Contractions and Makeup Don't Mix

Ufff, I've been having some tough contractions tonight... I had one order that came in today and I even ended printing the label online. I never do that, I always go to the post office to get postage and drop off all the packages there. But I was afraid I didn't make it to Monday and then the order would stay behind. One of my customers asked me if I was going to close the shop for the time I was in the hospital and I had told her I wasn't planning to, but now that everything is getting way real I think I might. I really don't like closing the shop, I feel like it loses relevancy. Seems like I'm going to have to though, at least from how I'm feeling tonight. I don't think I will have time to update shop announcements, listings, etc. to keep it open AND have all these contractions shennanigans at the same time. My due date is July 9th, so if you're planning to get something do it quickly because this baby is coming SOON....

Making Make-up

A lot of people ask me why do I make make-up? This question doesn't have a single answer. It started as something else, and then well, it just became what it is today and it continues to evolve. First, I'll tell you how it started. After my daughter was born in 2010 my skin simply changed. I don't know if it was the hormones or what, but it got worse as time progressed. I spent hundreds of dollars in products trying to find something that worked and nothing did. So decided for a while to just live with my skin the way it was. Don't get me wrong, I tried passively to improve my skin, but the overwhelming feelings of new maternity and the busy schedule made my skin problem very much secondary. After some time had passed, and I was still with my skin problems, I decided to take on modeling. You know how when you're a little girl, you dream of being something? I always wanted to try modeling. But my short stature and not too skinny self never really helped me. After becoming a mother I did become quite skinny so I thought I'd gave it a shot. It was just something I always wanted to do.

I did a few photo shoots here and there, got into different websites modeling bridal, so I was happy but I quickly realized that it wasn't really as fun as I thought it would be. I'm creative in my own ways, but I didn't feel modeling was fulfilling. It did teach me and drove me into something. One, if you want to model you need to have good skin, really good skin. Photographers can retouch your photos, but nothing glows like beautiful skin in photos. Two, if you want really pretty makeup, go to a pro. They know all the little secrets of how to make you look beautiful. Here's a picture of great makeup artist Lani Jayme whom I worked with several times that can attest to what I'm trying to say:

As you can see, makeup artists are just that, gifted people who take beauty to the next level. So, where am I going with all this, and how all of this took part and set D&E Handmade Cosmetics into motion? For one, I love fashion, I love makeup, I love the fact that it lifts our womanly spirit. I can have a really bad day, and gorgeous makeup will brighten up my mood. My post-partum skin problems, and then the modeling stint made me research skin care. That's where everything started. I discovered that a lot of these skin care products have LOTS OF BAD STUFF. Lots of it! It's really hard to pinpoint what is irritating your skin when you have 40 or 50 ingredients. So, I learned, not only that I could make my own cleansers, but I could make other products as well. All of a sudden I felt empowered about controlling what was on my makeup and my beauty products. I decided that I wanted to pursue this as my creative venue and never stopped ever since. I decided to share with other women the products I began making.

My Etsy Shop will be one year old in September, and my products have traveled as far as Greece and Malaysia. I feel honored that there are people out there that believe in my product, and continue to come back as customers time after time. Based on time constraints I haven't made any more cleansing products, but it is definitely in my plans. Just yesterday I added my 80th product on Etsy and it made me feel very jubilant. I continue to get inspired and create beauty products to share with every woman out there, and knowing that what I create is actually good for their skin, that it doesn't contain harsh chemicals, and most importantly, that it was never tested on precious animals makes me feel like somehow I'm making a difference in the world.

As far as makeup artists and models, I'm neither one of them, but I can make gorgeous colors for their photoshoots and their artistry, and also for the rest of us, because we all deserve to feel beautiful.

Till the next one. Stay beautiful!

Eva

Pastels!

I just realized that all of a sudden I've had a preference for pastel colors in my new creations. My new eyeshadow/blush Dream Pink is absolutely gorgeous. I never thought it would came out that pretty when I was attempting the color. So, I wonder if it's the fact that I'm about to have a baby girl that has me wishing on pastels. Which colors do you wear in the summer? Do you change your makeup for the seasons? These are some great summer colors available in my store:



Dream Pink Mineral Eyeshadow/Blush



Sweet Peaching Mineral Eyeshadow

Lucky Star Mineral Eyeshadow

Ocean Breeze Mineral Eyeshadow

Rice Powder



D&E Handmade Cosmetics Touch-Up Veil

 I offer a wonderful product in my store, but I believe I have only sold it once or twice. This product is my mineral veil. This product is really amazing, really soft and fluffy. It provides great oil control, minimizes lines, wrinkles, and pores, and the jar that it comes in is huge. It's a 20 gram jar for only $7.99. I like to evaluate why such product doesn't sell more often, and I can only come to one conclusion: one of the ingredients is cosmetic grade cornstarch.

Cornstarch has acquired a bad reputation, especially among those who have acne. I have read blog after blog as to why we should avoid cornstarch, especially if you're prone to acne. This is really sad, considering how great of a product cornstarch contributes to. This acne-prone blogger over here says that she started using a L'oreal product without knowing it contained corn starch until after she started using it, and even though she wouldn't have purchased if she knew it contained cornstarch, she states that she really likes the product and she haven't had any problems with it so far. Interesting.

I think a lot of the problems with acne have to do with oil, and not so much what kind of powder you're using. If you don't clean your brushes frequently, oil and bacteria will build up in there, and it will make you breakout. I'm really against those minerals that have a screw/unscrew brush cap. I think that it's disgusting, because you are creating bacterial contact 100% of the time with that brush. The worse thing you can do to your skin is not clean the tools that you use to apply your cosmetics.

It doesn't matter if I believe in my product so much, since people don't want to purchase it. I'm considering moving from cornstarch to rice powder. Rice powder it's about 25% more expensive, which means I will have to charge a little bit more for the product. But apparently rice powder has some really great properties, so I will experiment and see how it goes.

What is your preference? Do you pay attention to the ingredients of the makeup you wear? Or do you just look for minerals/vegan/organic labels in general?

Thank you so much for reading. Until the next one.

Stay beautiful,
Eva