Tag: Eileen Robinson

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Glam Makeup On A Budget

glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post.

Glam Makeup On A Budget

by Eileen Robinson, The Blind Gypsy

Hi folks, as you can see by the heading, this article is related to doing “glam” makeup on a budget, because let’s be honest, life is expensive; children, animals, food, rent, socialising, whatever floats your boat and lastly makeup (did I mention food?) Sigh.

However, I have found a great way to still make yourself look like you use high-end quality makeup products without breaking your bank budget. Yaay, for that right.

As most of you know, I am a makeup junky, I love makeup. I play with makeup even when I don’t leave the house. For myself, makeup is an art and my face is the canvas.

I can do a whole makeup project on my face and then once done, just wash it off and ta-da, new canvas again. It’s a relaxing thing to do, most of the time, liquid eyeliner is the enemy and can be daunting to apply (it’s taken me years to master the winged eyeliner look – the key is CONFIDENCE).

I shall be sharing my tips and tricks to apply minimal makeup, in order to look glam, fancy, pretty and oh so lovely. Well, that’s how I feel once I’m done with my face. Let’s begin, shall we?

Step One

Image #1 (glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post).
Image #1

Apply your base/foundation as per normal (I use a beauty blender sponge, helps with blending). Everyone has their own specific base/foundation that they love and are comfortable with. Just always make sure to blend it in with your neck. No one wants to see that your face has base/foundation on. We are not watching a live performance of “The Mask” featuring Jim Carrey here folks.

Blending is key. Spend extra time blending that face into your neck. I use Essence Camouflage 2 in 1 Makeup and Concealer, it is affordable and it goes on the skin so lovely. And believe me when I tell you this, I have used pretty much all the high-end foundations (sorry not sorry), but some of them are so overrated. You’ve pretty much spent a small fortune on it and it sucks on your skin. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt). I find Essence is lovely as like I said it blends well, my pimples are far less since using it as well. Double win right?

Step Two

Image #2 (glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post).
Image #2 Essence Strobing Highlighter

Give your face some colour, AKA blush, and basic contouring. I am no pro at contouring, I use a pallet that already comes with the shades that suit my pale skin. Each to their own on this as well, as everyone has different skin tones. The ladies in the shops should be able to help you and assist you with the correct colour.

Well, the tip to getting high cheekbones is to suck in your cheeks and attempt a pout face. This will leave the sections of your face where you need to apply the bronzer, sweep your brush from the cheekbones up until the hairline. Blending is key here as well. No one wants to see the different colour tones on your face.

Next step, I use a fish brush, it helps put highlighter on your face so smooth. I put my highlighter just above where the cheekbones are, as well as on the bridge of the nose and just along the top line of your lip.

Image #3 (glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post).
Image #3 Essence Shape Your Face Contouring Palette
Image #4 (glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post).
Image #4

Step three

Image #5 glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post.
Image #5 – Eyebrows

The eyebrows, they are important as they are the frames of the face, in my opinion. As you can see in the picture, my eyebrows are hardly there anymore, since I burnt them off by accident lighting a smoke back in the day, oopsy.

So yes, I use eyeshadow (the same colour as your hair ladies) and make an outline with a small slanted brush all around the eyebrow that I have left. Once done, then I simply just “colour in” my outline with the same coloured eyeshadow. I realise that there are eyebrow shapers out there as well as all sorts of eyebrow blending brush tools that have colour etc, however, I am on a budget, I find the eyeshadow does the same job at less of the cost. You can then use an eyebrow comb to put all stray hairs down.

Image #6 glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post.
Image #6 Essence All About Nudes

Step Four

The scary part of liquid eyeliner. Sheesh, liquid eyeliner still scares me, however its all about confidence. Once you have that liquid eyeliner on the spot where you want to start on your eye, move it confidently from the eye centre to the outer eye. As you can see by the picture, I make a shape as well. This helps with guiding a person and if you make an error, it’s easier to clean the “outline shape” than cleaning the whole eyelid. The tricky part is the eyeliner wing, hence why I do an outline, then just colour in, presto, done.

Image #7 glam makeup on a budget image descripition is in the body of the post.
Image #7

Step Five

Finally the mouth. Lipstick is so lovely, it cheers all girls up, as far as I know? Well, I find if you use a lip liner and then outline your mouth (as per the picture) then you colour in the lips with your lipstick. The lipliner makes the lipstick last longer.

The last and final touch before you are done with your face is to kiss a toilet roll or tissue paper. By doing this, you will remove any residue or excess of lipstick and it won’t land on your teeth. Oh yes, please make sure the lip liner is the same colour as the lipstick, if not, well then you have started a new makeup trend.

Image #8
Image #8

Step six

Have FUN! Doing your make up should be fun. If you mess up, don’t give up, try again. Practice makes perfect.

The best tip ever though, is get yourself a mirror that can magnify largely. I use a mirror like that when applying my eye make especially. It helps so much.

Image #9 glam makeup on a budget image description is in the body of the post.
Image #9
Glam Makeup On A Budget Image Descriptions:

The featured image, as well as 5, 7, 8 and 9, are of Eileen in various stages of makeup application. She has pulled back her dark hair and is wearing a fuchsia top.

  • Image #1 Tube of Essence Camouflage 2 in 1 Makeup and Concealer
  • Image #2 Compact containing Essence Strobing Highlighter
  • Image #3 Essence Shape Your Face Contouring Palette
  • Image #4 Fish Brush – The handle on this makeup brush is a fishtail complete with scales. This brush is pastel rainbow colors in pink, blue, and yellow although they come in different colors and can be bought from Amazon.
  • Image #5 Eyebrows – draw the outline and then colour in eyebrows. Eileen’s photo shows how she outlines then fills in her brows.
  • Image #6 Essence All About Nudes Brow Shadow Palette
  • Image #7 In this photo Eileen has outlined a wing to be colored in with eyeliner
  • Image #8 Shows Eileen’s outlined lips
  • Image #9 Finished face – Lips coloured in. Mascara is on

If you would like to connect with Eileen you can follow her on Instagram: @the_blind_gypsy

Happy Monday!

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WOTM 49 Featuring Eileen Robinson

Eileen Robinson featured image description is in the body of the post

Women On The Move Featuring Eileen Robinson

Eileen Robinson, aka The Blind Gypsy and one of Bold Blind Beauty’s lead beauty advisors is from South Africa. While we haven’t met in person, before we spoke live I felt like I already knew her. Her writing style is so authentic and energetic it feels like you’re having an actual conversation. Enjoy!

A Young Old Soul

I’m an old soul living in a world full of people who wish to be younger, I am embracing my old age, being 30 is the new 21 my dears. My favourite music is from the seventies and the eighties. My mother forced me to listen to old school music when I was a little child and I grew in love with it. Thanks, mom, you rock.

Queen is the absolute best band ever (go listen to them, you won’t regret it). Their music motivates me and is literally my life anthem song, as Queen sang loud and proud “Don’t stop me now, I’m having such a good time, I’m having a ball. Don’t stop me now” These words describe me perfectly.

Growing Up

I grew up in a happy home (for the most part, remember, no family is perfect, they are all full of interesting folks). I was the eldest sibling and had two younger brothers. My folks are still together today, a whole 33 years, sheesh, well done Mom and Dad! Growing up, we always had animals, chickens, cats, dogs, rabbits, doves, fish, snakes, Bearded Dragons, guinea pigs and lastly my little brothers, hehe, I’m kidding. I grew up loving and respecting all things great and small.

After I finished school, I studied bookkeeping and credit management. I love numbers, they are so interesting and when the books balance, then that’s just one of the best feelings in the world. My career has always involved numbers, pretty nerdy right? Oh well, someone has got to do it.

Life carried on, I planned on having children before I reached the age of 30 (back then I thought 30 was ancient, little did I know what curve balls life throws at you) needless to say the only kids I have are all covered in fur, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, as Bon Jovi sang “It’s my life and its now or never”, clearly I love my old school music right. Quotes from songs for days.

Subtle Clues To Eileen’s Impending Sight Loss

I have always struggled to see in the dark for as long as I can remember, I didn’t think it was an issue, as many people would say they were “night blind”, so I assumed I was “night blind” too. I was 28 when I realised something was not right with my eyes, I was sitting on my bed, waiting for Netflix to start up.

At the time I was quitting smoking and had one of those Vape Goodies (it was completely black, black is my favourite colour) I was sitting on the bed and looking down at the bedspread and looking, just looking for the Vape. I couldn’t see it. What the hell? I knew I had put it down in front of myself on the bed. I frantically started patting the bedspread (like a little kitty trying to have fun with your sheets when you are making the bed) eventually I found it, it was where I had put it, RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME.

Joh, I need glasses, is what first popped into my mind. However, being a typical person, I put off the optometrist appointment for about a month or so. I had accustomed myself to just patting my bed if I “lost” something on it, I had accommodated to my bad eyes. Which is not on, if you feel uncomfortable with your eyes in any way folks, go to the optometrist, they are there for a reason.

“Making Visual Impairments beautiful. I have Retinitis Pigmentosa. Loud, Proud & honest. Just a normal gal living in this world. South African.” ~Eileen Robinson

The day I booked an appointment with the optometrist I was going downstairs and all the steps seemed to mould together into one colour, again WHAT THE HELL. That’s when I decided, enough was enough, you need glasses girl. So off to the optometrist I went.

He did the regular tests and confirmed that I did need glasses, however, he wanted to refer me to a specialist. Huh. Why? What’s wrong? All these funny questions went through my mind. Believe it or not, going blind was not one of those thoughts, the irony.

So yet another adventure to an eye specialist. I felt welcomed there, it was a place that felt warm and friendly. My name was called, my turn to hear what the optometrist was going on about. The one thing I love about my specialist is that he doesn’t beat around the bush. He told me I had a rare degenerative eye disorder (which I was born with, it’s not contagious, don’t worry folks) called Retinitis Pigmentosa.

I literally just sat there in my chair and stared at him. Seriously, all I needed was glasses, now I found out I would probably go blind. I was upset hey. So angry, I said I would much rather be deaf blah blah blah. What an ignorant fool I was.

Emotional Trauma Of Sight Loss

The next couple of months were very rough. I cried a lot like so much I thought my eyeballs were going to dry out. I was angry, lashing out at my family and friends. My fiancé was my rock though, listened to me, I was also a stuck record, kept saying the same things repeatedly, “why me? This sort of stuff happens to other people” silly things like that.

Anything bad that would happen, for example, knocking a glass over, kicking my toe on the corner of a couch etc. I would blame my eyes and get all angry over again. My fiancé reminded me often, even people with sight and no eye issues do the same, he reminded me that I am just a human who makes mistakes like everyone else and to let the anger go.

It took some time before I eventually took his words to heart. I started to get out of the dark hole, it was not an overnight transformation. It took time to be happy with myself again and to start loving myself again. I had a great support base, for which I am eternally grateful for. I was surrounded by people who loved me regardless of my eye issue and the clumsy situations I got myself into.

“Ignorance may be bliss, however when you have a degenerative eye disorder it’s not. Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is killing my eyes slowly but my heart and soul have never been more alive.” ~Eileen Robinson

To be honest, this Retinitis Pigmentosa was a blessing in disguise. I stopped being a vain woman, stopped judging a book by its cover and got to know a person for who they were. The world is a beautiful place and it’s what you make of it.

Most of my RP stories are hilarious, I once laughed so hard that my chair actually fell off the balcony. I was seated way to close to the edge and it was dark (the balcony was 2 metres high above a flower bed) I was in the chair when it went over the edge. All I remembered was what my father said, tuck and roll (as I didn’t want to break my neck) all I could hear was my friend laughing, I got up off the ground, dusted myself off and laughed till I cried. Good times. Full of bruises though. Each bruise is a story and a conversation starter to be honest. I am ALWAYS covered in bruises.

Eileen Robinson—The People Person

Currently, I work as an office manager at a Fraud and Forensic firm. It’s a fascinating environment, catching the bad guys is awesome. If you do the crime, then be prepared to do the time folks. My employer and my fellow colleagues have accepted my eye condition. I have told them about it. They are like a second family to me.

I am studying Human Resources as well. I love people. To understand people is a fascinating thing for me, to know what makes them tick, to know what makes them sad, happy etc. I feel like this is a good choice in my career, as being a people person, you don’t necessarily need sight. You can “read” a person purely by speaking to them. I love to talk, as many people know. Verbal diarrhea, as some of my friends say, sorry not sorry.

Living Life The Best Way Possible

My mission in life is to bring joy. I want to educate people that there are different levels of going blind. Visual impairments happen on all different levels. While I still play with my makeup, I just make sure that my make up station is by the window for more light. I still drive, daytimes only though. I still cook, clean and carry on with my daily life.

Just always need to make sure that there is enough light around me. It can be frustrating at times. I’m not saying my life is perfect, no one’s lives are perfect. I am just trying to make the best of this situation that I have been dealt with. You can either let something terrible bring you down and you can be angry forever, but what’s the point? What is the point?

As Queen sang once again “ Tonight I’m gonna have myself a real good time, I feel alive and the world I’ll turn it inside out – yeah”

Remember, everyone is special, disabled or not. Don’t be so hard on yourself. You were put on this wonderful planet for a reason. Smile away, folks.

Let’s make Visual Impairments Beautiful.

Love The Blind Gypsy

xxx

Eileen Robinson Featured Image Description:

In this selfie, Eileen is wearing a white top with a rhinestone embellished neckline. She is sporting dark-framed eyeglasses and her long dark hair is slightly covering her left eye.

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The Blind Gypsy, A Makeup Artist & BBB

Abby is on the job sitting cross legged in her PJs (gray bottoms & white top with a gray collar) with a teal Abby logo laptop on her lap. Sporting her signature explosive hairstyle, she is wearing a headset with microphone and her white cane is propped up next to her.

The Blind Gypsy, Makeup Artist & BBB

Image #1 The Blind Gypsy aka Eileen Robinson Eileen is sitting on a red sofa with her cat making a funny face with her wide open mouth and eyes are closed.
Image #1 Eileen is making funny faces with her kitty.

You know the old saying “when the boss is away, the mice will play solitaire?” No? Really? Well, allow me to elaborate. Stephanae aka the ‘boss lady’ is away and I’m in charge. What this means is, I get to make executive decisions. Well, maybe executive decisions might be a little over the top but I digress.

So my boss lady is nice but wow can she be intense. I mean on good days she’s like an over-caffeinated Energizer Bunny. And on bad days? Well, on bad days her energy level is equal to that of a sloth on Xanax.

I’ve told Steph for the longest that she needs to chill and find balance. Finally, after weeks of begging and pleading to my astonishment, she relented and we’ve finally begun building our team.

Now For The Secret:

Please meet our Beauty Advisory Team Leaders. Makeup Artist, Emily Metauten, and Eileen Robinson aka The Blind Gypsy have both been featured here on Bold Blind Beauty. Please, and I can’t stress this enough, please do not let Steph find out that I’ve let the cat out of the bag, okay?

Image #2 Emily Metauten - description is in the body of the post.
Image #2 Emily Metauten – cotton candy/trix yogurt color schemes now and 4ever!!

While I can’t share all our secrets I can tell you that Emily is a freelance makeup artist/licensed cosmetologist and an amazing artist. She is passionate about diversity, advocacy, and is so excited to work with Bold Blind Beauty. Likewise, Eileen, a free-spirit with an excellent sense of humor is so energetic I know we are in good hands with the two of them at the helm.

Both Emily and Eileen are beautiful women who are visually impaired. They also share a desire to change societal perceptions about blind and visually impaired people. They’ve got some fabulous things coming down the pike and I know Steph can hardly wait to get started.

Image #3 Eileen Robinson description is in the body of the post.
Image #3 Eileen Robinson

Photo Descriptions:

  • Image #1 The Blind Gypsy, Eileen Robinson. If you saw the original collage it was a meme. I found out after publishing the  post that the meme was not Eileen. How embarrassing is that for a blind girl mistake? 🤣
  • Image #2 Emily Metauten – Emily is wearing a pink button-up shirt with a white bird all-over pattern and a baby blue bow tie. For her makeup, she is wearing bold black and blue glitter smokey halo eyeshadow, false lashes, baby pink lipstick, and contoured & highlighted skin. Her hair is a light blonde.
    • Makeup:
    • Eyes: @katvondbeauty x @billiejoearmstrong Basket Case eyeliner, blue shades in the @nyxcosmetics Ultimate Brights palette, Gonzo and Chaos in the @urbandecaycosmetics Electric palette, Carly in the @shopvioletvoss Ride or Die palette, Dalla and Zola in the @juviasplace Masquerade palette, @makeupforeverofficial Diamond Powder in White 1, Violet Voss lashes
    • Brows: @anastasiabeverlyhills Dipbrow Pomade and Powder in Blonde, @glossier blonde Boy Brow
    • Face: @katvondbeauty Lock-It Foundation & Concealer Creme and Sombre in the Shade and Light Contour palette, @tartecosmetics Amazonian Clay Bronzer & Blush in Glisten, @anastasiabeverlyhills Gumdrop in the Sugar Glow Kit
    • Lips: @maccosmetics Spice lip liner, @katvondbeauty Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in Melancholia
  • Image #3 Eileen Robinson – Eileen is wearing a white textured top with a pink scarf hanging around her neck. She is wearing dark frame eyeglasses that coordinate with her very dark hair. Her bright pink lip color is a very nice contrast to her ivory complexion dark brows and dark wisps of hair on either side of her face.

You can follow Emily and Eileen on Instagram:

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Eileen Robinson | Blind Beauty Issue 28

Blind Beauty Issue 28 Image description is in the body of the post.

Eileen Robinson | Blind Beauty Issue 28

“Retinitis Pigmentosa is killing my eyes slowly but my heart and soul have never been more alive.” ~Eileen Robinson

In this selfie of Eileen she is wearing a black lace cami under an orange sherbert colored cardigan. As in her featured photo she is wearing dark-framed eyeglasses and her long dark hair frames her pretty face.
Eileen Robinson

Eileen Robinson was so excited when I asked her if she would be interested in being featured on Bold Blind Beauty! Her excitement was so contagious it made the rest of my day. Eileen, aka The Blind Gypsy (her Instagram handle), is so fierce I couldn’t wait to introduce her to you.

Ignorance may be bliss, however when you have a degenerative eye disorder it’s not. Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is killing my eyes slowly but my heart and soul have never been more alive.

I’m just a normal girl (who is animal crazy, loves makeup, and all things pretty) living in this lovely crazy place we call planet earth. I was an ignorant fool before my diagnosis. To put it bluntly, I was vain, always worried about what people thought of my appearance. Funny thing is with RP I won’t be able to see myself age one day, so who cares right? It’s what is on the inside that counts, never judge a book by its cover; all those clichés, which are true.

RP was a blessing in disguise. My mission is to help others who are frightened and don’t know how to handle their condition. Because let’s be honest, having a visual impairment is very scary. You do not know what to expect, as each day is different.

I was diagnosed with RP last year February 2017, I was in denial for a very long time and an emotional mess. However, I have accepted my fate in life now with the help of my awesome fiancé and great family and friends and couldn’t be happier.  I may trip and fall, but I will get up, fix my hair, hopefully, my makeup didn’t smudge and carry on. Laughter is the best medicine. Let’s make visual impairment beautiful.

Love The Blind Gypsy

Blind Beauty Issue 28 Featured Image Description: 

Eileen’s photo is in a faux magazine cover titled Blind Beauty. She is on the cover wearing a gray top and her long dark hair swept over her left eye frames her face. Eileen has on dark-framed eyeglasses and is very pretty with minimal makeup. Blocks of text superimposed on Eileen’s photo are: “Bold | She Keeps Pressing Onward,” “Blind | She Has Deeper Insight,” “Beautiful | She Sees To The Heart Of Others”

You can catch up with Eileen on the following social media platforms:

The Blind Gypsy LogoInstagram: @the_blind_gypsy