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Too Faced

I’m Jerrod Blandino of Too Faced Cosmetics, and This Is My Makeup Life

December 13th, 2013 by Karen 27 Comments

Jerrod Blandino of Too Faced Cosmetics
Jerrod Blandino of Too Faced Cosmetics
The My Makeup Life series asks beauty biz insiders, bloggers, makeup mavens and artists to share their holy grail products, tricks, tips and favorite beauty tools. Is there anyone you would like to see featured in My Makeup Life or questions you think I should ask? Let me know here.

Name: Jerrod Blandino
Location: Irvine, California
Day job/current gig: Co-Founder and Creative Director of Too Faced Cosmetics
Hangouts online: Twitter, Facebook and toofaced.com.
Beauty inspirations: First and foremost, it’s the women in my life. My sister growing up. Kind of the idea of being little and seeing my really feminine, fabulous sister, but she was also super kick-@ss. Fashion. Interiors. Wallpapers. Car paint. Cupcakes. Pastries. California. Of course, the beach. It’s such a big part part of who I am. You know, it literally comes from everywhere. I become very obsessed with things. I love anything retro glam, classic. Ya know, I love trends and I love the ’80s and I’m obsessed with, you know, just accessories and fashion. I love stationary and wedding cakes and chocolate and clovers and chihuahuas. I love horses. I don’t know, I’m obsessed with horses all of a sudden…
One word that best describes your outlook on beauty: Joyful!


What makeup/beauty products can’t you live without?

I cannot live without and will never live without my Bulletproof Brows, which is my new product that’s coming out. People will be ADDICTED to it. It will change your life.

Too Faced Bulletproof Brows Universal Brunette
Bulletproof Brows in Universal Brunette (one of two shades; the other one is Universal Taupe), $30

My bronzers, my bronzing wardrobe. I have a different bronzer for every different outfit. Every different time of year, every moment. It depends on where I’m going, what I’m doing. I’ve built a bronzing wardrobe that I’m absolutely addicted to and will never give up.

And I love my Amazing Face Powder Foundation. It’s the quickest way to look like you’ve been completely taking care of your skin and have been getting eight hours of sleep and drinking all the water that you should be drinking.

So, those are my obsessive products that I use every day.

When did you start getting into makeup?

Well, that’s kind of funny that you asked that because it’s kind of weird. I was always an artist growing up. I was that little kid who won art shows and was always drawing, and I was obsessed with The Muppets! I went to art school and actually became an art teacher and taught kids art.

Ya know… Well, really in high school, I remember my friend, Bernadette was amazing, and she would spend three hours in the mirror doing her makeup. It was the late ’80s and early ’90s, and I remember thinking that this was just like another form of art. I clicked into that, and I remember the moment it clicked. I was sitting in her bathroom watching her. She was putting on, like, eight different lipsticks to create whatever look she was doing.

And so, then I went to art school. I went to animation school for Disney and Warner Brothers. It was a sort of school where they’d find talent and furrow them in [and it was there] I discovered makeup on accident. I got a job at Estee Lauder behind the counter at Saks Fifth Avenue — it was all totally an accident, freakishly — and on my very first day behind the counter, it all made sense. My art background, my creative background, my dreaming — the way I looked at the world was very cartoonish, always, growing up. I was always ready for, you know, the stuffed animal to come alive and talk to you. I was that kid. I would wait for the rainbow to come into my background so I could climb it and go into the clouds. That was me.

And when I got my first client in the chair, I saw that this was just a different type of art medium, but it was an art medium that would transform people. It would embed self-esteem into women. I saw the transformation that occurred when I was doing my art on people, not on paper. And I was hooked.

What’s your best beauty time-saving trick?

My best beauty time-saving trick? Okay! Alright, so this is what you’re going to do. You’ve going to wake up, and wash your face. You’re going to apply my tinted BB Creme, my BB Balm, because it’s got every amazing skincare serum that I’ve ever tried in my life embedded into that formula. It’s full of moisture, full of anti-oxidants, full of anti-aging, decongesting, wonderful ingredients but it also gives great coverage. So, instantly, boom — we’ve got your skin covered.

Too Faced Bronzer Boxes
Too Faced Bronzers, $30 each

We’re going to take my Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzer that’s full of antioxidants and moisturizing ingredients, and we’re going to spread that around the perimeter around your face, closest to the hairline, around the jaw, and through your cheekbones. Boom! We’ve got you sculpted and you’re ready go.

You’ve got to put on my Better Than Sex Mascara, because it’s so rich, and so thick, and the powered peptides in that thing make it so black that you don’t need eyeliner. So you’re going to wiggle that right along your lash line. After that, a little bit of my Lip Injection Plumping Lip Gloss will get your lips full, pink and luscious, and you’re out the door. You’re ready to go to work, you’re ready to go on a date, you’re ready to meet your kid’s future husband, you’re ready to have sex, whatever you want.

What’s your favorite beauty tool?

Easy. It’s my Teddy Bear Hair Retractable Kabuki Brush. It’s great for bronzers, it’s great for blushes, it’s great for powders. It’s retractable and twists up and down.

If you keep the head twisted down almost so it’s really tight, and you just get a mound, and the bristles are tight, you get a lot of coverage. You could even use it as a quick eyeshadow brush if you wanted. You could use it as a sculptor. When you twist it up all the way and it gets to its fluffiest self, it’s the perfect bronzer, loose powder, powder foundation applicator. And because it’s synthetic hair, you could even apply your liquid foundations with it. So it does everything!

What’s the best beauty advice you ever received?

You’ve gotta smile. You’ve got to feel it. You’ve got to love your life, you have to feel it from the inside. Because you can do anything you want in the world to the outside, and it’s not going to make any difference. The most beautiful people in the world are the people who are happy, who are self-confident, and who love to be alive. Who are joyful, who are kind and full of love. You know?

Too Faced Haute Chocolate Spring 2014
The new Too Faced Haute Chocolate Spring 2014 collection, available now at toofaced.com

What’s your skincare routine?

Oh sh*t, do you really want to get into that? Honey, we’ll be on this call for eight hours.

[KAREN: Okay…so give me the abbreviated version]

Ooooooh, HONEY. Obsessed with skincare! I have lots of great friends in the industry. No, I’m lucky enough to meet and call friends like Dr. Brandt one of them. I’ve been given too much information so… (Laughs.) But because of that, because I know of this, I’ll tell you what I do. A lot of the things I use and love and depend on are in my makeup. Because I’ve realized how important it is, and how important it is to preserve and take good care of your skin. And with science, nowadays, I can incorporate that into my cosmetics.

I’m going to abbreviate it for you because it gets scary! I use DermaQuest Peptide Mobilizer, and then I use Stem Cell Day Serum, and then I use a skin growth gel, it’s Bio-Serum, it makes your skin grow thicker and stay healthy. I do that. Then, I use an eye serum. And I fluctuate back and forth.

[Continue reading…]

There are 27 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guest Post, Makeup Tips/How To, My Makeup Life, Skin Care, Too Faced

Lifting Brows One Swipe at a Time, the New Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift

December 11th, 2013 by Karen 14 Comments

Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift
Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift

Hey, lady, can I give you a lift?

Well…I never say yes to strangers trying to pick me up, but since you’re a pencil, and you’re offering to lift my brows, why not? 🙂

Please excuse my weird expression at the top of this post. I figure, life is too short to not laugh at yourself while applying $20 Instant Attitude Brow Lift by Too Faced, LOL!

Trust me, though, it gets better after the buffing…

Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift
Instant Attitude Brow Lift ($20)

A new addition to the Too Faced line, Instant Attitude launches with the rest of the spring 2014 collection tomorrow (Dec. 12). It’s a chubby eye pencil that comes in a matte vanilla shade designed to create the illusion of higher arches.

Apply it beneath your brow bone, or along the entire length of each brow like I’m doing here, and then buff down with a finger or brush (I used Too Faced’s Lid Brush from the fab Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set).

The result? Instantly lifted brows! Oh, yeah…

Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift before
Before…

I actually do this trick all the time for pics and video. How does it work? Well, generally, applying lighter colors makes that part of the face look as if it’s closer to the viewer (think highlighting). Lighter colors beneath the brow, like with this pencil, bump up that area visually, giving it a bit of a lift.

Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift after
And after…

You can do this with a bunch of different products, too, like concealers, eyeliners — anything, really — as long as it’s several shades lighter than your skin tone.

This new pencil from Too Faced is ideal for this on account of how easy it is to buff into the skin. I usually do this trick with a MAC Chromographic Pencil in NW25/NC30, which I have to swipe more than a few times to soften and remove any harsh lines.

Instant Attitude, by comparison, blends quicker. Swish, swish and done.

Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift Box
Packaging

[Continue reading…]

There are 14 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews, Too Faced

Bulletproof Brows By Too Faced Cosmetics Blazes Through Building Sweat-Proof Brows

December 11th, 2013 by Karen 32 Comments

Too Faced Bulletproof Brows
Wearing the new Bulletproof Brows by Too Faced

Chocolate: 1. Treadmill: 0.

In the Battle of Sweets Vs. Sweat, I can usually bribe myself into working out (“bribe” being the key word here), but I just couldn’t do it last night.

I’d planned to test the sweat-proof-ness of long-lasting new Bulletproof Brows by Too Faced, which I’d been wearing all day, but the Dark Chocolate Stars won in the end…

They always win… (*shakes fist!*)

Trader Joe's Mini Dark Chocolate Stars
Oh, my gawd, Becky… TOTES AMAZE-BALLS!

I actually did wind up testing Bulletproof on the treadmill later in the day, but we’ll get to that in a few. 🙂

A new Too Faced brow product recently launched with the spring Haute Chocolate collection, Bulletproof comes in just two colors — Universal Brown and Universal Taupe — and with the product, which comes in a round compact with a mirror, you also get a dual-ended tool with an angled brow brush on one end and a spoolie on the other.

Too Faced Bulletproof Brows Universal Brunette
$30 Bulletproof Brows in Universal Brunette (one of two shades; the other’s called Universal Taupe)

Too Faced says that Bulletproof Brows has a “cashmere clay formula” that works like a powder, gel, pencil and setting wax in one, and that’s supposed to translate to waterproof, smudge-proof and budge-proof brows in 60 seconds.

Too Faced Bulletproof Brows Universal Brunette
The box, for your viewing pleasure…

It works like Benefit’s brow zings but waaaaay better.

The drier formula might take a little getting used to, but once you figure out how much to apply (at first, I thought it was easy to go overboard with) and find the sweet spot, it looks effortlessly natural.

Good stuff. 🙂

I wore Universal Brunette in my brows yesterday for at least nine hours, and my brows looked full and fresh — no patchiness — the entire time. Even my brow bald spot (EFF YOU, RAUL!) stayed hidden.

Too Faced Bulletproof Brows before
Before Bulletproof…

[Continue reading…]

There are 32 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews, Too Faced

The New Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette & iPhone Case, and the Life and Times of an International Kitty Supermodel’s Harried Pet Assistant

December 10th, 2013 by Karen 26 Comments

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette and iPhone Case
Wearing (and holding!) the new Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette and iPhone Case ($25)

KAREN: “I’m so sorry, Mr. Lagerfeld, but I have to briefly place you on hold. Tabs’ emergency line is ringing, and I need to answer it.

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette and iPhone Case
“Please hold.”

(Picks up phone.) “Hello, Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC, Office of the President. This is a secure line. How may I assist you?”

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette and iPhone Case
Wearing the new Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in Taffy on my lips…

TABS: “Meow.” (“It took you long enough.”)

KAREN: “Oh, hello, sir. Did you mean to call me on the emergency line? I have Karl on hold, and he’s kind of in a cranky mood…”

TABS: “Meeeeowww. Mrow.” (“No time for pleasantries, woman. What’s the status on the Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette report I asked you to prepare?”)

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop Out Makeup Palette
Candy Bar Pop Out Makeup Palette ($25, for use with the iPhone 5, and possibly 5s only)

KAREN: “Well, I was just about to type up the final draft and email it to you, but I can relay the highlights to you over the phone. Do you have a moment? I don’t want to interrupt your vacay on Kauai…”

TABS: “Mrow. Mrrow-mrow-mrow!” (“You know I’m always on the job, even on vacation! Give me the abridged version; I have two minutes before the limo gets here, and I don’t want to be late for my deep-tissue kitty massage at the Four Seasons.”)

Too Faced Candy Bar
Mmm…chocolate

KAREN: “Understood, sir. Well, let’s see, the essentials — it’s $25, limited edition, new for spring, and it comes with 11 powder eyeshadows, a matte bronzer and a matte blush. You can also pop out the palette and use the case as a cover for your phone, but it only works with the iPhone 5 (and possibly the 5s).

“I experienced some minor fallout from the shadows. As for blending, the mattes blended pretty well, as did the shimmers, although the lighter shimmers could use a little more pigment. The darker shades, however — in particular the purple and blue — made my eyes a little teary.

“Regarding the packaging, it’s cute, but the pans are rather small. I couldn’t help but accidentally cross-pollinate the colors.”

Too Faced Candy Bar Palette
The Candy Bar Palette in its case

TABS: “Mrrrwow?” (“The bronzer and blush?”)

KAREN: “I really like them both. Very pigmented, smooth, easy to blend. Again, the smaller pan sizes are kind of a pain because they don’t quite fit my bronzer and blush brushes easily.”

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop Out Makeup Palette Swatches
Swatches…

[Continue reading…]

There are 26 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Too Faced

For Spring, Too Faced Went Cocoa for Cosmetics! The New 11-Piece Too Faced Haute Chocolate Spring 2014 Collection Is Here

December 10th, 2013 by Karen 39 Comments

Too Faced Haute Chocolate Spring 2014
The new Too Faced Haute Chocolate Spring 2014 collection

Baby, it’s cold outside. How ’bout some Haute Chocolate? The new 11-piece cocoa-crazy Too Faced Haute Chocolate collection should satisfy that sweet tooth. 🙂

All of the pieces are new. We’re talkin’ two cocoa-themed palettes, five sweet shades of lipstick, two frosted blushes and two brow defining products to keep your look sweet come spring, and in classic Too Faced fashion, the feminine, wearable collection also features a perfect pinch of sass.

Eyes and brows stay relatively neutral, while brighter pops of pink, peach, coral and berry brighten lips and cheeks.

As for timing, you won’t have to wait long to get your chocolate fix because all of these pieces, except for the Chocolate Bar Palette, arrive online December 12. The Chocolate Bar, a Sephora exclusive, goes on sale a week later on December 19.

Here are pics and swatches of the entire release! More detailed reviews to follow…

Too Faced Something About Berry Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush
Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush in Something About Berry, $30
Too Faced Peach Beach Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush
Sweethearts Perfect Flush Blush in Peach Beach, $30
Too Faced Candy Bar Pop Out Makeup Palette
Candy Bar Pop Out Makeup Palette, $25; for use with iPhone 5 only
Too Faced La Creme Lipsticks Haute Chocolate Spring 2014
La Creme Lipsticks from the left: Bon Bon, Jelly Bean, Lollipop, Pink Chocolate and Taffy, $22 each
Too Faced Instant Attitude Brow Lift
Instant Attitude Brow Lift, $20
Too Faced Bulletproof Brows Universal Brunette
Bulletproof Brows in Universal Brunette (one of two shades; the other one is Universal Taupe), $30
Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette
Chocolate Bar Palette, $49

[Continue reading…]

There are 39 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Makeup, Too Faced

The New Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Palette: A Sweet-Smelling Set of 16 Neutrals for Spring 2014

November 26th, 2013 by Karen 45 Comments

Too Faced Chocolate Bar
Wearing the new Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette (and sneaking a bite of something sweet)

Honestly, the folks at Too Faced Cosmetics really, REALLY should’ve put a warning label on their new Chocolate Bar Eye Palette ($49) (“Do not bite!”), because among their fans, it would have saved the chocolate lovers gazillions of dollars in dental repair bills.

Even before and after pics on the box would have been helpful (this is Karen before biting the palette, and this is Karen after).

For instance, for the before picture, they could have used something like this pic of a smiling cat lady just chillin’ with the cute chocolate-bar shaped case moments before she opened it…

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette
Oh, hello! I’m just holding a chocolate bar.

Then, for the after pic, they could have used something like this to illustrate what happened moments after that same cat lady opened the tin for the first time and caught a whiff of the scented eyeshadows inside it.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette
OM NOM NOM!

OMG! All 16 powder eyeshadows smell EXACTLY LIKE CHOCOLATE…which I guess makes sense, seeing as how they’re all made with cocoa powder, which is supposed to help protect and smooth your skin.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette
Sugar-free

Man, I was hella hungry this afternoon, too, and after that first sniff of cocoa deliciousness I scoured the house for anything chocolate (found a can of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts, score!). I bit down on the edge of the tin like I was one of the bad children from Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (I’d want to be Veruca Salt, of course). So, yeah. Watch out for your teeth.

Too Faced Chocolate Bar packaging

This Chocolate Bar is a brand-spankin’-new eye palette for spring 2014, and technically, it’s not available yet, but you can put in a request to be emailed when it’s available. I’ve yet to hear word on the official release date, but I’m guessing it’ll be soon (probably within the next two weeks).

“Too Faced Co-founder and Creative Director Jerrod Blandino learned of the healing properties of cocoa while getting a chocolate facial in Maui. With Chocolate Bar he created a first-of-its-kind palette that combines the healing benefits of chocolate with richly pigmented, velvety smooth shadows. Chocolate has been used for centuries for its soothing properties and to protect, condition, and heal skin that has been damaged by sun and wind. Studies have shown that the scent of cocoa powder can increase memory and brain power.”

— Sephora.com

Too Faced Chocolate Bar Palette
Chocoholic says what now?!

[Continue reading…]

There are 45 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Too Faced

Unsung Makeup Heroes: The Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set

November 8th, 2013 by Karen 11 Comments

Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set
The terrific teddy bear-haired $39 Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set from Too Faced Cosmetics

“Made with luxurious teddy bear hair!”

Every time I see that phrase on my Too Faced Shadow Brush Set tube, I see a sad teddy bear with long, luscious ’80s rocker hair, like Bret Michaels had back in his hair heyday before he stormed the reality TV show circuit with a weave.

(No judgement, Bret! It’s all good!)

Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set
100% pure teddy bear hair (not)

When I mentioned these brushes last week, I got some requests to review the set, so here goes… 🙂

First, it’s darling, isn’t it? $39, comes with three eye brushes, a cute carrying tube, and it’s in the permanent line.

I like this set, a lot, mostly because of the epic Crease/Blender brush. I mean, none of the brushes are slouches, but that one takes the cake.

The bristles are made from synthetic fibers, otherwise known as “luxurious teddy bear hair,” and yup — there’s Bret Michaels again in my mind’s eye…

Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set
The set’s three eye brushes

It includes:

  • One Crease/Blender Brush — This one’s like a thinner MAC 224 Tapered Blending Brush, and it’s fab for applying shadow in the crease (more on this in a sec).
  • One Lid/Smoker Brush — This dense, flat eyeshadow brush is all about quickness and precisely packing tons of color on lids.
  • One Liner/Smudger Brush — Like a hobbit-sized version of the Lid/Smoker Brush. I use it to line my lash lines with eyeshadow or soften the edges of pencil eyeliner. In a pinch, I’ll also use it to fill in my brows.

For me, the Crease/Blender Brush headlines this show. That brush — I kid you not — I use practically every day.

It’s shaped like the MAC 224, only thinner, and that makes it perfect for placing eyeshadow right where I want it.

Very handy, particularly in smokey eye looks, or any looks with precise placement in the upper and/or lower crease.

Of course, it’s also OK for blending, but I think its forte is placing product, and not buffing. For blending, I like fluffier brushes, like the MAC 224, with bristles that fan out to spread product over a wider area.

Too Faced Shadow Brushes Essential 3-Piece Set
The Crease/Blender Brush on the left beside a MAC 224

[Continue reading…]

There are 11 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Makeup Tools, Too Faced, Unsung Heroes

A Green, Brown and Gold Eye of the Day With the Be Merry Palette by Too Faced Cosmetics

October 16th, 2013 by Karen 20 Comments

Too Faced Be Merry Be Bright

I literally (OK, figuratively) have one foot out the door (haircut time!), but I wanted to show you pics I took of the makeup I’m wearing today. It’s the Be Merry palette from the $45 Be Merry Be Bright Holiday set by Too Faced.

Those are Be Merry products on my eyes and cheeks and Too Faced La Crème Lipstick in Spice Spice Baby on my pout.

Too Faced Be Merry Be Bright
The Be Bright Palette

Too Faced Be Merry Be Bright

[Continue reading…]

There are 20 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Face of the Day (FOTD), Too Faced

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