Why don't you...Why don't I...

I've been getting more and more requests to post more photos, particularly pictures of myself wearing the products I'm reviewing. There are also numerous calls for tutorials- videos and/or how-to posts. I guess it's about time I explain why I don't do it.

I'm not a makeup artist and I don't play one on YouTube. Of course, I'm pretty good at wielding a brush and doing my own makeup. I can also do a very decent job making over some of my nearest and dearest. I'm familiar enough with their faces and know what works and what would make my sister remind me she's still the stronger one and can do me a world of bodily harm. But I can't tell you how to do your makeup. Sometimes I make suggestions, but for the most part it comes down to your very specific coloring and facial features. The specific of applying two or three eyes shadows on Asian eyes are extremely different than how to do it on mine. Look at my photos- I have deep-set eyes with very visible lids. There's no way that a method that works for me would work for many of you. Even when it comes to eyes of similar shapes there are minute but important details every woman needs to figure out for herself.

Let's talk about skin tone. The warm vs. cool grouping is way too broad. We all have several undertones, some contrasting, and trying to generalize too often ends with a person buying the wrong foundation shade. Just think of the various shades of Asian skin tones that look absolutely nothing like each other. The same goes for African-Americans. And look at my own "white" skin- at most makeup counters the first foundation or concealer shade a SA  suggests usually turns out about 1.5 shades too dark. Why? Because while I'm generally categorized as "olive" there's also a little yellow and pink in some indescribable ratio. I can't wear pink foundations, of course, but many of them (MAC, Trish McEvoy and Bobbi Brown are good examples) are too yellow or just look off. I tan easily and can get quite brown, but I try my best to avoid the sun, so I'm actually some weird pale olive color. And this fact influences the way I wear all of my makeup. Normally I apply a touch of bronzer or blush to my décolleté to even things out. I intentionally avoided it when I took the photo yesterday so you can see the green and the difference.

I'm not even talking about the technical aspects of taking a huge amount of pictures that showcase the products or the makeup "look". I can tell you that for the simple daytime makeup  I'm showing here I had to  apply almost double the amount of color I'd normally do and it still looks a bit washed out compared to what I actually saw in the mirror. These two pictures were taken about two minutes apart in separate rooms that face the same direction. The natural light still looks different and so does the makeup. It's a lot of work for very uneven results, which is why I stick to closeup swatches on my wrists.

So there you have it. (Almost) 40 years old, green skin, dark circles no amount of Touche Eclat can fully erase. Would you want a tutorial from this woman? (that was a rhetorical question!)

Top photo of a makeup artist at work courtesy of WWD.
Everything else here is mine, of course.