Fast food - noodle bowl

These days with studying fulltime I have less time, energy and patience for cooking so I've had to fall back on quick and easy meals that aren't jampacked full of mega calories.

One of the quickest things I like to make is a simple bowl of noodles which with a few extra ingredients can be delicious.

- I just use normal oriental packet noodles, generally chicken or vegetable flavour but you could use anything and Super Noodles would be the more widely available option. Although these aren't the healthiest thing in the world, for calorie counting they're decent enough as a lunchtime meal.

- I cook them entirely as normal, adding the seasoning and plating up in a small bowl.

- I then sprinkle spring onions, chives and sesame seeds on top to garnish which I stir in and then it's ready to eat.

(As you can see from the bottom of the image, if I am having this for my main meal, I sometimes boil up some vegetable dumplings which you can get from any oriental supermarket)

It's funny how something as simple as adding a little bit of garnish can completely change a boring food, as I've mentioned before, I also find presentation makes a meal a lot more satisfying.

MUA Monday: Ruth Pease

Today for MUA Monday I'm featuring Ruth Pease, an amazingly talented freelance makeup artist specialising in film, TV and fashion. Ruth produces some fantastic special effects work which can be seen on her website (I've not shared anything too gorey as I know it's not everyone's cup of tea) and is exactly the kind of thing I want to get into. Ruth describes her services as "Presenting the unique, ugly and beautiful since 2005."

When did you realise you wanted to become a makeup artist?I spent most of my teen years watching horror movies with my friends - we were in the video nasty years back then, so it was a huge mission to get to see films like Texas Chainsaw, The Exorcist, City Of The Living Dead. I knew I wanted to work in film, but it wasn't until I discovered the world of artists like Tom Savini & Rick Baker that I knew I wanted to be a makeup artist. I couldn't imagine anything better than making a living from creating gore and monsters.

 

Where did you train and did you enjoy it?

I started off buying DIY FX books and covering myself in latex, cotton wool & fake blood (not that much has changed!). I took a part time film class and then found a Media makeup Diploma at Swindon College - it covered all the basics and forced me to try beauty makeup which at the time I had no interest in, but ended up really enjoying. My tutors were incredibly supportive and I had a great time there. Then I went on to London College Of Fashion and did a Specialist Makeup Design (Film & TV) Foundation degree there and finally a top up year to make it a full degree. I have mixed feelings about my time at LCF - they're predominantly a fashion college, and I felt like our department were extremely neglected. Our course tutors were great - but I didn't feel I learnt much more than I already had done on my diploma. I deeply regret not taking the place that was offered to me at Hertfordshire Uni, who deal much more with tech effects. Having said all this - there's a lot to be said for remembering most of the greatest Makeup Artists didn't have the option of taking a course and taught themselves - it's definitely important to adapt a spirit for experimenting.

 

 

Was it hard to become established and get regular work?

It still is! It's always something you have to keep working at. Even when you reach your height, staying there is just as much work - one year away and everything you've been fighting for can disappear. At the moment things seem to be constantly changing and I'm still undecided what exact area I want to dig my claws in and stay with - I love the diversity of makeup work and I'd be sad to have to neglect one creative style to concentrate on another entirely.

 

What is your favourite style of makeup to do?

I still love all things hideous and gory the most. Creating horrific wounds and monsters are definitely what I'm most excited about. But I love combining FX to create really theatrical beauty makeup - anything clashing, kitsch, sinister and disturbing with huge hair!

 

Is there any style of makeup you hate?

I don't think there's anything I really hate - anything you've had to repeat a million times can get a bit dull - but it's the environment that really makes a job good or bad for me.

 

 

What are your future goals in your career?

To keep surviving! I'm hoping to get much more involved in MUFX work and I really want to start working on my own projects for exhibition. I'm collaborating with costume designers, photographers and artists to make a collection of interesting and hideous stuff. I can't imagine I'll ever actually stop working - one of my heroes is an old carny guy called Howard Bone - he died with just enough money in a jar next to his bed to make it to the next carnival.

 

What is your top makeup tip?

Dr. Oetker makes the best red food colouring to use in homemade blood - it's more expensive, but really, don't bother using anything else! And - Animated Extras Pumping Blood - works flawlessly through tubes under prosthetics.

 

 

What makeup trend are you most excited about this year?

I really excited about what Alex Box has done for fashion makeup - it's opened a door for people to become really artistic and experimental with makeup - I'm looking forward to seeing where that goes. Also - Tinsley Transfers - I've seen some amazing results with the FX work on American Horror Story.

 

What are your favourite high end and budget brands?

High End - NARS and Makeup Forever

Budget - Loreal & No7

You can also find Ruth in the following places:

Website // IMDB // Blog

Giveaway reveal

This has been a very long time coming, I'm finally about 8 followers away from 500 so it's time to share the big giveaway I have been getting ready. Below are all the prizes up for grabs, handmade items from my own shop and lots of amazing items which have been donated from a bunch of talented ladies. There are also some other bits and pieces I have picked up over the past couple of months, everything can be seen in the image below.

A breakdown of the prizes:

Pink sky necklace, Galaxy ring + brooch, 2 illustrated cards all from Raffles Bizarre // Watermelon necklace, Gingerbread earrings from Sugar & Vice // 

Tote bag, illustrated plate, badges, stickers from Madam Salami // 2 bracelets from Kukee // Pocket mirror, badges, stickers from Little Miss Delicious // Tote bag from Ella Masters // 4 friendship bracelets from Ruby Rae Love // Postcards, Badges from Saul Art // 

French themes notebook // Mountain Dew lip balm // Sally Hanson blusher // 

My favourite candies - White Rabbits // 2 kitsch pens // Beauty samples // Tea samples

Some fab stuff up for grabs, the giveaway will go live when I hit 500 followers and there will be plenty of ways to enter. In the meantime check out the wonderful companies that have donated and have a peek at their other fab goodies.

Also let me know what you think of the prize, will you be entering, and what are you most excited about?

Trinket Tuesday: Magic Loot

Take a deep breath everyone, the jewellery you're about to see is ahhhhh-mazing! This Tuesday I am sharing the wonderful creations of Magic Loot which feature gorgeous, natural gemstones amongst other very special delights.

Megladon Tooth Necklace

"This is an ancient shark tooth Millions of years old and now you can have the privelege of wearing something so unique and special!"

Amethyst Slice Druzy Earrings

Fossilised Sand Dollar Necklace

"These sand dollars are Moroccan fossilized sand dollars and each is over a million years old!"

Skull Necklace

All of you familiar with my shark obsession may have realised why I'm so excited about Magic Loot. I am in love with the Megladon tooth necklace, so much. In fact there is a huge range of different shark tooth necklaces available in the store. As well as this, there is a wide selection of different gemstones encorporated into their jewellery, the amethyst druzy above is such a gorgeous combination of colours but just one of the amazing stones up for grabs.

 

MUA Monday: Lesley Vye

This week's makeup artist is Lesley Vye who specialises in beauty & fashion, editorial & commercial and celebrity hair and makeup. Lesley has been published in Disorder, Papercut and Crack magazines amongst others and has made up a number of celebrities including Paul Hollywood, (my favourite silver fox) Ed Westwick and Tinie Tempah.

When did you realise you wanted to become a makeup artist?

I have always had a passion for art and design; makeup was a different way of being creative and a completely new canvas to work on. 

Where did you train and did you enjoy it?

I trained at The London College of Fashion, it was the BA degree on Specialist Makeup Design; Fashion Editorial course. It was amazing to not only learn about the skills needed for this career but the opportunities in the industry that were also available as the course progressed. 

Was it hard to become established and get regular work?

I'm not going to lie, it's not an easy career if you expect work to come to you; hard work and determination is a must. It's one of those things that never stops; you can always become more established and there is always more work available if you look for it. It makes it tough with more artists taking an interest as i'm sure is the case in most areas of Fashion. It's all about making yourself a little more unique than everybody else and really pushing for what you want.  

What is your favourite style of makeup to do?

I think most artists will say that the more creative a look is the more exciting it is, and to an extent it really is rewarding to create a powerful look. I work with colour regularly and tend to use it to turn a classic look into something a little interesting. There is nothing better at times however, than creating flawless, dewy skin and working with more neutral styles.

Is there any style of makeup you hate?

There's nothing I actually hate; there's nothing worse than using more makeup than is needed as it then becomes a spectacle in a bad way rather than being clever. I'm not a fan of grunge styles and basic makeup which doesn't enhance the model. It should always make you want to go 'wow!' 

What are your future goals in your career?

I have a lot of goals for the future; there are many great photographers that I would love to see myself work alongside and would like to hope is possible in the near future. Mario Testino, Terry Richardson and Rankin are three very talented artists who are definitely at the top of my list right now!

What is your top makeup tip?

One tip that my tutor taught me was to always apply mascara with a brush. It still amazes models/clients and makes a huge difference to lift and definition.

What makeup trend are you most excited about this year?

Full eyebrows... We all know Cara Delevingne is on trend right now but she really has the complete look. I love working to create perfectly full, groomed eyebrows and even changing them completely to make even more of a statement look.

What are your favourite high end and budget brands?

It's always good to have a range of brands in your kit as there's always a few products which are a must have. I couldn't work without MAC Cosmetics and their Strobe Cream, or Dermalogica and Bioderma for skin care. Budget brands do also have some amazing products whether that be for their strong pigment or just being a sturdy must have for your kit/makeup bag. Maybelline has a beautiful gel eyeliner which goes on very smoothly. It's great to mix it up and see what products work best for you; everybody has different faces and skin types so products will always vary between each person. 

You can also find Lesley in the following places:

Website // Blog // Twitter

Achieving the look: raw grunge

A natural yet grunge face is such a simple thing to achieve but is effective for a really raw look.
I recently shot with the amazing photographer Kerry Lytwyn and model Soph from Union Models, we wanted a very natural look to show off Soph's pale skin and gorgeous freckles but also something that was a bit edgy.

This was a really minimal makeup that is really quick to apply, and I didn't use a huge amount of products.

- I moisturised the skin like I would on any shoot to keep it fresh and dewy but because Soph had great skin I didn't apply anything in the way of foundation.
- I used a very small amount of cream concealer by Sephora under her eyes and around the nose to hide any redness.
- I filled in her wonderfully, bushy brows with a combination of black and brown from the The Makeup Store eyebrow cake using an angled brush. I didn't comb these down because I wanted to keep some of the texture.
- I contoured ever so slightly with a powder by Cosmetics a la Carte.
- For the eyes I patted on black eyeshadow (Carbon by MAC) on the top lid and under the water line, blending this out with a fluffy brush messily. I also added plenty of black eyeliner on her waterline and a few, thick layers of mascara.
- I left Soph's lips her natural colour but gave them a little shine with a Covergirl balm style gloss.

I couldn't create the exact look on myself because a lot of this makeup was specific to Soph's face. I did keep my foundation a little lighter by mixing in a moisturiser and buffing it onto the skin with a Real Techniques buffing brush so you can see my freckles ever so slightly on the top of my cheeks.

My brows aren't as lovely and full so I just shaded these as normal and added a less heavy grunge eye. I also left my lips un-touched.

I think this version is more wearable and suitable for most people though the right faces could do the strong grunge eye justice.

Trinket Tuesday: Jennifer Loiselle

Time to share another wonderful jewellery company, today that is Jennifer Loiselle. Based in London, this Etsy store is full to the brim with fun, statement jewellery. Every item is like an art piece in its own right and could make any outfit ten times more...WOW!

Celestial Collar Necklace Gold

"An unexpected take on a collar, the Celestial necklace features laser cut gold glitter perspex layered with a light grey perspex base. Embellished with oversized sparkling Swarovski chessboard crystals in gold dorardo, the necklace is also dotted with hematite cabachons."

The Clemence Woven Rope Necklace

"Drawing inspiration from tropical seas, childhood and Miss Louise Bourgeois, the Clemence woven necklace is perfect for showing off this season's electric shades."

The Fitzgerald Gold Mirror Spike Necklace

"As seen on Shini of Parkandcube! Add a little tough luxe edge to your day with the Fitzgerald necklace. The necklace boasts trillion “diamonds” etched on gold acrylic mirror which are then studded onto a multi-layered spiked black Perspex collar."

 

 Solaris Perspex Earrings Blue

"The Solaris earrings are a bold statement piece. Featuring oversized Swarovski chessboard crystals in a striking aquamarine blue embedded onto laser cut black and white pespsex pieces, they are also embellished with hematite cabachon studs and black and blue glitter cubes."

 

These are the kind of jewellery pieces I dream of owning, if you were having outfit dilemmas you could just pop one of the first two necklaces over a little black dress and you'd be done. All of the jewellery is so creative and modern it speaks for itself and you wouldn't want to detract from it with your clothing, at least I wouldn't.

When I first made my own Etsy shop and properly started looking through all the amazing work on the site, Jennifer's Fitzgerald necklace was one of the first pieces on the whole site I really fell in love with, and I still revisit it now, just to remind myself how wonderful it is.