My uber talented friend, Billy B , is currently traveling the states doing his American Beauty Tour; I’ve watched his blog as he appeals for people to apply to be a model at each of his tour stops (which people happily clammer for). So imagine his surprise when he gets a call at midnight from the Production Assistant from American Idol claiming that Paula Abdul wants to be his model for his Atlanta event. Was he speechless…yes–and I think he still is (and my gawd, I would be too–I love Paula!)

Paula Abdul flew into Atlanta for auditions for American Idol when she picked up the Atlanta Peach and read a blurb about Billy being in Atlanta at the same time for The American Beauty Tour. She has long been a fan of his and has always wanted to work with him, so she decided …this was her in.

With everything squared away, Paula snuck in while everyone was seated and Billy gave the opening piece of his presentation. He then introduced his model to the group of attendees and when Paula appeared, “Everyone’s mouthes hit the floor.” When I asked him what kind of model Paula was Billy told me, “She was great! She asked questions, engaged the audience; she even posed for photos.”

Billy has a really important stop on his tour coming up. On November 4th he and Ruth Roche will be teaming up to do both makeup and hair at his New Orleans stop of his tour. Both the seminar itself and the cocktail party that evening will benefit Hairdressers Unlocking Hope a Vidal Sassoon and BehindtheChair.com initiative with 100% of the proceeds benefiting Habitat For Humanity. The money being raised that day will be put towards rebuilding an entire neighborhood in post-Katrina New Orleans.

Billy’s & Ruth’s seminar is from 1:30-4:30pm; the cost is $145. The cocktail party (and seminar) will take place at the W French Quarter. The cocktail party cost is $145 and dress is…”fabulously casual or casually fabulous” as The Powder Group’s Michael DeVellis told me today. The Powder Group is the organization producing and organizing The American Beauty Tour, as well as this fabulous charity event. The Powder Group artists are also the creatives behind the artwork done on the bodies of the people in the photographs on the Hairdressers Unlocking Hope website.

While Billy and Ruth are Pro’s, the event is open to absolutely everyone–and believe me, Billy is so super fab, you will want to meet him in person. (I know I can’t wait for the day when I finally do!) At the event you’ll also be able to purchase the entire set of Billy B Paintbrushes I have raved about at a great discount!

Please head over to The Powder Group’s website to see complete details about this event. Can’t make it to the event itself? Consider making a direct donation to Hairdressers Unlocking Hope.

Post from: Makeup Minute

I cannot tell you how excited I was to receive the full set of billy b’s Paint Brushes in the mail yesterday—sooooo excited! Not just because they came from the grand master of all things beauty, but because I am a big pathetic loser when it comes to makeup brushes and I have never splurged on really good ones. Why? Honestly, I thought all makeup brushes were the same. Obviously (since yesterday) I have realized how absolutely wrong I was.

For makeup brushes I had only been using a blush brush, foundation brush, one eyeshadow brush and another to put on mineral powder as eyeliner. It’s sad but true…I’ve had the same brushes for years and years and they probably cost me less than $10 (ie. cheap and cheesy).

Let me first say that I gently laid them all out on my bathroom countertop. My 5 year old was watching me and asked, and I’m not kidding, “Mommy? Are those paint brushes?” I then realized how aptly named these brushes were.

What I loved about them:

* Professional looking
* High quality
* Lightweight
* The hairs are soft as silk
* Deposited foundation powder, mineral concealer and blush on my skin uniformly

I have to say that the way these brushes laid out the powder on my skin was what made all the difference in the world in the way my makeup looked. With the brush I had used before, it would always deposit more powder in some places than others, even if I tapped the brush upside down to avoid this. billy’s brushes held onto the powder, yet dispersed it evenly as I swirled the brush across my skin. My old brush also “clogged” up its hairs with powder, so that when you felt the brush hairs, they felt thick and coarse. billy’s didn’t do this at all, in fact, you can’t even tell that I have been using them for two days–as there is no trace of powder foundation, concealer, blush or eyeshadow.

I feel so spoiled having so many brushes to use now, but if there is one must-have brush in the bunch it is “three,” which is a powder/blush paint brush. I’m telling you, when your powder falls on your face the right way–it makes such a huge difference in your appearance.

There are 13 brushes in the collection for $249 or you can buy them individually–but I promise you, once you buy one, you really will want to buy them all.

Have you splurged and bought any of them yet? If you have, let me know what you think of them!

billybbeauty.com

Post from: Makeup Minute

I have billy b in my top friends on MySpace and pay attention to his blog (to which I now subscribe). Last week he announced the launch of his paint brush collection and I posted about it. Why not? I think he is uber talented and I love to spread the word about great things.

So I fell out of my seat when I woke up the next day to find he posted a comment thanking me. I’m not sure at which point my feet came back down to the ground. Honestly. So I took a deep breath and emailed him back requesting an interview. He said yes, and I immediately emailed two of my wonderful girlfriends, Christina and Elke, simply stating “I’m going to throw up–billy b is going to let me interview him!”

I didn’t throw up…of course. ;)

I took my time to come up with questions that were thoughtful and hopefully not asked in every interview he has done. Simply because I didn’t want him to have to be a robot; I wanted his personality to shine through. And let me tell you–he has personality!

Once he sent them back he gave me his phone number to follow up and with my hands shaking, I gave him a call. I immediately felt at ease with him and many times the conversation went off of makeup to regular, real life things. I talked to him for about 90 minutes; the time flew by and I honestly felt like I was talking to someone I had known for years. Suddenly he wasn’t just this uber talented guy that I was so afraid to talk to, he was just Billy, someone who is as real and down to earth as well..yours truly. He’s not that guy who has to check his ego at the door, he has no ego and he is incredibly humble.

He’s invited me to be his guest at The American Beauty Tour when it comes to NYC in September. Due to the logistics involved with my children and my husband’s job, I’m not sure just yet if I can go, but you can bet that if it is a possibility I will be there no doubt!

So head over to my interview with billy b, I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed doing it!!

xo Billy!

Post from: Makeup Minute

The very talented makeup artist, Billy B, now has his “paint brush” collection available on his website. These paint brushes are his essential makeup brushes that he modified the design on for maximum performance and durability.

You can check them out on his website billybbeauty.com

*Pictured above is Paint Brush Two (Foundation) $30

Post from: Makeup Minute