Odd title. It stands for Inside A Make-up Artist's Kit. This second chapter being about, Foundations. You can see my first chapter here on Brushes.
Hello Lovelies,
I thought it might be interesting to give you a little insight into the contents of my professional make-up kit. I know, personally, I love finding out what other people in the industry are using, what their must-haves are, the products they cannot live without. Looking into another make-up artist's kit is like looking into a treasure chest, I just love it when you discover something new. I am like a big kid when it comes to make-up, playing with shiny, pretty bottles and mixing colours together, its all very exciting. So, on that crazy note, here are the foundations that I have in my own treasure chest:
In My Kit:
I have a small selection of foundations in my kit, a few random ones I have picked up here and there but the ones I predominantly use and love are the ones listed below:
My favourite foundation by far in terms of price, packaging, texture and longevity. Depending on stockists, the price ranges from £20-£25 so a little more than high street brands but not verging on Giorgio Armani foundation prices (tres expensive!).
I came across this by chance, a lady came into the SpaceNK store I used to work at, asking if we stocked the brand Jemma Kidd, unfortunately we did not. I asked her what product she was looking for, as I wanted to try and help her find something similar to try. She exclaimed that the Light As Air foundation was all she needed for her kit, as it was perfect for shoots and made the skin look flawless.
She was very adamant that I had to try this foundation myself, so I did and have never looked back. It is a really light, liquid formula, and you need very little of the product on application. I would say that coverage is medium-full - its not Estee Double Wear, but redness, spots and blemishes are easily covered. I have used it on myself and models and have found that it is great for even those with combination and oily skin - it contains properties that help to keep the skin matte and shine free. It comes in a range of 7 shades, which for a make-up artist may appear disappointing but I think its great - less to carry in my kit and when I need to I can mix and blend two together to get the perfect match.
I use it out here in Mallorca, where the models can get very hot during shoots causing their make-up to drip off, yet I have found with this foundation I very rarely have to touch up the base and it lasts near enough all day long. It really is fab and I would recommend to all.
If you want a long-lasting, great coverage, lightweight foundation then this is for you.
Stockists: Some SpaceNK stores and online.
The latest addition to my kit, I didn't like this foundation at first. The texture baffled me a little and I wasn't really impressed by the coverage, but I have since changed my mind, you just have to understand the water-based formula and hey presto with a little bit of patience and a good foundation brush this stuff does make the skin look fabulous. You can read more about my thoughts on this foundation
here on an earlier post.
Overall it gives a gorgeous natural finish, coverage is buildable and slightly dewy, looks great on camera and M.A.C even claim it to be water resistant. No wonder every make-up artist has this in their kit.
Being an avid fan of the amazingly talented
Lisa Eldridge, international celebrity make-up artist, I came across this foundation when watching one of her tutorials - I love that Lisa uses both high street and designer brands in her professional kit. I bought this at first for my personal make-up bag, usually I stick to tinted moisturiser, but I wanted to try something with slightly more coverage, so opted for this foundation. It is very lightweight formula, which smooths over the skin effortlessly, giving a little more coverage than a tinted moisturiser. I would still need to use my Illamasqua concealer over the top for blemishes and dark circles. What I do love about this product, in particular, is the fact it gives your skin such a healthy glow.
There are 6 shades available retailing at £10.99. Stockists include Boots and Superdrug. I bought the three lightest shades to start out with, so far I am really happy with this foundation and will buy the darker shades also, so my set is complete.
Another foundation which I have in my personal make-up bag also, Nars Sheer Glow gives full coverage, without the matte finish. If you haven't noticed I much prefer natural, dewy textures to that of a matte foundation, (I find matte foundations to be aging on the skin, just a personal preference), this leaves a satin finish as well as brightening the appearance of the skin. This foundation is great for normal and combination skin, but I would not recommend for a dryer, older skin as it can sometimes appear flaky and chalk like. Nars do recommend this product for dry skin but with my experience it really does not compliment that skin type.
The image above shows two of the sample sizes I carry in my kit, I was lucky enough to get my hands on quite a few of the shades and they are great when you need to take a small kit with you on location shoots. I very rarely need to use a concealer on top of this foundation as the coverage is so good. Again, long lasting foundations are key to have in make-up artists kit, you don't want to be touching up the base every ten minutes, and this Nars foundation does hold really well.
Available in 20 shades and retailing at £29.50. Stockists include Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and SpaceNK.
Last October someone stole my make-up kit, but that's another story. So, as a result, I had a massive dilemma of putting together a new make-up kit on a budget but with good quality products. A girl I used to work with at SpaceNK, Rhiannon, had once worked for Illamasqua. She said the Rich Liquid foundation was amazing. So, never before had I used this brand, I went onto their website.
Thank the Make-up God for Pro Discount. Hello 40% off for professional make-up artists.
I went a little crazy and bought everything from these foundations, to brushes, to eyebrow cakes. From the moment my new shiny products arrived I was in love with this brand, and if for some reason Pro Discount was to suddenly disappear, it would not deter me away from Illamasqua.
All of the products, are high end quality, well packaged and worth every penny. As for this Rich Liquid foundation, it feels thick in texture in comparison to all the other foundations in my kit,and you only need a small amount. When they say a little goes a long way, it really is true in this case. You need to really buff this foundation into the skin, so I find using Kabuki style brushes work best, so yes it requires a little more work than the lighter foundations but the end result is worth it.
It feels light and airy on the skin, but the coverage is amazing. Flawless. Perfect for shoots, the camera is definitely not going to detect any blemishes underneath the layer of this foundation.
There are 6 shades available, I recommend getting shade 100, the pure white foundation as this is always handy to have in your kit if you need to lighten other foundations or want a perfect white base for your canvas.
Wish List
I still desire many more foundations for my kit and I currently have my heart set on these bad boys:
by Chanel
by Chanel
by Tom Ford
Now you have seen all the foundations I have in my kit, which ones do you guys prefer?
One final note: When choosing a foundation for your own personal make-up bag, always try and get a sample first and try in-store where possible. Ask the sales assistant or in-store artist to apply a small amount on your jaw line or by the side of your nose (where oil absorbs foundation the most). Once applied take a small mirror outside or near to as natural light as possible and check the colour match. There should be no evidence at all of foundation, no orange lines please! If you want to try before you buy, take a small container into the store and ask for a sample.
I hope you enjoyed this post,
See you soon,
