How Do You Achieve Picture Perfect Skin?

I’ve got a pretty major gala to go to tomorrow evening and it’s got me wondering – what are your secrets to attaining picture perfect skin?

My current routine has been serving me well for the past week or two, although it literally changes every month or so. I’ve rediscovered my love for the Innisfree BB Mousse despite its many flaws (a little messy, dries too quickly to blend easily, only comes in one shade) , and topped with a bit of the amazing CDP concealer I received from Nicole and quick spritz from my TEMPTU airbrush system I’m on the road to perfection (or as close to perfection as my skin ever gets).

I’m probably going to keep the rest of my makeup relatively simple – probably a neutral shadow with slight shimmer, some black liner along my upper lash line, a ton of mascara and an understated lip. Let’s hope all goes well!

TEMPTU at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week 2009

TEMPTU for Reem Acra

Temptu, the leader in professional makeup, was backstage at New York Fashion Week’s Spring 2010 Shows, leading the way with trendsetting beauty and revolutionary new makeup techniques. For spring, the boldest beauty statement was flawless skin and fresh-faced accents of shimmer and color, with Temptu’s high-definition, airbrush makeup defining the looks at Reem Acra, Max Azria and Lorick.

The Reem Acra Look: The debut of Reem Acra’s Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear Collection lived up to the internationally-renowned designer’s reputation for elegance and glamour. Makeup Artist Maxine Leonard led the Temptu Pro Team in creating a natural look to offset the collection’s extravagance of bright colors and heavily adorned jewelry. The team used Temptu S/B Airbrush Foundation to achieve a clean, natural look on the skin, with Temptu S/B airbrush makeup in Champagne Shimmer and Blush to create a youthful flush and drama.

TEMPTU for Max Azria

The Max Azria Look: For Spring 2010, Max Azria introduced a clean and sleek collection of elegance that incorporated neutral, solid colors with post-modern touches. Makeup Artist extraordinaire Lisa Butler’s approach to the makeup was to create a soft, subdued, and fresh look to complement the collection’s uncomplicated sophistication, “We wanted the girls to look as fresh and natural as possible,” said Butler.

TEMPTU for Max Azria

To achieve this level of minimalistic elegance, Butler used the TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System, with the AIR Pod Highlighter in Champagne to add light and sheer accents underneath the brow bone, around the sides of the eyes, on top of the cheeks, and on the lips with a touch of clear mascara to lift the eyebrows. The simplicity of this look saw no other additional makeup. “Using airbrushing as an application technique really pulled the essence of natural beauty together,” said Butler. “It provides light, natural-looking coverage while adding dimension to the face.”

TEMPTU for Lorick

The Lorick Look: Airbrushed champagne shimmer on cheekbones and temple created contour and drama, while accents such as teal and black eyeliners set the stage for the individual looks. A common ingredient in all three beauty presentations? Champagne Highlighter – Spring’s fast growing trend, which McCary applied using the Temptu AIRbrush Makeup System and AIR Pod Highlighter in Champagne to complete each look.

TEMPTU RETOUCH Powder Review & Photos

TEMPTU RETOUCH Powder Soft Focus Finish ($43)
TEMPTU RETOUCH Powder is a lightweight, mineral-based formula that banishes shine and provides natural-looking, satin-soft skin. This powder’s silky texture blends easily onto the skin and is ideal for finishing any makeup application. The built-in brush applicator holds just enough loose powder in its handle for perfect touch-up application.

I’m pretty fickle when it comes to my beauty products, and things are constantly moving in and out of my makeup rotation, but one constant for the past few weeks has been TEMPTU’s RETOUCH powder. It’s ideal for on-the-go touch ups thanks to its handy dandy brush form and I love the mattified, satiny soft-focus finish the RETOUCH powder gives my complexion.

TEMPTU RETOUCH Powder wasn’t actually love at first use for me, mainly because the applicator brush itself, while mighty convenient, is definitely not the softest and tends to feel a little rough and scratchy. Luckily, the powder has so many other redeeming qualities that I can overlook this one flaw.

First of all the RETOUCH Powder and the TEMPTU foundation are a match made in heaven. The Translucent shade coordinates beautifully with my foundation and I love that after retouching with the powder, I don’t look like I’m wearing any powder at all, but rather I just seem to have beautifully matte, even skin with a soft focus glow that seems to de-emphasize my pores.

Of course another thing that the RETOUCH powder has going for it is the portability factor. The fact that this is a powder and brush in one makes this very very easy to just pop in your purse, and I literally haven’t gone a day without mine since opening it. I’ve tried other powders built into brushes in the past, and I’ve always been dissatisfied with the dispensing mechanism as they always seemed to release these messy clouds of product. One click of the TEMPTU releases the perfect amount of powder to touch up your entire face. I didn’t believe this at first as I could never see the powder coming out of the brush, but the results more than spoke for themselves.

All in all I love my RETOUCH powder and plan to repurchase when I run out, although the price is a little steep!

TEMPTU AIR pod™ Foundation Review & Swatches + Before & After Photos!

Welcome to Day 2 of the TEMPTU-athon! As promised, you’ll be getting more TEMPTU information than you ever thought you needed or wanted. Still coming at you are reviews of the TEMPTU RETOUCH products (meaning the foundation, blush and highlighter pens – woohoo!) and swatches of every single one of the twelve foundation shades currently available for the system.

TEMPTU AIR pod™ Foundation ($55 for 2 x 0.28 pods)

My biggest concern when purchasing the TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System (review HERE) wasn’t that I wouldn’t like the system itself, since TEMPTU is pretty well known for its airbrushing devices, but that I wouldn’t be crazy about the foundation. I’d say that I’m rather picky when it comes to my foundations and I expect quite a bit, so of course I was worried that TEMPTU wouldn’t deliver.

But I’m happy to admit that I was oh so wrong, the foundation formula is darn near perfect! This foundation was formulated to provide a flawless, soft-focus finish; it contains a smoothing complex to help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, color-correcting pigments to camoflauge imperfections, and moisturizers to hydrate the skin.

The airbrushing system evenly mists a super fine layer of foundation particles across the surface of your skin, and once the foundation settles there it dries rather quickly (unlike my SK-II Air Touch which took forever to dry!) to a dewy finish. So you’re thinking dewy = terrible for oily skin, right? Wrong! I avoid dewy-finishes like the plague because usually it’s just asking for trouble (hello oil-slick on my t-zone!), but TEMPTU’s foundation, set with just the smallest amount of their RETOUCH Powder literally lasts all day and night on me, which just astounds me. I’ve experimented with wearing the foundation with primer, without primer, with different moisturizers underneath, with and without powder, and the result is always an extraordinarily long-wearing finish.

Plus the foundation really doesn’t settle into any lines you might have. One issues that has always plagued me is how my foundations would settle into the crease connecting my nose to my face (no matter how good the foundation, it can’t help but slide around on my face towards the end of the day), but this has never once happened with the TEMPTU.

So you know I don’t do the before/after photos, and these aren’t the best, but they were demanded! =D

Before (gross ruddy skin w/ some breakouts)

After TEMPTU foundation in Shade 003 Warm Ivory

And with a tiny bit of TEMPTU blush in Washed Rose on top.

I like to tell my friends that TEMPTU’s foundation seems to form this tightly-knit network of foundation particles that stretch across my skin and adhere like crazy without being irritating in the slightest – I feel as though i’m not wearing any foundation at all and my skin never develops those unpleasant hives some other foundations give me at the end of the day. The airbrushed finish is natural enough that you’ll never suffer from “two-tone face/neck syndrome” ever again and seriously I just love it so much.

For someone whose skin is as oily as mine, it’s nothing short of a miracle that I can go out on a day when it’s 100+ degrees and ridiculously humid without piling on the powder and have my makeup look better than it ever has at the end of the day.

RELATED POSTS:

Can’t get enough TEMPTU?

• See my review of the TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System HERE.
• Plus I’ve reviewed and swatched TEMPTU’s blush and highlighter pods for you HERE.
• And be sure to check back in the coming days for reviews of TEMPTU’s RETOUCH products and swatches of all the available foundation shades!

TEMPTU AIR pod Blush & Highlighter Review & Swatches

TEMPTU AIR pod™ Blush in #403 Washed Rose ($30)

I figured if I was going to give the TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System (review HERE) a shot, I might as well try everything including the blush and highlighter pods in order to properly assuage my curiosity. I picked up Washed Rose thinking that it would give me a nice bright pink flush (it’s described as petal pink) but sadly I was a little disappointed with the shade.

Don’t get me wrong it’s a very nice shade of subtle, soft pink, I was just expecting a brighter more vibrant pink – I probably should’ve gone with 404 Sheer Berry. The blushes themselves are really easy to use – you just load them in place of the foundation pod on your device and spray away. You can actually feel where the blush is going thanks to the strong air flow (you should set your device on “Less” for this) and of course color is buildable.

Sheerly applied swatch of Washed Rose.

I’m hoping that TEMPTU will release a few more fun/dramatic shades in the future. The AIR pod Blush was wonderful for the convenience factor and for sheer, very very natural flush but I Just happen to prefer my powder blushes to this one.

TEMPTU AIR pod™ Highlighter in 301 Champagne ($35)

I generally don’t wear highlighter but again decided to try this for the sake of experimentation and was pleasantly surprised by the beautiful subtle glow I could achieve using TEMPTU’s highlighter pod.

Champagne is a sheer metallic golden nude shade that’s perfect for highlighting your cheekbones and browbones. I like to lightly sweep this in a C motion around the sides of my face to contour along my cheekbones and right along the browbone for some barely there shimmer and glow, but you can definitely build more shimmer.

Swatch of TEMPTU Highlighter.

Some of your had expressed concerns that this might be way too metallic after having seen the model in the TEMPTU video on Sephora’s site applying this to herself, but I believe that she was using a pretty heavy hand in order to get anything to show up on camera, and it really won’t look that frighteningly metallic on you!

I love that TEMPTU has these accessories available for us to use with our TEMPTU AIRbrush Systems – when you spend a significant chunk of change on a product, it’s always nice to have some flexibility and options!

TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System Review

TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System ($225)

I know this has taken longer than some of you had hoped (and thank you for waiting so patiently! I promise you’ll be rewarded with more TEMPTU info than you’d ever want) but I’m finally ready to introduce you to my new favorite makeup gadget – the TEMPTU AIRbrush System!

TEPMTU’s Airbrush Makeup System represented the next generation of makeup – for years pro makeup artists have used TEMPTU products to achieve flawless airbrushed results, and now TEMPTU has brought us a compact unit that we can (afford) to use in the comfort of our own homes!

What you get in your TEMPTU Airbrush Makeup System:

• A trigger-activated AIRbrush which you can use to achieve sheer, medium or full coverage.
• An AIR Compressor that’s compact enough to travel with and easy to set up.

The AIRbrush trigger with no foundation pod connected.

Closer look at the trigger. You can pull this back to varying degrees so that you can achieve various degrees of coverage (controls the air flow).

There’s also an on/off switch and an adjustable pressure dial (which you’re looking at right here) to enable you to have even more cutomization and control.

What I Love: I decided to test the TEMPTU Airbrush system one morning when I was running really late to work and didn’t have time to read over length instructions, but the system literally took me all of 30 seconds to set up. You connect one end of the air hose to the AIRbrush, and the other to the AIR compressor, open a pod, pop it on and you’re set! The photo below illustrates how you open one and attach one of TEMPTU’s blush pods:

You should actually be holding down that little round button while attaching the pod!

So what else do I love about the TEMPTU? Well the coverage! My SK-II Air Touch Foundation was pretty great, but it was a small handheld system and so could never really achieve the high pressure needed for a decent spray stream which would give full coverage. The TEMPTU allows me to achieve a full coverage finish that looks and feels natural (my skin can actually breathe!) with a gorgeous luminous finish and lasts and lasts. The steady stream of foundation blended with air across my face feels incredibly refreshing on a hot summer’s day, and I even like to cut off the foundation flow and just use the air across my face post-application to help everything dry and set.

The foundation is actually released from a needle-like point at the tip of the foundation pod which gives me incredible control over where the foundation ends up – plus it’s hygienic since you never have to touch your face! This is also a major pro for me because I don’t know about the rest of you, but I hate applying an expensive face cream and then feeling like I’m smearing it all away by applying primer and foundation right over it.

Not So Much: Following my first two uses of the system I ended up with a little foundation in my hair, eyebrows, and all over my lashes (unlike the SK-II you will notice a little bit of this on hairs if you spray for long enough – i.e. to achieve full coverage), but with a few uses I learned to be more precise with my application, focusing on the areas that needed more coverage, and now I’m virtually mess-free! My other tiny gripe is that for me, full coverage takes a good minute or so of continuous spraying as I need a a lot of coverage, but that’s only because I have a lot of redness to cover. Oh and the fact that the pods are rather hard to remove from the AIRbrush trigger – it takes a good deal of maneuvering and strength to get that thing off!

The Verdict: Honestly I really don’t think that $225 is bad at all for an entire airbrushing system, particularly one of this quality – I mean who doesn’t want to look like they have naturally gorgeous glowy skin? Have I mentioned that I love love love LOVE mine? It really is like having a pro airbrushing device at home and you’ll love the amazing results you can achieve with this. Whether you intend to reserve it as a finishing spray to achieve a flawless finish for those special occasions, or plan to use it on a daily basis like I do (airbrushing your foundation each morning is such a refreshing way to start the day), this is a worthy investment to me. Plus TEMPTU offers not only foundation pods, but also blush pods, highlighter pods, and a myriad of touch-up products that coordinate fabulously with the system itself.

Nonetheless I know that this is a rather significant investment, so if there are any other aspects of the TEMPTU you’d like to see covered in this review just e-mail me/leave a comment and I’ll incorporate it! Before & After photos using the system, plus more in depth reviews of the foundation, blush & highlighter pods and all of the touch-up accessories to come!

2 Free TEMPTU Foundations from Sephora!

Exclusively for Beauty Insiders, Sephora is offering 2 free TEMPTU AIR pod Foundations (a $55 value) in the shade of your chase with the purchase of the TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System! I’m a little sad I ordered too early to get in on this deal, but for those of you who’ve been contemplating purchasing the system, now’s the time to do it! Unless you want to wait until the review I have coming for you towards the end of this week :).

Enter code TEMPTU at checkout to get your two free foundation pods while supplies last!

Sephora Haul w/ TEMPTU, Illamasqua and Lots More!

I know many of you have been as excited about my Sephora haul as I’ve been, so here it is at last! UPS has this terrible habit of just dumping my packages on my front porch in plain sight of the street rather than off to one side, so you can believe that I was suffering some minor anxiety wondering if this would still be there when I got home.

Inside my package was:

• TEMPTU Airbrush Makeup System
• TEMPTU foundation pods (2)
• TEMPTU blush pod
• TEMPTU highlighter pod
• Urban Decay Liquid Liner in Smog
• Illamasqua gloss in Indulge
• Illamasqua polish in Lament
• Urban Decay Brightening Primer
• Lancome Hypnose Drama mascara
• Givenchy Phenomen’eyes Effet Extention mascara
• And my bag of five samples!

Illamasqua Intense Lipgloss in Indulge and Polish in Lament

So per the usual I’ll be reviewing everything individually with tons of photos for you to enjoy, but I just wanted to quickly note that Illamasqua has far exceeded my expectations (which actually weren’t that high)! The nailpolish is beautifully pigmented and opaque and dries quickly to a beautiful finish. Plus the square bottle shape is really comfortable to hold when applying your polish.

I was a little afraid to order the Intense Lipgloss as Indulge is essentially a hot neon pink, but these are seriously amazing and I’d definitely recommend checking them out. They’re super pigmented so you only need the tiniest dab, and leave a stain of color on your lips so that you have some residual color even after the gloss itself is long gone.

And what I know a lot of you have been waiting for — the TEMPTU stuff! I love this photo of all the TEMPTU pods out of their boxes. From left to right you have the foundation pod, blush pod, and highlighter pod. I was running late to work this morning (had to be in by 8a.m. to get some work done but I overslept but a little) but I managed to quickly throw together the TEMPTU device because I just had to tell you at least a little something about it today, and I love it! It’s like my SK-II Air Touch Foundatin on steroids! The foundation is wearing incredibly well, and all in all I can tentatively say that I’m happy with my purchase. More details on this to come — no worries you’ll be hearing more then you probably ever wanted to about TEMPTU in the coming days!

So what do you think of my Sephora haul? Have you tried any of these items for yourself?

ABS Wants: TEMPTU AIRbrush Makeup System

Finally in the comfort of your own home, you can achieve long-lasting pro results every day. The innovative TEMPTU® AIRbrush Makeup System’s sleek, compact design delivers power and control, giving you steady, precise application that’s completely adjustable and results that are truly flawless. The unique hybrid trigger is designed to give the user complete control over application and delivers pinpoint, mess-proof application every time. The hygienic spray of the airbrush means that no tools come into contact with the skin, so there’s no need to clean dirty brushes that can harbor pore-clogging bacteria. The user-friendly instruction guide and how-to DVD will steer you in enhancing your complexion to it’s true flawless potential.

Say hello to my current obsession: TEMPTU’s Sephora-exclusive AIRbrush Makeup System ($225), a petite little at-home airbrushing device! While I love my SK-II Air Touch Foundation, I’ve always wanted my own at-home airbrushing system to use with blushes, highlighters, and all that other good stuff, and it looks as though my dreams are about to come true.

Yes the device is a little on the pricey side, but if it really is any good I’m thinking it could be worth it since I actually hate touching my face. Can you imagine being able to mist on foundation, blush, and foundation in the morning, all without any needless tugging at your poor face?

Naturally the TEMPTU System needs to be used with TEMPTU brand pods which aren’t cheap. The AIR pod foundations are $55 for a scant 0.29 ounces and only last two months!

This easy-to-use foundation is applied with the innovative TEMPTU® AIRbrush Makeup System for flawless, soft-focus-finish results. The breakthrough TEMPTU AIR pod™ provides precise makeup application and is mess proof and extremely hygienic. This ultra-lightweight formula contains a smoothing complex to help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, color-correcting pigments to camouflage imperfections, and moisturizers to help hydrate the skin. The result is long-lasting, natural-looking, versatile coverage and the look of truly perfected skin. Finally, the art of airbrushing and high-definition skin is at your fingertips.

AIR pod™ Blush ($30)
This easy-to-use blush is applied with the innovative TEMPTU® AIRbrush Makeup System for flawless, soft-focus-finish results. The breakthrough TEMPTU AIR pod™ provides precise makeup application and is mess proof and extremely hygienic. This ultra-lightweight formula contains a smoothing complex to help minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, color-correcting pigments to camouflage imperfections, and moisturizers to help hydrate the skin. The result is a smooth, dewy, and color-enhanced complexion that lasts all day. The mistake-proof application and universally flattering hues provide a natural glow to accentuate any skintone. Finally, the art of airbrushing and high-definition skin is at your fingertips.

AIR pod™ Highlighter ($35)
This easy-to-use highlighter is applied with the innovative TEMPTU® AIRbrush Makeup System for flawless, soft-focus-finish results. The breakthrough TEMPTU AIR pod™ provides precise makeup application and is mess proof and extremely hygienic. Take your complexion from dull to radiant in an instant with this shimmering and enhancing highlighter. These universally flattering hues provide a luminous, healthy glow to your complexion. The lightweight formula blends seamlessly to provide all-over color as well as subtle accents and sheer contouring.

Is it silly that when I think about investing in pricey gadgets that require refills/continual replacement parts, one of my main worries is that the company will go out of business/decide to discontinue the item at some point, leaving me stuck with a device and no way to continue using it? I just can’t seem to help myself! Nonetheless I can’t stop thinking about this, and if it impresses me when I check it out in person tomorrow at the Sephora 5 Times Square grand opening, I’ll definitely be bringing it home with me!