooms, kitchens, bedroom linens, diaper changing bags/tables, keeping in your car, spraying stinky clothes, you name it - they make everything smell so much better!!  Again, great to give as a set or break up.

MASON JAR SOY/BEESWAX CANDLES - $20
Same super yummy fragrances as the minis (see above) but bigger - 50+ hour burn time in the cutest mason jars with matte black tops - great to take a paint pen and write your holiday message on top or tie a ribbon on for easy gifting.  Also - these sell out literally everywhere I take them so there's that.

BODY SCRUB/CREAM SETS - $25
These are great for guys and girls too as all of the scents are vegan, unisex and smell SO GOOD -
PEPPERMINT & CREAM - Peppermint Sugar Body Scrub (full of yummy oils, leaves you feeling hydrated) and Shea Butter Body Balm (Shea Butter based thick emollient cream)
CHOCOLATE & CREAM - Chocolate Sugar Body Scrub (made with real chocolate and a hit of orange and oils) and Shea Butter Body Balm
PEPPERMINT & CHOCOLATE - Peppermint Sugar Body Scrub and Chocolate Sugar Body Scrub
LEMONGRASS & CREAM - Bamboo Lemongrass Body Scrub (non-oily, made with powdered bamboo powder) and Shea Butter Body Balm
You get 4 oz of the scrub and 4 oz of the balm in a cute little bag.

BODY GOODIES - $25
If you want a true indulgence pick up a full sizes (8 oz) of the
Peppermint Sugar Body Scrub, Chocolate Sugar Body Scrub, Bamboo Lemongrass Body Scrub or Shea Butter Body Balm
I promise you'll be glad you did :).

MINERAL LIPGLOSS & SHIMMER SET - $28
My best-selling shade, Enchanted, in my petrochemical-free Mineral Lipgloss formula paired with a mini (5 grams) of the gorgeous soft gold shimmer, Magic Dust, are put in a happy little gold cosmetic bag for the perfect makeup set.

TRAVEL BRUSH SET - $65
Most travel brush sets stink - it's so disappointing because the holidays come and you think you're getting a good deal but then they fall apart and you're back to square one.  Not so with this set!  They are the softest synthetic vegan Taklon and are about as good as it gets for travel situations.  You get a Powder, Blush, 2 Eyeshadows, Eyeliner/Brow, Concealer/Lip and Brow/Mascara Spoolie in a little "to-go" bag with a zipper compartment.

FULL SIZE BRUSH SET - $100
If you're buying fancy makeup and applying it with the Clinique Gift-with-Purchase brush set you got in high school 20 years ago (or q-tips or your fingers or those little sponge tip applicators) you are not getting the best performance possible out of your cosmetics.  This vegan set comes in a linen colored brush roll with a Powder, Blush, Foundation/Concealer, 2 Eyeshadows and an Eyeliner Brush.

GIFT CARD - $10-100
If you're not sure what to get someone a Gift Card is always a great bet and you can let them choose what they like - just tell us who to send it to and what you'd like it to say or we can send you a little jpeg you can print up and put in an envelope to hand them in person.

So make your wish list or fill someone else's!

Holly Golightly Mother-Daughter Halloween Costumes

When I was mapping out the looks for the AC Lens Halloween shoot I was doing I knew they wanted a look that incorporated sunglasses into a costume.  I wanted something that would be more imaginative than a beachy type of look and was so excited when the concept of Audrey Hepburn's character of Holly Golightly from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" came to me.  I thought it would be even cuter if we made it a mother-daughter situation and we had the perfect models in Jenny and Klara - here's what we used for mom -

It's THE easiest makeup ever as you get to skip your eyes completely - we just did some

Foundation (Mineral Sheer Tint in Cream Beige - Erin's Faces)

Powder (Aloe Setting Powder - Erin's Faces)

Blush (Mineral Blush in Rose - Erin's Faces)

Lipstick (Tea Rose - Erin's Faces)

Klara wore this dress, Jenny wore her own and both ladies wore this tiara.  I got the pearls (which we taped to be the right length) and gloves at Party City.

Then the ladies threw on sunnies (Fantas Eyes Niagra (adult) and Zoobug ZB (child) - AC Lens) and channeled their inner Audreys :).

Photographer - Billy B Photography

Makeup - Erin Williams 

Hair - Candice Crawford

Model - Jenny Neale and Klara Mueller

Vampire Makeup Tutorial

I love a vampire and had fun figuring out what I wanted the makeup to look like on this one.  It looked really good but I have to tell you that those colored contacts from AC Lens take it to the total next level - it was nuts!  Here's what we used -

EYES:

Put in your red lenses in (Angelic Red - AC Lens) - we put them in after and I rec doing it first

Apply primer to eyelids (Brightening Eyeshadow Primer - Erin’s Faces)

Heather still had her Khaleesi braids in :)

Apply matte black shadow all over lid and bring almost to brow but leave a sliver of space for skintone to show through right under brow (Night Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

On the outer corner, on top of the black, pop a matte navy (Navy Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces) and on the inner half of the eye apply an eggplant shade on top of the black (Plum Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

Run the black shadow (Night) under the eye as a liner and soften with a fluffier brush so the line isn’t harsh.  Pull a little Navy in on the outer corner.

Line lower waterline and tightline with waterproof black eyeliner (Onyx Cream Eyeliner – Erin’s Faces)

Black mascara on top and bottom lashes (Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara)

Apply feathery long false lashes (Alcone Lash #315)

Deepen brows with a deep matte gray/soft black shadow/pencil (Twilight Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

FACE:

Apply a pale foundation shade all over the face (Death Flesh Crème Foundation – Ben Nye)

Apply concealer and powder (Light Mineral Concealer & Aloe Powder – Erin’s Faces)

Use gray shadows to contour cheeks (Dove & Twilight Mineral Eyeshadows – Erin’s Faces)

Apply loose white shimmer to cheekbones/browbone (Ice Lumiere Luxe Powder – Ben Nye)

LIPS:

Line lips with black eyeliner pencil and smudge so the line isn’t sharp (Baby’s Got Black Kohl Crayons for Eyes – Wet N’ Wild)

Fill in lips with wine lipstick shade or do what we did which was take red lipstick and mix a little brown eyeshadow in to it to make the perfect shade (Red Satin Lipstick & Espresso Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

Apply fake fangs to teeth (Scarecrow Deluxe Vampire Fangs) and I got the lace top here.

Photographer - Billy B Photography

Makeup - Erin Williams 

Hair - Candice Crawford

Model - Heather Botts

Alex Vause - Orange is the New Black - Makeup Tutorial and Costume Breakdown

When we were doing the Halloween shoot for AC Lens we wanted to show an easy way to incorporate glasses into a costume and Alex Vouse seemed like a timely fit (sidenote - there's an odd amount of Velma's from Scooby Doo being rec'ed for girls with glasses and I wanted to do something more edgy).  Her makeup is actually really soft and pretty with an awesome wing (I was going after replicating this look) and would be pretty with or without glasses so give it a gander -

EYES:

Apply primer to eyelids (Brightening Eyeshadow Primer - Erin’s Faces)

Apply cream colored matte shadow to lid (Cream Mineral Shadow - Erin’s Faces), a matte milk chocolate shade in crease (Earth Mineral Shadow  - Erin’s Faces) and a matte ivory under the brow (Ivory Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

Use a black liquid liner or gel eyeliner (Onyx Cream Eyeliner – Erin’s Faces) along the lashline and draw a medium thick line and extend the wing out at the edges as much as you like

Black mascara top and bottom (Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara)

Fill in brows and round out/extend (Espresso Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

FACE:

Foundation/concealer/powder (Erin’s Faces Mineral Foundation (Porcelain)/Mineral Concealer (Light/Medium)/Aloe Powder)

CHEEKS:

Contour cheekbone a LOT with matte bronzer (Sunkissed Mineral Bronzer – Erin’s Faces)

Soft application of matte brown blush that has a hit of pink on outer apples (Calla Mineral Blush – Erin’s Faces)

Soft glowy highlighter along cheekbones/browbones – not too shimmery and not too silver (Brightening Pen in Champagne – Erin’s Faces)

LIPS:

Apply a natural pinky/brown lipstick shade (Mocha Satin Lipstick – Erin’s Faces)

We got this tattoo to put on Emily's arm and grabbed this khaki scrubs top to match the prison uniforms.

Put on your John Lennon Winston black framed glasses from AC Lens and rock it!

Photographer - Billy B Photography

Makeup - Erin Williams 

Hair - Candice Crawford

Model - Emily Spadaford

Daenerys Targaryen / Khaleesi Makeup Tutorial

Photo by Billy B Photography

Is there anyone who doesn't want to be Khaleesi when they grow up?  She is my, and millions of other people's, favorite character from Game of Thrones and was a super fun makeup job.  It worked into the AC Lens Halloween Shoot because all of the Targaryens in the books have violet eyes.  Apparently they had the actors wear violet contacts during the first season but they ended up ditching them after that - we went by the book and added them for this shoot and they made the look beautiful and other worldly.  Here's what we used:

EYES:

Put in violet/purple contact lenses contacts (Night Vixen - AC Lens)
Apply primer to eyelids (Brightening Eyeshadow Primer - Erin’s Faces)

Use a matte ivory shade under the brow, a terra cotta shade all over the lid (and under eye as liner) and a mix of soft matte brown and cream shadows in the crease to blend it all together (Ivory Mineral Shadow, Calla Mineral Blush and mix of Earth and Cream Mineral Shadows – Erin’s Faces)

Black mascara top and bottom (Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara)

Bump brows up a shade or two color wise so they are deep (Earth Mineral Shadow – Erin’s Faces)

My beautiful model, Heather, with just eyeshadow on and then we gave her a stronger brow and some foundation

FACE:

Foundation/concealer/powder (Erin’s Faces Mineral Foundation (Linen)/Mineral Concealer (Light)/Aloe Powder)

Photo by Billy B Photography

CHEEKS:

Matte Bronzer (Sunkissed Mineral Bronzer - Erin’s Faces) to contour/hollow out cheekbone

Very soft swipe of blush across cheeks to look flushed (Rose Mineral Blush - Erin’s Faces)

Soft highlighter on cheekbones/browbones (Brightening Pen in Champagne - Erin’s Faces)

LIPS:

Nude lipliner all over lips (Natural Lip Liner - Erin’s Faces)

Soft nude sheer gloss (Goddess Mineral Lipgloss - Erin’s Faces)

Pretty braids that Candice put in

Photographer - Billy B Photography

Makeup - Erin Williams 

Hair - Candice Crawford

Model - Heather Botts

Butterfly Fairy Halloween Makeup Tutorial

I got to do a shoot for AC Lens (which is an awesome online store that has glasses/sunnies/colored contacts) for Halloween looks that are do-able - some are easier than others but there will be one in the mix of five that I'm going to share over the course of this week that you will feel totally equipped implementing.

I'm starting with a super fun one which is my Butterfly Fairy - isn't she so pretty?!!  I'm obsessed.

Here's how I did it -

EYES:
Pop in Zombie Blue contact lenses from AC Lens - I rec doing this first so that you're not messing up your amazing makeup job later by putting them in once you're finished (we didn't do that so I'm saving you some heartache here)

Apply white cream makeup to the entire eye area – lash line to brow (Crème Foundation in White – Ben Nye) - doing this, even on fair skin, allows the bright colors to read as vibrantly as possible

Apply yellow shadow to inner corner of eye (Lemon Pressed Eye Shadow – Ben Nye)

Apply orange shadow in outer corner of eye and up into entire area under brow as well as under the eye as a liner (Clay Eye Shadow Compact Matt – Kryolan)

Fill in the middle section of lid with mustardy/orange shade (Banana Eye Shadow Compact Matt – Kryolan)

Apply shimmering orange loose shadow over outer corner and under eye (Tangerine Lumiere Luxe Powder – Ben Nye)

Apply a loose soft gold shimmer to inner corner of eye (Magic Dust – Erin’s Faces)

Fill in brows so they are defined (Espresso Mineral Eyeshadow – Erin’s Faces)

Black mascara top and bottom (Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara)

Apply false lashes of choice (Alcone Lashes #314)

We did a test shot before we put the lenses in and it was too pretty not to share!

FACE:

Apply foundation/concealer/powder (Erin’s Faces Mineral Foundation - Cream Beige/Mineral Concealer - Light/Medium/Aloe Powder)

CHEEKS:

Use the shimmering orange loose powder as your contour on cheek and blend (Tangerine)

Apply the loose soft gold as highlight on cheek and pull in to the apples – use a lot (Magic Dust)

Apply a bright deep pink shade to apples of cheeks (Tulip Mineral Blush – Erin’s Faces)

BUTTERFLY WINGS:

Cut wings off of your butterfly (we used Ashland Nature Center Butterflies from Michael's)

Cut a small triangle out of the center of the wings which is where the corner of your eye will go

Use lash glue to affix the wings – just near the triangle you cut out as that’s the part that will be touching your skin (Duo Lash Glue)

DECORATION:

Use a matte white pencil and a black pencil to draw dots along the cheek, under and over the brow in a pattern you like (You’re Always White & Baby’s Got Black Kohl Crayons for Eyes – Wet N’ Wild)

Jenny with and without the lenses on (Ice Walker - different from the ones we used at the shoot) with no other makeup on and no retouching and then me after we did the demo for press looking slightly alarmed as Jenny looked really pretty and really creepy all at once

LIPS:

Use a bright coral gloss on lips (Coral Crush Mineral Lipgloss – Erins Faces) and press in a little of the orange or yellow shadow into the center of the lip

Photographer (of the pretty pictures) - Billy B Photography

Makeup - Erin Williams 

Hair - Candice Crawford

Model - Jenny Neale

Pippin's Makeup Broken Down by Kristine Reese

I LOVED the makeup in the Broadway production of Pippin (which was designed by Dominique Lemieux of Cirque du Soleil who also did the wigs and costumes and was assisted by Hagan Lines and Joe Dulude) and have the good fortune of being friends with Kristine Reese, who played one of the leads, Catherine, in the National Tour.  I asked her if she would write up some info on the makeup in the show and take some pics so below is what she sent -  it's so fun!

"The look for Catherine in our touring production was slightly different than the Broadway look, as we played larger houses and my face and features are much different than the actress who originated the role in the revival (I have much smaller eyes, so the eyes really needed to pop with this makeup). We went through various stages to arrive on the final look, down to the size and type of eyelashes.

The idea behind the Act 1 look is a “clown” on top of a beauty look. I only had about 5 minutes to change from the clown look into the Catherine look, so the eyes remain the same for both acts. Act 2, “Catherine” is natural beauty look, with a bit of a wide doe eye. The makeup looks severe up close, but on stage it reads as if you are hardly wearing makeup, so tone down for “real life.”

Working with the circus artists in Wicked taught me a lot about stage make-up and application. Most circus artists have extensive make-up training either at circus school or by instructors at their first gig, and it shows. They really know how to play up their features for the stage and use highlight and shadow to their advantage. The makeup in Pippin is rather specific to circus, but by watching their technique and attention to detail these circus artists put into their makeup I was able to improve my own look and also apply it to my “real life” looks.

Kristine with Buster

Eyes:

Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion

Makeup Forever Kohn Pencil White MAC Vanilla

MAC Sushi Flower

MAC Espresso

NYX Eye Shadow in Matte White

Stila Liquid Eyeliner Pen – White

Benefit “They’re Real” Push Up Eye-Liner

Hourglass Brow Sculpting Pencil – Soft Brunette

Mascara – I love Loreal Voluminous!

Face:

Laura Mercier Foundation primer – Radience

Laura Mercier Foundation

NYX Conceal/Correct/Contour Kit (For concealer and contour)

Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder

Bare Minerals Powder (for quick changes)

MAC Powder Blush Frankly Scarlet

MAC Powder Blush Harmony

Sephora Full Pro Coverage Airbrush #53 (I used this at top of the show and for quick changes to re-apply foundation evenly and quickly)

Lips:

MAC Cherry Lip Pencil (For Act 1)

Sephora Luster Matte Long-Wear Lip Color in Electra Pink Lustre (to stain), MAC Cherry Lip Pencil to line, Marc Jacobs Beauty Kiss Kiss Bang Bang 2016  baked rose on top), with a touch pink gloss on top (Any brand will do, mostly just for blending and final look)

Clown specialty products:

Makeup Forever Aqua Eyes Pencil Turquoise 7L  or Kohl in turquoise 3K

NYX Roll on Shimmer – Pink

Crystals (Provided by Inglot)

Kristine with Henry Gottfried

Fun Facts:

*The sushi flower – espresso combo shown here is also the same colors used for the Glinda plot in Wicked, as are the Laura Mercier products on my face.

*Pippin uses a LOT of NYX products. They are inexpensive, and have excellent pigments with real staying power.

*I found that all of this makeup – reapplying my face sometimes 6 times a day on a two-show day – really stripped my skin. I was dry all over with some breakouts. My skin literally freaked out. I am sure Erin has wonderful organic solutions for this should you find yourself suffering similarly, but I found that cleansing oil and facial oil helped me find my balance."

Kristine Reese is an actress and singer who recently completed a year-long run as Catherine on the National Tour of the Tony Award-winning revival of Pippin. She has also appeared on the National Tours of Wicked (Nessarose), Mamma Mia (Sophie u/s), and on Broadway in the revival of Les Miserables at the Broadhurst Theatre. Other favorite credits include Brigadoon (Fiona), The Mystery of Edwin Drood (Rosa Bud), Footloose (Ariel) and Grease (Frenchie). Kristine has appeared as a vocal soloist with over a dozen international symphonic and pops orchestras, most notably the Cleveland Symphony and the National Symphony Orchestra. She currently lives in NYC with her husband, actor Billy Harrigan Tighe, and her Boston Terrier, Buster. Follow on Twitter/Instagram @kristinereese.

Broadway Beauties Model Erin's Faces Mineral Foundation

Aren't they gorgeous?!!!  I'm so excited to share this shoot with you!

I am crazy passionate about being able to accommodate as many women as possible - makeup-wise, skincare-wise, you name it.  Having worked for a number of lines in the past I had a daily conversation with a woman of a tan-deep skintone who would come in, looking for a foundation to match her complexion and I would have to steer her to another line if the line I was working for didn't go that deep.  It sucked.  For everyone involved.  And when the lines did carry deeper colors 50% of the time they were too orange or too grey.  It was frustrating.

When I was putting Erin's Faces together I wanted a foundation that truly went from light to deep and everywhere in between - it is incredibly important to me that everyone feels welcome with my line.  I also wanted a mineral foundation that wasn't loose (too messy and inhaling Bismuth Oxychloride is no bueno), wouldn't break me out, was oil free, had a physical sunscreen, would cover if I needed coverage but could sheer out if I wanted something lightweight, would look great on camera and in real life and would stay put.  As a result I decided on my Mineral Liquid Powder Foundation ($35) and it has the most positive testimonials on my site of any item - people LOVE it - and I wanted to share it with you in a new way so you can really see the colors and, in case you're not on the bandwagon yet, match yourself up so you can use this awesome foundation too!

In thinking of what type of models I wanted for the shoot I decided I wanted REAL women and I decided to ask some of my favorite Broadway girls and boy did we luck out -

Foundation Shade - LINEN - the fairest of the fair, sunburns easily

Amanda Kloots (Dutch) - from Bullets Over Broadway and The Producers

Can't Live Without - Lip Balm

The beyond pretty Amanda came to the shoot after having an awesome vacation so she was about 6 shades darker than the color Linen.  I thought it was a great opportunity to show how well this foundation can cover, and still look like skin, and there was no retouching to "lighten" her up - it's all the makeup.  And yes, her eyes really are that blue!

Foundation Shade - CREAM BEIGE - the perfect color for girls who are fair but aren't the fairest of the bunch, sunburns easily

Jennifer Hope Wills (German/English) - from The Phantom of the Opera (Christine) and Wonderful Town (Eileen)

Can't Live Without - Lip Gloss

Jennifer actually has been wearing this foundation for a couple of years, is a great friend and happens to be beautiful so she was a no brainer for the shoot.  She is a wonderful mix of grace and silliness!

Foundation Shade - TENDER BEIGE - great shade for girls that are in between light and medium shades

Teal Wicks (Irish/Norwegian) - currently in Finding Neverland (Marie Barry), past Wicked (Elphaba) and The Blue Flower (Maria) 

Can't Live Without - Mascara and Blush

Teal is another dear friend who is I got to know well working together at the Goodspeed Opera House many moons ago - she is incredibly generous, ridiculously talented and one of my favorite peeps!

Foundation Shade - PORCELAIN - pinker undertone and is great when colors are generally too yellow for someone

Ashley Park (Korean-American) - currently in The King and I (Tuptim), past Cinderella (Gabrielle)

Can't Live Without - Lip Balm and Eyelash Curler

I met Ashley putting together this shoot and have since gotten to do another one with her and she is just sweetness on a stick!  Such a fun mix of effervescence and refinement - love her!

Foundation Shade - PALE BEIGE - the definition of the shade Medium with undertones erring to the side of yellow but remaining quite balanced

Alena Watters (Polish/Prussian) - currently in Pippin, past Sister Act (Tina) and West Side Story (Anita)

Can't Live Without - Lip Gloss and Mascara

Alena and I go way back to a dance class at NYSC and she has inspired me ever since with her positive attitude, talent and inclusivity.  This is her "winter shade" and in the summer she bumps up to Natural Beige.

Foundation Shade - ALMOND - medium tone with very yellow undertone

Jackie Burns (Irish/Italian/English) - from Wicked (Elphaba) and If/Then (Elizabeth)

Can't Live Without - Mascara, Blush and Lip Balm

I fell in love with Jackie the moment I met her - she has such sincerity and joy - she was a delight to get to work with!  She also wore her foundation this summer during a production of Man of La Mancha and loved it so yay for that!  

Foundation Shade - NATURAL BEIGE - medium deep skintone - olive undertone

Jennifer Sanchez (Spanish/German/Mexican/Native American) - from West Side Story (Rosalia) and Little Miss Sunshine (Miss California)

Can't Live Without - Tinted Moisturizer

I met Jennifer the day of the shoot and she was a dream to work with - so laid back, so easy going and happens to have some of the best hair I've ever seen!

Foundation Shade - SANDY BEIGE - a true tan shade

Janelle Velasquez (Filipino/German/Irish) - from Here Lies Love

Can't Live Without - Mascara!

I got to see Here Lies Love before I met Janelle so I may have gushed a bit upon our introduction as I loved that show.  She was so kind, so smart!, and ridiculously stunning.

Foundation Shade - HONEY BRONZE - the lightest of the deep skintone shades

Thomasina Gross (African-American/German/Irish) - currently in Mamma Mia! (Lisa), past Once On This Island (Ti Moune)

Can't Live Without - Lash Extensions

Thomasina and I just clicked from the word "go" and I have enormous affection for her - her sense of joy, business savvy and boundless energy made this shoot and the second one I got to do with her so much fun!

Foundation Shade - FAWN - a medium deep tone, yellow undertone - not orange

Marisha Wallace (African-American) - currently in Something Rotten, past Aladdin (Fortune Teller)

Can't Live Without - Gel Eyeliner & Brow Pomade

Marisha is another awesome combo of mirth and moxy - and can that girl take a picture?!!  She brought so much FUN to set while turning it out with every shot - I'm obsessed! 

Foundation Shade - ESPRESSO - the deepest of the deep skintone shades

Aisha (African-American, Jamaican, White) - currently in Beautiful, past Memphis (Felicia) 

Can't Live Without - Lipstick

I really felt Aisha brought a sense of delicacy and refinement to her photos - she was game for anything and those cheekbones are kind of everything.  

And of course it took a small village to make this thing happen - much love and thanks to my team: 

Photographer - Lauren Toub

Art Director - Dana Iannuzzi

Stylist (and model!*) - Jessica Myhr

Makeup Artists - Jodi Formica, Marie Mascari, Neil Scibelli and Erin Williams

Hair Stylists - Candice Crawford and Marissa Cavalluzzi

*Jessica stepped in as our Linen model for the group shot since Amanda was so yummy and bronzed up and it didn't seem to make sense to paint her head to toe in makeup to make her fit