Samer Khouzami is well known as a master of makeup transformations and contouring. Photographs of average women being transformed into beauties thanks to his skills has literally flooded the internet and social networks. But Samer is keeping as a secret all the products and techniques he uses. He reveals them only during his few makeup courses, that he makes during a year all over the world.

 

In 2015 Samer posted on social networks a few destinations, where he will go with his Beauty Tour. I was deciding between the Netherlands, Romania and Germany. I could not go to the Netherlands because I had this term already booked by brides, Germany was scheduled to November, so I packed my suitcase and went to Romania in September.

 

You need three things to create a beautiful makeup: Technique, makeup brushes and products. You can partially read the technique from the photos, that Samer is posting on the internet and because he is using his own line of makeup brushes, it was the products, that I was interested in the most. When I was asking another makeup artist during the event, most common answer was: “I want to know what is he using for contouring.” The same question I am now asked by all the people, that know I was at Samer’s masterclass, so I decided to write down a full list of products and few tips, that the Master of Contouring was sharing during his tour.

 

 

Bridal makeup by Samer

Samer’s favourite makeup brands are Anastasia Beverly Hills, Sisley, Shu Uemura, Chanel, MAC, Make Up For Ever, Tom Ford, YSL and Giorgio Armani. In his makeup kit you will find foundations Guerlain Parure Gold, Chanel Perfection Lumiére, Make Up For Ever HD Foundation, or Estee Lauder Maximum Cover Foundation.

He always starts with a thin layer of Fix+ from MAC, so the skin is a little bit sticky. As a medical base he uses Sisley or Shu Uemura according to the skin type. For highlighting he applies Concealer from Anastasia Beverly Hills, for contouring sticks from Tom Ford. He blends the highlighting and contouring together with a little bit of liquid foundation on his brush, in this example the Dolce&Gabana Perfect liquid foundation.

 

Contouring

When all the foundation is done, he uses dry beauty blender to absorb oils left behind from the makeup and skin. To define the intensity of contour and highlight even more, he applies dark powder on contours and light one on the highlights. His favourite powders are Chanel Loose Powder or Compact Powder from Tom Ford. He applies the powder with MAC Powder puff, which he uses also while leaning on the model’s face not to smudge the foundation. First he powders the areas under the eyes, because this is the place, where makeup starts to crease. For highlighting the area under the eyes Laura Mercier The Secret Brightening Powder.

 

Eyes and Eyebrows

As a eyeshadow base he applies Make Up For Ever Full Cover Concealer. Eyeshadows from brands MAC (shades Twinks, Follie, Embark), Too Faced (Bon Bon, Nougat, Peanut Butter from Chocolate Bar), Makeup Atelier (palette number 5). Gel eyeliner Aqua Black from Make Up For Ever, eye pencil Aqua Black from the same brand. For eyebrows he likes dark brown shade from palette number 5 Makeup Atelier. To color the hair in eyebrow he likes brow gels from Giorgio Armani, MAC or Anastasia Beverly Hills.

 

Lips and cheeks

 To draw the shape of the lips he always uses lipstains and lip brush, never the lip pencil. Lipstains should be waterproof to last long, for exapmle from Giorgio Armani or Anastasia Beverly Hills. Because theese lipstains make the lips very dry, he applies a lipstick on the top. In this case YSL Babydoll kiss and blush. On the apples of the cheeks just a little bit of Nars blush in shade Deepthroat. To enhance the highlighting he added a bit of Laura Mercier Highlighter 01 on the cheeks, above the eyebrows, on the upper lip and on the chin.

Do you like makeup Before&After? Than check the blog post about my work for Miss Face with a full list of products.

 

 

Samer Khouzami makeup brushes

I had the opportunity to reserve basic or advanced set of Samer’s makeup brushes, but because I am quite mistrustful, I skiped untill I could see them and most importantly touch them. But in a moment, when I saw the luxurious black boxes in hands of other course participants, I began to regret. The course have not even finnished and I had to order them and in two weeks I had them finally at home. How are they? Are they good quality made? Full review of Samer Khouzami’s Advanced set of brushes is coming soon :-).

 

Have a nice Monday,

Ariana

The most frequented question, that I am being asked is: “What product do you use for…?” So I decided to write down a full list of products, that I haved applied on the girls from Miss Face Czech Republic.

I have done the makeup for semifinalists and finalists and with their approval, I took their photo without and with my makeup. The contestants were supposed to have an identical makeup: Smokey eyes, creamy lips and contouring of the face. So with just a few exceptions I was applying the same products, only different shades.

Complexion

We started later in the afternoon, so all the girls have done their usual morning routine and used a daily moisturizer. I cleaned their face with micellar water and sprayed it with Fix+ from MAC. Unless the skin is dry or dehydrated, I do not use moisturizer or serum, I start directly with makeup base. For oily skin I like YSL Matt Touche, for dry skin, or dry parts I use Sisley Radiant Immediate Lift.

Makeup

I start my contouring with choosing two shades of liquid foundation, right now I am using Skin foundation from Bobbi Brown. I apply dark shade on contours, light one on parts, where I want the highlight. I will blend both shades and then add the brightening concealer Helena Rubinstein Magic Concealer, which I apply under the eyes as well. It has a creamy texture and does not sink immediately into the skin, so I can blend it properly.

I will enhance my contouring again with two shades of powder: light shade for highlighting, dark one for contouring. I really love Chanel powders, Vitalumière or Natural Finish Loose Powder.

Contouring

At last I enhanced my contouring and highlighting with matt and shiny shades from Anastasia Beverly Hills Contouring Book. On cheeks I applied just a little peachy Blush from Chanel.

 

Eyebrows

If I need to create the eyebrow in places, where it does not grow I always use some sticky product first. I like pencils Le Crayon Poudre from Lancôme or sticky shade from Brow Zings palette from Benefit. Than I apply eyebrow powders from Anastasia Beverly Hills. For shaping the eyebrow hair I use small mascaras Gimme Brow from Benefit.

Eyes and Lips

To prevent the eyeshadow from creasing I always apply some eyeshadow base. I use MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot all over the eyelid. If I want to enhance the eyes more I apply dark and light Eyeliner Gel from Makeup Atelier Paris and with blend them together. I am using combination of eyeshadows from MAC, Make Up For Ever and Too Faced. From mascaras I like Hypnôse from Lancôme. For lips I used lip pencil in colour of the lips, I draw the shape of the lips and shade them.

From lipsticks I love YSL Rouge Volupté, cheaper version of it is a creamy lipstick from Inglot, which I like to use for photoshoots.

I took all the photos with my mobile phone, sometimes it was a bit cloudy, so the makeup was a little more “radiant” in reality.

I am preparing an article, where I want to describe my signature makeup, what products are my favourite and why I use them 🙂 Please write down in the comments what would you like to know and I will focus my article on it.

 

Have a nice day,

Ariana

The last bottle of your liquid foundation is finnished and you just want to try something different. I asked my friends, czech makeup artist what is their favourite foundation and why. I am very grateful for their tips and I hope it will help you to choose just the right foundation for you.

 

“The best foundation, that is avaliable in Czech republic is Make Up For Ever Face&Body. It has a light texture, does not clog pores, or enhance fine lines, has a good coverage and flawless finish. This makeup is waterproof, yet suitable even for dry skin and does not make the skin to look dehydrated. You can buy it in Sephora in a large variety of shades. Unfortunately Make Up For ever is changing the formula and the new one is allegedly not that good as the old one. Bourjois Healthy Mix SERUM is a good high street dupe, it is very similar to Face&Body, but it is quite hard to get in Czech republic.”

Linda Chudomelova, freelancer

 

“I really love Born this way from Too Faced, because as the only makeup it contains a coconut water, which hydrates your skin all day. It also has a hyaluronic acid, which we all love and an extract from mountain rose, which works for the elasticity of the face. It does not contain oil, so it is suitable for oily skin. It has a brightening effect, medium to full coverage.”

Silvia Mikusova, Too Faced specialist

 

“I always have Double Wear Maximum Cover from Estée Lauder in my makeup kit. It has a full coverage, but with light aplication it can look pretty natural and it lasts very long. It is not a foundation for everyday use, its formula is quite heavy for skin. I apply it on women with skin disorders and very oily skin. My friend has a rosacea and this is the only makeup, that can cover it and from one meter her skin looks perfectly normal.”

Adela Andela Bursova, freelancer

 

“My favourite is definitely Luminous silk foundation from Giorgio Armani. It has an amazing coverage and makes your skin look radiant and natural. From all the Armani foundations I favour this one, because even if I am tired and my skin looks dull, thanks to Luminous my face will always look juicy and makeup will stay all day long.”

Marketa Parizkova, Giorgio Armani Face designer

 

“My favourite is definitely Rouge Bunny Rouge Skin Soul Drops. I can create any coverage that I need. If I want a natural makeup, I just add one drop to daily moisturizer. For full coverage I will add 2-4 drops to daily moisturizer. As a makeup artist I highly appreciate that the packaging is really small and does not take much place in my makeup kit.”

Lucie Uxova, freelancer

 

“For me personally is MAC Face and Body the best makeup. It is very easy to work with, it has a light texture, is hydrating and does not feel heavy on the skin. Face and Body has light to medium coverage, but in case of skin problems it is very easy to layer up to full coverage. As a bonus is this makeup suitable for body as well.”

Denisa Grossmannova, MAC specialist

 

“I love Armani Designer Lift. Works wonders with dehydrated and flaky skin. It has a smoothing, natural and youthful effect on the face. I would not recommend it for oily skin and face with a T-zone. For this I would recommend Armani Lasting silk, which fits to almost all skin types and has a matt finish.”

Martina Bartoskova, freelancer

 

“Lancôme Teint Miracle is my number one foundation, especially in summer and wedding season. It has a medium to full coverage, but does not look heavily on the skin. I love to apply it on the brides, their skin looks flawless with it, they will look beautiful on the photos and the husband will appreciate the natural look of the skin. Thanks to technology Aura – Inside TM it will brighten the face. Teint Miracle will also last 18 hours and hydrate the whole time.”

Jana Darmovzalova, Lancôme National makeup artist

 

And what is my personal favourite foundation?

For more than a year I really like Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation. It has a light to medium coverage, it is very buildable on the skin for full coverage when needed. The shade no 0. Porcelain is a good choice for faired skinned complexion, darker shades are good for the ladies, who like sunbathing. It lasts really long on the face and looks natural. I have never seen an allergic reaction to this makeup and that is probably the most important thing to me.

 

And what is your favourite liquid foundation? Write it down to the Comments and have a nice day,

 

Ariana