Products of the Month - September

Is it Fall already?  The Pros at IMPO think it still feels like summer, at least it does in So Cal!  Fall is our favorite time of the year because not only is it time to add to our boot collection and put up our Halloween decorations, it’s also time to shop for new makeup!

This is a good time of year to consider purchasing a new bottle, tube or compact of your foundation because the stuff you have been using since Spring is getting old and skanky!

It is also not a bad idea to invest in a new concealer and powder too and if you have a powder puff in your pressed compact…it is way past the gross, stinky stage and has collected enough of your DNA to make even the most sturdy FBI agent or crime scene investigator cringe! Time to chuck that and invest in a powder brush and blot papers for on-the-go touch ups!

So to help you embrace the Fall Season (even if you still have summer weather in your neck of the woods), here is a list of products the Pros love for the month of September:

Orlane Paris Anagenese 25+ Serum – statics show that aging begins at age 25 and becomes visible towards age 35-40.  By effectively fighting against signs of aging, you can delay the transformation of the skin.  The youngest member of the IMPO Pro team, Cathi Singh, swears by this product and thinks that it is an ideal product to begin your morning skincare routine with, plus it gives off an immediate healthy glow effect.  This serum will also help to even out skin tone and texture.  Try mixing it into your liquid foundation and then apply, Cathi swears this application trick works to minimize large pores!

Osmotics Blue Copper 5 Firming Eye Repair – another favorite in Cathi Singh’s Pro skincare arsenal is this creamy-gel formula product that contains peptides and anti-aging proteins that help boost collagen levels lost due to aging.  Big bonus: it even helps makeup around the eyes stay put!

Smashbox Eye Beam Double-Ended Brightener – this innovative brightener delivers the look of big, bright eyes quickly and easily!  Use the “highlight” end inside corners of the eyes and beneath the brow to make eyes appear bigger and wider.  Use the “rim” end on the lower waterline to brighten the whites of the eyes and make them pop!

Senna Cosmetics Eye Shadow – in Fixation and Blend are amazing colors from Senna’s Fall 2010 collection.  IMPO Pro Celeb MUA, Melissa Street, can’t get enough of these colors!  To achieve Senna Cosmetics' creator, Eugenia Weston's bold eye look below apply Fixation (a deep green hue) to the outer corners and in the crease, while using Blend to blur edges, infusing the colors together.  Gorgeous, sexy, sultry and perfect for Fall!

Illamasqua Precision Ink – this liner is incredibly pigmented and long lasting!  The fine tip applicator allows for perfect line drawing along lash line, waterline areas (tight lining) or for creating artwork on the body.  Totally waterproof and dries in seconds, this product comes in two colors a deep black called Abyss and an antique gold called Alchemy.

Smashbox Cream Eyeliner Palette – in Proof this palette is packed with 10 shades of mini cream liners.  Colors include: Lava (deep slate shimmer), Picasso (deep ink blue), Midnight Purple (deep violet), Midnight Brown (dark chocolate), Putty (medium brown), Caviar (true jet black), Thunder (mossy gray), Midnight Green (deepest chalkboard green), Deep Bronze (chocolate shimmer) and Cameo (russet brown).  Great for all eye colors!

Maybelline The Falsies Volume Express Mascara – all the Pros agree that Maybelline has knocked it out of the ballpark with this mascara.  We love a false lash and this product helps create length without the hassle of applying an actual full-strip false lash.  Two coats on upper lashes are recommended and check out the unique brush!

Smashbox Brow Tech To Go – the geniuses at Smashbox created this amazing portable, travel-friendly version of their iconic Brow Tech.  Double-ended component includes an angled, longwearing, waterproof pencil for precise filling and defining of the brows and a soft hold gel with a brow brush applicator to groom brows perfectly into place.

NARS Douceur Blush – another Pro fav, this blush is a flawless soft pink-brown hue that can be used to pop the cheeks, contour or warm up the forehead, jaw line and nose.  Sheer, natural hint of color that gently adds a delicate kiss to the cheeks!

Bobbi Brown Lip Color - in Black Maple from Bobbi's new Black Velvet Collection is a stunning, deep, rich shade of black, red plum!  This lipstick is Bobbi's original formula that treats lips to color with a soft-matte finish.  This is a limited edition color so stock up!

OPI Lincoln Park After Dark nail color - to match those sensuous lips try a dark plum nail color for both your fingers and toes!

OSIS by Schwarzkopf Freeze Super Hold Pump Hairspray – we don’t normally talk about a ton of hair products on this blog, but we just had to let our readers know about this product.  A very high performance hair spray that is long lasting and can perform under adverse conditions of temperature and humidity.  It won’t leave your hair feeling crunchy or leave you with a layer of white build up when you brush it out!

TIGI Wax Stick – do you all get those crazy flyaway hairs from static or when there is low humidity or when you pull a sweater on over your head?  Us too!  The Pros have found the perfect hair wax that, when used sparingly, concurs bed head, static head and unruly hair in general!

PRO TIPS AND TRICKS:

We know we don’t need to keep telling our readers this, but…you should be cleaning your personal makeup brushes at least once a week or more.  IMPO Pro, Melissa Street, keeps ColoreScience Brush Cleanser right next to her brush holder for a quick and easy clean.  Sanitizing your brushes means that your skin will be healthier too and this product will help prevent build-up of bacteria and makeup residue on brush bristles!

* Photo credit - V Magazine Fall 2010

Products of the Month - July!

Professional makeup artistry has its perks to say the least!  Exotic travel, glamorous clients and gratis product!  But, just because makeup artists receive “gifted” product from manufactures does not mean that the products work for all genres of professional artistry.

Consumer products can cross over into our world, but most are made for every day use and can’t handle the pressure of being “on set!”  

IMPO Pros use and test all the products we are sent gratis for approximately 4 to 6 weeks both on and off the set before we meet to decide which skin, hair or makeup products are up to par!

To be blunt, some pass and most fail our “tests!”  Unfortunately, the rigorous hours on a television, film or photography set can make even the best consumer friendly products cower under pressure!

The Pros from IMPO have decided to form a new post titled “Products of the Month,” which will feature products that have passed what the Pros like to call “The On Set Test!” 

The On Set Test is when the Pros use products on set, either during a television, film or photography shoot or for a live event (like the Oscars, Grammys, Emmys, etc.).  The products endure numerous on set hours under hot lights, outside, uncontrolled location heat, wind, dust, freezing cold temperatures and sometimes, numerous makeup/hair changes.

The products are used on all different skin types and rest assure that if a product is featured in this new monthly post, it is because our Pros have fallen head-over-heals in love and we feel the product is exceptional!

So without further ado, let’s unveil our July Products of the Month:

With summer in full swing, the Pros have decided to feature products that are ideal for this time of year (even though we use them all year long)!

Jan Marini Daily Face Protectant – if you don’t use sunscreen daily regardless of the weather…shame on you!  Leathery skin is not attractive or healthy and the genius that is Jan Marini has made it extremely easy to incorporate sunscreen into your daily skincare regime.

This product is brilliant in the fact that it is not a traditional white-pigmented sunscreen that can take several minutes to rub into the skin and absorb.  The Pros have found that this is the only sunscreen that does not oxidize foundation and concealer!

This product also contains a powerful antioxidant formula, which means that it is actually good for your skin and won’t cause breakouts! Bonus – it is waterproof so fantastic for sports and water play.  It does not feel oily or greasy and gives an instant oil-free, matte finish!  Click “here” to read Jan Marini’s 11 Reasons to Stay Out of the Sun!

Nurturing Force Wellness Aloe Vera Skincare Blot Out Offensive Shine + Oil Control Cream – the Pros were gifted this product at the recent IMATS Convention in Pasadena, California and we think it is genius!  Applied after normal skincare, it creates an instant matte canvas and barrier that soaks up oil secretion throughout the day!  This is not gel based, but a fast absorbing cream that will slow degradation of makeup so no more slipping, crawling, creeping, cracking or bubbling!  The Pros use this on all our clients for HD, stage, film, etc.  Bonus – no added color, fragrance or animal testing! Ideal for men with bald, shiny heads!

Clinique Self Sun Body Tinted Lotion – a gift from the sunless tanning gods!  This product comes in Light/Medium and Medium/Deep and we also love the tinted lotion for the face.  This product is a lotion, which means that it absorbs quickly into the skin! Bonus - because you can actually “see” where you have placed the product you can ensure that you are rubbing it into the skin and not creating streak marks.  For best results we recommend that you exfoliate your body first and wash your hands after application.  Clinique does recommend a drying time of 15 minutes before coming in contact with clothing.

Youngblood Mineral Radiance Moisture Tint – the Pros were gifted this product to try for an upcoming shoot with an actress who was extremely adamant that only natural products were used on her skin during filming.  Most mineral based products, while amazing for every day use, suffer under studio lighting and do not give enough coverage for extreme close up on HD cameras, but this moisture tint from Youngblood proved to be different!  It is sheer on first application, but you can build it up to cover small skin imperfections (most tinted moisturizers don’t have enough pigment to cover – they just provide a sheer “wash” over the skin).  Bonus – this product is packed with free-radical fighting antioxidants, calming botanicals and nourishing minerals.  Plus, it protects your skin from environmental damage!

Youngblood Hi-Definition Hydrating Mineral Perfecting Powder – this product saved us during the shoot we mentioned above because our actress was extremely allergic to any type of talc powder.  The Pros grabbed this powder out of our kit and were amazed at how incredibly finely milled this powder was, which left our actresses complexion flawless, almost looking airbrushed. Bonus - if you are prone to excessive oil or live in a high-humidity area, this product will keep your makeup fresh and matte for hours!

ColoreScience Corrector Kit – this palette has become our “go to” palette in our professional kit!  It offers five shades of powder corrector that perfectly camouflage any skin discoloration.  Corrects and lightens red tones like Rosacea or blemishes, blue tones like dark, under eye circles, brown tones like sun spots or yellow tones like sallow skin from medication side effects. Comes in two kits for light/medium and medium/deep skin tones.  Bonus – we also use these colors as highlights, concealer, contour and bronzer.

MAI Couture Rejuvenate Oil Blotting Papier – we purchased these amazing blotting papers at the recent IMATS Convention in Pasadena because we just HAD to have them!  They are incredible for absorbing and removing excess oil without disturbing makeup or adding powder to the face.  Infused with lavender oil that calms nerves on hectic shooting schedule days, they have become a luxurious addition to our Pro kits and personal makeup bags!  Bonus – these blotting papers are also available in blush colors or bronzing color for instant application sans brush or to add a pick-me-up of color when touching up the face!

Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Cream Shadow – since one of the summer time trends seems to be matte makeup, we are in love with Bobbi Brown’s cream shadows!  They last all day and won’t crease or smear.  Our favorite colors are Shore, Ash, Malted and Cement.  They leave a matte finish and the Pros love to apply these shadows with a brush or fingertip, plus they are safe for contact lens wearers.  Bonus – Bobbi Brown also makes these shadows in shimmer and metallic colors!

Make Up Forever Aqua Cream Liner – originally created by Dany Sanz for water ballet, this formula withstands extreme conditions!  Water, perspiration and humidity are no match for this amazing pencil!  It is seriously waterproof, smudge-proof and tear-proof with highly pigmented, intense color.  Comes in so many fun colors that we Pros love to use them as a pop of color on the eye when using matte, neutral eye shadows.  Bonus – these are great for the water line!

Make Up Forever Smoky Lash – this is 100% the best waterproof mascara we have every used!  Ultra-pigmented specially designed to give lashes exceptional volume!  Gives lashes curl, volume and length!  Bonus – you can get great pay off with just one coat!

Cover FX Bronzed FX Bronzing Powder – if you are looking for an amazing bronzer then look no further!  This product creates a radiant, sunny hue on the skin with a matte finish!  Oil-Free, paraben-free and packed with skin soothing properties so it is perfect if you have sensitive skin!  Bonus – comes in colors that are perfect for all skin tones!

NYX Cosmetics Rouge Cream Blush – we love to pop a bit of color just on the apples of the checks to compliment a bronze glow and to give the face some dimension!  We love a pinky-toned cream blush like Glow from NYX!  This line is very pigmented and lasts all day!  Dab on the skin with fingertips or a brush and blend!  Big Bonus – this line is extremely inexpensive so you can afford several colors!  Check out their lipstick colors too!

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector – this is by far our most favorite lip gloss!  Contains 3D pigments to enhance the lip’s natural color, fullness and shape!  Comes is three colors, but we are partial to Rose Shimmer.  Bonus – can be worn alone or with another lip color and the Beige color is the perfect nude lip color gloss!

Embryolisse Lotion Micellaire – this is a rinse-free makeup remover!  Yes!  You heard us right…rinse-free!  The Pros use this product a ton when we are on set and need to change makeup looks in a hurry!  Made for all skin types, this cleansing lotion is made with a solution of cornflower, witch hazel and chamomile water.  It is like a cleanser and toner all in one!  Even water resistant makeup is removed easily!  Bonus – impurities and daily pollution are removed in one sweep, leaving the face clean and clear so for those beauties that hate to take their makeup off at night…you now have no excuse!!!

Votre Vu On Holiday Collection – O.K. beauty junkies…the IMPO Pros literally died when we received this product line in the mail!  This is a luxurious body collection that will take you on a mini-vacation!  Take a deep breath and float away to your happy place while you exfoliate and bathe your skin in this sumptuous treatment!  The scrub will lift away dead cells and improve your skin’s texture, while the gentle cleanser nourishes and replenishes your tired, dry skin with moisture.  Complete your holiday with a spritz of the body oil and enjoy the intoxicating fragrance. Use on legs, feet, arms, stomach or wherever you would like to lock in precious moisture! Bonus – Votre Vu’s entire product line is natural and made with a blend of essential oils!