Shiseido Spring Collection - Part 2

Isn't she darling? This is Anne Houseman of BeautyXposé. I only wish I had taken a close-up, well-defined photo of her stunning eyes. Anne and I had the pleasure of a makeup session yesterday with the renowned Shiseido National Makeup Artist, Renato Almeida. This morning, I wrote about Renato and his favorite Shiseido products, Now, I'll tell you about the fabulous colors he used on us.

When Renato started Anne's look, he prepped her eyelids, lash to brow, with Concealer Stick #2 ($26.50), a cream concealer in a convenient stick form. Then, he set the concealer with Translucent Loose Powder ($35) to create a smooth surface on which to blend shadows. He started with Luminizing Satin Eye Color ($25) in BE202 (Caramel), just slightly darker than Anne's skin tone, to cover the lid and contour. Then, he built color by using the Luminizing Satin Eye Color in GD810 (Bullion), a copper-toned gold on the lid (shown at right) - basically everywhere except the inner corner above the crease. I'm also pretty sure he used a pop of pure gold, perhaps GD810, shown to the left just below, in the center of the lid for emphasis. Don't hold me to that.

He used the Accentuating Cream Eyeliner ($26) in black to line her lids - on top from under the lashes, and in a very thin line below her lower lashes to accent her eyes. Renato said that he uses eyeliner below the lash line for some women; it depends on the shape of their eyes and whether they can pull it off. He might use a shadow under the eyes for women whose eyes might be closed in by liner.

Step by step, he was carefully sculpting her eyes. Next came the eyelash curler, which really turned up Anne's lashes and prepared them for the Mascara Base ($23), one of Renato's favorite products. He combed the lashes with a lash brush and then coated her lashes - top to bottom and from both sides - with Lasting Lift Mascara ($23) in black. He also used the Natural Eyebrow Pencil ($20) in BR603 (Light Brown) to darken her eyebrows just a tiny bit.

When it was time for the rest of Anne's face, Renato used just a little Pureness Matifying Moisturizer Oil Free ($35) under her eyes, and on her cheeks and forehead, patting it in to create a canvas ready for foundation. He toyed with two shades of foundation and selected Dual Balancing Foundation ($38.50) in I40. This award-winning foundation provides long-lasting, oil-free coverage that responds to the skin's specific needs, increasing moisture in dry areas and minimizing shine for a soft matte look. It's filled with good stuff for your skin, including hyaluronic acid. He then added just a little more of the #2 Concealer Stick under her eyes.

For her blush, Renato selected Luminizing Satin Face Color ($30) from the spring collection in RD103 (Petal), a shade I thought was gorgeous. I'd buy that! He applied it to the apples of her cheeks and then blended it out so that it looked like her own color. The blush was a pretty, warm pink. I loved it. The blush comes in four new shades. It's shown here in RD401 (Orchid).

For lips, Renato likes to use a lip liner over most of the lip to prepare the lips for the color he selects and to ensure that the lip color stays perfectly in place. On Anne, he used the Smoothing Lip Pencil ($20) in BE701 (Hazel) and then filled in her lips with Perfect Rouge ($25) in BE208 (Baby) lipstick and the new Luminizing Lip Gloss ($22) in BR302 (Brown Sugar). Anne said the gloss felt great - not at all sticky. Just moist and nice. Voila! She was ready for a party!

Renato used a lighter hand on me, with my fair skin and light hair. I'm sure he intuitively knew when he saw the makeup I was wearing that I'm a drama-free zone. What fascinated me is that after he prepared my lids with Translucent Loose Powder ($35), he used the same Luminizing Satin Eye Color ($25) in GD810 (Bullion) that he had used on Anne. This shade was absolutely perfect for both of us. Warm, trendy, and with sheer buildable color, this shadow can take you from day to night. I adore it!

He spent a lot of time on my eyes, just as he had done with Anne, applying, blending, and checking. I also got stunning lashes, courtesy of Mascara Base and Lasting Lift Mascara in Black (applied from the top and bottom). He lined my eyes with a soft brown Natural Eyeliner Pencil ($20). It was a good choice.

For blush, Renato applied Accentuating Color Stick ($33) in S1 (Bronze Flush) shown here. This multifunction color for face, lips, eyes, and body will be with me all summer, warming up my very pale skin and adding a lustrous finish to my cheeks. I had played with every shade of the color stick before we started, so I was delighted that he used it on me with absolutely no prompting. I purchased the one he selected!

Renato also lined my lips with the Smoothing Lip Pencil ($20) in BE701, the same natural shade he used on Anne, and then he applied the totally exquisite new Perfect Rouge Tender Sheer ($25) in RD629 (Rouge Parfait). More casual than a lipstick and more formal than a gloss, Perfect Rouge Tender Sheer provides the perfect pop of color. Check it out here on my arm. There was no gloss for me - I was complete!

We were happy girls when we left! Both of us arrived feeling a little puffy - Anne from allergies and me from Prednisone. Anne headed off to eat with her husband, and, still in gimp mode, I went home to rest. Too bad I didn't have anywhere to go to show off my look! I can recreate it, though. I paid very close attention!

The Shiseido colors Renato used had very reasonable price points for an upscale line. I bought four items, and my bill came to about $100. With some luxury lines, I would have had to spend twice that. So, I'll be visiting my Shiseido counter many times again.

Just want to close with a special thanks to Renato and the fabulous Shiseido rep, the beautiful Melissa Shaw. Melissa stayed with us the whole time charting our looks and answering questions - even fetching items we needed, such as the heavy-duty eye cream Renato used under my eyes. We were in great hands!

Luminious Satin Face Color photo courtesy of Shiseido
Hopefully, Anne got a better photo of her finished look than I did!