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Thank you for visiting makeup.raquel13.com! A little bit about me: My name is Raquel and I'm a makeup junkie living in Southern California. I have been obsessed with makeup art ever since I started cutting photos out of magazines and compiling a "Look Book" (which I still have to this day!) when I was in middle school. This website combines two of my passions: makeup and photography. The product shots in the website represent my first forays into still life photography. Most of my other photography is travel and nature and can be seen at album.raquel13.com. My other passions include books, travel, the outdoors, and a 6'6" German boy named Andreas. Also, I probably have the largest Lego collection of anyone you know. What inspired you to make this website? I started with the Shade Comparison Project, which I originally made for my personal use to keep inventory of my "stash," and to quickly be able to see how different shades look next to each other. I made the project available to others online and received such positive feedback that I felt encouraged to expand and add more sections. Where did you learn your makeup techniques? I learned by studying and imitating magazine photos, so my technique is mostly self-taught and involved a lot of trial and error. I also picked up a ton of makeup tips and tricks from friends, Kevyn Aucoin books, and online makeup forums like MakeupAlley.com and Specktra.net. I have not had any formal makeup training. Do you actually own all that makeup? Do you use it all? Yes, I do own all of it. I try to make sure each and every shade gets some love, but I do have my favorites. (And my lipsticks are all very neglected in favor of gloss). How long did it take to accumulate your makeup collection? I've been hoarding makeup since I was 14 or 15 years old. I proudly carried it all in my black and bright teal jumbo Caboodle and cried when my dog, Magic, chewed up the handle. Aside from the occasional MAC lipstick, I didn't start collecting higher-end makeup (the bulk of products shown the in this site) until about 5 years ago. Can you recommend some less expensive products in your looks and tutorials? I do favor higher-end brands, but this is just a personal preference. There are plenty of excellent-quality drugstore items, but since I don't own many, I am not able recommend specific products. However, you can easily duplicate the looks and follow the tutorials using similar shades (and brushes) from less expensive brands. Check out the following links for lists of lookalikes: . http://www24.brinkster.com/jddrewonline/MUA/index.html . http://www.beautybuzz.com/lookalikes.asp . http://mmlindependant.livejournal.com/ . http://www.beautybrief.com/article_1.html Also check out MakeupAlley for a huge database of consumer reviews of beauty products. I have seen plenty of raves for Wet n' Wild, NYX and Milani eyeshadows and blushes; L'oreal Color Juice lipglosses; Maybelline Age Rewind Concealer; Maybelline Full n Soft mascara; and my personal favorite, L'oreal Voluminous mascara. For brushes, Sonia Kashuk and Essence of Beauty get glowing reviews. These are just a few of many high quality drugstore products. Where do you come up with the names for the looks? Some are named after the inspiration for the look, but most are simply amalgams of the names of products used. For example, in the "C-Thru to the Flipside" look, I used MAC C-Thru lipgloss and Urban Decay Flipside eyeshadow. Where can I find ArtDeco eyeshadows? I bought a few of them while visiting Germany, and several more were sent to me as a gift from a friend in Germany. Unfortunately, I do not know where to find them in the U.S. What nail polish are you wearing in the _____ tutorial? I recently started listing the nail colors in the tutorials themselves. They are usually listed on the first slide in which the nail color appears, unless that slide already contains a long block of text (then it will be on the second slide in which the nail appears). Where did you get those storage containers? The plastic drawer towers were from Office Depot. The small plastic organizing trays inside the drawers were from Target. What kind of camera do you use? I absolutely love my Nikon D40! There are bigger, badder (and waaay more expensive) models out there, but I think that with those you're getting more features and not necessarily better quality photos. The D40 is small and lightweight, which is perfect for me because I take it on a lot of hiking trips. Once I get the lens of my dreams (Nikon 18-200 VR) I'll be set. What about lighting? The face shots for looks and tutorials are taken indoors, near a window or door for natural light. Most of the product shots for the gallery and tutorials (products used) are taken using an improvised light box. It's just a Rubbermaid storage container set on its side with white gift tissue taped to the top and sides, and white posterboard taped to the back and curved toward the front as the background. I use a lamp with a 100-watt GE Reveal bulb (designed to make colors appear truer than a regular incandescent bulb, which emits yellow rays). The light is shined through the top of the box and gets diffused and reflected by the tissue paper so that any object inside the box is bathed in light. Do you have a Myspace page? Yes! Come visit me at myspace.com/raquel13_makeup.

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