Pancake makeup?

September 3, 2014

Couldn't think of a title for my post today, so I hope you get what I mean by "pancake makeup" by the time you finish this . . . By the way, did you know that the original Max Factor Pan-Cake makeup was used by 1 in 3 women in 1940? Which actually doesn't have anything to do with this post.


I have more respect for food stylists since I started blogging. These pancakes were delicious and I thought they looked beautiful on my plate, but after looking at the picture, I noticed one of them is "wrinkled." I don't think a food stylist would have let that get by.

I also noticed in my pictures smears of butter on my butter dish, sticky maple syrup marring the edge of a plate, and a carton of orange juice magnified ludicrously behind a bottle of sparkling wine.

So while the pictures aren't perfect, the breakfast itself was. 

Breakfast is usually catch-as-catch-can around here, but occasionally we'll have a nice brunch, especially on a holiday morning, like Labor Day. This was fairly simple; pancakes and fresh fruit, with mimosas for my husband and daughter and sparkling cherry juice for me. And lots of hot coffee, of course.



What makes any meal extra special, for me anyway, is using beautiful linens and china and silver. And always a candle or two.

My mother-in-law's silver and crystal. The champagne glasses are 65 years old now.


I found this little dish at a recent tent sale at our local antique mart. It's perfect for butter. I just cut the stick in half.


Mimosas are, of course, made with champagne and orange juice. But cheap champagne gives Mr. Beautiful a headache, and expensive champagne is, well . . . expensive. So I picked up this bottle of sparkling wine, mostly because it had a pretty label. It's called "Sofia," by Francis Coppola, the director, after his daughter Sofia, who is also a movie director.


from my Great Aunt Esther's coffee set

Chocolate chip pancakes, oh my . . . 


So after this lovely carb fest, I was ready to settle down with a good book and perhaps take a little nap later on. But my daughter wanted to catch some of the sales, and convinced me to go along.

A couple hours later, on our way to the mall, I realized pancakes and coffee were not going to carry me through a long afternoon. Didn't want to spring for a lunch out, and a Mrs. Field's cookie or something similar would just make me feel sick. I really need to keep some almonds and a protein bar in my purse.

But look what I found . . . 


Hard boiled eggs. That, with a pomegranate iced tea, got us through an afternoon of shopping.

I opened this tin to show you these chocolate-covered peppermints that I found at the counter. I haven't tried them yet, though.

Update: I just tried one. For blog research, you know. Quite tasty.

And while we looked at shoes and bags, it ended up being a makeup kind of day (get it? -- pancake makeup? sigh . . . I know). We went to the M*A*C store, and felt like kids in a candy shop (at least I did). I picked out four shades to customize a little eyeshadow palette. I only have browns, and wanted something different.

Lavender is supposed to go well with green eyes, which I have, and I like pink.


I wouldn't have picked these colors just by looking at them. But after sampling a dozen or so colors, I could tell these were my favorites, and would look good together.

As you can see, the pink in the upper right of the palette, which is the second to the left on my arm, is much lighter than you would expect. I can use the darkest one as an eyeliner as well as a shadow.

L to R: Yogurt, Da Bling, Blackberry, and Shadowy Lady
At Sephora, I got this pretty eyeliner pencil in Rockstar by Urban Decay. A nice change from the brown I've been using. I guess it's hard to tell, but it is a soft purply color. Above it is a swipe of Marc Jacobs Twinkle Pop Eye Stick in Honey Bunny, a pink shimmer-y color my daughter got. Both are super pretty and very easy to apply.


In addition to the Twinkle Pop Eye Stick (how fun is that to type?), my daughter got a shading brush and Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Rose Shimmer . . .


I have watched lots of makeup videos, and if I've learned anything about eyeshadow, it's blend, blend, blend. So I practiced today. I wasn't going for a smoky eye look, which is really popular, but way too much for me. I wanted something subtle and pretty for every day. The Da Bling went on the lid, the Blackberry in the crease, and the Yogurt in the inner corners of my eyes. I didn't use the Shadowy Lady today. After applying the new liner, I was quite pleased with the result.

Because I am car-less these days, I am "all dressed up with nowhere to go." But it is fine. I really do think it's important to feel pretty just for our own selves. And besides, Mr. Beautiful will be home later. ;)

26 comments

  1. OMG, I'm still using pancake make-up because one can apply it so sheer as it's water based, not oil based. And, I love Sofia !!! We only serve Frances Ford Coppola wines when we have a party at the house. Can't miss, and the prices are excellent. But Sofia is what I drink!!

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  2. What a lovely table setting and even better when you share it with family creating some lovely treasured memories. The pancakes and fruit looked delicious. Sounds like a great trip out.

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  3. I read the title and it immediately took me back to my days of performing in the ballet. We used pancake makeup for not just our faces - we used it to cover our pointe shoes when we needed a 'nude' look. Made me smile.:)

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  4. I love pancakes, but don't have them very often. Will have to make some soon. Thanks for the reminder. I like powder foundation (Mary Kay - similar to Bare Minerals). I like to use a primer underneath as it makes for a smoother complexion. As far as eye shadow goes, I don't use it. Usually just mascara but I like eyeliner, black or brown, at times. Makeup is fun to play with, isn't it? I enjoyed your post and am glad you had a good day with your daughter.

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  5. This whole post made me happy. Pure delight. :)

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  6. So, here I'm, about ten or so minutes after reading/commenting on your post and it just hit me what your blogpost title meant. I really can be so slow. ;)

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  7. you can style food all that you want but if it doesn't taste good it doesn't matter :) It looks good to me, and lol whenever I do a post about a recipe I usually stick a plate on the counter in my galley kitchen with my phone above the dish...

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  8. Your blog title made me just laugh and thanks for that! I love pancakes to eat but not for the face - too thick. You must of had so much fun with your daughter shopping after that wonderful breakfast. All the makeup looks so nice and enjoy.
    Julie

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  9. Dearest Deborah,
    You are so right about more and more admiring all those food and other stylists for magazines, books or whatever. Trying to do it ourselves at home, never works as smooth as they make us believe it looks like... But mainly that is because we are in a hurry. We have no maid that meanwhile takes care of laundry, mending, cleaning, shopping (groceries and not fun shopping!) etc.
    But you did pull off a very lovely brunch for Labor Day! Love your shopping afterwards too... regardless of the planned nap time!
    Hugs,
    Mariette

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  10. What a fabulous day this sounds Deborah! I would love to indulge in one of your pancakes right now-wrinkles and all!! We don't have this celebration in the UK as you will know--I do wish we did.
    Your make-up sounds such a treat and I have green eyes too so will be taking a peak at these colours, Lovely, uplifting post!
    Have a great day
    Alison xx

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  11. Pancakes sound wonderful...now you've got me in the mood! My daughter loves to make them for me, chock full of toasted pecan bits and served with simmered cranberries and real maple syrup. She and I love going to Sephora and just discovered Ulta- what a treat! Drug store and Sephora type cosmetics all in one store. I have green eyes too and like using purple shadows and eyeliners, although my latest thing is a subtle 'cat eye' winged eyeliner, nude lids and soft lip.

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  12. You had me from the title. The breakfast was lovely, and I could not agree with you more about the linens,etc. I'm such a stickler for linen and cotton instead of paper that we can be out of paper napkins for a month and no one notices because even for a simple breakfast or lunch, we use the cloth stuff.

    I love pancakes, but they do not love me for the reason you mentioned. They just don't last me.

    (Giggled at your blog research update. )

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  13. Love the title :)! And oh I do love beautifully set tables like this one; they are such a feast for the eyes. I have never enjoyed cooking, but I like putting together a pretty table. I enjoy the art of it, and yours is truly splendid.

    I never knew lavender eyeshadow went well with green eyes (like mine). I would never have thought of that. Sigh.... all those wasted years :)!

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  14. You have set a very pretty breakfast table, Deborah, and I didn't even notice the little imperfections... I love your dishes and pretty lace cloth and that sweet butter dish - so charming. Isn't it fun to play with make-up? You found some lovely colors to play with and I am especially intrigued by the liner. I might need to buy one of those, the color is really nice. I love the wine label - you might have to keep that bottle for flowers later on. I wonder if Mr. Beautiful noticed your new look - mine is totally clueless. If I complain he will ask me if I 'cut my hair'. But the nice thing is, he doesn't notice when I look awful either :) Enjoy those mints, they look delish. xo Karen

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  15. Your Labor Day meal looks so good! You have some real treasures.
    Buying makeup just makes you feel good, doesn't it? You'll have to model for us.
    Suddenly I am hungry for pancakes!

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  16. Hello Deborah... what an adorable post!... I love that you had to try one of those for "blog research"!... sounds like something I would do too!... and those pancakes!... yum!... and yes, I remember pancake makeup... I bought some when I was a teenager and wish I still had the cool compact it came in!... I also love that you use your precious family heirlooms... I am sure they are filled with many happy memories that come to life when you bring them out... hope you are enjoying a blissful September day... xoxo Julie Marie

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  17. I love the pancakes and makeup! The chocolate chip one would be my choice - oh my! Your table is lovely and we probably wouldn't have noticed the food stylist stuff!
    I just posted a tablescape and my favorite picture had to be retaken (and the lighting wasn't as good) since a spoon was out of place! You don't notice until you go big with it.

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  18. Your whole post is delightful, Deborah! That special pancake breakfast sounded wonderful and pretty and tasty. And I couldn't help focusing on your Nordstrom beverages and snacks...my all time favorite store because they're so customer friendly and you can return things anytime for any reason. I guess I'm going off on a tangent here. :-)
    Mary Alice

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  19. This was such a fun post! I remember pancake make-up well from my college days in the theatre department! I never really learned the art of blending eye make-up: when I try to do it, I just look silly! So, I generally just use color on my lid with a gray eyeliner. I'd love to learn how to do it properly: my daughter had a make-up person get us ready for her wedding, and I got many compliments that day about my eyes. It's an art to be able to do it well. Anyway, loved your post and your breakfast table looked delightful: warm and welcoming with some YUMMMY dishes!! Why am I suddenly craving pancakes (especially chocolate chip ones!)? Rosie @ he Magic Hutch

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  20. Hi Deborah, Love this post and spending some time at the table with you this morning. The pancakes look so good and your table setting is so inviting. Love your treasured silver and crystal. The covered butter dish is a gorgeous candlewick piece and I love it.
    Looks like you had fun at the makeup counters. Lovely shadow colors for fall too. Did I share with you, I was a makeup artist with Aloette cosmetics in the 80's. Yes I learned a lot and loved every minute.You are so right, blend, blend, and blend!! Have a nice first weekend of September.
    Blessings

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  21. Oh, I simply love breakfast, Deborah, so you had me at the title. Food is so fussy to photograph, and I too have respect for food stylists. My lobster dish photographed quite differently from the first plate I served which had a lot more sauce, but I chose to photograph leftovers so I could savor every moment of our Julia Child experience. I think our lives are not magazines, so I enjoy visiting blogs that share life's imperfections too.
    I MUST try that sparkling wine, love that label, the title, and goodness, Francis Coppola, this film lover is hooked.
    Love the makeup and agree that it's important to feel pretty for ourselves too.
    xoxo

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  22. Thanks for sharing all this beauty and fun with us! I LOVE pancakes. They are just about my favorite food. Sometimes I crave them and must make a batch for supper. My mom made pancakes for us every Sat. morning for decades. Sigh. I make a pretty fine 'cake, if I do say so m'self :) You're are a lovely color. It's BUTTER (and more butter) that makes a pancake delectable to me. Lots of butter, a little syrup :) And your china and elegant cloth (and that butter dish! Love the edge!) really made that breakfast look like a delight. Mimosas! Haven't had one in AGES!
    I don't really do much make-up, but I love to see how pretty and clean looking the products are, and yes, it's so fun to shop for! My favorite thing is going to a make-up counter at a nice store and having the girl apply make-up on me for 20 minutes. SIGH. Like a spa :) I don't always like how it looks, but it feels lovely :) Thanks for sharing your pretty day!

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  23. I love make up days. Those pancakes look delicious. This is the one down side of blogs, everyone makes food look so good, it just makes me hungry. Blessings, Martha

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  24. Your are too funny Deborah. I love how you associated food with pancake makeup. The pancakes do look delish but my favorite part of the post was the makeup since I am a makeup junkie. I do remember my mom and sister-in-law using the Max Factor pancake makeup. It is so nostalgic to me now. I also look at the makeup gurus on youtube to pickup tips. There are so many these days but you do learn a lot. In fact they got me started on organizing my makeup and closet with the Ikea Alex units... I love the MAC shadows you selected. Very pretty.

    It was a fun and different post to read. Thanks so much for your support and words of encouragement during a very difficult time for me. Having such a wonderful group of women such as yourself gave me the lift and strength needed to move on. I did take the advice of many of you and spent the weekend at the shore. You can see my pics if you visit me.

    Hugs and blessings,

    Janet

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  25. OMG! I still use Max Factor Pancake-Makeup, lol! It covers all and now it's made in Ireland. I've been using it for at least 30 years.
    You cracked me up sweet Deborah...so funny! Whenever I make pancakes for my G'girls I'm gonna remember you...hehehe..
    The tablecloth is gorgeous, as you know crochet ones are my weakness. Wish I could buy the wine called 'Sofia' spelled just like my DD Sofia's way. What a yummy breakfast and elegant too.
    Oh, and I buy make up all the time and of course, nail polish colors, as well...love it! This is a great post, made me smile.
    Enjoy the rest of the weekend.
    FABBY

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