Airbrush Makeup from Spain: Ten Image Kit Review and summer look Video Tutorial

Airbrush Makeup Ten Image

Ten Image is one of the most prestigious brands in the Spanish beauty industry. The brand was created by Cazcarra Image Group, an enterprise that was founded in 1985 by makeup artist Carmen Cazcarra and that soon became the most important beauty academy in the Country. The rapid growth of this business allowed it to invest in producing a complete range of makeup to cover every corner of the market, from trendy consumer oriented lines to the most demanding sectors such as speciall effects for theater and film. Of course airbrush makeup could not be missing from such an extensive catalogue of products. After seeing Ten Image products at several editions of Cosmoprof, I couldn't wait to have the opportunity to test the airbrush lines and the kit being offered by this company.

Compressor and Airbrush

Ten Image Airbrush Kit

I purchased my kit from a European distributor, and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the instruments and the wealth of extra items that are most welcome additions to it. The compressor included in the kit is the very reliable DAC 25 by Sparmax, which is also the choice of many among the best makeup brands. The machine is very small and very quiet, yet powerful with a maximum output of 30 PSI. It can be powered from the mains or from a rechargeable battery pack, which is included together with a very handy, small carrying bag that you can wear attached to your belt of with a soulder strap.  The bag provides space compartments for the compressor, the battery pack and an additional battery unit that you can purchase separately. You will be able to complete a full body makeup on one charge of the batteries, but you may need to include and extra one or simply to plug in the unit if you are going to work on multiple people or to execute more taxing tasks such as body art. The airbush included in the kit is the Sparmax SP 35, also a classic shared by the best brands for its reliability and its nozzle of 0.35 mm that allows you to apply any type of airbrush makeup. The airbrush comes with a classic double action valve, which was switched by us immediately for a more convenient continuous airflow one. The kit also features a connector with a pressure regulator. This is a very important feature overlooked by some other brands offering the same equipment. Given the compressor's output the ability to lower the pressure for more delicate areas and finer work (such as eyeshadow) is crucial.

Additional Items

Also by Sparmax is the cleaning station that comes with the kit, provided here with two extra filters and a very practical plastic container that allows you to pack the jar without having to empty it if you have to clear your station in a hurry. Other extra item featured it the bundle I purchased were a plexiglass palette, two foam applicators and most importantly a 500 ml bottle of alcohol based cleaning fluid.  The product is very effective, leaving the airbrush clean and releasing a pleasant scent that does not linger for too long. Also provided were two more makeup items for Ten Image that I very much appreciated: a peach tone corrector and more importantly a bottle of Tensum, a very good, silicone free primer with a soft focus effect that you can see in action in the video.

The Makeup

Aibrush Makeup by Ten Image

Ten Image features eleven recently reformulated foundation shades and thirty more matte and shimmer colors for any application. All the makeup is water based, and the colors come in a generous 30 ml format. The foundation colors are very easy to apply and very comfortable to wear. The offer great coverage and above average resistance to water. The hues are perfect for the Latin and mediterranean skin tones for which they were originally designed, but easily adjustable to match any other tonality. The other colors impress us for the richness of their pigments. Some of them, such as the beautiful turquoise AM-41, must be applied in extra thin layers to avoid excesses. The shimmer colors have a spectacular finish, and can of course be mixed with any other, creating endless possibilities ranging form the most natural bridal looks to the most daring body art. Scroll down to see a few swatches of the colors we used in our video tutorial As always you can click on the images to view them in full screen mode.

You can find the Ten Image products on the Spanish website of the company, or through their international distributors such as their Birtish branch. As this is a professional line you may have to register to view the prices. To request information from outside of Spain you can write an email to  international@cazcarra.com The very nice memebers of the  Ten Image team speak English and will be happy to help you.

 

Please check this newly released  video to see the step by step tutorial for the first look we created with these product. The makeup that I created with my collaborator Angela Rosa is directly inspired by the collection released by Ten Image for summer 2016 by the name of Mediterranean Soul, and by the colors chosen by their Creative Director Jordi Justribò.

Foundation Ingredients: Aqua, Talc, Propylene Glycol, Glycerin, Phenxyethanol, Caprylyl Flycol, Magnesium Aluminium, Silicate, Ethyliexigliceryn. Pigments.
Other Colors Ingredients: Water, Clacium Carbonate, Paraffin Wax, Petrolatum, Dextrin, Glycerine, Stearyl Alcohol, Acacia Senegal, Sodium Benzoate, Perfume, Pigments.

Fondos para aerògrafo de Ten Image by Cazcarra

Colores para aerògrafo de Ten Image by Cazcarra

Temptu Airpod and True Color Lipstick review and video tutorial!

Our latest visit to the Temptu Showroom in Los Angeles allowed us to add more products from the Temptu Airpod line to our collection, and once we were there we just couldn't resist stocking up on the brand new True Color lipsticks, which we had been lucky enough to preview on our trip to New York the year before. 

Flawless & Natural with Temptu AIRpod

The AIRpod technology was originally conceived by Temptu to provide consumers with an easier way to obtain the much sought after airbrush finish without any of the drawbacks that come from having to use an actual airbrush, and that require a minimal learning curve. In many ways the technique is nothing short of genius: each shade of makeup comes in an individual "capsule" called AIRpod that already contains its own propietary airbrushing mechanism. Each Pod can be slotted on a sleek looking AIRPod airbrush tool, and easily taken off when you are done with that color, with no need for cleaning or disassembling any parts. The system is powered by a very compact yet very powerful compressor delivering up to 30 PSI of pressure. After an initial distribution deal with Sephora that contributed to make Temptu a household name in the States, the system was improved, reconceived and repackaged with a more professional slant. The AIRpod airbrush in this new system called 2.0 looks even sleeker, and the compressor is quieter and has a higher initial setting, producing an overall more powerful feel. With a simple hose adaptor it can be used to power any other type of airbrush, offering pros an excellent replacement for heavier, more cumbersome models, as we already discussed in depth in a past article.

The obvious advantage of the AIRpod system is of course immediacy: with no need for cleaning, measuring or mixing, nothing can quite beat the speed with which you can achieve a flawless application with the AirPod.

Temptu AIRpods and lipsticks

The AIRpod makeup is still silicone based, but slightly different from Temtpu's own S/B line. While it also has 12 foundation shades, these do not correspond to the S/B line exactly, and are more on the neutral side to allow for easier color matching, which is needed as you cannot mix shades before spraying them. To make up for this limitation you can layer two different shades on top of each other: the slower setting time of the Pod formulation will allow the makeup to somewhat mix on the surface, but this will require good practice and great care during the application. A slower setting also means that the finish of the makeup will remain slightly tacky for a longer time, and that in most cases it will need to be set with translucent HD powder. Once set, the coverage and durability of the makeup remain top notch, as will the resistance to transfer. Finally, another characteristic that separates the AIRpod line from the S/B range is the scent, which in the Pod case is a floral perfume that will linger for a while after application. This is by far my least favorite aspect of the AIRpod makeup, but once I got used to it I have definitely grown to appreciate this amazing technology. With the speed and practicality it offers, it's no wonder it has become a favorite backstage at many fashion shows, including the prestigious New York Fashion Week. You can apply a full professional looking makeup literally in minutes thanks to this tool, and it is almost unbeatable for nude, flawless looks on younger skin, as you can see from our own video tutorial, which was edited very minimally and where a beautiful look is achieved incredibly fast.

Temtpu Color True Lipstick Vivid Collection

The soft, "nude" look I created with the AIRpod was also the perfect canvas to showcase the amazing lipsticks from the Color True line recently launched by Temptu. There are eight beautiful shades ranging from the most delicate natural tones (Blushed Suede) to the boldest ones (Jet Rouge) and the most colorful (Violet Storm). The lipsticks were recently divided in two groups and offered at a discounted price: The Vivid Lip Collection including the shades Imperial Red, Pink Hype, Violet Storm and Coral Blaze, and the Marsala Lip Collection including Rose Velveteen, Blushed Suede, Plush Plum and Jet Rouge. I asked my collaborator Angela Rosa to play with these beautiful colors, and she produced the three looks you see in the video, one from each group of shades, and a bold retro glamour look that uses colors from both groups. To finish this last look we also used Temptu's Color True Lip Gloss, which can also be used to turn any color from the S/B range in a fantastic, durable glossy lip stain.  Just like myself, Angela was immediately won over by the amazing pliability and pigmentation of these lipsticks, which also offer excellent durability, and which have already become another reason to absolutely love Temptu.

Temptu Color True Lipsticks

PRO TIP: As easy and practical as using AIRpods is, don't forget to follow the easy instructions for their maintenance. The Pods can become stuck if you don't use them for a while, but a few gentle moves will quickly have them running again. I recently restored a Pod to full functionality simply by placing a drop of Temptu S/B cleaner on the tip, then pulling the needle's piston inside the pod back and forth a few times. Also don't forget to line the Pod with the AIRpod airbrush properly: the capsule must "click" in before you can use it, if it doesn't the trigger will slack and no makeup will come out.

Kit Review: Divine Airbrush Makeup

100%  Divine Airbrush Makeup

Divine Airbrush Makeup is a family run company based in Boca Raton, Florida, and one of the newest airbrush makeup brands on the market. We always love discovering new airbrush makeup lines, and we were attracted by the elegant look that Divine has chosen for its operation, with a marketing style geared towards consumers with a taste for luxury. The makeup offered by Divine Airbrush is water based, proudly produced in the USA, cruelty free and FDA compliant. The line offers 12 foundation colors divided in four groups of three shades each. Each color is named with a letter indicating the shade group (Fair, Medium, Dark and Tan) and a number 1, 2 or 3 indicating the color intensity within that group. So for example the lightest color of all will be F1, while the darkest T3. There are also 13 colors divided in 10 matte and 3 shimmer shades to be used for eyeshadow, blush or contouring. Divine airbrush also offers its own airbrush makeup kit with variable speeds and a stated maximum pressure of 30 PSI. We used this very kit and all the products it came with to create the look you see in the video tutorial posted at the end of this article, and in the photos that accompany it.

Divine Airbrush Makeup Kit

100%  Divine Airbrush Makeup

The Kit comes in a nifty little box that efficiently contains all the equipment. The first thing you see when you open it is the box airbrush box, the underneath is the mini compressor, the rubber hose, the power unit and the airbrush holders, one for each side of the compressor so you can keep the airbrush where you find it most comfortable. There are some basic instructions with the unit but everything is very simple and intuitive. When you push the ON/MODE button, the compressor starts on its maximum pressure output, then you simply push the "Mode" side of the same button to decrease the pressure to your desired strength, which will be marked by the led indicators on top. The unit is very light and surprisingly very quiet, which makes it ideal for travelling. While I don't have the technical equipment to test this, the compressor strength does not quite seem to match the stated 30 PSI. I have other compressors that do and they seem quite a lot more powerful. This output seems closer to a maximum 15-20 PSI, which is still perfectly adequate to apply the Divine makeup and other water based brands of similar consistency, and makes the compressor more than viable for personal use. The same can be said for the airbrush, which is very easy to use and has a nozzle wide enough to make the application fast but still easy to control, and to make cleaning it a breeze. 

100%  Divine Airbrush Makeup

The Divine Airbrush foundation is of a light/medium viscosity, its consistency feels smooth and rich, comparable to that of leading brand Kett, and you could apply it with a sponge or brush and still get a great finish. It is very comfortable to wear, provides very good coverage and good staying power with no transfer and no sinking in fine lines even after many hours. It has a decidedly matte finish, but does not feel tight and looks quite natural. The shades are mostly on the neutral side, with subtle leanings towards warm or yellow tones. Neutrality means it will be easier for most skin types to find a good match, and very little mixing will be needed. Like we said at the beginning, the makeup is FDA approved and contains natural ingredients (Aloe, Chamomile, Cucumber). Another characteristic we appreciate is the total lack of fragrance, not even when first sprayed. [Please scroll down for Swatches]

The matte eye shadows are very pigmented and blend very well, making it easy to achieve great smokey looks even for less expert airbrushers.  The shimmer colors are much runnier and less dramatic, so you will need to apply them in thin layers and then dry each layer thoroughly to achieve a good finish that will last. A good thing about this type of shimmers is that you can mix them easily with the matte shades to make them sparkly without compromising their color in a noticeable way. 

We loved creating the look in our video tutorial, but we feel we just scratched the surface of the possibilities that these colors offer, and look forward to experimenting more. 

100%  Divine Airbrush Makeup

As for the makeup packaging, all the products come in very elegant looking, real glass bottles with golden plastic toppers that enclose a glass dropper.  This is in line with the overall luxurious image of this company, and it does allow for a totally mess free application, with no cap cleaning necessary at all. The downside of glass, however is of course its very breakable nature. While the bottles will arrive packaged very securely, but once they are on your table top you will have to be extremely careful not to drop them on the floor, or they will inevitably shatter. Because of the large opening required for the dropper, toppling an open bottle will also cause you to lose half its content in the blink of an eye which is of course very frustrating. 

We hope to see this friendly, elegant company flourish in the future and expand its product line even more.  As the brand becomes more well known for its quality we are sure that the price of its products will fall in line with the best of their competitors, and become appealing to an ever wider audience.

Divine Airbrush Makeup Fair and Medium Foundation Swatches

Swtches of some of Divine Airbrush eyeshadows

Swtches of some of Divine Airbrush eyeshadows

Mistair: Full Airbrush Makeup Bridal Video and in depth review

Bridal Airbrush Makeup with Mistair

We first got to know Mistair a couple of years ago at Cosmoprof in Italy, and we were impressed by the range of airbrush products offered by this pioneering British brand. From polymer based nail colours to an extensive self tanning line, and from amazingly pigmented body art palettes to hair highlights, you can satisfy almost any beauty need with this company's catalogue.

Bridal Airbrush Makeup with Mistair

As far as beauty makeup is concerned, Mistair offers a silicone based line with 14 foundation colours, 9 blushes, 8 highlighters and shimmers, 11 adjusters and correctors and 7 eyebrow shades. This is an excellent variety of colours which make Mistair comparable to any of the big US based companies, and a very valid contender in any pro kit. Directed exclusively at professionals, the silicone based beauty range features delicate and blendable colours that can be applied with very subtle and natural results, or built up to bolder shades thanks to the extensive range of colour correctors.  After experimenting with them for a while, I found these colours particularly ideal for bridal makeup, and I decided to use them to film the brand new tutorial posted below. I also thought of swatching the colours from the Blusher and Shimmer packs, hoping that they will give you an idea of what the colours look like when sprayed. Please notice: each swatch is made up of 3-4 drops of product airbrushed in very small patches, so keep in mind that the intensity of the colours is maxed out, at least in some cases. Please scroll to the bottom of this page to view pictures of the swatches. As always you can click on each photo to enlarge it. 

100% unretouched screen shot

The texture of these liquids is quite luxurious, and they are atomised well at a medium pressure of 6 to 12 PSI, as is to be expected of a silicone based product. I only encountered a problem with one shimmer colour (the otherwise delightful S03 Cornsilk) which would inevitably clog my airbrush, but perhaps I just got a quirky batch that I am sure would be swiftly replaced by Mistair's customer care. The liquids have a very pleasant and delicate scent that will dissolve almost immediately leaving no aftertaste whatsoever. They offer excellent coverage and very good wear, and they are of course water proof. One negative aspect that I found (and that is common to many other brands, unfortunately) is the effectiveness of the sampler size (starter kit) bottles, which could be greatly improved by making them more air tight, thus preventing the aqueous part of the solutions from evaporating after only a few months.            

100% unretouched screen shot

As for the equipment, Mistair has partnered with the best manufacturers of professional airbrushing equipment and is offering a very slick looking SL1000 airbrush that allows you to quickly switch nozzle and needles to obtain up to 3 different output sizes (.2, .4 and .6 mm) for different paint jobs. The "floating" nozzles of this airbrush are also easier to clean, as they are disassembled much more quickly than traditional airbrushes. 

100% unretouched screen shot

This double action airbrush  also features two easy to switch cups, allowing less refilling for bigger jobs. For beginners or budget minded customers, Mistair also offer the excellent MA 35 airbrush, which is the same great tool also offered by the best airbrushing brands under slightly different names. Mistair's original, proprietary website that was dedicated exclusively to the airbrushing line has been closed for the time being, but while we wait for its return we can browse all the products and prices on the website of Skin By Sterex, the larger beauty brand of which Mistair is a division. I look forward to meeting Mistair's great team at Cosmoprof 2015!

Mistair Blushers Airbrushed Swatches

Mistair Blushers Airbrushed Swatches

Mistair Shimmers Airbrushed Swatches

Mistair Shimmers Airbrushed Swatches

Video: Airbrush Makeup How to Eyeshadow with Luminess Air

Demonstrating 3 classic Luminess Air Eyeshadow Sets: Ore, Evening Sari and Smokey Eyes

Luminess "Ore" Duo- 100% unretouched Picture

Luminess Air is one of the most popular airbrush makeup brands aimed specifically at consumers. The brand offers a wide range of eyeshadow colors that are sometimes paired in sets of two or three. Luminess eye shadows have a very low viscosity which makes them easy to clean as they leave very little residue in your airgun, and which renders them very blendable and very sheer on application. Professional MUAs may find these very characteristics a bit limiting, but then again these products are directed at the average consumer, who will find them very easy to use.

Don't forget to check the special sales at www.luminessair.com. The company keeps renewing their specials and you can find some really good deals if you subscribe to their newsletter. If you are looking into buying a kit, definitely go for the 3 speed model, which will allow more versatility for jobs like eyeshadow.

Luminess "Evening Sari" Trio, 100% unrethouched picture

Luminess "Smokey Eyes" Duo, 100% unretouched picture

AIRBRUSH MAKEUP 101: Everything you need to know in just over 5 minutes!

LET'S START FROM THE VERY BEGINNING...

We are very happy to post a comprehensive, no bull, no time wasted video introduction to airbrush makeup in just over 5 minutes!

This perhaps should have been our very first post, but because of the amount of information to convey it took us a very long time to put it together. While it is intended for those who have heard little or nothing about airbrush makeup before, it may be interesting to check out and see if there are any gaps in our -or your, lol- basic knowledge of this ever growing technique.

When you learn a new way of doing things and you like it, often you tend to stick with what you've become used to and you're comfortable with. This is perfectly natural, however you may be missing out on a whole bunch of possibilities. A lot of people for example start with silicone based products and they don't know much about water based lines, or vice versa.

I started this blog with the ambition of finding out as much as possible about the whole spectrum of airbrush makeup possibilities. If you're reading this, I hope you'll come along for this long journey of discovery...

Airbrush Eyeshadow Makeup Tutorial: Kardashian Inspired Smokey Eyes & full HD makeup

New video tutorial with complete HD application!

We are very happy to bring you our second video tutorial. This is a complete look, from colour match to foundation and full eye makeup, vaguely inspired by Kim Kardashian because of the natural colours of our  model (our wonderful friend Chiara on her first "modeling shoot" ever!). The only steps missing from the video are gloss and mascara application, but then again those are not airbrushed so we thought we could leave them out. The makeup we are using for this video is once again our beloved DINAIR. We are not discussing technique this time, but we are leaving all technical aspects for our next two tutorials, which will focus exclusively on a general introduction to airbrush makeup and on application techniques specifically.

I personally hate long videos where the person doing the demonstration blabs on repeating "now you're gonna wanna do this" about seven million times. So we kept it short, clean and sweet. Like airbrush makeup itself, after all...

Cosmoprof 2013 video: Introducing Technoair

A high quality water base airbrush line from Spain

We are finally up and running with our second and last video report from Cosmoprof 2013!

TECHNOAIR is an airbrushing line created by airbrush painter Lluís Díaz, who illustrated the products with passion and knowledge for our camera.

All the makeup products shown are water based, and they include a vast array of colours ranging from foundation to blushes, shimmering (actually sparkling!) eye shadows, and body painting colours. Technoair also offers a full tanning line, and finally a beautiful range of polymer based colours for nails that allow the artist a unique array of effects. Lluís is first and foremost an artist, and he designed the whole line with special attention to the compatibility of the colours and to the technical equipment: Technoair features a wide range or airbrushes and compressors for any situation, from personal use right down to big Salon.

The brand is based in Spain, offering fellow EU residents a chance to purchase anything from the website without fearing Customs duties and delays. The WEBSITE itself is just in its initial stages, and at this time the products are marketed for the professional sector only, but in time I am confident that the focus will shift more towards the general consumer. In the meantime Lluís is constantly travelling internationally to teach the discipline and spread the word about the products.

As for us, we are of course planning a video tutorial with Tecnoair products and a full review, but in the meantime you can enjoy this clip. The video is subtitled in Italian as Lluís is building strong ties in this Country, and of course the main language is Spanish, so apologies to all you English speakers, eventually we will do a voice over of the audio, but in the meantime you can enjoy a sneak peak into this very interesting company. 

Cosmoprof 2013 video: Introducing MistAir

A dynamic brand with an impressive range of airbrush products!

The first video report from Cosmoprof 2013 is now live on our YouTube channel!

We were very excited to meet with MistAir, a UK based brand that produces what is possibly the widest range of airbrush products out of any company, with a silicone makeup line, an alcohol based body art line and a water based FX series, a water based Hair colour line, a selection of acrylic colours for nail art and a tanning line with four different strengths of tanning products.

MistAir is geared towards the professional market, but its products are available to anyone through their WEBSITE, so be sure to check it out.

I myself could not resist taking some stuff home with me, and I left the exhibition with a brand new airbrush (their very sturdy, slick and versatile SL 1000) , a sampler pack containing their whole base range, plus a few more colours, so you can expect a tutorial/review from me in the near future.

For now, it's off to lovely Shelley Brumpton (Sales and Marketing Manager), who was kind enough to show and explain the whole line to our camera. Enjoy, and please don't forget to rate, comment and share...