Silicone based VS Water based airbrush makeup: which is better?

Silicone based or water based? This is one of the most pressing questions facing anyone approaching airbrush makeup for the first time. Let me just start by saying that I am glad that I writing this post now, three years into my airbrush experience. Had I not waited, I might have ended up like many other bloggers, fuelling a controversy that like most such squabbles is based on a lot of misunderstanding, and even bigger lot of rushed assumptions. Thankfully, after three years since my "radical conversion" to airbrushing, and after a whole lot of experimenting, researching and polling among my students, I am confident stating the following: you can achieve extraordinary results with both kinds of product. They both have significant unique strengths, and they both have some limitations. Your perception of either will depend on a few factors, mainly what brand you use, how much experience you have and what kind of training you received. That said, there will always be a blogger, a makeup artist and of course many a manufacturer ready to swear on the superiority of one over the other, and so the only thing we can do is state some objective facts.

CONSISTENCY

FACT: Silicone based products are more viscous (i.e. thicker) than water based ones. 

WHAT THIS MEANS: Silicone based products require higher pressure (5-15 PSI) to be atomized efficiently. By efficiently I mean producing a very fine mist that will not cake on fine wrinkles and large pores. Imperfections will be highlighted rather than concealed if the application is not correct. When applied correctly silicone will be undetectable on the skin, producing a truly flawless finish. This takes practice. For the same reason they are best applied with a larger nozzle (ideally .3 to .4), and you will need a slightly larger quantity of product to cover the same area. In short: working with silicone implies a higher learning curve.

Water based products work at lower pressures (2-12 PSI). Generally the application is sheerer, so spot concealing and the use of creme correctors is somewhat more frequent. Learning how to do a viable application can therefore be a faster process.

RESIDUE

FACT: Water based products are easier to clean from your airbrush.

WHAT THIS MEANS: No complete cleanup or dis assembly is required with either type of makeup when you are simply changing colours  (a false myth that is amazingly still being kept alive by some teachers). However, silicone requires a specific cleaner and a very thorough check up at the end of each session. Pros will need a complete dis assembly and clean regardless of the type of product used, but water based are far more soluble and therefore faster to deal with.

DURABILITY

FACT: Silicone based products are highly water resistant, water based products are not.

WHAT THIS MEANS: Silicone based products will not be impacted by water. Not even a large quantity. We demonstrate this in our classes very empirically (and somewhat comically) by pouring  a half a cup of water on a silicone made up student's face: no change. Of course this does not mean "completely friction resistant", which no makeup is. Water based products may streak if they come in contact with large amounts of water, however this does NOT mean that the makeup is ruined, at least not with most pro brands, because the streaks will disappear as soon as the water dries, and the makeup will look perfect again.

FLEXIBILITY

FACT: Silicone foundations are generally more "movable" than water based products.

WHAT THIS MEANS: Once the makeup is applied, a foundation can be still moved on the skin and re blended after a few minutes, if necessary. This makes silicone more similar to traditional makeup. Most water based products will dry almost on contact, however some brands still allow for some movement. Of course in both cases the real question should be why move it at all, thus compromising the airbrushed finish, which is what you should be after in the first place.

HEALTH CONCERNS

FACT: Silicone is a very big molecule. 

WHAT THIS MEANS: Silicone is not absorbed into the skin. It rests on top of it, sealing it from outside agents. This can also be read as "preventing it from breathing", but remember: the airbrush application allows for gaps between atomized particles, so a silicone airbrush application can still be "healthier" for your skin than coated traditional makeup. Regarding health issues with silicone in aerosol form, there is still no conclusive report that states categorically that it is safe to breath silicone particles. In fact, quite the opposite, as you can read on this report. However as far as makeup is concerned, the particles hopefully fall in the category of "too big to pass the nasopharyngeal region barrier" (meaning they will not reach your lungs), and then again exposure and quantities during makeup are extremely minimal. 

FACT: Water based products are generally less allergenic.

WHAT THIS MEANS: Although the ingredient list can vary significantly for each brand, it is a statistical truth that water based products are extremely well tolerated even by the most sensitive types of skin.

So, have you made up your mind yet? I hope not. I mean it. I hope you get to appreciate both, as I do. In our airbrush makeup courses, which are not "sponsored" by any particular brand, I like my students to experience both types of makeup. I actually have gone as far as devising a full makeup  comparison (including eyes) of the two by using silicone on one side of a student's face and water based on the other, of course choosing similar colours. Their preferences and comments have been very varied, but the comments I heard most often, and with no derogatory intent,  were that silicone looks like beautiful makeup, while water based looks like beautiful skin. There are perfectly good reasons why on different occasions you may want to achieve both the former and the latter.

Water Based Vs Silicone Based airbrush makeup: applied on our student Melania

A visit to the TEMPTU PRO Showroom New York: airbrush makeup heaven!

A doorway to Airbrush Heaven

You simply cannot talk about airbrush makeup without mentioning Temptu. This brand has been at the forefront of airbrush innovation since it created its first airbrushable colours for temporary tattoos in 1981. Today Temptu is simply the most recognized airbrush makeup brand worldwide, with a superstar silicone based line, an incredibly wide range of alcohol based colours for body art and special effects, and a water based line. Temptu also offers some of the best equipment in the market, which is constantly updated to offer the best and most cost effective options available.

Just over a week ago, during our visit to New York City, we went to visit Temptu East Coast headquarters, the show room at 26 W. 17th St.  in the Flat Iron district.

Welcome to Temptu

A wall of Temptu delights

The show room is located on the third floor of an elegant commercial building, so we knew not to expect a flashy store front, and yet as soon as the door opened, "airbrush makeup heaven" was the first definition that popped into our minds. Other airbrush companies we have visited (and we have visited a few) have retained a quaint, family business outlook. Not Temptu. Here everything is designed to match the image of the dynamic company to perfection: modern, spacious, streamlined and high-tech.We were welcomed by a lovely receptionist, and our attention bounced quickly from her smile to the wall of products displayed next to her. It was so great to see the complete line in one single place.  

The newest version of their 2.0 kit was displayed in a range of vibrant colours on a fixture on the opposite wall. This kit comes with the popular Pod system, or in the new "starter" version with the newly released SP-40 airbrush, which can also be attached to any pre exixting compressors in the line, creating what we have long considered to be the ideal kit combination.

Temptu new 2.0 kit in vibrant colour.

Senior marketing manager Hallie Feigenbaum came in shortly after and very kindly gave us tour of the premises. There are other meeting rooms in which special editions of the compressors are displayed for décor, and ample offices where the creative minds of the company are busy at work.

The Makeup Show was just a couple of days away so the team was busy organizing the many events related to this important trade show of which the brand was one of the main sponsors this year.  In spite of their busy schedule, the guys in the team were very nice to us, and we got to take a sneek peak into some new products that they are about to reveal to the press. We are sworn to secrecy as to what they are, but we can tell you that they will surprise you and that they are of exceptional quality. We thanked the guys and move to the training room,  fully equipped with professional lights, where lessons and seminars take place. This is another great feature at Temptu that should not be taken for granted: anyone who buys a kit from them can participate in a free introductory class that will show them how to use it.
 

The Training Room at Temptu

There is another Temptu showroom in Los Angeles, and perhaps we will be lucky enough to visit there also. For now, we couldn't have enjoyed our visit more, and we could not thank Hallie enough for making us feel so welcome. In the next few weeks we will publish much more on Temptu. An in depth review of their new starter system is in the works, and a video tutorial featuring their latest colour collection is also planned, so as always... stay tuned!

Some highligts from  Temtpu timeline (please visit this page for a complete timeline):

1981: Dr. Samuel Zuckerman invents the TEMPTU DURA formula and tattoo ink transfer system for the cult classic film, Tattoo.
1990: TEMPTU’s ink transfer system becomes the gold standard in Temporary Body Art, appearing on Johnny Depp in the John Waters classic Cry-Baby.
1996: TEMPTU launches professional airbrush formulas Aqua™ and DURA™.
2000: TEMPTU PRO DURA™, makeup transforms Rebecca Romijin into X-Men’s bodaciously blue-bodied Mystique.
2002: TEMPTU goes hi-def with their ground-breaking silicone S/B™ formula and its unparalleled flawless finish.
2003: Key Makeup Artist Bernadette Mazur uses TEMPTU to create Nicole Kidman’s porcelain look in The Stepford Wives.
2009: TEMPTU introduces the AIRbrush Makeup System with AIRpod Technology, created for easy, at-home use and quickly becomes the beauty breakthrough of the 21st century.
2011: Makeup artist, Will Lemon III and the TEMPTU artistry team turn Lady Gaga into the "living dead" for her Born This Way video.

The Patricia Fields Compressor Designs

More Collectible Designs

Temptu Mission Statement

Airbrush Makeup at The Makeup Show New York 2014

Makeup by Darren Borkel for Kett

I was still organizing notes from my 4 day long visit of Cosmoprof (Italy), when almost on a whim I decided to attend The Makeup Show in New York City, held at the Metropolitan Pavillion in the Flat Iron district of Manhattan last Saturday and Sunday. The Makeup Show is one of the most celebrated makeup events in the world, taking place also in Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Orlando and in Europe in 2015. This event may not be huge in terms of square footage if compared to other beauty trade shows, but it certainly packs an incredible amount of content, with multiple hands on workshops, business forums and seminars by some of the best contemporary artists covering the latest topics, a career orientation event and many other networking opportunities for both new and established Muas, not to mention the two floors where you can shop all the best brands at discounted prices.

Airbrush makeup was undoubtedly one of the brightest stars of this event, with Temptu being a Platinum Sponsor. 

Dani Fonseca for Temptu

The seminar schedule on the first day started with a very interesting class by multi talented Kaye Tuckerman of Inglot Cosmetics called "Traditional application Vs Airbrush", giving airbrush newbies some very useful tips and ideas, and encouraging them to add airbrushing to their set of skills. Later on Dani Fonseca for Temptu held another unmissable talk illustrating the potential of airbrushing beyond beauty makeup, on body painting, temporary tattoos and eve temporary body bronzing.

Other beautiful demonstrations where held nearby at the Kett extensive booth, where the new Fixx Creme Correctors were being presented, and where I had the great pleasure of meeting the brand founder Sheila McKenna (and I nearly imploded with pride when she told me she is a reader of this blog). We are very excited to be featuring Sheila in our upcoming Airbrush Guru Profiles series.

The Graftobian Kit

Just a few yards away from Kett I was finally able to meet in person with Eric Coffman and the team behind his legendary Graftobian brand, which will soon get an extensive review on these pages. 

Another brand also present on the first floor of the exhibition was elementwo, a new company based in Taiwan and Las Vegas whose product I look forward to trying.

On the second floor I was excited to meet the lovely team behind Belloccio, the established brand for consumers that we will review in detail on these pages soon, and then again downstairs I was able to say hi to the makers of the excellent Nurturing Force line, and to pick up another couple of products for a future review.

In hindsight there was so much going on at this event the I definitely should have planned to visit both days, but a least I don't have to wait a whole year before I visit the next one: after all, the other cities hosting the next editions are only a plane ride away...

Element Two

The First Floor at TMSNYC

TEMPTU PRO S/B 37 STARTER PACK: SWATCHES AND AIRBRUSH MAKEUP DEMO

Please scroll down for swatches photos

Last month we published an in-depth review on Temptu Pro's best introductotry package, the 37 S/B starter set, and now it's high time for some demos! The swatches were airbrushed on my own skin (fair, NC 20 in the Mac scale or 04 in the Tempty SB range), and photographed in natural light. 2-3 drops were used for each swatch, in order to give a better idea of the pigment. Of course they wouldn't normally be applied in such high concentration on such a small area All color groups in the 37 Starter Pack were swatched except for the base color Group.  As for the two sample eye makeups in the next photos, they were made using exclusively colors taken from the starter set, in order to show you how versatile these colors can be. Again the photos are 100% unretouched and taken in natural light. While I am waiting to shoot a proper video with a model, I used a Mehron practice head for practical reasons for the sample eyeshadow combination, and there is no pretense of anatomical precision or tonal subtlety here, but like I said, my first priority was to demonstrate the potential of the shades. .

EYESHADOW HOW TO: The equipment used to achieve these designs is esclusively Temptu, namely the 2.0 compressor (Starter System) with the SP-35 Temptu airbrush. I airbrushed the eyebrows first using a stencil and two base colors (n. 6 and n.12) to achieve a slight ombre effect, then I worked my way through the eyeshadow starting with the lightest colour and ending with the darkest. The colors blend instantly and beautifully. After I applied the eyeshadow I retouched the eyebrows somewhat to get rid of any overspray. I sprayed very lightly and I  let each color dry before applying the next. Setting powder can be used with care to speed the process, but I find it takes away from the beautiful glossy effect that is typical of silicone, so I prefer to dry by just spraying air with the airbrush. For the eyeshadow I kept the dial of the compressor at 12 o'clock (low setting), then moved it to 3 o'clock to apply the base and blush. I did not clean the airbrush at each color change, I just sprayed out each color and let the next color flush out the residue, spraying on a tissue until the new colour appeared pure. This wastes a bit of product but saves a lot of time.  With a little practice the process can be very fast. The second eyeshadow took less than 10 minutes to apply, drying time included. The makeup is beautifully waterproof, and if applied respecting the proper drying times, will last all day unchanged. Newbies to Temptu airbrush makeup maybe surprised at how different the colours look when actually sprayed. That is why I have used base colors for eyebrows, and adjusters, shimmers and colours from the HI DEF series for eyeshadows indifferently. Like we said in the review, everything mixes with everything else and the possiblilities are endless.

Well, this is just the tip of the iceberg of course. Please let us know if you would like to see more swatches, and have fun with your S/B colors!

 

Pls click on any picture to enlarge it.

Please refer to our in-depth review to identify each colour referenced here

 

How to save on Airbrush Makeup: discounts, coupons and seasonal specials.

In this post I would like to share some practical advice on how to save money on airbrush makeup. Whether you are a consumed professional or just a professional consumer, I hope you will find some of these tips useful as you prepare to invest in this wonderful, still relatively new makeup media.

Tip one: Brand Mailing lists

Subscribing to mailing lists can pay big!

It is always a good and inexpensive idea to subscribe to a brand's mailing list, and to their Facebook pages and Twitter accounts. Airbrush makeup companies are still struggling to establish themselves in the mainstream of makeup marketing, so they still use their mailing lists a lot to promote special deals for their subscribers. If there was a competition for who offers the best deals on their list, Luminess Air would certainly win the prize, with constant sales going on for their subscriber that will allow them to get truly remarkable discounts and often free shipping on top. They used to send $25 coupons to subscribers who had not bought with them for a while, but now they seem to have settled on general mega sales that will include  everything from equipment to full kits and from foundation to skincare. Runner up for deal frequency would have to be Dinair, although their special are more often than not geared at new customers who will get extra products for buying a full kit. Range wide sales are extremely rare (Black Friday being the exception), and equipment and skincare sales are practically non existent. On the more professional oriented sites, Temptu Pro has a newly restyled website, and a good few specials have been popping up of late, so this is certainly a list you will not want to miss, while Kett's specials are extremely rare.  

Tip Two (Pro Tip): Makeup Stores

This may seem counterintuitive, but some makeup stores do offer the best deals around, even beating the manufacturer's own prices. Take Camera Ready Cosmetics for example: they offer a low price guarantee on most of their products, they have a remarkable Pro Discount of 20%, their shipping charges are lower and their processing time faster than most of the manufacturers out there. They also have periodical specials that will allow you to save even more.  So once again, joining the mailing list of several online makeup stores could save you quite a bit of cash.

A recent special from CRCMakeup.com

Tip Three: Bloggers

Following bloggers on Youtube and other social media may still be very worthwhile, although blogger power has been waning more and more in the last year. New companies used to flood the most influential bloggers with free product in exchange for reviews, and the bloggers themselves would then turn these goodies into giveaway prizes, but this strategy seems to have been more or less abandoned right now. A notable exception is Belletto Studio: with special discount codes and coupons associated with popular bloggers, their followers could get remarkable saving on their steep list prices. For example just a few weeks ago fans of Xparkage could get one of their "Ultimate Skin Secrets Starter Kit" for a laughable $99 instead of the "regular" $430 price. 

Tip Four: Ebay

Of course there is always Ebay. Most of the times sellers are reliable and honest, however you should always keep in mind that even airbrush makeup has an expiry date, and that overstock sold by Ebay seller at discounted prices is often old batches that went into clearance. So be careful what you purchase, and don't hesitate to ask the seller for expiration dates or production dates. One way to see how old the product may be is to look at the pictures: do they show the latest graphics or packaging for the product, or are they showing old merchandise? All the major brands, from Temptu to OCC, to Dinair and Kett have updated their graphics and packaging in the last two years, and you can check their websites to see if what's being sold on ebay matches.

Tip Five (Pro Tip): Equipment Manifacturers

If you wish to save considerably on airbrush equipment, please consider this: most makeup brands do not manufacture their own equipment, but order it from a third party (a professional airbrush maker, regularly distributed by most traditional airbrush suppliers) who will impress the makeup brand logo on their equipment. I am not going to go into details here as I do not wish to make any enemies, but have a look around at the Sparmax SP-35 gun for example. Now do a quick search among makeup brands, and find out how much more it is going to cost you to have the exact same gun with their logo stamped on it where Sparmax's own would be. The same applies to a lot of compressors, although the main three or four makeup brands produce their own exclusively...

Sparmax SP-35 airbrush... where have I seen you before...

Airbrush Makeup: single action vs dual action -The truth at last!

Single action or double action gun for airbrush makeup?

This is one of the most basic questions facing those who approach airbrush makeup for the first time, especially professionals, and one of the most confusing. The reason for the confusion lies in a colossal misunderstanding of the terms themselves, which changed meaning as they started being used by the cosmetic industry. [If you just want the straight answer, please scroll to down to IN CONCLUSION, or keep reading for the whole mystery exposed!]

In "orthodox aerography", that is in traditional technical terms, a single action airbrush is one that dispenses colour by simply pushing down the trigger (or "lever"), hence the term "Single Action". The trigger does not slide back to release more colour, it can only be pushed down, and the colour and the air are dispensed at the same time much like a spray can would. You can already breathe a sigh of relief here, because NO AIRBRUSH COSMETIC COMPANY SELLS THESE. So you would have to go out of your way to find an airbrush like that to add to your kit.

To continue with traditional aerography, a double action airbrush is one where the trigger has to be pushed down to release air first, and then pulled back to release the colour gradually, the further back you pull, the more colour comes out. If you pull the trigger back without pushing down for air first you create a backwash and possibly splatter paint. This kind of airbrush is the most widely available for traditional airbrush painting.

When cosmetic companies started producing kits for commercial distribution, they looked to offer a simplified version of the double action airbrush described above. They wanted consumers to be able to regulate colour flow with the trigger, but they did not want to complicate their lives with having to push down the trigger for air first, and the problems that can arise if you don't. So they started producing (or commissioning their suppliers, in most cases) airbrushes in which air would flow unobstructed from the moment the compressor is turned on, called continuous airflow airbrushes, and where the trigger could be simply pulled back to release colour gradually. They then proceeded to rename this type of airgun "single action airbrush" in their marketing, creating the massive confusion reigning today. All the rants you find on websites like Model Mayhem or Beautylish against "single action airbrushes" are based on this misunderstanding, with a lot of gurus referring to the actual single action as described at the top of this post, rather than the "continuous airflow" conceived later.

Where airbrush beauty makeup is concerned, the only difference between single action (continuous airflow) and double action airbrush is that with a double action you have to push the trigger down to release the air before you pull it back to release the makeup. That's it. That's all. In short: a nuisance, considering that if you forget to do so you run into paint back flow problems, and that the stopping and starting of the air is harder on the small sized, maintenance free compressor that most kits come with.The sudden burst of air is also very annoying for the clients, who are inevitably startled by it and tend to jump back in the chair.

The most common objection that "with a double action airbrush you can feel where the makeup is going to be by releasing the air before dispensing the colour" is moot, because with a "continuous flow" airbrush you can do the same just by pointing the blessed thing before pulling back the trigger.

This is why even pro companies like TEMPTU PRO have now started offering single action (continuous airflow) guns in their professional kits, while KETT Always had the best of both worlds by selling a gun that they call Transformer, that can be switched to "single action" by simply substituting a small valve (included in the box).

IN CONCLUSION:

If you don't already own an airbrush, a continuous airflow "single action" airbrush is better, easier and more efficient for airbrush makeup in general. A double action requires more practice, although it could be better for body painting if you are looking for special spatter effect that can only be obtained by stopping and starting the air. If your area of interest is SFX rather than beauty makeup the whole thing changes of course, but we will discuss that aspect in a future post. [If you come from the top of this post having skipped the middle part and still have doubts, well... you just may have to read the whole thing after all...]

PRO TIP:  THIS FANTASTIC BLOG ARTICLE  will explain how to turn your double action airbrush into a "single action, continuous airflow" one with a few simple moves and at zero cost. We tested the method and it definitely works on all Sparmax airguns (Sparmax is the maker of the airguns  distributed by Kett, Temptu, Graftobian, Kryolan and Airbase among Others). Please use extreme caution and read the relevant disclaimers.

Kett's Transformer Airbrush

TemptuPro's "Single Action" SE50 Airbrush