Dear Constant Reader,
When last we left our traveling showgirl, she was wending her way high into the Jemez Mountains with native guide Dr. Jen and faithful assistant Gia.
I was welcomed to Dr. Jen’s adorable house in the woods, with wall to wall leopard print carpeting, by her three dogs: the famous Wallace, enormous puppy Stella, and Maya, who immediately figured out that I wasn’t a dog person, jumped up on me and planted a kiss on my nose. After enjoying the sunset and the scenery, I was happily ensconced in the Drag Room. Had I a middle of the night wig emergency, I would have been all set.
My Monday was spent in the Atomic Cosmetics lab seeing where and how the magic happens. This was a rare opportunity for me to get some makeup color matched and to make sure I’ve been using the right products for my skin.
I’m starting to run out of my favorite colors of Shu Uemura eyeshadow and blush and it’s getting increasingly hard to get Shu products (they closed all their US stores, for example). So, Dr. Jen made me a matching set. She even improved on the original a little in that two of the colors were on the cool side and she gave me warmer shades that compliment my skin tones better.
Also, we determined that I was wearing the wrong shade of BB cream. It wasn’t bad on me, but now I’ve got the same shade as my foundation and Nudie Cutie. It’s a subtle improvement.
I forgot to mention that when Dr. Jen picked me up, she greeted me with a lip balm (with shimmer!) (also a two-color liquid lipstick). I pretty desperately needed that lip balm all the time. It is insanely dry in New Mexico.
Dr. Jen also mentioned that she *might* have figured out a gel eyeliner and packed me up some samples when I told her that Pearl Button’s life would now be complete.
Part of the day was spent with me on the phone (more on that later), but Dr. Jen had another guest who had come in from Texas (I think) to make lipstick. I got to watch the process of making the base, adding the pigment, &c. through to molding and putting it in a case. The new shade was dubbed “Red Velvet” and you can see it on my (dry, needing more balm) lips to the right.
It was fascinating to see how eyeshadows are pressed, what pigments are to be used for which kind of cosmetic, the precision measuring, and what that big whisk is for. I’m so thrilled to have gotten an inside look at how the products are made.
This is the result of my shopping trip:
Next up: Time to go home. Or is it?
