Pack light

Genius idea c/o MUA Charlotte Tilbury via Instagram. I def need to incorporate this 

In Shana's Hair Kit f. T3 Pro, Enzo Milano & Solano (Part 2)

Part two of what I use in my hair kit

www.davenmayeda.com
www.youtube.com/davenmayeda

www.sienree.com

www.elevateartists.com

www.t3mucro.com
www.enzomilano.com
www.solanointernational.com

In Shana's Hair Kit f. Karmin Titanium (Part 1)

I was sent the Karmin Titatanium Professional Hair Straightener Iron to review by www.hairproductspro.com.  Of course I could not use it on myself so thanks Mom for being my human mannequin.  :)  Check the video for my thoughts on the performance of the tool and see the before and after pics of my mom's hair below.

Diary of an MUA: New Segment-In Shana's Kit! f. Beauty Blenders, etc.

Hey hey hey everybody!  I have gotten back into my YouTube flow and I wanted to start a new segment which I am calling 'In Shana's Kit'.  During these videos I will show you the things that I am using in my kit, how I came to find out about the mentioned products and how I use them/why I use them.

The blog posts that accompany the videos wont be too long and drawn since most of the information will be included both in the video itself and in the bottom bar of the video.  So the blog post just serves to provide any product images or additional info I may have omitted during speaking.

Anyway, hope you like the new addition and as always if you have any questions feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer or point you in the right direction!

Check the first video below!

Diary of an MUA: Men's Grooming Kit

Had a commercial shoot last week with three best selling male authors and this was what I used on set.

I didnt even use all those brushes, basically a 235 brush to apply a base/concealer, the fan brush to powder and a lip brush for lip balm.

Gotta love male grooming!

Oh and lunch was provided c/o The Brown Bag, cobb salad yum!

Sidebar: mobile blogging is giving me the blues as I nurse myself back to health.  Please be patient with me.

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Diary of an MUA: Operation Kit Condense...again

For tried and true readers of this blog, me trying to condense my kit is not breaking news.  I've gone from a train case, to a rolling train case that my fiance always had to lift for me, to a soft side traincase to a suitcase etc so on and so forth.

You also know that my carry all of choice as of late has been my trusty Zuca backpack.  For a while now I've used it to house all the things I FELT I needed on set/for clients; but for years I have drooled over the super small kits some of my makeup mentors carry, wondering how to get on their level. 

I recalled purchasing a MAC case a few years ago that I never really carried because it was too small and gave it a test run to see if it was feasible to use as my new makeup only kit.  It actually forced me to really dig deep to determine what do I reach for over and over again in my kit no matter what situation I'm in, be it bridal, editorial, film, television or runway, male or female?  What items make me want to cry if I accidentally omit them when packing my kit?  What items have I never ever used but keep with me everytime off my "just in case" ish?

Asking myself those questions got me to finally declutter and I am super pleased with the result.  I transferred my liquid foundations into super tiny bottles gifted by my beauty boo Shida, my cream foundation is already in palette form but I discovered that the shades I use the most come in even smaller packaging, SCORE!  My powders, including shadow, blush and finishing also are in palette form.  Everything else got put into smaller packaging or I purchase travel size i.e. skincare, hand sanitizer, etc.

I travel more now for work and when the time comes for me to fly for a job I don't want to be in a panic trying to figure out how to pass TSA inspection.  I feel confident now that I can just pick up my kit and go, no problem.

If I do hair and makeup for something I still take my Zuca, but for the most part, my MAC set bag pulls the weight.  I just toss my brushes in my purse, which I am happy to say I have also condensed to my must have brushes!  That's saying a lot because I adore brushes.  So I may transfer out a lot but not much.

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She's your queen to be...

I am sitting here on break from doing my first pageant client! 

For those that don't know I work with an on-site makeup and hair company in between #workindaplan and during the more lean months (read cold - I mean it is snowing today) we take on special events to fill the bridal void.  Well my manager called with a last minute gig for a Maryland beauty queen. 

I must say that this has been one of my fav gigs.  Though a beauty queen, crown and sash to boot, she is super down to earth. 
To complete her look I am using a combination of airbrush and traditional makeup because I also had to apply body makeup. 

Her first look was more natural and we upped it a bit for her formal look.

Funny, or not so much really I ran into a bit of a snafu in that I grabbed the wrong bag as I rushed out the house which for me meant no lip products, no brow pencils but most frightening (perfect for Halloween weekend) NO...BRUSHES!!!!

A random M.A.C. kabuki powder brush was in one of my bags and with no Target in sight to get the entire E.L.F studio line, I ran in Michaels and headed for the maxine mop section.  All I needed was a few eye brushes and on the way out I spotted a pencil roll for $4.99 to keep them in.  Perfect!

As luck would have it there was also a Sally's Beauty about five minutes from the location so I took advantage of the .99 cent lip products they offer.

I learned that I don't always need my full arsenal of tools to get the job done.  Quality over quantity always, being prepared is one thing but just bringing things in my kit that don't fit the gig is another.

All's well that ends well!