Makeup Artist Helps Put on Happy Faces

Ignacio Poucel, Elizabeth’s Arden’s international makeup artist, was talking about his favorite subjects, makeup and women, when he suddenly lost his train of thought. He couldn’t keep his eyes off the customer in Arden’s Delman shoe department in Beverly Hills.

“She’s so thin,” he declared, gazing at the ponytailed Linda Evans who had buzzed in, without makeup, for a pair of spring pumps.

It was only sentences earlier that the Mexico City-born cosmetologist had said he much prefers working on non-star clientele, that he is usually unimpressed with celebrities. Obviously, Evans was more enthralling than most: “Those cheekbones. They give her face such form.”

Before long, Poucel’s attention had returned to the world of substars, people who need help with their makeup.

Traveling 40 weeks of the year, Poucel talks to women in Turkey, Australia, Saudi Arabia, South America, the Orient, Europe and throughout the United States. Their most frequent question, regardless of locale? How to individualize their makeup.

“I’m glad they’re asking that--it shows that women the world over understand it is unimportant to look alike,” Poucel explains.

In fact, he says, it is not even essential that the same woman look the same every day. “People are unpredictable, so their looks should reflect that. By mixing color, by trying something a woman once felt was ‘not for me,’ she accents the many facets of her personality.”

Although he says most women have learned that consistent, effective skin care is essential, Americans are the greatest offenders of the rule.

“It Doesn’t Work”

“I see women’s skin every day in my travels, and I know who sleeps in her makeup and who doesn’t. I can tell just by looking at the pores. Women in the States think they can get by without washing their faces at night and then cleansing in the morning. It doesn’t work. Leaving on old makeup causes clogged pores, blackheads and whiteheads. It causes the pores to enlarge. It’s disastrous to the skin,” he says.

The Japanese take the best care of their skin, Poucel says. “Japanese women teach their daughters at an early age to properly cleanse, tone and moisturize their skin. If more young girls were taught to care for their skin, we would see far fewer adolescent breakouts.

“What is unfortunate in America is that girls learn to apply makeup before they learn to clean their faces. The process should be reversed,” Poucel asserts. He says that by 14, a teen-ager should be using soap to cleanse her face, a mild toning lotion, a moisturizer and a mask at least once a week.

Poucel says adults should make a regular practice of using masks to help temporarily tighten the pores.

“By keeping the skin very clean and using the mask, the pores have no reason to get bigger--no excessive oil buildup is forcing them to enlarge.” He also says by using moisturizer under foundation, women protect their pores from absorbing the makeup.

“Dry skin is hungry for moisture; it will absorb foundation that’s right next to the skin. That’s why so many women claim that their foundation disappears by the end of the day,” he says. “Women who wear moisturizers find that their makeup remains intact.”

When Poucel makes personal appearances, he’s showing women how to apply makeup, not just doing a cosmetic makeover. Poucel asks his subject to hold a mirror during the entire process, and sometimes asks her to copy what he has done on the left side on the right. “If she can’t use the cosmetics she purchases, what good are they?”

His general tips for improving makeup:

“Mature women should use less makeup and always try for a natural look.

“To emphasize the eyes, always strive for an almond shape.

“Never use an eyelash curler. They can break eyelashes at the roots. Instead, apply the mascara first, from side to side across the tips, then on the tops of the lashes from the roots to the ends and finally underneath the lashes from the roots to the tips. The lashes will curl naturally and look luxurious.

“Always use two shades of lipstick from the same color family. Blend them on the upper lip and use the light shade on the bottom. Add a touch of gloss to the bottom. This creates a wonderful pout.”