How to achieve a flawless face
February 7, 2007 | 12:00am
Ask any beauty expert and they will tell you that the real secret to outer beauty is great skin. Whether fair, medium or dark, great skin is smooth, dewy, plump and poreless, much like the skin of a young child.
No one knows this better than Laura Mercier, the French makeup artist who built her empire on achieving the look of flawless skin. Yup, that’s right. With her groundbreaking Flawless Face products, Mercier has made celebrities like Madonna, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington into perfect canvases for her iconic looks. (Who can forget Madonna as a geisha on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar? Mercier, now a close friend, has even named a lipstick after her.)
Laura’s Oil-Free Foundations and Tinted Moisturizers win "Best of Beauty" awards yearly and are Hall of Famers in In Style magazine. She can make any woman  even those with acne, scars and blemishes  look like she was born with great skin, even if she wasn’t.
In town recently to spread the gospel of Laura at Rustan’s Essenses was Gemma Chambers, Laura Mercier’s international makeup artist. Despite the veddy British-sounding name, Chambers is a full-blooded Pinay who’s been doing Filipino makeup artistry proud from her current home base of Indianapolis, Indiana.
"Great makeup is 50 percent product and 50 percent application," said Chambers, who’s been with the brand for seven out of its 10 years and is entrusted with its biggest US accounts. A self-taught artist whose forte is bridal makeup, the bubbly Chambers gave me a makeover to remember: Not only were her hands as nimble and painterly as La Mercier herself, she explained each product and showed me the proper tools and methods of application so I could replicate the stunning effects at home.
Based on Mercier’s own philosophy of honesty and integrity, Chambers  and LM’s makeup artist at Essenses Makati, Floey  is not one to push a product if you don’t need it. They only recommend what will make each client naturally beautiful.
tep 1: Foundation Primer – Many women are new to this step, but think of yourself as an artist prepping your canvas for an exquisite work of art. Filled with beneficial botanicals, Foundation Primer creates a perfectly even surface so that skin looks smooth and makeup lasts all day and won’t absorb into your skin. A best-seller, this now comes in three variants: classic, Oil-Free, and Hydrating, which Chambers used on my dry skin.
Step 2: Foundation – My holy-grail foundation is Mercier’s Oil-Free in Vanilla Beige, but since the weather was drying my skin out, Chambers mixed it with another star product, Tinted Moisturizer in Nude, which now comes in an oil-free version with SPF 20. Tip: "Never apply foundation with your fingers," said Chambers. "It will go on too thick and mask-like." Instead, dip a damp sponge into small amounts of foundation, and blend it in until it looks like part of your skin, not like foundation sitting on top of your complexion.
Step 3: Secret Camouflage – This is Angelina Jolie’s all-around beauty weapon, a compact containing two pans of concealer and camouflage that are highly pigmented and textured to completely hide under-eye circles, discolorations, blemishes, scars and tattoos. Tip: Dip your Secret Camo brush into each pan and mix together on the back of your hand to achieve the perfect shade before applying.
Step 4: Secret Brightening Powder – Though Chambers decided my dark circles weren’t bad enough to warrant Secret Concealer, she used this light-as-air powder with illuminators to set the foundation under my eyes, maximize wear and add an invisible lightening boost. Tip: Pat under eyes with a large flat eyeshadow brush, then buff off the extra.
Step 5: Setting Powder – One product Mercier uses to set all her celebrity clients’ makeup is Loose Setting Powder in Translucent, a no-color powder that suits all skin tones. Made with the finest French "cashmere" talc, its ultra-sheer, silky texture can be reapplied without caking or distorting your makeup colors. Tip: Use a velvet powder puff, not a brush, to apply. Chambers tips a small amount of powder into the cap, dips her puff and takes off the excess on the back of her hand before applying to the face by rolling the puff from left to right while gently pressing.
Eye Basics: On my lids Chambers applied Eye Basics in Peach, a base made specially for the eyes to remove any darkness or discoloration and make eyeshadow color-true, creaseless and long-lasting.
Eyeliner: A unique Mercier technique is to line both under and over the upper lashes to make the eye color pop. Chambers used waterproof Eye Liner (Black Ebony under the lashes; Eggplant above to enhance my dark-brown eye color), a new, high-tech incarnation of old-fashioned cake liner. Tip: Wet the Flat Eye Liner brush, another runaway best-seller, load brush, taking off excess on a tissue, and work liner in between the roots of the lashes for the most natural effect.
Eye shadow: Burgundy Eye Colour Duo was used for a clean, modern look. Shimmery Mauve and Twilight shadows highlighted the lid and browbone, while the darker Burgundy shaded the crease. Tip: For even more impact, apply the darker shade wet above the upper lashes like liner.
Eyelashes: After curling lashes, Chambers applied two generous coats of Thickening and Building Mascara for a false-eyelash effect.
Brows: Chambers is an expert who plucked my unruly brows into arched perfection. To emphasize their new shape, she filled them in with Blonde Pencil  a taupe shade so soft you’re never in danger of drawing on harsh black caterpillars  and set them with Brown Brow Gel. She also recommended seeing Floey regularly for maintenance.
Blush: To counteract the redness of my cheeks, Chambers applied Crushed Hazelnut, a light shimmery peach, with the Cheek Colour Brush. Tip: Brush blush with light strokes across the apples of your cheeks, not in your cheek hollows, where dark streaks made in an effort to contour never look natural.
Lipliner: To create the illusion of fuller lips, liner is essential. Chambers used Red Chocolate, a rich cherry-brown, to cheat my lip line a bit and add volume. Tip: After lining, starting at the corners of your mouth, fill in about a third of your lip with the pencil to make your center pout stand out.
Lip color: Over the liner Chambers slicked on Courtisane, a sheer shimmery berry pretty enough to wear every day.
Lip gloss: Clear silver Snowflake Star Struck Glacé was applied to the center of the lips for an even more striking pout.
Laura Mercier Flawless Face cosmetics are available at Rustan’s Essenses Makati, Rustan’s Tower Shangri-La Plaza, Alabang Town Center, Gateway Cubao, and Robinsons Place Manila.
No one knows this better than Laura Mercier, the French makeup artist who built her empire on achieving the look of flawless skin. Yup, that’s right. With her groundbreaking Flawless Face products, Mercier has made celebrities like Madonna, Linda Evangelista and Christy Turlington into perfect canvases for her iconic looks. (Who can forget Madonna as a geisha on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar? Mercier, now a close friend, has even named a lipstick after her.)
Laura’s Oil-Free Foundations and Tinted Moisturizers win "Best of Beauty" awards yearly and are Hall of Famers in In Style magazine. She can make any woman  even those with acne, scars and blemishes  look like she was born with great skin, even if she wasn’t.
In town recently to spread the gospel of Laura at Rustan’s Essenses was Gemma Chambers, Laura Mercier’s international makeup artist. Despite the veddy British-sounding name, Chambers is a full-blooded Pinay who’s been doing Filipino makeup artistry proud from her current home base of Indianapolis, Indiana.
"Great makeup is 50 percent product and 50 percent application," said Chambers, who’s been with the brand for seven out of its 10 years and is entrusted with its biggest US accounts. A self-taught artist whose forte is bridal makeup, the bubbly Chambers gave me a makeover to remember: Not only were her hands as nimble and painterly as La Mercier herself, she explained each product and showed me the proper tools and methods of application so I could replicate the stunning effects at home.
Based on Mercier’s own philosophy of honesty and integrity, Chambers  and LM’s makeup artist at Essenses Makati, Floey  is not one to push a product if you don’t need it. They only recommend what will make each client naturally beautiful.
Step 2: Foundation – My holy-grail foundation is Mercier’s Oil-Free in Vanilla Beige, but since the weather was drying my skin out, Chambers mixed it with another star product, Tinted Moisturizer in Nude, which now comes in an oil-free version with SPF 20. Tip: "Never apply foundation with your fingers," said Chambers. "It will go on too thick and mask-like." Instead, dip a damp sponge into small amounts of foundation, and blend it in until it looks like part of your skin, not like foundation sitting on top of your complexion.
Step 3: Secret Camouflage – This is Angelina Jolie’s all-around beauty weapon, a compact containing two pans of concealer and camouflage that are highly pigmented and textured to completely hide under-eye circles, discolorations, blemishes, scars and tattoos. Tip: Dip your Secret Camo brush into each pan and mix together on the back of your hand to achieve the perfect shade before applying.
Step 4: Secret Brightening Powder – Though Chambers decided my dark circles weren’t bad enough to warrant Secret Concealer, she used this light-as-air powder with illuminators to set the foundation under my eyes, maximize wear and add an invisible lightening boost. Tip: Pat under eyes with a large flat eyeshadow brush, then buff off the extra.
Step 5: Setting Powder – One product Mercier uses to set all her celebrity clients’ makeup is Loose Setting Powder in Translucent, a no-color powder that suits all skin tones. Made with the finest French "cashmere" talc, its ultra-sheer, silky texture can be reapplied without caking or distorting your makeup colors. Tip: Use a velvet powder puff, not a brush, to apply. Chambers tips a small amount of powder into the cap, dips her puff and takes off the excess on the back of her hand before applying to the face by rolling the puff from left to right while gently pressing.
Eyeliner: A unique Mercier technique is to line both under and over the upper lashes to make the eye color pop. Chambers used waterproof Eye Liner (Black Ebony under the lashes; Eggplant above to enhance my dark-brown eye color), a new, high-tech incarnation of old-fashioned cake liner. Tip: Wet the Flat Eye Liner brush, another runaway best-seller, load brush, taking off excess on a tissue, and work liner in between the roots of the lashes for the most natural effect.
Eye shadow: Burgundy Eye Colour Duo was used for a clean, modern look. Shimmery Mauve and Twilight shadows highlighted the lid and browbone, while the darker Burgundy shaded the crease. Tip: For even more impact, apply the darker shade wet above the upper lashes like liner.
Eyelashes: After curling lashes, Chambers applied two generous coats of Thickening and Building Mascara for a false-eyelash effect.
Brows: Chambers is an expert who plucked my unruly brows into arched perfection. To emphasize their new shape, she filled them in with Blonde Pencil  a taupe shade so soft you’re never in danger of drawing on harsh black caterpillars  and set them with Brown Brow Gel. She also recommended seeing Floey regularly for maintenance.
Lip color: Over the liner Chambers slicked on Courtisane, a sheer shimmery berry pretty enough to wear every day.
Lip gloss: Clear silver Snowflake Star Struck Glacé was applied to the center of the lips for an even more striking pout.
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