In mask-wearing era, Seychellois make-up artist says 'eyebrows are the new smile'

Rose said at the moment everyone is required to wear a mask when going out and hence the eyes are the first thing a person will notice and this should be emphasised. (Salifa Karapetyan, Seychelles News Agency)

(Seychelles News Agency) - A Seychellois entrepreneur has launched her own makeup brand that targets the upper half of a client's face, a response to the ubiquitous mask wearing of the COVID-19 era.

Under the brand name 'Kreole Kosmetics', the entrepreneur, Anisa Rose, last Friday launched a kit comprising of an eyebrow pencil, concealer palette, scissors, razor, tweezer, spooly and eyebrow brush.

Rose told reporters that while she was sitting at home during the lockdown and as her make-up business – Anisa Rose Make Up - was non-operational, she was inspired to create a kit that her clients could use on their eyebrows in the comfort of their home.

"I wanted to come up with something that would empower others, so being a makeup artist, I thought about eyebrow pencils and concealers just to make the eyebrows a little bit on fleek. Even if there is a pandemic, which might cause a lockdown to happen again, people will still have their kit so can still get this done at home, at their own pace and in their own space," said Rose.

She explained that at the moment everyone is required to wear a mask when going out and hence the eyes are the first thing a person will notice and this should be emphasised.

"With us covering half of our face, why not just focus on the top half? I chose 'Eyebrows are the new smile' as the brand's motto, as some people have stopped using lipstick or makeup altogether," said Rose.

Rose was inspired to create a kit that her clients could use on their eyebrows in the comfort of their homes. (Salifa Karapetyan, Seychelles News Agency) Photo License: CC-BY

Kreole Kosmetics can be obtained directly from Rose. At the moment, a price has not been set.

As a Seychellois who lived in England for 16 years, Rose said that when she got to Seychelles, she was taken aback by the fact that most people only focused on their hair and not much on their makeup. With the aim to empower others to take better care of their appearance, she opened her makeup business in Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, a few years back.

"I also noticed that if you are not travelling, you cannot really get as many things here in Seychelles, even the most basic items, like eyebrow pencils. I noticed that people here use eyeliners on their eyebrows, which is a big no-no," she continued.

Rose explained that at times, clients are unable to come across concealers locally that do well with the different Creole skin tones. To solve this problem, Rose placed together a concealer palette consisting of 15 different shades.

Vanessa Petrousse, one of the attendees at the launch, told SNA that "the kit has everything that you need to take care of your eyebrows."

"The fact that they all come as a package is something that is really good and the fact that it is local makes it even better. I am not someone who used to wear makeup, but I have grown to love it. The fact that Anisa explained the newest trend and how to achieve it was eye opening," said Petrousse.

The Kreole Kosmetic kit has everything a person needs to take care of their eyebrows.  (Salifa Karapetyan, Seychelles News Agency) Photo License: CC-BY

Rose outlined that trending at the moment is natural looking eyebrows that should not be too prominent.

While presenting her kit to a small group of invitees at the launch of the brand, Rose gave a demonstration on how to use the kit, showing the order in which, the items should be used and how.

First, a client should brush out their eyebrows, cutting off any excess with the scissors. Using either the razor or tweezer, one shapes the eyebrows in a natural manner and fills in any gaps with the pencil from the kit. The concealer comes on last and is applied using a flat concealer brush.

"If you are going to put any concealers under your eyebrow, try to make it at least one tone lighter than your own skin tone. By doing this, your eyebrows will pop. Because you have the kit with you at home, even if you are not going anywhere, just practice on your eyebrows because the more you do your makeup, the better you get at it," advised Rose.