Rose Marie Swift
About 13 years ago I saw an interview with a makeup artist named Rose Marie Swift, a makeup artist who worked with most of the names in the fashion industry. She was compelling and beautiful, but her story was what grabbed me.
In her late 30’s Rose Marie began to experience insomnia, panic attacks, and immune problems. A series of extensive medical tests revealed that she had high levels of heavy metals – lead, mercury, aluminum, cadmium, barium – and pesticides in her body.
(The reason this resonates with me because I’m currently going through a heavy metal detox – and it’s not fun.)
The lab technician who analyzed her results asked if she worked in the cosmetic industry. The fact that he so quickly identified the source of her problems was shocking and revealing. Her career was literally killing her.
Then and there she did a dramatic pivot. She began researching product ingredients extensively, and ultimately creating the line of skin care and beauty products that she felt confident to share and that would carry her insignia, RMS Beauty.
Because of this I was willing to give Rose Marie’s line a try. I had already been using some of her makeup for a few years and loved it. And they have a very generous return policy – 30 days. I’ll do a video sometime soon, but here are the products I love, use regularly, and recommend without hesitation.
Prevention is better than cure
In the old days we slathered baby oil on our faces and bodies and offered ourselves to the sun god, never considering the long-term damage that might accrue. In my case, dark spots and hyperpigmentation started appearing in my 40’s. I had them removed via liquid nitrogen several times over the years, but as my dermatologist explained, they will come back. And they have.
My dermatologist explained that those dark spots are from sun exposure on specific areas of my face while driving in my car! So now, even when I’m not lying around in the sun, I wear some form of sunscreen. There’s some very recent controversy about the toxicity of zinc as a physical sunblock, and zinc is the only one I have felt confident about using. So I read the research and to my layperson’s eye it doesn’t sound very conclusive. Of course, do your own research and decide.
RMS SunCoverup Super Tint Broad Spectrum SPF 50 Sunscreen
My favorite sunscreen from Rose Marie is her SunCoverup Super Tint Broad Spectrum SPF 50 Sunscreen. This is not only a tinted sunscreen. It has a lot of substance and serves beautifully as a base, if that’s what you’re looking for. It leaves your skin dewy-looking and stays all day.
Uncover cream concealer
But some days I just want to even out my skin, add a bit of color and leave it at that. Since I’m not a fan of lasers or other invasive procedures, my main “treatment” is to just cover the spots. The #1 absolute best, most amazing cover-up I’ve ever used is Rose Marie’s “Uncover” concealer cream. It stays on. It completely covers discoloration and blemishes. And one little jar lasts for months and months.
ReVitalize Hydra Concealer
Alternately, when I just want to do a quick swipe at my spots to even up my skin tone I dab on a bit of this Revitalize Hydra Concealer. It is of a thinner consistency than the Uncover cream, but does a great job. If you don’t have a lot of skin damage this one is the perfect product to blend with your skin tone and crate a nice base for the rest of your makeup.
As for blushers, they have two. One is a powdered version (Re Dimension Hydra Blush) and one is a cream (Lip2Cheek Color Cream). I haven’t yet found the right color in the cream. Maybe if I blended two they might work. But I have two of the powdered ones that I like a lot.
Hydra Blush
Lip2Cheek Color Cream
RMS Blusher Brush
Amazon Wet and Wild Contour brush
And for the Hydra Blush I bought this super cheap-o blush brush on Amazon a while ago but RMS gifted me one with a purchase during one of their promotions recently. I use each at different times. Theirs seem to give a more targeted application. The cheap one gives a more diffuse but softer look. I also got a free concealer brush that is used with the Revitalize Hydra Concealer and it works great. They have lots of brush options and from time to time one of their promotions includes some brushes.
I can’t say a lot about their eye makeup. I rarely wear any eye makeup of any kind. Even mild, “clean” products sometimes cause my eyes to water and my eyelids to swell. Yeah – I know, it sucks. So I can’t recommend something that I personally haven’t used. But their Matte Eyelights shadows don’t seem to bother my eyes. And they create a lovely and long-lasting effect. Keep in mind that they dry very quickly once applied – but they don’t cake. They have several new colors and some palettes that contain four colors, but those are slightly metallic and I don’t like that look on my eyes.
Cashmere Matte Eyelights
But their lip products are my addiction. I love them and probably have way too many of them. And if you do have some of the Romantic style essence that I wrote about last month, you want your lips to make a statement. First, there are the lip pencils. They are a great base. I find different colors creamier than others. The Pavla Red (which is gorgeous if you want that very French “red lip”) is very creamy and goes on smoothly. I have to carefully guide the pencil to avoid letting it bleed into the lips of my aging mouth. But each pencil also has a small brush at the opposite tip to help you refine the line. The color is just yummy. The others are more discreet. My current favorite is Morning Dew.
Legendary Serum Lipstick
Then there are the lipsticks. I use both the Lip Serums and the Nudes. As the name sounds, these are actually a lot like serums. So I find that applying the pencils first and then the Serums or Nudes makes them last longer. My current favorites in the serums are Audrey and Monica. My favorites in the Nudes are Naomi and Eve. The site says all of these last from 12-24 hours, depending on which one you use I think that’s hype. I have to reapply after I eat or drink. My makeup artist contact at RMS (you can choose one for yourself – see below) says she always uses a straw to avoid this.
RMS Nudes
RMS The Minis
And then, in one of their promotions I got this three packet of minis. They have surprising staying power for what is essentially a gloss. And they add just the right amount of glow without looking ridiculous on a (nearly) 78-year-old mouth. I haven’t tried any of their lip balms but may try one after I use up more of my stash.
There’s a lot more on the site, so peruse at your leisure. I encourage you to watch some of Rose Marie’s tutorials on YouTube as they are very helpful. And she’s a real kick. But I also highly recommend that you go to the site and register to have an online zoom consultation with one of their makeup artists. There is no charge for this service. If you scroll down on the home page to “Book a Video Consultation” you can select which artist you want to work with. They will give you ideas about which products and colors will work best with your skin tones and age.
Joni – my makeup consultant at RMS Beauty
I chose Joni as my consultant because she works a lot with women over 50. She’s been very helpful and responsive to all my inquiries. Also, she alerts me to sales and freebies coming up. And she gave me a 20% coupon code good for all my orders!
A lot of beauty brands these days carry the “clean” label. So I did what I encourage you to do. I looked up RMS Beauty products on the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep data base. I found that pretty much all the items from her brand that I use are, in fact, very safe and score low in allergens, etc. Also, only you can know how sensitive your skin is and what you might be allergic to. Even “natural” ingredients can be allergens for some people.
So let me know if you try any of these products. I’d love to hear what anyone else feels about these products and which ones you like or may already have tried.
[Full Disclosure – I’ve included my affiliate links so I might receive a small commission if you purchase anything. It doesn’t affect your cost at all.]
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