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My 2020 Study Project – MAKEUP


Hello Gang! I hope that this email finds you well and surviving, if not thriving in this coldest of winters. I am in the middle of going through my end of year review for my business. Each December I make time to look at the stats of my small independent business and this year was quite grim. However, I’m happy to say that my little business will survive the train-wreck that was 2020!

In 2020, I struggled with injury, so I decided to focus my continued education on developing more makeup skills. Dance is a journey and there are many aspects to study and grow. There’s no escaping the fact that we’ve been cooped up inside for the better part of the year. But that lead us to new distance-learning opportunities in the form of classes and workshops with instructors across the globe.

Makeup Classes

Since I couldn’t dance, and I wanted to continue to invest in my skills building. As you know, I’m a big believer in that 5-Layer breakdown of Belly Dance Appearance. If you have taken my free class over on the Belly Dance Business Academy, they you know that makeup falls into layer 2. So I decided to do a deep dive into a skillset where I could learn some new information while continuing to let my body heal.
Last spring I was thrilled to find that one of my makeup mentors, DeVilla, was taking her performance makeup training program on line. I was so happy that DeVilla was joining the “Zoom-a-sphere” and sharing her personalized classes with her fans across the united states and around the globe.

DeVilla, Pro Belly Dancer & Hollywood Makeup Artist

Since May, I’ve taken 5 digital makeup class with the amazing DeVilla. If you’re not familiar with her work, DeVilla is an LA-based powerhouse who is living the artist’s life working by day in the TV/Film/Stage word as a makeup artist. By night, she’s a dance instructor, troupe leader, and professional performing belly dancer.  But rather than writing up DeVilla’s whole resumé, I’ve put together this essential bullet list of her accomplishments.
  • DeVila is an Emmy Award Nominated TV/Film Makeup & FX Artist
  • Professional Makeup Instructor – Glamour, Theater, and Beyond.
  • Video – Bombshell: Dramatic Makeup for Stage Photos & Glamorous Occasions with Princess Farhana. This video changed my makeup game when I got a copy a few years back.
  • Working Performing Belly Dancer –  I saw her perform at the iconic Moun of Tunis restaurant on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood, California – http://www.mounoftunis.la/
  • Troupe Leader – Sekhmet Dance Company who can be caught participating in shows throughout the greater LA area and beyond. At the time of this writing, there’s an event coming on January 1, 2021 – More info on Facebook.
  • Belly Dance Instructor – DeVilla teaches regular classes at the renowned studio Dance Garden LA. 
One look at my before and afters will show you how having a small-group or one-on-one makeup class with DeVilla can up your game! At this moment in Dec. of 2020, she’s doing a complete head-to-toe renovation of her website, so the best way to find out more about DeVilla’s workshops is via social media. I’ve learned so much that I’m inspired to do another edition of my YouTube Makeup series to reflect the new skills I’ve learned over the past few months.

Biggest Makeup Discovery?
Magnetic Eyelashes

Late in 2019, I discovered magnetic eyelashes.  I’ve always had troubles with traditional false lashes due to a latex allergy.  Discovering latex-free magnetic lashes was a game-changer for me!   I got a cheap and cheerful kit last year and wore them to a few performances in 2019.

But with some extra time on my hands in 2020, I decided to do a deeper dive and conduct some research and experimentation in the world of magnetic lashes.  Here are my top three tips if you plan on experimenting with this type of product.

The magic is in the liner – I started with a no-name product with no ingredients listed.  Though they didn’t injure my eyes, not knowing what I was using made me a little, well, leery.  So I while I still use cheap and cheerful lashes, I’ve got better gel and liquid liner.

Note about false lashes. There are many options on Amazon and I want to just take a moment to say thanks for using these links.  These are affiliate links that don’t add any expense to you but gives me a tiny drop of earnings that supports this blog.  I always support local businesses, and if you can find these products in a local store, keep your money circulating in your community!

Purple Eyeshadow

For me, 2020 was the year of experimentation with affordable purple eyeshadow.  Although my budget was greatly reduced, I did manage to experiment with a few purple eyeshadow palettes. The one I found that gave me the most bang for my buck is also from Amazon.  You can see the results from one look in the images below.  I’ve got a few others that I’m trying out too, and I’m looking forward to doing another YouTube makeup series early in 2021.

I’m looking forward to sharing more of the techniques I’ve learned over my past year of exploration in makeup looks, styles, tools, and techniques.

But until then, happy holidays!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
December 20, 2020

 

 

By Davina

Davina ~ Dawn Devine is a belly dance costume designer, dance instructor and author of more than a dozen publications on Middle Eastern dance.