Brand evaluation

I really enjoyed the brand research aspect of this project, I feel like as a makeup artist it is very important to know your brands and also to have firm favourites and to have good knowledge about all aspects of the brands you are loyal to. I chose NARS after purchasing the most recent of Francois Nars books called Makeup Your Mind, aswell as doing some initial research into the products, ethos and aesthetic. What I noticed about Francois Nars and NARS as a brand from looking through this book was that the makeup never drew attention away from the models features and natural beauty, the makeup just enhances all of these which is why I think Francois Nars is so talented. I have found it is easier to make the makeup the main focus of a beauty/editorial image but so much harder to make the viewer see the beautiful features of the model beneath the makeup then main focus. When I look at the before and after images of the models in Makeup Your Mind they look like the same person, but just a more flawless version as Francois has the eye and ability to be able to enhance the most striking features on the models face. I love that the brand ethos is to empower women and give them self confidence, to enhance their appearance rather than to mask their natural beauty when using makeup. After doing my research on NARS throughout this project I can definitely say that they have fulfilled the brand ethos perfectly with the products they produce, the beautiful looks they create and the small details like the tutorial videos for all their products to show women how to use them to get the flawless, natural NARS finish we see in all of their looks. I also looked into NARS looks created by the best NARS makeup artists at fashion week SS16 and what I noticed is that their ethos is brought into all of their looks, most of the images I saw from various catwalk shows was beautiful skin, well groomed eyebrows, a statement feature such as eyes, eyelashes or lips and just healthy, glowing models that showcase the current makeup trends and suit the fashion show without overdoing it and masking their natural features. I also now feel very loyal to NARS as a brand and have made myself a wish list of products which I wish to invest in for my kit which I have read about and watched NARS video tutorials on and I think the thought process, passion and work that goes into producing their amazing, large range of quality products is very inspiring. I am very pleased with going with NARS as a brand as inspiration for all of my photoshoots and hope that in my images the NARS aesthetic, ethos and vibe came across as well as I tried. I have been so inspired by my project development with NARS as my main influence and agree with the views the put across with their makeup and will be using the spirit as a reminder to not mask natural beauty with my makeup in the future and throughout my career.