Annie, proving that sometimes less really is more. Wow!
THE SUBJECT: You can take the girl out of Salt Lake City, UT, but you can’t take Salt Lake -- and its dance culture -- out of the girl. Like many Utah natives, 23-year-old fashion and tech PR pro Annie, got introduced to stage makeup at a young age when she was training in all kinds of dance styles from ballet to hip hop.
“The only way I ever learned how to do my makeup was very heavily because to perform you use layers and layers. I have memories of wearing makeup when I was as young as six,” she says. Even though the full face she showed up with on set seemed out of place in the middle of a weekday (it was a lot!), we’ll admit the application was impeccable. But Annie happily let our makeup artist strip it all away -- and lived to tell about it.
ANNIE BEFORE:
Products: 10 (foundation, concealer, powder, eyebrow pencil, mascara, eyeliner “no matter what,” eye shadow, bronzer “I can’t stand how pale I am in NYC,” blush, lipstick)
Total prep time: 20 minutes
Annie says: “When I don’t have a lot of makeup on, I feel like I blend into the background because my features are so light.
Annie's makeup bag!
ANNIE AFTER:
Products: 6 (tinted moisturizer, brow powder, mascara, blush, lip gloss, hair spray)
Total prep time: 6 minutes
Annie says: “I liked it a lot! I didn’t know what to expect. I was impressed with this because Tia made it look natural, but my eyes stood out. After the shoot, I went back to work at the PR firm and everyone really loved it. My co-workers kept commenting throughout the day saying I looked beautiful. It was a huge change. The next day, I used less makeup, but my eyeliner was the same -- I’ll never stop using eyeliner! But now I’m more aware of the products that I use too much of.”
WHAT WE DID:
The first thing that jumped out at Bobbi Brown Pro-Artist Tia Hebron when she laid eyes on Annie: her foundation. “It was three shades darker than her natural skin tone so I wanted to give her something that matched perfectly for a fresher look,” she says. Tia applied (1) tinted moisturizer all over Annie’s face and blended it with her fingers. Next she defined Annie’s brows with (2) brow powder -- she already had a great shape, she just needed subtle definition to make them standout without overpowering her whole look. Skipping mascara was out of the question for Annie, who complained that her eyes look really small when they’re naked. Tia made them look bigger with a lengthening and volumizing (3) mascara. "I only did two coats instead of the four or five it looked like she was wearing before,” says Tia. Next, she put (4) peachy-nude blush all over Annie’s cheeks (plus a little bit on her lids) to warm up her complexion. “Instead of applying powder, I used a foundation sponge to blend the blush down,” says Tia. A bit of moisturizing lip gloss in a natural shade pulled it all together. As for the hair, stylist Helena Moké decided to simply loosen up Annie’s curls. She had Annie flip her head upside down while she applied Oribe Volumista and then did a quick blowdry.
Tinted Moisturizer in Light Tint, $44; Light Brow Kit, $47; Extreme Party Mascara, $25; Lip Gloss in Nude Pink, $25; Blush in Nude Peach, $26 all by Bobbi Brown.
Annie pre-makeunder (left) and after her transformation (right).
So are you sold on this whole makeunder thing yet? Good, because we’re on the hunt for more women to get the makeunder treatment! To throw your name into the hat, just send your picture to makeunder@xojane.com. If we pick you, we’ll make you look and feel like a star. And if you know someone who you think could use a makeunder, send ‘em our way. We welcome your referrals. All candidates must be in New York or LA and be willing to try a drastically softer look for at least a few hours. Get in on this, people!
P.S. Still need convincing? Check out our last amazing makeunder.
Photos by Lauren Perlstein, Makeup by Tia Hebron; Hair by Helena Moké.
