Less is always better…

Hello Divas,

eVaDiVa is back in the beautiful city of blogville after a very long trip in busyville…I wanted to share with you tips for every day work makeup…

If you are a busy bee like me and have to wake up early every morning to go to work in some pencil skirt and high heels, you probably do not have time to pull out a glamorous makeup look (and should not…you are going to work, not to the new nightclub downtown)!

I have been wearing almost no makeup at all for the last few months and people have been looking at me like I am lying when I tell them I am a makeup artist…

Another thing that triggered me to share these tips with you is that I was happy to have somebody very dear to me tell me last night that less is always better when it comes to my face (see me blushing? lol)

So here is how to keep it simple and still fresh in less than 5 mn…

Here are pics of Gabrielle Union in Miss Independent  video that came out last year looking all professional with a very cute makeup look (with lashes and some eyeshadows though…) Check out the shoes!!!

FACE

• Use a light powder (MAC pressed powder or mineralized lose powder) and apply it with a big brush.
• Add a lil bit of blot powder on top if you have oily skin or if you live in a hot climate
• Use a warm tone blush or bronzer (Bobbi Brown in DEEP 4)

EYES

• Make sure your eyebrows are waxed and use your eyebrow pencil if necessary (MAC STUD or SPIKED; BOURJOIS in BROWN)
• Instead of using eye shadows and getting into the whole shading process, just use eyeliners! If you are wearing a blue shirt, try a blue eyeliner pencil around your eye and smudged it lightly!
• Use as much mascara as you want since you are not wearing any shadows, you want to emphasize your look as much as you can (without it looking clumpy of course) LANCOME mascaras are still my favourite of all times! Try FLEXTENCILS or the classic DEFINICILS

LIPS

• Use your favourite lipliner (nightmoth in my case) along with any lipstick that you want. Avoid bright lips at work as it may look too provocative. I recently tried Nightmoth with Spirit lipstick and I am loving it!!!
• Go easy on the lipgloss…you do not wanna see the reflection of ur lips on your desktop all day…plus wearing too much lipgloss is not classy…

Now you can go to work with a decent face in less than 5 mn…

XoXo

eVaDiVa

Red like Ruby Woo…

 

Hello divas,

I have been thinking about writing for the last four weeks but never got a chance!!! Work has been keeping me so busy I don’t even have time to relax and blog anymore… So I wanted to share with you my new favorite lipstick. Yes I said LIPSTICK! I rarely wear lipstick because I rather have glossy sexy lips but I found out lately how a matte bright lip can look so glamorous! I have been wearing all kind of matte lipstick with chestnut, nightmoth or currant lipliners but my favorite of all is the bright red MAC Ruby Woo! I wear it with nightmoth liner by drawing a very thick line around my lips and then blending the line with lipstick. I usually do not wear a lot of color on my eyes (I guaranty you will look like a clown if you do…). This lipstick looks good on any complexion, if you are light skin, you can use it without any lipliners or with MAC Vino liner. Other nice matte lipstick to try from MAC are:

 • Spirit (beige)

 • Velvet Teddy

• So Chaud

• Kinda sexy

Remember these lipsticks look better worn matte…so no need to add a gloss…

 XoXo

eVaDiVa

New amazing stuff!!!

Hello Divas,

Hope you all started this new week in a divalicious way…I just wanted to share with you a few new products that I have been experimenting with and that I end up loooving !!!

CLARINS DOUX PEELING: I used to use it a long time ago and just recently bought a new tube. It’s the best peeling mask on the market for two reasons: it removes your skin from all the dead cells while you scrubbing it and you do not need to use a lot! A lil bit goes a very long way. It can be a substitute if you miss your monthly deep facial at the spa…it’s that good! Rememember that you need to use it on a DRY and CLEAN face.

ST YVES Apricot SCRUB: This scrub is meant to be used on the face but your diva is using it on her legs!!! LOL…I have not been blessed with hairless legs so whenever I wax, I use this scrub on my legs and they are smooth like a baby’s…This scrub is also good for the face if you have very oily skin with large pores…however I would not recommend it if you have sensitive skin as it can be to harsh on the skin

M.A.C mineralized blush in GEELFUL: My BFF sent it to me 2 weeks ago and I have been using it ever since! Thanks Cyn!!! It’s pink with soft sparkle and will look good on any complexion…you can even use it during the day…try it!!!

XoXo eVaDiVa

Makeup Class 101 on V DAY!!!

Hello Divas,

I am back after being quite for quite some times… Today, I am sharing with you a few pics that were taken during a makeup class that I organized on Valentine’s day at my house.

The goal of this makeup class was to teach some of my makeup techniques and give a few tips to women of color when it comes to makeup application. The session took place in the afternoon because I wanted to take full advantage of the beautiful sun of Dakar…

My first model below was my dear friend Shoon, she has medium to light complexion with a beautiful bone structure. I first did a very natural day look and then showed how this day look could be transformed in more sophisticated night look by adding just one or 2 colors.

 

ALL MAC unless specified

SHOON’s Day Look:

FACE

Powder: Lose Mineralize Powder in Deep Dark

Blush: Ablaze

EYES

Eyebrows: Spiked pencil (Shoon has already beautiful shaped eyebrows ; she threads them to get that shape, I just added spiked pencil to define them a lil bit more)

Base: Concealer select cover up

Eyelid: Bamboo with brush # 242

Crease: Folie with brush # 224

Highlighter: Arena with brush # 252

Eyeliner: Boot Black on top and graphblack in the inner eye rim

Mascara: LANCOME High Definicils

LIPS

Liner:  Cork

Lipglass: C-thru (very softly)

SHOON’s Night Look:

I just added the following products to her day look to create a night look:

FACE

ILLUMINATING POWDER: Mineralize powder Global glow on the T-zone

BRONZER: Bobbi Brown DEEP 4

EYES

Corner crease: Beauty Marked with brush # 217

LIPS

Liner: Nightmoth

Lipglass: Peroxide

SHOON’S DAY LOOK

SHOON’S NIGHT LOOK

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

***Bday Party Look***

Hello Divas,

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! Mine was just soooo GREAT!!! It was my birthday on Friday and I had the best birthday party ever with all my friends!!! I hope I will be able to match that for the big 30…lol

So I was so excited the whole night that I didn’t even think about taking a close-up picture of my makeup…Here is the best picture I could find to describe what I was wearing…

ALL MAC unless otherwise specified

FACE

Foundation: Select SPF 15 NW45

Powder: Mineralize Skin Finish Lose Powder Deep Dark

Blush:  Raizin

Shimmer Powder: Global Glow mineralize

EYES

Base: Concealer NW35

Eyelid: Electra

Crease: Dovefeather

Corner Crease: Carbon

Highlighter: Concealer NW 35 + Vanilla Pigment

Inner corner eye: Electra

Bottom contour: Carbon

Eyeliner: Blactrack fluidline

Eyeliner: Graphblack

Lashes: MAC # 33

LIPS

Liner: Chocolate by Bobbi Brown

Gloss: Fine China (limited edition)

XoXo

eVaDiVa

Did you say stretch marks???

Here’s the thing: if you are a woman, you will get stretch marks sooner or later…whether you have kids or not. That’s my personal opinion because I haven’t met one woman without tiny lil stretch marks… I recently discovered that stretch marks are not caused by gaining weight; rather they are caused by HORMONES. The weight gain affects the hormones in your body, so weight gain is a factor insofar as its changing hormones, but it isn’t ’stretching’ the skin. The hormonal changes that occur as a function of gaining weight are the cause. Check http://www.stretchmarks.org/if you wanna learn more about this “phenomenon”. So to make a long story short, I want to share with you a product that has been considerably helping me “get rid of” lessen my stretch marks. I have been using it daily for over 2 months now and already emptied 2 tubes after a friend recommended it…and MIRACLE: it is actually working! (It’s time for me to get money from all this publicity to all these luxury brands don’t you think??!!??) But hey, anyway…so the product is CLARINS STRETCH MARK CONTROL.

Now I cannot tell you if it is better than the so famous Stri-Vectin since I haven’t tried that one…but at least it is way cheaper ($49 vs. $135). However, I still think that the price is a lil bit pricey given that the tube is small…but hey… A “MASTER CARD” commercial would say: “Price of a clarins tube $49, price of stri vectin $135 and … getting rid of your stretch marks: PRICELESS…” Is that corny?? Lol… Yes indeed that was…  I better go to bed now and avoid writing posts when I am that uninspired…I just really wanted to share this product with you divas as I just got the last drop of my tube…

XoXo eVaDiVa

1 Year ANNIVERSARY!!!

Hello Divas,

I just realized that it has been exactly ONE YEAR today since I created eVaDiVa’s Makeup Bag! It has been an amazing journey thanks to all of you Divas and I hope that this will only be the first of many more anniversaries…This blog was created for everybody that loves MAKEUP and more importantly for you beautiful Women of Color…

I also would like to thank all of you for your continuous support and for always trusting me when it comes to beauty…

XoXo 

eVaDiVa

MAC and Very dark skin powder/foundation?

Anonymous wrote:

It is obvious that u LOVE MAC and so do I, however I can’t find the right powder.
I like MAC but I think that people with my complexion are always stuck to the NW50 which is not necessarly the right shade. it can turn grey! I think that the darker you are the fiewer are your choices. In my opinion MAc does not have enough color choice for people with very dark skin; not African-Americans with just light skin!!! I might be wrong because when I go on the website, I can see different type of founcations and powders, so which powder and shade would you recommend? I use Black up becoz i get the right coverage, shade and a mat finish; What do you think?
merciiiiiii

eVaDiVa wrote:

Hi Anonymous,

Thank you for your question.
To answer it, MAC does have a lot of shades for darker skin. However, most people, especially African women are just stuck to the studio fix powder where the darkest shade is NW50. This studio fix powder is great for everyday use and its the perfect powder to have a combination of foundation and powder in 1. However, it is not recommended for pictures or as a night makeup especially if you are very dark. The reason is that some of the pigments used in that formula reflects too much the light and that’s why you can see sometimes people that use it and take pictures look like ghosts…lol…
So the solution for you if you really wanna use MAC will be to use their STUDIO TECH foundation or STICK foundation in NW55. The texture of the STICK is creamy so it doesn’t give you the same finish than the studio fix. However, the STUDIO TECH is also creamy but will dry on your face like a powder so it will be about the same than the FIX.
I also LOOOVE  FASHION FAIR foundations for darker skin. You should try them as well. BLACK UP  is indeed a great line and have very good foundations, so if you are happy with them, I would suggest to stick with them and try MAC  or FASHION FAIR just to get something different…
Hope this helped…

XoXo

eVaDiVa

YOUR FAVORITE MAKEUP BRAND?

Hello Divas,

I am making a survey on favorite makeup brands for women of color and will need your help on that. I would like to know:

1- What is your favorite makeup line (if you have more than one, list them by order of preference)?
2- Why is it your favorite makeup line (good foundation, good price, buying location easily accessible)?
3- Does the price matter for you?
4 – For how much are you willing to purchase a lipstick (price in Dollar)?

Thank you Divas!!! Your help will be greatly appreciated on that…

XoXo

eVaDiVa

A very Happy New Year…

Hello Divas,

These past few weeks have been very hectic for me… The last 2 weeks of 2008 had not been the greatest as good and sad events came across my path… The sudden loss of a loved one made me cherish life even more and realize how grateful each and every one of us should be and how love is the most important thing in life after God…

Christmas this year did not feel like it used to…and neither did New Year’s Eve but I am happy and thankful that I was with the people I love, my family and close friends.

On a makeup note, with so many weddings in Dakar this year, I had the opportunity to do makeup for three brides that were as gorgeous as one can think!!! The most amazing and interesting part about these weddings makeup was that each bride had a very different type of beauty and style and mixing the two to come out with the best makeup look for their big day was just an amazing experience! Bridal makeup is at the same time always so challenging and rewarding as you have to deal with the bride’s stress and make sure both of you are happy with the final work.

I would love to show you the pictures but will need to ask permission before posting them so I will let you know as soon as I can…

I also wanted to share with you my favorite makeup product for brides:  GLOBAL GLOW and WARMED mineralized Powder by MAC. It looks AMAAAAAZING on the skin and gives a soft and natural glow on pictures.

Another product that I absolutely felt in love with is FASHION FAIR LIP TEASER in Tickled Pink. It looked amazing on my bride with a MAC PLUM Liner.

I wish you all again a very Happy New Year!!!

XoXo

eVaDiVa