For me, a huge part of getting my make-up right is ensuring that I take care of my skin. Taking a few extra steps to pamper myself before bed can result in a much fresher canvas for make-up in the morning.

In keeping with our current I’mPerfection collection, here’s what I use on my skin so that my make-up can celebrate my features without covering them…

Cleanser

I like to double cleanse in the evenings, a tip I picked up from following Newby Hands – Beauty Director at Large for Harper’s Bazaar – on Twitter. Liz Earle’s Cleanse & Polish is divine and is gentle enough to remove eye make-up, too. The first cleanse will remove any traces of make-up, allowing the second cleanse to really penetrate the skin.

Using a muslin cloth (included) is fantastic for helping to remove your make-up and lightly exfoliate the skin, whereas a flannel (try Emma Hardie’s) may be best if you would prefer to buff and polish the skin.

Toner

Next comes toner. For me, toner is one of those things that I can take or leave. Benefits of using toner include that lovely fresh, cool feeling that comes from a toner and improved appearance of pores. My favourite is Guerlain’s Super-Aqua Lotion because it really hydrates and plumps my skin.

Serum

Serum is my favourite part of the skincare regime. It is a concentrated formula that sinks into the skin and works from the underneath. Of all the steps to take, this is the one that benefits my complexion most! After toner, apply your chosen serum, taking the time to massage and press it into the skin. You can find many serums that are specifically for the eyes – these are wonderful for helping to combat dark circles and puffiness which means less concealer the next morning. Everyday I use Clarins HydraQuench serum because I have quite dry skin, but I’ll also mix in a bit of L’Occitane’s Brightening Essence to generally give my skin an air of radiance.

Moisturiser

For that instantly soothing, hydrating boost, find a moisturiser that suits your skin type. Applied after serum, take the time to massage it into the skin. I normally use Caudalie’s face and eye creams and once a week I mix some of Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream into my moisturiser and leave it on as an overnight mask.

These are all habits and products that work for me but the key to great skin is finding what works for you! If you want your make-up to look beautiful, give it the chance to shine by taking pride in your skincare.

Until next time! Rose x

*Please note: all of the products listed are my personal favourites and are not in any way endorsed by Illamasqua.

Alex Box, our Creative Director, shared her thoughts and inspirations behind the collection. Have you seen the image of Frankie, the girl in the green gloss? Alex told us that pattern of the hair on her face was inspired by the shapes that are made my hair in the bath.

David Horne, our Manager of Product Development, was on hand to demonstrate our newest innovation – the Blush Up technique. Always one with words, he described our latest blush technique as “a push-up bra for your face”.

Rebecca Wilson and her assistant set up manicure stations to demonstrate our latest Nail Varnish releases. Rebecca’s nail clientele includes everyone from Rihanna to Rita Ora so we felt very lucky to have her! She showed us how to create an ombre effect with our speckled nails… more on those next week.

For I’mperfection, we didn’t want to create a polished campaign video. Instead, we invited our guests to view behind-the-scenes footage of the real faces behind the beauty. No airbrushing, no finishing touches, just beauty in it’s purest form.

We’ve just released I’mperfection… have you explored the collection yet?

www.illamasqua.com/imperfection

One of my favourite entries this week was from Abbey on Twitter @whateverabbey. Her manicure looks all the more pretty with those lovely tattoos! (Can you spot the Illamasqua logo?)

I found this gorgeous shot of Hemlock on retailtherapy.onsugar.com. Two coats of Hemlock have been layered over a white base to add intensity…

Zebra print got a colourful twist with this look from BostonMerlin10 on Instagram.

@AnDavies on Twitter was suited and booted with this cute little tuxedo manicure using Scorn!

Last but not least, @LaurenO_D tweeted this fantastic collage to showcase some of the fantastic Mani Monday offerings at our Glasgow counter! Pop down if you’d like to celebrate Mani Monday with an Illamasqua pampering.

Until next time! Rose x

P.S My manicure is beautiful this week, but I can’t share it with you because it’s from the new collection! Stay tuned and on Thursday I will be able to show it to you… are you excited?

The products used to make the creation were:

Rich liquid foundation: 100

The yellow was with Hype Eyeshadow, buffed in with a Highlighter Brush

The coral created with Excite Powder Blusher

The pink with Tweak Powder Blusher

The black with Obsidian Eyeshadow

The pink with Chased Powder Blusher

Nail Varnish in Nomad

Here are a few of the images from the event:

Naomi house is a children hospice, “The charity provides care to families  and young adults living in communities across the seven counties of Berkshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Surrey, West Sussex and Wiltshire.”

The Fashion Show, based subtly around a ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ theme, followed on from The Fashion Interchange, a conference designed to educate local businesses and students about the future of e-commerce and visual merchandising. With the help of generous sponsorship from many local companies and the support of local retailers Juliette’s Thread, Devernois, Foxy Lady and Dune who kindly lent out their garments, Illamasqua who donated the Skin Base Foundation Range for the models looks on the catwalk, 5th Avenue Events were able to put on a series of fantastic events and raise over £1000 for Naomi House.

Here are a few of the images from the show…..

 Well done to Lindsey!!

We were inundated with amazing avant garde creations and the decision by our Head Office team joined by Director of Product Development, David Horne, was a very difficult one. Having received such stunning facechart art, we had to reveal and share them with you…

Blanka Bare

Jack Tyson

Qamar Zaman

Samuel Froggart

Sarah Reddin

Stay tuned to Socialise and our facebook and twitter pages for more competitions like this very soon!

Here’s a few pictures from the masterclasses …

Sheffield College

Wakefield College

On the 13th and 14th of April The Illamasqua Liverpool store greeted guests booked in for make-up transformations.

 Mika (one of Illamasqua’s Art Team) and the Liverpool store  make-up artists created amazing looks for the ladies heading of the the races for the day.

Here are a few of the pictures:

Ross Andrewartha (National Trainer) says “I loved being on tour and getting the chance to see how SS12 Human Fundamentalism was being created in each city! This collection really let our retail artist’s inject the creativity back into the brand. Masterclasses went down a treat where customers where given the opportunity to see us at work creating are immense tribal looks.”

Here’s what went on:

Selfridges Oxford Street

Mika: “One word: Apocalips! London certainly isn’t shy when it comes to self-expression and we had all ages trying on our amazing new teal lip colour. I was even surprised! Just shows how wearable the shade is and that the desire to express is universal.”

Ross: “The Fundamental Palette proved to be very popular the week of launch! We created theatre by demo-ing our Human Fundamentalism looks on models … the looks we created really captivated our audience – the impact it had on the crowd was amazing!!!

Flagship Store Beak Street London

Mika: “Some customers at Illamasqua are just BORN to wear certain pieces. This is the beautiful Katie, as soon as I saw her amazing orange hair I wanted to put teal lipstick in Apocalips on her. How good does it look?!  She also wears Skin Base No 2, Powder Blusher in Katie, and her brows are Medium Pencil in Thrash applied with an Eyebrow Brush .”

Leena: “Mika and Myself took over the streets- literally, stopping people outside getting there attention and bringing them into the shop for some Human Fundamentalism fun, live demos performed at the door, which had everyone stopping in there tracks!”

Ross: “Wow what an event for the launch party!!! Great Atmosphere, great Dancers, great night. Charlotte and I demo’d our version of tribal make-up!”

Selfridges Manchester Trafford

Leena: “Human Fundamental Masterclass went down a storm, everyone loving the Arabic eye tutorial, people of Manchester are loving Skin Base AU, Powder Eye Shadow in Vernau and the Neutral Palette.”

 Mika: “Leena held a workshop in the afternoon which wowed our shoppers, who were then let free to explore the new collection. Scribe Precision Ink was the must-have after we demonstrated how easily it can update your make-up wardrobe!”

 Selfridges Birmingham Bullring

Leena: “We rocked Birmingham with Lungile and the team, with the cupcakes and 90′s party on counter, we had people rocking Apocalips and raving on the counter! We took over Selfridges.”

Mika: “The sun was shining in Birmingham and the desire for bright colours was upped. Nail Varnishes in Stance and Nomad were popular as they give a flash of personality and summertime vibrancy. We always saw Powder Eye shadow in Vernau flying as it’s the perfect contour shade and toffee eye shadow…”

 Selfridges Manchester Exchange

Ross: “Leena and I hosted a Masterclass in Selfridges Exchange, it went really well and we had great crowd turn up, I spoke through the whole Masterclass and Leena created a technical look using the new collection, this gave us the opportunity to answer as many questions as possible and really get the crowd involved.” 

Leena: “The human fundamentalism masterclass on counter with students/bloggers and make-up fans alike were loving the Fundamental palette, and the new Skin Base 01 with Skin Base AU for ultra contouring.”

Debenhams Cardiff

Mika: “Had a fabulous Human Fundamentalism workshop in the evening recreating the Arabic themed make-up. Customers were loving seeing the pieces demo’s and trying things they wouldn’t usually go for – Scribe Precision Ink being a favourite!”

Charlotte: “A Human Fundamentalism Masterclass was held in Cardiff with Mika showcasing favorite looks from the collection and Charlotte later carrying out Human Fundamentalism inspired transformations on counter. The Palettes were favourites amongst the women in Cardiff and Vernau Powder Eye Shadow making smoky eyes easier and making contouring softer yet more defined. Skin Base AU was our MUST HAVE piece in Cardiff for contouring, warming complexions and highlighting darker skin tones we absolutely love it! Definitely a must have for this summer.”

Leeds stand-alone store 

Leena “The Masterclass was extra glamorous and full of make-up addicts – myself and Ross performed make-up theatre on two different models to show versatility of products which we had rave reviews about! Everyone was loving Scribe and our new eye shadows.”

 Ross: “Leena and I both hosted a Masterclass and we had a great turn out – a lot of make-up artists especially wanting to see our new collection and what it could do.”

 Debenhams Belfast

Mika: “The girls in Belfast love a bit of glamour, Skin Base AU was an instant hit – versatile enough to be used on face, lips and body! After showing how easily you can get a soft tan effect by mixing with moisturiser this product was flying!”

Fenwicks Newcastle

Charlotte: “Newcastle saw me create a gorgeous glamour look using our new Human Fundamentalism collection. The Neutral Palette was showcased by creating a number of different looks using the new palette. Charlotte showed how easy it is  to turn an elegant day time look into a daring night time look quickly and effectively with this gorgeous palette. Powder Eye Shadow in Obsidian wowed everyone with its density of colour, great for lining the eye with sealing gel and adding instant impact to a night time eye. Skin Base AU was again an absolute must have for adding glitz to the face and body… it lights up tans and sculpts faces, gorgeous for this summer.”

Debenhams Glasgow

Charlotte: “Me and Ross held two Masterclasses over two days at Illamasqua Glasgow. The first Masterclass showcased the new Human Fundamentalism collection. The colour workshop showed people how to use colour in alternative ways. The second Masterclass was held for a group of students from Glasgow. The creative workshop with Ross as a model showed the students how diverse Illamasqua’s pieces are and how you can use pieces in a multitude of ways both on the face and body.

 The girls went crazy for Skin Base number 1 and Lipstick in Apocalips for their kits and were sellouts! Precision Ink in Scribe, Skin Base AU and Powder Eye Shadow in Vernau were firm favourites amongst everyone for their diversity and colour.”

Liverpool stand-alone store

Leena: “The store looks incredible!! Lots and lots of appointments that were focused on Human Fundamentalism. Precision Ink in Scribe went down a treat with the glamorous lovelies of Liverpool!”

Meadowhall

Leena: “Sheffield fans are loving the Neutral Palette, Skin Base in AU and Precision Ink in Scribe – we also had a record day on Saturday for the closing of the tour! We had the people of Sheffield going Human Fundamentalism crazy!”

Please post any pictures and/or comments you have about the HF tour on our facebook page!