A Few Words With Makeup Artist Daniel Martin

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Makeup artist Daniel Martin started his career assisting esteemed artists Pati Dubroff, Pat McGrath and Virginia Young. Taking from those experiences, he channeled the distinctly different styles into his own unique approach that revolves around the notion that it’s not what product one uses, but how. Martin then partnered with Lancôme which led him to work with Chris Benz, Proenza Schouler, Richard Chai and Thakoon, all of which are loyal clients that rely on Martin for special collaborations.

 

 

Martin’s work has been featured in Interview Magazine, Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar, W Magazine, and French Vogue to name a few. In addition, he was one of only two makeup artists who was invited to participate in the historic “All Black” issue of Italian Vogue shot by Steven Meisel. He has a diverse client following including celebrities such as Chloe Sevigny, Greta Gerwig, Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Bosworth, and Robyn.

 

 

 

1. What inspired you to start doing what you do?

 

DM: Ever since I was a kid I was drawing. My mom used to get the Avon catalog in the mail and I would draw and color eyes and lips from it. Thinking about it now, maybe it was subconscious that I eventually did what I do…

 

 

2. If you could go back in time and give yourself advice when you were just starting out, what would you tell yourself?

 

Be patient, assist and learn as much as you can and have a savings account! Freelance is tough!

 

 

3. What is the single most defining moment in your life?

 

Experiencing September 11th first hand and losing my grandmother to breast cancer in the same month. Those unfortunate tragedies gave me the strength to realize why I moved to NYC in the first place and to focus on making my dream attainable. Life takes you on an unpredictable journey and its up to you to stay on track.

 

 

4. What is your greatest achievement to date?

 

Being confident, comfortable and selective enough in my career choices to say, no thank you... As one develops their talent and reputation in this industry, you try and do as much as you can. You definitely have to pay your dues and do a lot of free work.

 

I’m grateful now that I’m at a point in my career that I don’t need to take every job and try to work with every superstar photographer, designer, etc.

 

 

5. What are you working on now and what would be your dream project?

 

I have a couple of secret projects (I can’t talk about, sorry!) but my dream project would be to design a women’s shoe.

 

 

6. What are 5-10 items you’re loving right now?

• Amala Purifying Mattifier
• Eminence Stone Crop Hydrating Gel
• YSL Beauty Le Teint Touche Eclat Foundation
• NARS Pure Matte Lipstick in Amsterdam
• Lancome Blush Subtil 3-Pan Palette
• Chanel Blending Foundation Brush #7
• Giorgio Armani High Precision Retouch Concealer
• Revlon Illuminance Creme Eyeshadow
• KohGenDo Maifanshi Lipstick in Coral Beige
• REN Active 7 Radiant Eye Gel

 

7. Can you give us a tip you’ve learned in your profession?

 

In this industry, you have to give to receive and always be humble. KARMA’s a b*tch!

 

 

8. What is your sign, do you think it fits your personality?

 

I’m a Virgo 100%

 

 

9. What would your spirit animal be?

 

A Chupacabra

 

 

10. How has the industry changed since you’ve started out?

 

The industry has gotten much larger since I started. There’s more hair and makeup, more photographers, etc.. As an artist you have to think beyond just makeup and really hone in on your point of view to stand out.

 

 

11. What do you think about digital/social media?

 

I have to be honest, its still daunting to me. It’s within the last two years that I’ve seen and experienced its power and the reality is, you can’t deny it.

 

 

 

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Beauty Tips From Makeup Artist Laura Mercier



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When did you fall in love with makeup, and what prompted you to start your own line?

At aesthetician school I met a wonderful woman who was my teacher and became a close friend. I was inspired by her, and my love for makeup grew as I learned under her wing.

 

What was your favorite decade for makeup?

 The ’50s and ’90s—I like the style of the makeup for those periods better than the others. I love re-creating the look from the 1950s. And smoky eyes were huge in the ’90s; I like that style.

Which celebrities have you worked with in the past, and do you work with anyone regularly?

Sienna Miller, Angelina Jolie, Jessica Alba, Liv Tyler, Gwyneth Paltrow, Oprah Winfrey, Cameron Diaz, Susan Sarandon, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Heather Locklear, Patricia Arquette, Jaime King, Maria Shriver, Glenn Close, Shalom Harlow, and Gretchen Mol. I still work with Julia and Sarah Jessica.

When brainstorming with a client on a look for an awards show, what's the most requested look?

It depends on the mood and what they are wearing.

What are your top beauty tips?

Cleansing, prepping skin with primer, camouflage without caking with foundation, and liner on lash lines.

What's the one thing women can do to look younger?

 

Not to cake foundation on the face. By trying to erase lines with a large amount of foundation it actually puts an emphasis on them. Also, accept the fact that you’re going to grow older.

How can someone look great in an instant?

Although this is dependent on each woman’s face, red lipstick is a great go-to trick; it can help give an instant healthy look. For someone with great eyes, she can instantly look awake if she puts a lot of mascara on.

What are makeup-bag must-haves?

Some universal products that women could put in their bag are a gloss or lip balm, camouflage for flaws, translucent powder, cream blush, lipstick, and concealer, which can give an immediate boost.

What's the biggest mistake women make when doing or buying makeup?

Putting on too much foundation—it gives skin too much texture and it hides the pores.

 

 

 

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Tips From Makeup Artist Carmindy

 

 

 

 

 

Instead of looking for what to correct, we must focus on our best features. Women are always asking me questions like,"Carmindy, how do I make my lips look larger?" Meanwhile that woman has the most beautiful brown eyes that I have ever seen. She doesn't even think about them because she is obsessed with making her lips look huge. What a shame!

When it comes to makeup, I believe in using the right products in the right places to enhance natural beauty. I apply makeup like watercolor painting, using sheer washes of color, allowing the skin to show and a woman’s special loveliness to shine through.

I believe looking good starts and ends with feeling positive. I encourage you to drop the “flaw-focus” and find what is wonderful about your one-of-a-kind face. Embrace it. Celebrate it.

And work it!

 

Prep the skin for makeup

Before your beauty artistry begins, you must prepare your canvas. Start off with a daily cleansing and moisturizing ritual to face the day fresh and protected. You’ll find moisturizers with sunscreens built in. Also, SPF-loaded foundations and tints are real timesavers. Make sure your brows look well groomed. Check them in natural light near a window and pluck away any strays. If you tend to be really oily it’s smart to apply a product that controls oil like a mattifying lotion.

 

The brows make the face

Nothing frames the eyes better than perfectly groomed brows. They really can make or break the face. Let’s cease with the eyebrow butchering already. Over-plucking has to stop; this isn’t the 1920's. Achieving great brows is simple; just follow the technique below. My most important tip? Put the tweezers down.

1. Brows should be natural-flowing arches that look uniform and not "little squares with tails." Begin plucking the brow from the inside, close to the inside arch of the nose. Draw an imaginary line from the tear duct up to the brow; that’s where a brow should begin. Anything in front of that imaginary line must be plucked.
2. To find the arch, find the center of the pupil and draw an imaginary line a bit diagonally up. That’s where it should arch.
3. Use the imaginary line to follow diagonally up from the outside corner of the eye. That’s where the brow should end.
4. With an old toothbrush or an eyebrow brush, brush the hairs straight up. If any hairs don't naturally fall back into place, cut them with a small pair of mustache scissors.
5. Look for stray hairs around the brow–on top and underneath– and pluck them away.
6. Check for any sparse areas and fill them in with a brow corrector. You can use a pencil, liquid, powder or whatever you feel comfortable with, but remember that the color you choose should be a bit lighter than your hair color. And less is more, so don't go overboard or you will look like Groucho Marx.
7. To keep the brow in place you can use clear mascara, a bit of hairspray or gel on a brow brush or old toothbrush, or a brow gel.

Lips tips

1. Achieve that perfect lip line–After applying your lipstick, put a bit of foundation on a concealer brush and follow around your lip line, erasing any smudges. Voila: a perfect pout.
2. When to use lip stains–Only use lip stains when your lips are perfectly smooth and you don't have lines around the mouth. To get smooth lips, buff lips with a toothbrush dipped in a little water and sugar. Never rub too hard and always follow with a light balm before the stain.
3. Gloss without the goop–Apply a great lipstick and then dab a bit of gloss only on the inside of the fleshy part of the lower lip. All the shine, none of the mess.
4. For high drama–After applying lipstick or gloss, put a touch of white sheer shimmer powder on the dip of the upper lip and right below the lower lip. Great for evening looks.
5. Wearing red–To get that perfect red lip, lightly apply a pale flesh colored lip liner. Then rub a red lip stain on the lips. Follow with a moisturizing red lipstick. Dry formulas look cakey; super glossy ones slip right off. Avoid red lip-gloss as it gets messy fast.
6. Small lips–Avoid wearing dark colors; they make lips look smaller. Do not draw on a big lip with lip liner. Instead choose light or bright shades of lipstick or gloss with shimmer that catches the light for a magnifying effect.
7. Big lips–Stay away from glossing the whole lip. Apply a little in the center on top and bottom, and then blend with your fingertip across the lips for shine that doesn’t overpower your face.
8. Whiter teeth–Brush teeth with a little baking soda. Then choose lip colors in cool tones for an icy-white smile.
9. Liner disasters–Never choose a lip liner darker than your lipstick. If you like to use liner on the whole lip, use a balm first to avoid chunky, uneven, dry color.
10. Bleeding lipstick–Line the lips with a pale flesh colored lip liner then fill with a moisture-rich lipstick with staying power. Avoid glosses as they tend to run.

All about eyes

Bring out your soulful beauty by enhancing your eyes. Whether your eyes are big, small, round, narrow, or deep set, all eyes will be on you when you give them a touch of glamour. Doing up the eyes is a great place to play with makeup, so have fun!

1. Always apply a highlight shade under the eyebrow and in the tear duct area. This creates at an open, bright-eyed look. Younger women can choose shadows or creams with shimmer; older women should stick with sheer, matte colors like vanilla. Highlight shades include: light pink, white, vanilla, gold, iridescent, and champagne.
2. For a natural day look, you can stop with Step 1. For a little more definition, apply an eye shadow shade across the lid and a slightly darker one in the crease. Blend well; no ‘stripes.’
3. Apply a dark liner to the lash line of the eyes. You can use a pencil, shadow, or liquid depending your desired effect. Liner enhances a full-lashes look to frame your eyes. The closer to the lash line, the more natural the effect.
4. Mascara is a must on top lashes. If you tend to smudge the lowers, skip it underneath. Curling lashes first makes a huge difference on straight lashes. Curled lashes=more drama.
5. When choosing colors, use shades opposite your eye color. Contrast really makes the eyes stand out.
6. Don't overdo it. If you are doing a strong or bright lip, use minimal eye makeup. For a classic look, apply the highlight shade, a taupe shadow across the lid, a dark line along the lashes and finish with mascara.
7. For a sexy, smoky look on larger eyes, rim the inside with a black pencil.
8. When using cream shadows apply only on the lid and not into the crease so the color does not become a creasy, greasy mess.
9. Splurge on brushes. Blending is so important when using eye shadows and having good brushes makes all the difference. I buy some of my faves at art supply stores as well as makeup shops.
10. If loose shadow falls under the eye when you are applying shadow, wipe away with a sponge dipped in a little foundation. It’s the perfect eraser.

 

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The Art of Camouflage by Virginia Young

Dark circles, blemishes and blotches meet their match with cover-ups that distract, rather than attract attention.

Make-up artist Virginia Young has witnessed more than her share of beauty blunders, but one encounter 20 years ago on a train still haunts her. “It was the first time those green foundations were widely available,” she recalls of the make-up designed to counteract redness. “I remember seeing this pretty girl on the train with this Incredible Hulk-like make-up.” For every perceived flaw, there are thousands of unsuccessful attempts to hide it – from “masking” freckles with a freakish shade of concealer to piling crusty orange spackle over an angry pimple. They end up being like those fake nose-and-glasses – a disguise that fools no-one. New York City make-up artist Charlie Green – who touches up every square inch of skin for the Victoria’s Secret runway show – always considers the texture, size, and colour of a mark before choosing a concealer. Unlike make-up designed to exaggerate lashes or plump lips, she says, cover-up is most successful when it’s completely invisible. “Making a blemish totally disappear isn’t always realistic,” Green says. “The goal is to draw as little attention to it as possible.”

 

Dark circles

Tools A rich, creamy concealer, such as Revlon ColorStay Natural Concealer; sheer foundation such as Napoleon Minimal Makeup; translucent loose powder.

Technique If circles are particularly dark, precede concealer with a light coat of foundation applied with a damp sponge. With a small, flat brush, press concealer on just the dark areas, blending it to the lash line. Smooth any unevenness with a fingertip. Most women need cover-up from the inner corners to the middle of the eyes – not at the outer corners. Set it with a few pats using a clean, damp sponge, then lightly press a powdered puff over the concealer, keeping it well below the lashes to avoid magnifying lines and creases.

 

Blemishes

Tools Cotton bud; Visine (or other anti-redness eye drops); cakey compact concealer such as Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage (“It should feel almost like paste,” says Mercier); translucent loose powder.

Technique Soak a cotton bud in Visine and place it in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Hold it gently on the blemish for a minute to reduce redness and swelling, then fan the area dry. With a small, flat brush, dab a light layer of the pasty concealer on top of the pimple, then blend slightly around the edges. Let dry, and add one more thin layer if needed. Pat loose powder over the concealer to keep it from budging.

 

Acne Scars

Tools Cakey concealer such as Stephane Marais Perfect Concealer from Mecca Cosmetica (one shade lighter than your complexion if the scar is depressed or pitted, or a shade that matches the skin if the scar is raised); translucent loose powder.

Technique Use a pointed brush to fill in the centre of the scar with concealer without going beyond its edges – or, if the scar is raised, pat it on top with a finger. Allow the concealer to set for a few minutes, then gently press loose powder over the scar a few times with a powder puff.

 

Redness

Tools Foundation, such as Revlon ColorStay Natural Makeup; creamy concealer, like Clinique Line Smoothing Concealer or Shiseido The Makeup Corrective Concealers; I.D. Bare Minerals powder in Bisque; translucent loose powder.

Technique Apply foundation as usual. Using your ring finger, pat a thin layer of skin-matching concealer onto the areas that are still red. Let dry, then add a bit more until the redness disappears, says Mercier, who sets this with a light dusting of loose powder.

 

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