Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Shaping your eyebrows, tweeze,shave or threading method??





Eyebrows frames the face.A well groomed eyebrows can do wonders on your appearance. Grooming your eyebrows the wrong way can make you look old, or add years to your face.

 You can look polish, smart and fresh by just grooming your brows and wearing a simple makeup.

Above picture is Laura. She is a very talented stage actress/singer  from Ateneo. If  you look closely, her brows has a pretty defined shape and only a little tweezing is needed to groom it.   But her right eyebrows has a "bald" spot.This is not a problem. Just fill it in with pencil or brow powder.

Common  mistake done by most women is using  black for their eyebrows, since their hair is black.
I recommend Taupe or light brown, depending on hair color and skin tone.



For Laura, I used a light brown shade from smashbox.  I used tweezers to groom her brows because the hair is very fine and the shaver cannot pick it up. I Just followed the natural shape of her brows.






Cel's eye brows in my opinion is over-plucked. Without makeup, she looks a bit older than her actual age.   So in I made the shape a bit thicker than the actual shape ( I did her prenup hair & makeup ) 
This technique can make you look younder and fresher. 

Notice the celebrities nowadays ( some though, over-do it! ) in movies, prints and tv shows, their eyebrows are full, thicker looking. Its because, thicker brows can automatically shed off a few years.

Note: This is because as we grow old, most of our facial hair (LOL ) will fall off or not be as full as they use to be. So by grooming your brows to appear a bit thicker can instantly perk up your appearance.






































As for Rachel, she has very fine almost not seen eyebrows. Her right brows, has a scar so theres not hair growth.

See how a well groomed brows made her look fresh and young? Her eyebrow shape is a bit thick,  so I used a taupe shade with a little pink in it.

Eyebrow color looks nicer if its lighter than the hair color. But again, nothing is set in stone. It still depends on the over all effect you want to achieve.

Here I want Rachel to look Fresh. Visualize, Jennifer Connely. Dark hair, dark brows, Demi Moore and Camilla belle??

To refresh your memory:



The Verdict??

So whether to pluck,shave or thread is personal preference. Personally, I just shave my brows because its faster and easy to do and you could its already a routine for me. I rarely pluck my brows. I seldom resort to threading because I find it painful and stressful! hahahaha.

My advice, if your brows a virgin (hehehe) never been touched,shaped whatsoever, go to a professional. I mean, a reputable salon and not a soso salon.  Im not snobbish or picky but most small salons ( that sometimes uses blade -sorry im not impressed, im horrified and scared ) will either shave it to thin or not to your liking and they will insist they know better. Sorry if Im ranting.

 Its actually based on my experince ( twice!! shame on me right? ) awhile back when I was still working as a marketing professional designer and I had no formal training yet in makeup.

This is your face we are talking about. Invest in it. :-)

I always say, if you can spend money on the latest cellphone, or shoes, why not spend good money for your appearance??

A professional makeup artist can also shape it for you. I do this to all my clients. Then just follow the natural shape.

Tweezing plucks the hair at the roots so it will take longer for the hair to grow.  Shaving on the other hand, just cuts the hair at the skin, so it grows faster compared to when you pluck. If I dont shave my brows in 2-3  days, I can already see the stray hairs.

In my next post, I will probably talk about how to groom brows. Let me know if you gals want me to make a video on this. Otherwise, goodbye for now.

Stay Beautiful my lovelies!

Monday, February 27, 2012

Fresh Younger looking makeup



At 39, my goal is to eat healthy and look young. But im weak! hahahaha. I eat a lot of junk and lack a good night sleep. In my next post I will tell you my beauty routine, but for now, lets fake it thru makeup!

The above photo was taken by my hubby and the camera setting has flash, so you can see the effect of the highlighters I used.

This is my Go-To  Fresh Beauty  Makeup.

We all want to look fresh and well rested.Most women refuse to wear makeup for fear of looking old. But wearing the right product and using the right amount of makeup can do wonders for your appearance.

With all the wonderful anti aging products out there, makeup, skin care and tools, as well as vitamins and treaments, its not impossible to look younger than our real age.

As for makeup is concerned using a foundation with medium to full coverage is the key. Use it sparingly though. A little goes a long way. I used LAURA MERCIER CREME FOUNDATION here.

Im not using a PRIMER here but if I was, I will reach for SMASHBOX silicon primer. Skip this if you have sensitive or acne prone skin.



Using a creme blush underneath your powder, applying it after foundation, gives you a subtle glow. Here I used Cover girl cream blush ( coral color is flattering for all skin color) and I used a Sheer Peach blush that has a subtle shimmer and gold flecks, pretty much like NARS Orgasm, but less the glitter.



For the lips, would you believe its 3 products???
Plumping Sheer lipstick from Physicians Formula, 3 shades. Lightest at the center of my lips.
I outlined my lipline using a loreal lip liner, peachy brown simillar to my lip color and blended it inward with my pinky finger.

Then I topped it off with a Sheer gloss from Mac that relflect light, but only at the center of my lips.

Im wearing false lashes but- half only (demi lash) at my outer eye to elongate my eye and give that lift.
I also used a gel liner from MAC that looks like BLACK but its dark brown.

The white part you see on my right eye is just the lash glue still drying. It will dry clear.

Makeup for those with Dark under eyes/Younger looking makeup

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Sexy brown cat eye

Danica Makeup Trial










dana found me at the recent fair I joined at Megamall. I did hair & Makeup, water based airbrush -first picture and added waterproof occ airbrush makeup. Dana prefers a matte finish and more natural looking makeup so we did another makeup session and she liked the second look better :-)










For more samples of my work, please visit ochielaraya.com

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Review on MAC paint pots



I have 3 MAC paint pots and so far, these babies are part of my makeup essentials. I swatched them above: Bare study-Champagne gold. Constructive: Medium Taupe and Rubenusque: Copper gold.

  Bare study: this is a champagne gold color. If you are fair to medium fair, this will appear as invisible to your skin but will reflect light. So its great as highlight. If your a bit tan or dark, this is a great eyeshadow highlight. I even use this on top of my lpstick so it catches light.



This shade looks like its hard to wear but really, its not. Wear it as an eyeshadow base, wear it alone or top if off your eyeshadow to create highlight and shimmer to your eyeshadow. I will do a tutorial for these paint pots and show how to use them for everyday or for a special event.


I use these paint pots even for my brides as highlight, eyeshadow base and even as lipstick (combined with other lipstick) They are smudgeproof, water resistant/waterproof  and long wearing. You need a makeup remover for waterproof makeup to remove it.


This shade is great for base for neutrla eye design, smokey eyes and contouring. It looks matte but it has a subtle sheen to it reflects light. This means if you have crepey eyelids (common to women above 50) this might emphasize your wrinkles.

Over all, these are not really something you need if your budget is low or you dont even wear makeup everyday. But invest on just one and see the many uses and glam things it can do to your otherwise plain "look "

To sum up its many uses:

1.Eye shadow base and eyeshadow primer
Apply this before your regualr powder eyeshadows to avoid creasing and make your eye shadow last longer. Even if you sweat or got rained on, cry, trust me, these babies will still be there.


This can intesify your eyeshadows as well and make it appear more saturated ( pigmented) and vibrant.
Example: I usually apply the Rubensque before a gold eyeshadow to make it look more vibrant.

2.Highlight
Apply this after foundation, before you set it with powder and you will see a nice glow. I reccomend the bare study if your fare or medium tan. The Rubenusque is soo lovely on the skin, collar bone when your a bit darker. Well I wore this on the beach and It felt like I was a golden goddess. LOL.

3.Contouring
There are matte versions of these paint pots that can be used as contour shades as well, depending on your skin color.

5.Add pizzaz to your dull lip color
Just make sure your lipstick is a bit creamy and not super matte because it does not have any moisturizer so it has a tendency to dry the lips.  So of course, you dont wear this alone.

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

BRide Chini


 A before and after picture of Chini's Prenup makeup.



I looove this pic. Honestly, and not because I did her makeup. Chini is the type of gal who does not wear makeup at all. Then on her wedding day I suggested a red lip and cat eyeliner makeup. Without any hesitation she agreed and that was refreshing. No second guessing, doubts or any "arte" LOL.

It gave me the confidence to really concentrate on the makeup and not worry about anything else. Please forgive me when I say that, there are Bridezillas out there who will not stop squinting and complaining about anything and everything you put on their face, but they do not have a clue of what they want you to do. :-(

Chini and her mom trust me and and Im so glad to have been a part of this wedding.



For this shot, I used a nice pink shade to match the lovely tulips.





My new art blog!








Hello my lovelies! I have a new artblog, link is   http://ochiesartworld.blogspot.com.
Above paintings are just some sample of my paintings. Hope you guys can help and support.

Jan 2012 Great Makeup Finds

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Trick to soften your features!



Do you find yourself looking so strong whenever you groom your brows?? (looking like a man or looking like.."grrr' ?? )

Maybe you have facial hair that you're afraid to shave off fearing it will grow back thicker than before? Arm hair that makes you look like your a cousin of Kingkong? hahaha.

Fear not my leash. Umm, I meant my lovelies! I have been using Sally Hansen Hair bleaching cream for as long as I can remember.

I first learned about this when I was working as a Product Manager for Penshoppe. I will visit Photo shoots and work with fashion stylist and makeup artist like Lala Flores, Christ and Robbie Pinera. Who would think I would later be a makeup artist myself??

Anyways, Christ was the makeup artist  we got for Penshoppes endorser maxine, alongside Cogie Domingo. He lightened Maxine's eyebrows to match her hair color at that time.  I think that was 1998-1999. Ever since that,   I have been lightening all my unwanted facial hairs.LOL.

For softening your features,  lighten your eyebrows a bit and even if you have black hair, this will instantly soften your features. I also do this for my client brides that have darker brows that does not match their hair color.



 To emphasize my point, the above picture is me with black hair and brows.


When I dyed my hair, I of course lightened my brows. Using the same product on your hair to your brows to lighten the color is not advisable. It might cause allergic reactions and its harsh on your skin.

Ok back to the brows, it totally gave me a softer look. I didnt cut my hair. Its a fake bob, hair was tied with bobby pins at the back. I do this when I just want to give myself a different look.


Another example is Alica. This was her before picture. I did her makeup for her prenup and wedding.



On her wedding day, I bleached her brows to match her hair color. A few weeks before the wedding, I reccomended a hair colorist .she wanted to lighten her hair. I also reccomended a light brown contacts to make her eyes look bigger. For her reception, the makeup was a glam smokey eyes.

I love how Alica planned for her different look. Her prenup shoot was like a magazine shoot :-)

She actually attended one of my workshops and thats where we met. I have unleashed her inner Kikayness. hahahaha.

I heart my Pink Nail Polishes


It's past Valentines already but not too late to sport a girly pink or vampy red nail polish.
These are the pink, coral and reds that I have and I'm looking forward in buying more!!

Among all these the Opi fushia is my favorite. For the red shades , I like the Revlon. The glitters in this polish is very subtle and yet very glam looking! I use this on  top  off  my Sally Hansen Cherry Red.

The Sally Hansen is very pigmented! one coat and you will already see the exact color you see on the bottle.



Ok so you can see the red smears on my hand !hahahaha. This is the result of a super fast manicure I did on myself!!

Anyways, can you see the subtle glitters?? Its the Revlon polish on top of the Cherry Red.Love, love love!!

Monday, February 6, 2012

VLOG -Update on my paintings

Beauty Makeup for everyday or work

Weekend Trip makeup look



My weekend makeup focuses on the eyes. The eye makeup is soft and lip color is natural. The eyebrows is defined but still natural looking. I just smudged a brown liner and used 2 coats of mascarra from Maybelline. My eye makeup are all waterproof!

My foundation is Bodyshop cream to powder, SPF 30. Great for outdoors. fast application for me, no need to set with powder so less time for me to finish my makeup!



For this look, I just want to have fun with eyeliner. I used a gel liner from MAC in brown. For the lids, I used a champagne eyeshadow,also from Smashbox




For this makeup, everything else is simple like the eyes and blush. I just used a red orange lipstick from Revlon that matches my nail polish.