Suesh Airbrush Workshop

Last July 16, I attended a 1-day Airbrush workshop conducted by Dara Plan at Suesh's Showroom and Studio at Wilson, Greenhills, San Juan. I initially thought that it was just a half-day workshop but according to Sheryl of Suesh, they extended it by starting at 10 AM instead of the usual 1PM so the participants can actually do more of the hands-on exercises and avoid having to extend until 8 or 9PM in the evening.

The workshop was very helpful especially for people like me who have never actually done airbrush make-up before. Dara went through the history, uses, parts and other trivia about the airbrush system before going into the basics of how to use it. What's nice about this workshop was that Suesh provided the compressors, guns and make-up that we would need care of Glambox. This was a big plus especially for me, who wanted to try out aibrushing first before getting myself a kit. It was also a great advantage for all of us since other workshops would require you to bring your own system. The Glambox system is a lot similar to Dinair's personal pro system. Both the guns they use were single action and much easier to handle than the dual-action gun especially for beginners. Both their compressors were also lightweight. The only difference is that Glambox's make-up is silicone-based while Dinair's is water-based.

Anyway, the workshop reminded me so much of Art Class. I totally had a blast spraying "colored-water" on paper either on grids, lines or circles.

Dara also did a demo during class. The airbrush make-up she applied was hardly noticeable. You'll just see that the model's skin seemed flawless after the airbrush application which was great!

But the best part was actually having to put on the airbrush make-up on our own faces. It was really very difficult at first as I cannot clearly see the results, or maybe it was because I didn't know what to expect. Anyway, the make-up really did feel light on the skin. I actually tried to keep it on for a few hours just to test its lasting powers. It did last alright but it started to feel a little sticky after about three hours. I think it would've been better if we tried to set it with powder just to make it matte for a longer period of time. Honestly, prior to this workshop, I was so sure of buying the Temptu Pro Airbrush kit and was actually saving up for it. But since Temptu is also silicone based, and thus might also feel a little sticky after some time, it made me reconsider and think about getting maybe the Dinair kit instead.

Overall, I think the Php 3,000 they charged us for the workshop was reasonable. I learned a lot from the practice sheets and the demo that Dara did but  I think it all boils down to practicing on your own. Just like doing traditional make-up, you really have to practice, practice and practice in order to get the results you want.

On the Prowl for the Perfect Airbrush Kit

Since February, I've been hunting down the best airbrush kit for personal and professional use and I've listed down the choices below:

1. Dinair -
Foundation Deluxe Kit, $199 in the US, but being sold locally for Php 11,000.

This kit is perfect for beginners/intermediate users and is quite compact at merely 2x3x4 inches in size. Dinair uses water-based make-up which according to many is more friendly to the skin, unlike silicone-based airbrush make-up. However, it leaves a matte finish compared to the dewy finish of silicone-based brands. This can be resolved if you want to achieve the dewy finish with the moist & dewy product they are including with every kit.

I was alsmost sure of buying this kit, given that it's been around for a couple of decades now. But now I am having mix emotions about it. According to some, you cannot use silicone-based make-up with this kit. This would be such a drawback should there be a need for me to switch between water-based and silicone-based make-up. I'd love to be able to have that choice available just in case I would need it.

I checked with the local distributor if I can use it with silicone-based make-up and they said yes, so long as  I clean it right after use. But I've read somewhere that it would void the warrany and would cause damage to the system. So I'm now kind of skeptical about it.

Dinair is locally distributed by Sugar and Jojo of Airbrush Make-Up Manila.

2. Temptu -
Temptu Pro Airbrush Intro Kit, sold locally for Php 33,600

It includes S-One Compressor, a starter pack including 1/4 oz. bottles of all 12 S/B Foundations, 7 S/B Blushes & Highlighters, 1 oz. Primer, 4oz. S/B Airbrush Cleaner, 1oz Airbrush Moisturizer, 1 Concealer Wheel,  101 DVD, Airbrush Cleaning Kit, and an SP-35 Airbrush.

Temptu is another known brand in the make-up industry and there system can use both water-based and silicone-based make-up, making it a bit more expensive than Dinair.

As much as I would want to purchase this kit, its local price is really pretty insane! The S-One compressor, priced at US$195 only is being sold for Php 14, 800 and the portable Temptu Air, priced at US335 is being sold for PHp 40,000++. Quite a mark-up really. I have yet to find a cheaper distrubutor and someone who can buy it for me from abroad before I can consider this as an option.

Temptu is available at Pure Beauty ,Serendra

3. Sparmax Kit

The Sparmax system is the kit normally used with OCC Airbrush Make-up. Being dual action, in can also use both water-based make-up (OCC, Dinair, etc.) and silicone-based (Temptu).

The kit (compressor + airbrush gun) is being sold locally for Ph15,500. Quite reasonable, making me actually consider it more than Dinair, but I have yet to get enough information from actual users before I can be totally sold on this.

The kit is available locally thru HD Makeup Studio & Academy.








There are other cheaper brands available locally like the Glambox Airbrush System and AirtechPro but I feel they're more for personal than professional use. Or am I wrong???

Until now, I'm still quite undecided as to which airbrush kit to get. Any airbrush users out there willing to help me out decide? I would love to hear your experiences and recommendations...