Aesthetic Elevation

Want to see Janice’s work? Look no further than yours truly. Go ahead, admit it. I look good!

Greetings!! RiaRob here. Always looking to rise above! This next session of The Sit Down is exciting because this is someone I trust completely with my face. The picture you see above is me (in all my laid-back fabulousness) made possible by Janice Tunnell, one half of Illusions Cosmetics. I received so many compliments on this picture that it has basically become a signature of sorts. So I am pleased to present to the Elevation Nation, makeup artist and beauty connoisseur, Janice Tunnell.

I had to ask Janice about:

Introducing Illusions Cosmetics to the masses…
Illusions Cosmetics initially started late 1998. Started with a few lip glosses, just seeing how it would work out. I was working full-time as a tax accountant for Citigroup so I was basically selling lip glosses around the office. People started liking it so I started thinking about how I move this opportunity forward. In the meantime, I started doing makeup which in the beginning I did not consider a career. But I wrote a business plan for an accessories boutique that was going to sell makeup. In order to do makeup services in Maryland at that time, you had to have a makeup artist license, so that’s how I got started. While I was working as a makeup artist, I started to see that there were not a lot of options for women of color. African-American women, Asian women, Hispanic women, we all face certain issues that Caucasian women really don’t have when it comes to colors. Since was already experimenting with the glosses, I figured why not expand this into a full line. My twin sister Denise, who lives in Atlanta, is also a makeup artist and joined forces with me. In 2006, that’s how long it took in order to get everything completed, we relaunched as a full line of cosmetics. We now offer foundations, powders, blushes, and eye shadows. You name it, we pretty much carry it.

Check out these awesome shades!

But it took that extensive amount of time in order to do the proper research, proper promotions, get the financing, etc.  It is a line of color cosmetics for women of color. We are saying that Illusions Cosmetics is the best line but we pride ourselves in giving women of color additional options. My sister and I are not the types to force products to women. We will sit down with women and look at what they are currently using. From there, we can determine what items work for them and what items they have in their beauty arsenal that are not best for them. If you buy from our line, that’s great. But if not, at least we were still able to assist women in what works for them so they do not leave the house looking crazy. Denise and I both worked a freelance makeup artists and we were never really comfortable with pushing product on women. Makeup lines were and still are about selling cosmetics. So all you would hear is “sell, sell, sell!” There were times when I actually would send women to the other makeup lines outside of the one I was freelancing for because although I was working for that line, my goal was and still is to teach women about what looks best on them. We look forward to teaching women about Illusions Cosmetics and what it can offer them.

Celebrity vs. non-celebrity clients…
Besides the obvious, there is not really a big difference. In my approach with women, a face is a face. Celebrities have the same makeup and skin issues as regular women. With a celebrity client, some of them have an idea about makeup while others may not have a clue. Some celebrities sit in the chair and are particular about what they want. They observe what makeup artists do, they pay attention so when they sit in an artist’s chair for the first time, they want what they want. Being exposed to various makeup artists, there may be a situation where there may be a bit of back and forth while others just want the artist to make them pretty. On the other side of that I did makeup for a wedding party recently and there was one lady who explained how she took lipstick to do her lips, eyes, and cheeks. As I began to do her makeup, figuring she would not know what I was doing, she let me know that she liked the way I did her eyes and requested more shadow. I’m thinking to myself, “How in the world could she achieve that with just lipstick?” People are fascinated with what I do, but I quickly remind them that it is a job. The glitz and glamour wears out fast.

The most consistent makeup mistake(s)…
There are actually two. I would say the most consistent makeup mistake across the board is choosing the wrong foundation colors. For the everyday client, they fall into this category because if they go to a mass retailer like a CVS or Walmart and they are assuming that the color will work although they are not able to test it because it is packaged. They go home and then realize that it does not match. For those who shop at a specific line via a department store, i.e., Nordstrom or Macy’s, they are taking the advice of the makeup artist behind the counter. That person may not be as skilled as you think they are. The foundation that really suits you may be out of stock or discontinued, yet the makeup artist is still trying to make a sale. The lighting in most department stores is not suitable for testing.

Second, many women have the bad habit of opting for heavy liners, especially around the eyes. For women who are already dark in the eye area, may not take proper precautions to conceal the under eye areas or are not doing it properly and it actually accentuates the darkness in the eye area even more. For celebrities, they usually go out with a full face of makeup as to not get caught by the paparazzi. At times, they may try to emulate what a makeup artist has done. They may often skip steps or not do it properly and of course, they may not realize it until they see it in a picture.

The State of Maryland repealing the makeup artist license…
When I first heard of it, I thought, “Oh no, you can’t do this.” It makes me think back to the beginning when I wanted to sell makeup in the boutique, I was notified that I had to have a makeup artist license. I kept putting off the classes thinking that I would never have a career solely in makeup. After a while I decided to take the class so I would not have to take it later at a more expensive rate. Believe me when I say that taking the class was one of the best things I could have done for my career. There are things that are taught in these classes that the self-taught makeup artist is not going to get. The most important is sanitation. Not to say that self-taught makeup artists are not clean and neat, but they are not taught that. Second, I was taught by a licensed professional. Obtaining training from an educated professional not only meant learning how to put on makeup but she was able to share stories about her experiences, which prepared me for handling possible situations when I started working professionally. I can only speak for myself, being a makeup artist is more about business, working with other people and most important, having a great personality. Many times, your personality gets you in the door. Your talent will keep you there once you are in the door.  A good personality will take you really far because at the end of the day people like professionals who are easy to work with. Over the years, I have seen the difference between someone who is licensed and someone who works in a state where a license is not required. You can see it in sanitation and the work ethic. The license makes you a better makeup artist. I could only imagine what women think about when they go to the makeup counter. Do they know that the person that is about to touch their face is most likely not licensed?

RiaRob Sidebar: Very scary indeed! Ugghhh!!!

That said, we wrap up another session of The Sit down and thus our favorite part, the Vitals! Here’s the rundown:

Check out the Illusions Cosmetics web site at www.illusionsbeauty.com
Check out the official Illusions Cosmetics blog at www.illusionsbeauty2.blogspot.com

Every Thursday at 9:00 p.m. (EST) Janice and Denise teach and enlighten on Beauty Talk: www.blogtalkradio.com/illusions-cosmetics

Janice Tunnell - Makeup Artist

Follow Janice on Facebook by clicking here.

Follow Janice on Twitter by clicking here.

The Illusions Beauty Tour  launched earlier this month in North Carolina. Baltimore is scheduled for the tour. The date for this tour stop is pending.

Janice and Denise Tunnell

For the remainder of October and November, Janice and her business partner/fellow makeup artist/twin sister Denise will be on location working as Key Makeup for a new motion picture. NOTE: RiaRob knows what it is and my lips are sealed!

On December 12, 2009, Janice and Denise will be part of a panel with celebrity stylist June Ambrose and designer Tina Knowles at the Mid South Women’s Conference in Memphis. They will also serve as Key Makeup for Tina Knowles’ fashion show which is part of the event.

December 13, 2009 – The Illusions Beauty Tour resumes in Memphis, TN

Also gear up and prepare for new lip colors that are scheduled for release in Early 2010. But until then, here are some that are currently available:

Lustre Lip Glosses

Two awesome series of Lustre Lip Gloss: Cinematic Faves, named after favorite movies such as Mahogany, Dreamgirl, and Sparkle; and Young Hollywood, named after young actresses Janice had the pleasure of working with such as Megan (Goode), Drew (Sidora), Malaika and Khadijah (Hajj) and Khloe (Kardashian). Click here to check them out.

That is it! Another Sit Down under the belt. Until the next one, rise above!!!