Makeup Artisty by Christy - The Blog
Review : Sephora Cream Lip Stain
by Christy Lavallee on 03/14/13
So I'll be the first to admit, I'm really not a fan of most of Sephora's own line of products, so when I started hearing buzz about their Cream Lip Stains, I didn't pay much attention. About a month ago a friend of mine told me just how amazing they were, so I decided to buy myself one to test it out. The result? LOVE. A lipstain that goes on soft and creamy, doesn't crack, fade or bleed, and lasts for hours?! SOLD!
As a bridal makeup artist, I am always in search of a long-lasting, non-transferable, non-drying lipcolor. No groom wants to be sporting lipstick after his first happily married kiss with his wife, and most brides don't want to have to worry about touching up their lip color several times throughout the night. These amazing stains solve both of these problems.
Sephora currently has a range of 10 different shades. I am now the proud owner of 7 of them, pictured below.
From left to right:
01 Always Red - matte bold classic red
02 Classic Beige - matte pinkish deep beige
03 Strawberry Kissed - matte bright pinky red
05 Infinite Rose - satin golden peach
08 Cute Pink - shimmering bright pink
09 Endless Pink - bold satin fuschia berry
10 Everlasting Burgundy - deep shimmering mauve
All of the colors photographed true to shade with the exceptions of 03 and 09. For some reason both of those shades photographed more red than pink, and in reality, they have much more of a pink hue to them.
These lip stains are super pigmented, so if it's just a wash of color you are looking for, these will probably not be for you. The color payoff on them is wonderful, and they go on true to the color of the tube. Another plus is that they can be easily layered to custom blend shades. My suggestion when using these stains is to apply a good lip balm an hour or so in advance, to really smooth out & moisturize your lips prior to application. While these stains are not at all drying, they are not moisturizing either, so you want your lips to be soft and supple before applying color.
For those of us who love to wear a bright lip without worrying about bleeding, fading or transferring (think teeth & coffee cups), these are definitely worth their weight in gold.
Makeup Artistry by Christy & Co. Awarded Two More Prestigious Awards!
by Christy Lavallee on 03/01/13
We are starting off 2013 the right way!
Hooray!!
Bridal Makeup for Mckenzie K. - The Barn at Gibbet Hill, Groton, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 03/01/13
A couple weeks ago we had the pleasure of doing makeup for the stunning Mckenzie and all 7 of her leading ladies. Let's just say that Mckenzie has GREAT taste in everything wedding, so I have been anxiously stalking her photographer's Facebook page in the hope of catching a sneak peek or two of her big day at The Barn at Gibbet Hill in Groton, MA (one of my fave wedding venues). Well, Megan Dandeles Photography did not disappoint! Several days later, these beauties appeared. I couldn't wait any longer to share them!
STUNNING! <3
So aside from me wanting to share just how beautiful these shots (and Mckenzie) are, I wanted to show you another non-professional photo that was taken while Mckenzie was getting ready. Have you ever heard professional makeup artists say you should wear your makeup a bit more dramatic than usual on your wedding day, for photos? Well, it's true, and this is why...
Compare Mckenzie's makeup in the photo above - taken indoors under flourescent lighting and without any processing - to the professional photos taken by Megan. The makeup looks completely different, does it not? This is the effect that natural light (and to some extent photo processing) has on makeup.
Now, Mckenzie specifically requested a smoky eye, so that's what I gave her - and she completely rocked it! Not every bride is going to be comfortable wearing that look, and I wouldn't be comfortable putting that on every bride. It's important that your makeup artist know this happy medium, the spot where you feel comfortable (& beautiful!) in person, yet your makeup is able to properly reflect back in photos so you don't look washed out. Because, let's face it: your wedding day will fly by, and what do you have left afterwards? YOUR PHOTOS. So you better look pretty darn amazing in them, right?!
So when you're having your makeup trial prior to your wedding, and your makeup artist tells you that you should wear your makeup a bit more dramatic than your normal routine of blush and lip gloss, listen to them. When you're looking back on your photos 10 or 20 years from now, you will not regret it. :-)
P.S. - You WILL be seeing more of Mckenzie in the future.. I am not done stalking her photographer's page... yet. ;-)
Elegant Bridal Hair & Makeup for Raquel | Zukas Hilltop Barn Wedding | Spencer, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 02/01/13
We are in the midst of the annual winter doldrums here in New England. Blah... But what better way to break them up than by going through all the photos my brides had sent me over the summer of their gorgeous weddings? And that is exactly what I have been doing today!
I am pleased to share these gorgeous photos of my bride Raquel's wedding. She was married at Zukas Hilltop Barn in Spencer, MA this past August. Molly Anne Photography did an amazing job on her photos and captured this bride (who is beautiful both inside & out!) and her day simply beautifully.
Raquel wanted a makeup look that was soft, natural & feminine. I used a combination of pinks and shimmery nudes on her, and lined her eyes all the way around with black (something I rarely do for brides, but Raquel had the right features to pull this off). The resulting look was a rosy bridal glow with just enough emphasis on her beautiful blue eyes.
Renee was in charge of creating the perfect hair style for Raquel. And when I say THE perfect style, I am referring to a photo that Raquel brought to her trial and wanted duplicated to a T. The style she chose was a full low bun with a wrap around braid - a gorgeous look, but difficult to do as Raquel needed more volume to pull this look off. Insert mesh hair chignon - literally! Bobby pinned into her hair, this was the perfect filler to give Raquel's bun the volume and fullness she desired.
Here are a few of the gorgeous images from Raquel's big day:
The rain trying to put a damper on her perfect day was no match against Raquel's radiant smile! And isn't Raquel's mom a beauty? It's obvious where Raquel gets her good looks from. We did her hair and makeup as well.
And her bridesmaids....
I love these shots of Raquel, they really show off the amazing hair style that Renee created for her!
And this was the shot featured on the Tejani jewelry website. They custom-made Raquel's pink and crystal chandelier earrings. They were stunning!
Raquel, you were fabulous to work with. Your wedding was gorgeous and it was a pleasure being a part of it. Thank you!
How To Fix Shattered Powder Makeup - Pressed Powder, Eyeshadow, Blush
by Christy Lavallee on 12/03/12
Have you ever dropped your pressed powder compact (or eyeshadow, blush or any other powdered cosmetic) and watched it break into a hundred pieces right before your eyes? I'm sure you've thought, "Oh Tiddlywinks! What am I going to do NOW?" And more often than not, most of us, in dismay, have picked up the pieces and proceeded to empty them into the trash. Well, I am going to give you a simple, quick, inexpensive way of fixing those cracked powders yourself!
This same scenario happened to me the other day on set of a photoshoot. I pulled out my highlighting powder by Smashbox (ha... such an appropriate name), and what did I see? A mess inside the compact, of course!
But not for long... :-)
Here are the two things you'll need to fix this mess: Isopropyl Alcohol (atleast 91%, or higher if you have it) and a flat toothpick.
The first thing you'll need to do is break up all the pieces with the toothpick - the smaller the better.
Then, depending on the amount of powder remaining in your compact, you want to add a little bit of the rubbing alcohol. My powder was brand new when it cracked, so I used two capfuls for this, but if your powder has been well worn, you will use much less. You want to get this to be the consistency of Elmer's glue - loose, but not completely liquid. Stir the alcohol into the powder until thoroughly combined - you do not want there to be any lumps. You can lightly tap the compact on a solid surface to remove any air bubbles and spread the liquid out evenly.
You can see in the photo above that the makeup is evenly spread throughout the compact, and a bit of the alcohol is floating on the surface. Now you'll want to set the compact aside for a few hours - the alcohol will evaporate during this time. If you have a cover or lid for your compact, make sure you leave it off so that the alcohol can evaporate properly. Once the product is completely dry, it is ready to be covered or used once again.
Voila! A completely repaired powder, good as new!
This is really such a simple fix! So the next time you smash your makeup, don't despair. Try this little trick and you'll be using that product again in no time!
Some Recent Wedding Makeup Before and After Photos
by Christy Lavallee on 09/18/12
It is currently mid-September, and we are in the middle of our peak bridal season! Because I haven't been keeping up with my blog regularly, I figured I would take the opportunity tonight to share a variety of before & after photos of some recent work I've done. As I'm sure many of you have noticed, I am a big fan of before & after photos. It's always nice to look at beautiful makeup, but being able to see the transition from no makeup to the final look is so powerful! And I feel these before & afters are some very good examples of that.
First up is one of my upcoming brides, Ryann. This before & after shot is from her bridal trial. Ryann has very fair skin & light eyebrows, so just a bit of contouring of her features made a huge difference. The trick with Ryann was to keep her makeup soft so as to not overpower her light features, but do just enough to enhance them.
Next up is one of my brides from last month, Angela. Angela is 1/4 Japanese, so I really wanted to bring that out by elongating and focusing on her eyes. Angela told me she liked dramatic eye makeup, so I knew this was going to be the perfect look for her!
Here is a great example of some fairly natural makeup on Catie, a recent bride of mine. Catie has these amazing crystal blue eyes that are really the focus of her beautiful face, so I wanted to play them up just a bit to make them an even stronger feature without doing anything to detract from their natural beauty. This goes to show that even natural makeup, when applied the right way, can make a huge difference in accenting your features.
Next we have Rachael, one of my brides from earlier this month. I have known Rachael for a very long time, so I had a good idea of the type of makeup she was going to want for her big day. She loves a dramatically lined eye, so I wanted to give that to her while bumping up the drama all over her face a bit by warming up her complexion and giving her a beautiful rosy cheek. And lashes!! Lots & lots of lashes!
Here is the beautiful Lauren, one of my August brides, wearing what is probably my most popular bridal look - a slightly smoky eye with a sheer rose or plum-colored lip. Muted purple shades look gorgeous on brown eyes, so I chose to use a plummy brown on her to really make her brown eyes pop while still giving her a fairly natural bridal look.
This next before & after shot is of Lauren's sister, Michelle. I did a similar style of makeup on her, but really focused on perfecting her skin. Airbrush makeup is wonderful for covering blemishes - it's lightweight enough to look like skin while offering superb coverage. These photos have not been retouched in any way, it was the airbrush makeup that gave her that flawless complexion.
Next we have Kimberly, one of my brides from this past weekend! Kim has very thin skin around her eyes, resulting in purple discoloration below her eyes & on her eyelids. My focus on her was to color correct and conceal that discoloration, perfect her skin, and then move on to accenting the rest of her features. Her skin had a glow to it once I was done!
And finally we have Cassie, who is Kimberly's younger sister. Cassie had a pretty good complexion to begin with, and lots of beautiful freckles. I kept the foundation application fairly light so as to not hide her freckles, and brightened up the undereye area just slightly to give a more even complexion. Cassie has the coloring to pull of pink really well, so I gave her a pink cheek & lip and added a touch of color to her eyes with a light taupe shade.
So that's just a taste of what I've been up to over the past several weeks. Making people beautiful and loving every minute of it! :-)
PURPLE - Bridal Makeup for a Makeup Artist - Brockton, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 07/27/12
Sometimes I get a bride who wants to step out of the box with her makeup, something other than the usual slightly smoky eye & berry-toned lip. Pin-up style? Love it. Lots of lashes and bright lips? Fab! But this bride.. this bride wanted PURPLE. Purple eyes & fuschia lips. To go with her PURPLE WEDDING DRESS. And oh. my. did she look AMAZING!
Meet Jeni - She is one heck of a hair stylist & makeup artist. She is also the CEO of The Inej Agency and BridalArtists.com, which just so happen to represent little ol' me. So to have had the opportunity to do the makeup for HER big day, was not something I took lightly. Let's just say I was tickled pink... err, purple... to know she thinks highly enough of me and my work to have us grace her beautiful face on such an important day.
Jeni rocks purple. It's simply HER color. So I knew not just any muted plum-toned eye was going to do. I needed bright, vibrant colors, and those colors came out of my Yaby Pearl Paint eyeshadow palette. After first applying a matte neutral shadow as a base all over her lids (MAC shadow in Blanc Type), I contoured the crease and outer third of her eye with a bright pigmented purple shade (Yaby shadow in Eggplant). On the inner half of her lids I applied a shimmery white (Yaby shadow in First Snow), and then I highlighted the center of her lids with a bit of a bright pink shade (Yaby shadow in Dragon Fruit). These three colors blended into each other so well. I lined her upper lid with a black gel liner for definition, and blended a black pencil into her lower lashes, applying some of the purple shadow over it to really give her that pop of color. A dab of the shimmery white shadow in the inner corners of her eyes helped to give her a wide-eyed look, accompanied by a set of false lashes and a couple coats of black mascara.
Jeni had a bright fuschia lipstick she wanted to wear that day, appropriately titled Fab Fuschia, and it completely finished off her look.
I also did the makeup for most of Jeni's bridal party (3 of the 4 pictured below) and both of the moms. Do these girls have sass or what?? Hey, if the bride is wearing purple, the bridesmaids might as well wear white!
Love it in black & white!!
And just let me add as a side note - Jeni MADE her dress. And the feather bouquets. And almost every other detail item in her wedding. This girl is crazy talented. And one of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
All of these gorgeous photos were taken by the fantabulous Shannon Grant of Shannon Grant Photography. To see more photos from Jeni's wedding, including a bunch of the DIY items she made herself, check out Shannon's blog post here: Jeni and Manny: Fairytale Romance Wedding at Ames Mansion, or their bridal feature in Rock 'N Roll Bride, including commentary by Jeni herself on what inspired this fantastic purple-tinted wedding.
Thank you Jeni, for allowing me to touch your gorgeous face on such an amazing day! Purple love & fuschia kisses!
In Front of the Camera - Makeup Artistry by Christy & Co.: The Team!
by Christy Lavallee on 06/07/12
I absolutely hate being in front of a camera, so I have been procrastinating in regards to having my team's professional headshots and group shot done. After having a number of photographers and bridal industry professionals hire me recently to do the makeup for their own headshots, it gave me a little kick in the butt to get my team together to do our own.
I really love the look of the celebrity group shots that Annie Leibovitz had been doing for Vanity Fair Magazine recently, and decided I wanted to do a shoot of a similar style. I hired Alvah Reida of Alvah Reida Photography to handle the camera end of things, and am so glad I did! Not only did he take amazing photos of us, but he also went above & beyond by making the set boxes as well. Thanks Alvah!
On the day of, all us girls met at my studio and spent a couple hours dolling each other up. It was really a lot of fun!
So what happens when you put four makeup artists & hair designers, and one amazing photographer, together in a room? You get some pretty fantastic team photos! Here's the results of our shoot.
Introducing the team - Makeup Artistry by Christy & Co.!
Christy - Principal Makeup Artist/Owner (Makeup by Christy, hair by Sarah and Renee)
Sarah - Principal Hair Designer & Makeup Artist (Makeup by Christy, hair by Sarah)
Betsy - Makeup Artist (Hair & makeup by Betsy)
Renee - Hair Designer (Makeup by Betsy, hair by Renee)
And here's our Vanity Fair-styled group shot. I love it!
I really have to give an extra special thank you to Alvah, who completely understood the vision I had in mind for this shoot, and nailed it perfectly. I couldn't be happier! Thank you!!
Before and After Photos of Hair and Makeup for Melanie's Wedding - Leominster, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 05/12/12
We are deep in the midst of wedding season again, and after a crazy busy April, early May has given me enough of a breather to be able to do a blog post! And just in time, because I'm really excited to share these before and after photos of our wedding party from yesterday. Melanie and her bridesmaids are quite a good-looking group of girls to begin with, but their transformations with airbrush makeup & bridal hair design are quite fantastic!
Here are the before and after shots, starting off with our beautiful bride Melanie! I had to apply foundation a couple shades darker on her, as the spray tan she had received a few days before had almost completely washed off her face, leaving her chest and arms noticeably darker. Nothing a little airbrushing can't fix. :)
And her bridesmaids....
And of course, you need beautiful hair to go along with the beautiful makeup, and our hair designer Renee was on hand to do just that! All the bridesmaids decided to wear different styles, but kept it cohesive by adding a braid into each one. Here's a few shots of some of these beautiful hair designs.
Unfortunately, there was one other bridesmaid whose hair I did not get a picture of. It started to get a little crazy towards the end, which also explains why I didn't get a shot of the back of the bride's head either! But here's a picture of her hair from her trial at my studio. For her wedding day, Renee added in extensions to add some additional length and volume, and I also inserted some Stephanotis flowers that her florist had given her into the twist at the top of her head. It looked beautiful! I'm sure her photographers, Ericson-Wolfe Photography, got some amazing hair shots that they'll be willing to share with me.
Everyone looked so beautiful, and they were such a fun group to be around. Congratulations Melanie! Thank you for choosing us to be a part of your day!
Airbrush Makeup for Julie's Trash The Dress Shoot - Medfield, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 03/14/12
So as I mentioned in my previous blogpost, I had the opportunity to do makeup for my past bride Julie's Trash The Dress photoshoot. For anyone who doesn't know what a TTD shoot is, it's an amazingly fun opportunity to wear your wedding dress a second time - but instead of acting all prim and proper (as a bride is expected to do), this time you're wearing it while doing something out of the ordinary - romping around on the beach, hanging out at a carnival, building a snowman, or being creative with finger paints (yes, I've seen this before!).
Julie chose to do her shoot 'over the river and through the woods' in her hometown of Medfield, MA (actually, make that IN the river.. wading boots and all!). Of course she once again hired the fabulous Suzanna March Photography to photograph her, and what fabulous photos they are! Here are a couple of my faves from the shoot.
And it looks like I even had a little helper after I left...
Are these not gorgeous? Trash The Dress shoots are very popular in the western half of the US, but they've been slow to hit the east coast for some reason. I did one after my own wedding in 2007 and they are some of my fave photos of all time. For all you future brides out there, DO IT! You will love it!
To see additional shots from this shoot, check out Suzanna March Photography's blog post.
1 Bride, 2 Moms, 7 Bridesmaids and 1 Groom - Makeup for Julie's Wedding! - Worcester, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 02/04/12
I spent a few months stalking the photographer's Facebook page. Waiting for something, anything.. a single shot... a sneak peek... from my bride Julie's wedding. These wedding photos had me all kinds of excited for a couple reasons. 1) The entire bridal party was gorgeous. 2) The photographer is amazing. 3) I did some touch-ups on the groom and I knew there was photo proof of it. So when the day finally came, and Julie sent me her photos, you'd think I would have put them up immediately, right? Nope. They were so amazing, it took me a week to figure out which ones I wanted to use! Suzanna March Photography, these wedding photos are a bridal makeup artist's (and bride's!) dream-come-true!
Julie came to me armed with a photo of what she wanted her makeup to look like - very natural with a hint of shimmer, the eyeliner being the one feature that gave it that red carpet look. And it looked absolutely stunning on her!
Getting ready...
Since Julie's look was a focus on the eyes, everything else was kept very soft and natural. After airbrushing her face, I added some contour and highlights using Make Up For Ever's Sculpting Kit. I applied a natural rose shade of blush to the apples of her cheeks along with a slight dusting of shimmer on her cheekbones to really make them pop (both by La Femme). Her eyeshadow was kept natural, but I used three different neutral shades to really sculpt her eyes - a light creamy beige shade (MAC's Brule) for the lids and brow bones, a muted golden brown (MAC's Cork) in the crease and along the lower lash line to contour, and a light shimmery neutral pink shade (MAC's Naked Lunch) in the center of her lids and in the inner corners of her eyes. Deep espresso colored gel liner was applied all across her upper lash line (from corner to corner) and along her lower waterline, and topped off with a pair of false lashes and my favorite mascara, L'Oreal's Voluminous in Carbon Black. I filled in Julie's brows using a custom-blended light taupe liquid brow filler (TemptuPro's Airbrow) and lined and filled in her lips with a neutral lip-colored liner, topped off with a layer of sheer plum gloss. She looked amazing!
Here are the before and after photos I took of her:
Before 
After 
And some stunning professional shots:
One of my team's artists, Betsy, was working alongside me that day to ensure we had all 10 ladies (and one gentleman) ready in a timely manner. Here's our teamwork on some of the bridesmaids.
And I absolutely LOVE this next shot of some of the bridesmaids. You can actually FEEL the joy you see in their faces as they are watching Julie get dressed in her gown.
Now, us makeup artists preach this all the time - for flawless pictures, the groom should be touched up! Unfortunately there is a stigma behind this that makes most grooms feel uncomfortable with it, but if the bride is going through all this effort to look perfect in their photos, why would she want a red-faced, shiny groom in them next to her? And when applied properly, the makeup will be completely invisible to both the naked eye and the camera. Julie's husband, Jimmy, had no issue sitting in my seat and getting "groomed" (actually, one of his groomsmen was so impressed with the whole thing, he asked if he could have his done, too!). Note how perfect and shine-free Jimmy's skin looks in his photos.
And here are pictures of Julie and Jimmy with their moms, who we also did makeup for.
And here are two extra gorgeous photos of the couple. Suzanna March Photography, your work is amazing!
Thank you Julie, for not only choosing me to be a part of your amazing day, but sharing all these stunning photos with me. And folks, this isn't the end of the gorgeousness that is Julie. She hired me to do the makeup for her Trash the Dress photos as well (and the sneak peek I saw of them has me giddily waiting for more!).
Congrats Jimmy and Julie! Happy Saturday everyone!
More Awards! 2012 Best of the Knot & WeddingWire Bride's Choice
by Christy Lavallee on 01/16/12
I am once again elated to announce that Makeup Artistry by Christy & Co. has been awarded two very prestigious bridal industry honors - 2012 Best of the Knot and 2012 WeddingWire Bride's Choice awards!
I know I say this a lot, but I can't state it enough. It means so much to me that my clients appreciate what I do for them, and it makes me feel so good that they want to share this appreciation with brides everywhere. These awards wouldn't be possible without all of you. Thank you!
Before & After Photos of Kaitlyn - Winter Semi-formal
by Christy Lavallee on 01/08/12
This weekend I once again had the pleasure of doing makeup for Kaitlyn, a high-school student attending her school's winter semi-formal. I first met Kaitlyn exactly a year ago, when Sarah and I teamed up to do her hair and makeup for last year's winter dance (I've also done makeup for Kaitlyn's modeling headshots since then as well). She's grown up a bit since then, and it's really fun to see the change in her when I compare the photos from both years together!
Here was Kaitlyn back in January 2011.
And here are Kaitlyn's before & after shots from this weekend.
Before 
After 
What a difference! After evening out her skin with airbrush makeup, I used gold and brown shadows to bring out Kaitlyn's beautiful blue eyes, paired with a simple neutral lip and a rosy blush for a pop of color on her cheeks. Sarah added strands of tinsel to Kaityln's hair and added in some long curls, pulling back the top. So pretty!
I hope you had a great time at the dance Kaitlyn!
Summer Editorial Shoot with Jessica Weiser Photography - Falmouth, ME
by Christy Lavallee on 01/04/12
Brrrr.. it's cold outside! With single digit temps, it looks like winter has finally arrived here in New England. To help combat this chilly weather, I figured today would be a great day to post photos from a gorgeous summer editorial shoot I worked on this past June at the breathtakingly beautiful Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth, ME. Just looking at these photos is bringing me back to that amazing place!
Photographer: Jessica Weiser, Styling: Christen Mitchell Styling, Hair: Nancy Brown of NV My Hair, Models: Genevieve Lane and Leah Ogawa from Models Club Inc.
And since it's only a few days into the new year, let me wish everyone an amazing, beauty-filled 2012!
Before and After Airbrush Bridal Makeup for Kate K. - The Publick House - Sturbridge, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 11/27/11
Phew!! This amazingly crazy wedding season is slowly starting to wind down. Which means a lot more time to keep up with my blog posts, among other things!
In the meantime, while I start getting myself reorganized, here's a quick before & after of Kate, my bride from yesterday who was getting married at the Publick House here in Sturbridge, MA. What a difference airbrush makeup makes on her skin! It totally evened out her complexion while completely concealing her blemishes. If you've never tried it, you should. It's amazing!
And Kate, I can't wait to hear about your husband's reaction as he saw you walking down the aisle! I'm sure you took his breath away. Congratulations and thank you for letting me be a part of your special day!
Before 
After 
