W3LL PEOPLE Event

Makeup artist and W3LL People founder, Shirley Pinkson (!!), was in Seattle's Queen Anne Pharmaca for an event, and I was able to score an appointment with her on a warm Sunday afternoon. It was all low key, which was great as I was 9 months pregnant, and my 2 year old was besotted with all the testers, which required a bit of wrangling during the 30 minutes of sitting in her chair. I was admittedly quite excited to see Shirley, rushing up to her while she was snacking on a ProBar between appointments and she graciously met me at my level of enthusiasm. We were chatting a mile a minute while she did my makeup, for those curious, she has just as commanding a presence in person as she does on screen. 

During our conversation, I learned:

  • Shirley suggests applying Altruist powder foundation with a brush as a concealer. When I asked what she normally uses, she shared that the Altruist is her personal goto foundation over the Narcissist stick. (It's worth mentioning she lives in a very warm and sunny climate.)
  • W3LL PEOPLE is coming out with a liquid liner in October. (This was divulged after I complimented her on her cat eye, which was clearly not drawn on with a pencil.)
  • They are also coming out with two different eye shadow compacts to be released during the holidays. (I put in a bid a for a five-pan compact. I find four or less is so limiting, while anything more than five is overwhelming.)
  • They are going to eventually expand into skincare, but right now working on a tinted moisturizer with SPF. 

And below, I outlined Shirley's steps while doing my makeup:

  • Narcissist #2 applied with a kabuki brush where needed.
  • Bio Bronzer stick over the Bio Brightener powder patted across the cheeks, tip of the nose, and chin with a flat brush.
  • Universalist #7 (a vibrant berry I would have never chosen for myself, but I ended up loving) on the applies of the cheeks and lips.
  •  Bio Correct concealer as a eyeshadow base and Elitist eyeshadow in 814 (a sparkling salmon pink) applied all over the lid.
  • Hypnotist eye pencil #3 (a deep plummy violet) lined all around the eyes before applying Expressionist mascara in black.
  • Lastly, Bio Extreme lipgloss #4, (shimmering gold) on the lips. 

One final note, W3LL PEOPLE is now even more accessible to folks as they've lowered their price point, and expanding their footprint to include retailers like Target. Not only are their products solid and their standards stringent, but their ethos to meet the consumer where they are is really admirable. 

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Vintner's Daughter

One of the hallmarks of the clean beauty revolution are the overwhelming roster of facial oils. In some ways, it's an easy hack to get measurable results from relatively easy to access ingredients. Because oils penetrate the layers of the skin efficiently, infusing the skin with antioxidants and plumping up the complexion with moisture restored, i's a lo-fi way of doing skincare right. Rose hip oil, for example, isn't all that expensive. And there are brands that are basically DIY kitchen projects with brilliant marketing and packaging for those not inclined to mix their own products.

That said, along comes Vintner's Daughter, a bottle that irrefutably ups the facial oil game with serious cred, a sensory experience followed by jaw dropping (and quick!) results. I was eager to test it out after hearing miraculous testimonies about this sleek black bottle. It's not inexpensive – it's as luxe as clean skincare gets –  but if you're after results, you will be smitten after the first application. 

Several drops pressed and patted into the skin for 30 seconds, and you're done. Minutes to hours later, skin looks satiated, well rested and glowing. I used this religiously throughout the latter weeks of my pregnancy, even pausing for a moment to pat some more on during labor while packing and rushing to the hospital to deliver my daughter. It's been the only thing to keep bumps from surfacing, calm patches of irritation, and keep the summer swollen pores and post-partum dry skin that usually plagues me at bay. I was going to pick up an eye cream, then realized I really didn't need one given this does the job so well.

Minimalists will appreciate that not only is this holy grail bottle versatile, – deemed a "desert island" product by it's creator, April Gargiulo – is the sole offering from the line. Gargiulo, a winemaker following her family's tradition, applied the stringent processes for creating wine towards creating her cocktail of 22 oils. She spent years sorting through a dizzying amount of research and experimentation before landing on the perfect combination, including standbys like Avocado and Carrot Seed Oil with more exotic additions like Frankincense and Tumeric Root Oils. Gargiulo wanted a high end product that ticked all the boxes for skincare woes (hormonal, dry, itchy, acne, wrinkles...), and now proudly goes makeup-free. Vintner's Daughter is definitely worth checking out if you'd like to see just how good your skin is capable of getting.