Makeup Mondays--Creating Glamour with Pan-Cake Makeup

I think it’s fair time for another review here on Makeup Mondays, so today I’d like to talk about a very retro makeup—the cake foundation. We’ve all heard of Max Factor’s Pan-Cake Makeup, the very first of its kind and the first foundation to crossover from the film market into the real world.

It was created in 1937 as an answer to the problem the previously used makeups presented when color film came into play—though fine for black and white film, they were garish and harsh in Technicolor. In fact, these products took on whatever color the actor was wearing—green, red, blue—as the makeup reflected whatever was near it. Max Factor’s glorious invention, a dry cake applied with a moistened sponge—looked wonderful natural and realistic, both on screen and off, and was an instant hit. And so, despite a name that conjures up images of thickly applied, garish makeup (the name merely described the form the product came in—a cake in a pan), we had a foundation that provided a lovely, natural coverage, and was comfortable to wear to boot!
Sadly, Max Factor is no longer sold in the US; I had never really used their foundations, as I couldn’t find a color match, but several years ago I did test drive it for a short stint and found it to be a lovely product. Luckily, water-activated cake makeup is still made by a number of “pro” brands, including Ben Nye and Kryolan. Being that these products are designed for use by professionals, the color ranges for both are quite immense—truly, there will be a match for everyone in either line!

I use the first product, Ben Nye Color Cake, in the shade Bisque. Though appearing quite dark and yellow in the pan, when applied it is actually a soft cream shade (a cool, pink-based alternate shade would be Geisha). It provides wonderful coverage, is very long wearing, and dries to a smooth, matte finish—a very vintage look, in fact. I also find it to be a very comfortable product to wear, especially with oilier skin and on hot days—this is one product that doesn’t feel heavy and greasy (a horrid feeling, especially when you know your makeup is sliding off your face as you walk from your car to the office in the hot summer sun.) The color chart is reasonably straightforward as well—the skintone shades are arranged from lightest to darkest—though it is best if you can test this product out in person. Just remember that the shade will appear quite a bit darker in the pan than it will on your skin, so don’t go too light!


The second product in my kit is Kryolan’s Cake Make-up, a nearly identical product to Ben Nye’s. I find Kryolan’s offering to be a bit creamier and moister feeling on the skin (though again, it dries to a soft matte finish), and it also is fragranced with a very vintage, powdery scent. Though I find the fragrance to be very mild, more sensitive noses may not like it. Kryolan’s color chart leaves much to be desired as well; the numbered shades are not neatly ordered from light to dark, and it’s quite confusing to order this one online. My original choice was TV White—a perfect match for me in the TV Paintstick, but in the cake makeup the shade is exactly as the name describes: a bright, faintly pink-tinged white--not at all a natural skin tone! I then ordered the shade Natural 1, figuring it would be a yellow-toned soft beige. My guess was right on the money, though unfortunately it’s about a shade too dark for me. At any rate, it is possible to mix the shades to adjust the color (though of course, the process isn’t as convenient as it would be to mix to liquid products. Ah well, sometimes a little extra effort is worth it!)

Now, on to application: one applies cake makeup with a dampened sponge (a hydra sponge or sea sponge work well, though a foam foundation wedge or disk will do the trick too.) Simply moisten the sponge, squeeze out the excess liquid, and then swirl it in pan. Then, apply it to your face using a light stippling motion, following by buffing in the foundation with a dry sponge. This gives the skin a lovely airbrushed quality; you can also finish with a very light dusting of loose powder to further set the makeup.

Well, there you have it—a very thorough review on cake makeup! Both the Ben Nye and Kryolan makeups are under $10, and a pan will last approximately forever, so both are an excellent investment if you can find a color match and master application!

xoxo,
Amanda Lee

Tuesday Review—Kryolan Dual Finish Powder and Bobbi Brown Red Lipstick

Hedy Lamarr with makeup artist Ted Larsen
Over the past couple of months I’ve tried out several new makeup items (My name is Amanda, and I’m a makeupaholic lol). I’ve come across a couple of standout products that I think are definitely worth checking out, and so I decided to review them here for you!

The first is a powder foundation by Kryolan. I’m definitely a big fan of this German brand, which was started in the 1940s, and I include several Kryolan products in my makeup bag. Their TV Paint Stick foundation is one stellar product that I use almost daily, and as I love the color match, coverage, and finish so much, I thought I would look into their powder foundation as well. I’m very glad I did, as the Dual Finish delivers the same as the TV Paint Stick—excellent coverage, a gorgeous matte finish, and a lovely color match.

The range of colors isn’t as broad as in some of their cream foundation options, but I selected the shade Alabaster, which turned out to be a pale beige that complemented my very fair, neutral skin tone quite nicely. It’s a tad darker in the pan than the TV White I wear in the stick foundation, so I was a bit disappointed when I first opened the package, but it somehow blends seamlessly into my skin—it’s not too dark, and it doesn’t turn the dreaded orange that so many other foundations do. I apply it a couple of ways—I sometimes use it as a setting powder with a bit of extra coverage over the TV Paintstick, and I also wear it alone. It can be applied wet or dry—applying with a damp sponge gives it a bit more coverage than applying it with a dry sponge or kabuki brush. Both methods are fast, easy, and pretty goof proof. Regardless of the application method, I find it maintains a satiny matte finish all day long, with minimal oil breakthrough (I have combination skin that can sometimes be rather oily). I also find that it lasts very well under summer conditions too—we all know how horrid it is when the heat and humidity cause your foundation to slide around your face, and this foundation holds strong under the worst weather conditions!

So, if you are looking for a new foundation to try, I highly recommend this one!



I'm wearing both the Kryolan Dual Finish and Bobbi Brown Red lipstick here
The next product I’d like to review is Bobbi Brown Red lipstick. Now, I am a pretty big fan of Lip Ink’s long wearing lipstick, and generally reach for it every day. But sometimes I dabble in ‘traditional’ lipsticks, and as I am obsessed with red shades, I like to try out new ones from time to time. I’d heard that Bobbi Brown makes a nice cream lipstick, and the Red shade is described as a “fire engine red” shade on the Web site. I decided it would be worth trying out when I found an inexpensively priced tube on eBay. Initially, I wasn’t so sure about this lipstick—I like my red lipstick to be shockingly bright, and when I first tried this one out it seemed a little too muted for my taste. I decided to try wearing it over a basecoat of Lip Ink Red (Lip Ink also works very well under regular lipsticks, as it grabs the color and makes it nice and long wearing) and ended up loving the look I achieved—a rich red shade with a beautiful satin finish. It photographs very well (I’m wearing it in my Jungle Girl set), and I find it to wear comfortably too—creamy without being smeary (I love lipsticks with a creamy finish, but hate it when they slide off your lips!)

Well, that's all for now! I do have a few other products to review, so I'll be posting those soon :-)

xoxo,

Amanda Lee

The Quest for Luscious Locks--Roux Porosity Control Corrector & Conditioner

For those of you struggling with dry, frizzy, or otherwise unmanageable locks, I may have found the answer! I’ve been using Roux’s Porosity Control Corrector & Conditioner for the past few weeks and it has transformed my hair , which had become very difficult to style of late (tending toward the dry and flyaway side, and just generally refusing to hold a set.) Since I’ve been using the Roux conditioner, my hair has been styling like a dream—soft and silky (but not slippery), and holding sets better than ever.

My hair is quite thick, but has only a slight wave, and I kick up my natural light ash blonde to a very light golden-toned shade. It’s always held a cold set pretty well, and due to the color process I have done (my stylist uses a high lift color) it’s quite healthy for color-treated hair. However, it suddenly began refusing to curl at all—cold sets and hot sets fell right out, no matter what styling products I used—and brushing it left me with a mess of flyaway frizz. After searching through the reviews at www.makeupalley.com, I decided to take a trip to Sally Beauty and pick up a bottle of Roux’s PC conditioner—and boy am I glad that I did! I shampoo my hair 2-3 times a week, and follow with a good-sized dollop of the Roux conditioner. I rinse this out after a minute or so, and then follow with my usual conditioner (Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose conditioner, which smells divine and is wonderful for dry and course hair types. My only complaint about the Roux conditioner is that it’s not the most pleasantly scented. ) I let my hair air dry as much as possible, then comb setting lotion through and set it on rollers. In the morning, I wake up to a head full of bouncy curls that fall right into place—even the first day after washing! (I don’t know about you, but my hair always looks its best on the second and third days following washing—usually on the first day it’s not as manageable and requires a hot roller touch up. Since I’ve been using this product this seems to be a thing of the past.)

Roux also recommends using this conditioner before you have your hair colored, as it fills in the porous sections of hair so that the color processes more evenly. I can’t say I’ve noticed a difference with my hair, but it definitely lives up to the other claims for me! Oh, and Roux has been around since 1932, so it has a fab vintage appeal as well :-)

I highly recommend this product—if you’ve been struggling with dryness, frizz, or if your hair no longer holds a curl, this is well worth trying out!

xoxo,
Amanda Lee