Organic Virgin: Camilla Tew

I recently challenged a number of Make-up Artist colleagues of mine to use an item of organic make-up and see how they got on. I specifically targeted (in a nice way) those whom I knew didn’t already use green beauty products in their kit (hence the Organic Virgins tag); buying them their own version of the product to keep and use either themselves or in their kits. The only proviso was that they had to write a little something about it…

Organic Virgin: Camilla Tew

Bio: Camilla is a Make-up Artist whom I have known for well over a decade (although neither of us would care to admit it has been that long!). We first met when I was looking for an Assistant whilst working on the BBC online drama Wannabes and have since worked together many times. After spending seven years as a staff-er for Sky News, Camilla now primarily focuses on red carpet make-ups and fashion shoots. Most recently she has worked with the likes of Twiggy and Alice Temperley and she regularly joins forces with Celebrity Hairdressers Ben Cooke and Jonathan Long.

Organic Product: Onyx Eyeshadow from Kjaer Weis

Without further ado, over to Camilla…

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I am a beauty packaging junkie. I’m not proud to admit it but I know I often choose packaging over product when perusing the various makeup boutiques. Who can say no to a gorgeous sleek, shiny powder compact, or a weighted golden lipstick case, which clicks reassuringly when closed.

So imagine my delight when, having agreed to review a beauty product for organicmakeupartist, I was given a beautiful little red box, the quality reminiscent of Cartier’s jewelry boxes. Sadly no diamonds inside but instead a little smart, shiny, silver pot, embossed with the logo of Kjaer Weiss and the product designer, Marc Atlan. It oozes quality; it has a reassuring weight and when the lid is opened to the side, it clicks satisfyingly into place. Inside, it reveals a single eyeshadow, which they have called Onyx. The colour may not be one that I would usually go for myself, a grey with barely noticeable iridescent quality and flecks of green.

It’s beautifully blendable however, and although the pigment is not the strongest, it is easy to add layers until you reach the desired intensity. With a wet brush it went on even more smoothly, and this seemed to really bring out the sheen.   It didn’t drop under my eyes at all which never happens to me and so deserves giant brownie points. As a big believer in multitasking products, I used it to fill in my eyebrows, which worked perfectly. It could easily be mixed with other colours too, to make a green a touch darker on the outside corners of the eye, or as a soft, smudgy eyeliner perhaps. I just added a bit of black shadow to my lash line and went out for the night…when I returned it hadn’t moved, not even a little; very impressed.

The only fault after all this was sadly with the functionality. I turned the silver pot upside down when open, to reveal a mirror just perfect for retouching during a night out…but alas, the magnet holding the eyeshadow in place wasn’t quite strong enough to cope with being the wrong way up and gravity won, the eyeshadow fell straight out of the pot onto the floor. The pots are made to be refillable, which is great if you run out or get bored of the colour and fancy a change, but I need my products strong enough to cope with a night out…if I wasn’t at home when I applied it I would have been sure to loose or break my Onyx powder.

I really hope this is a one off, that the magnet in my little pot was a faulty one, as otherwise this product would be winning on style, packaging and product, a pretty impressive feat in my book.

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A big thanks to Camilla.

If you want to find out more about Camilla’s work (a little of which is pictured below) then hop over to her website . Alternatively you can find her on twitter and instagram @cjt_makeup

Images: Jim the Photographer via Flickr; Kjaer Weis; James Augustus