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Industry authorities give us their answers on beauty, style, and more.

Face Value
Beauty guru, product inventor, and cancer survivor Ramy Gafni explains how minimum makeup can yield maximum results.
By Marissa Kristal

When did you first develop an interest in makeup artistry?
It all began when I was four years old. I discovered my mom’s lipstick, and I loved the way the product smelt and her whole application ritual. As a child, I would use both real makeup and magic markers to do makeovers on my sister’s Barbies, and in college, I was the go-to guy for Halloween and party looks. Soon after, my relatives asked me to do the makeup for their weddings, and eventually, I dropped out of law school and decided to pursue beauty full time.

Was that when you moved to Australia?
Yes. I moved there to attend beauty school and serve as an apprentice to established makeup artists. After that, I freelanced throughout Europe and then returned to New York, where I took a job with Bobbi Brown and later was named makeup director at the Brad Johns Salon. At the salon, I became well known for eyebrow shaping, built a celebrity following, and was also diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Although I had to endure chemotherapy and radiation treatments, I continued to go to work every day until the tail end of my treatment, when I lost my job and was forced to work from my apartment. Fortunately, the press was very good to me, and I kept getting quoted in magazines as a makeup and eyebrow expert.

How has your battle with cancer influenced your perspective on beauty?
Although I always had a passion for beauty, I started to truly understand the power of makeup when I began working with people who were living with cancer. I saw how empowered they were after a makeover—how looking their best lifted their spirits and how I could use makeup to help others bring out the best in themselves. Shortly after that, I decided to start my own brand, Ramy Beauty Therapy. As a makeup artist, you always say, “If this was my brand, this is what I’d do,” so when I lost my job during cancer treatment, I thought, “Now is as good a time as any.” Since I was just regaining my health then—I’m cancer-free and in perfect health today—I wanted to use skin-friendly ingredients that included the best possible mix of science and nature. We launched at Bergdorf Goodman in 1999, established RamySpa in 2004, and now we’re sold at numerous online sellers and at spas, boutiques, and department stores around the world.

You’ve said that the brand’s philosophy is “minimum makeup, maximum impact.”
Yes. As a makeup artist, I learned that if you use the correct colors and multipurpose formulas, you can achieve any look, from natural to dramatic, with minimal product and effort. When I founded the brand, I applied the same philosophy to the line, and my first 15 products were designed as the essentials. We’ve since expanded the line to include more than 100 products, but that first batch still includes all the basics that women really need. The names of those products—Laugh, Smile, Chutzpah, Celebrate, Alive, and so forth—reflected the fact that I had regained my health as well as the brand’s positive philosophy.

And these products are also multipurpose?
Yes, most of the products in the Ramy Beauty Therapy line can be used in a number of ways. Our Face Glosses and Multiple Sticks works on eyes, cheeks, or lips. The Liquid Foundation dries to a powder, and the Skin Stick Concealer does double-duty as an eye moisturizer made with rose extract and vitamins A, C, E, and K. The Elixir Primer reduces redness, puffiness, and chafed skin, while the Powder Blush can be used as an eyeshadow.

You’re known as the Willy Wonka of the beauty world. What does this nickname mean?
When I started the brand, I knew we could create a point of difference by offering items that were new, unusual, and truly innovative. We’ve achieved that goal with products like the Bath-A-Rama Portable Bubble Bath Soap, a reusable bubble bath that smells like candy, and the Whipped Liqui-Air Color Blush; everyone thinks it’s a nail polish, but it’s actually a liquid that blends into a micronized powder that offers airbrushed color for cheeks. So I’m known as the Willy Wonka of the industry for our innovation—along with the fact that I love chocolate!

You’ve worked with some of the world’s hottest stars—Halle Berry, Lindsay Lohan, Nicole Richie. How can real women get a celebworthy look without compromising their natural beauty?
I’ve got lots of tips to help women achieve a clean, unfussy look. First, when you’re feeling pale, blah, or like something the cat dragged in, apply a liquid gel bronzer, like our Sun Smooched Bronzer, to five points of your face: forehead, cheeks, chin, nose, and neck. You can also mix the bronzer with your favorite moisturizer beforehand. Next, wake up tired by applying a moist concealer all around entire eye area, including from the lash lines to brow bones. To draw attention away from bags or puffiness, define the upper lash line with a neutral mahogany liner. If you use our Perfect Eye Wand Liner, you can flip the wand over and sweep the neutral eye shadow end across the crease for a flawless daytime look or, for the world’s fastest smoky eye, sweep the shadow end over entire eyelid. And for a modern day-into-evening effect, instead of piling on dark colors, retexturize your look by adding a gloss to your eyelids, upper cheekbones, and the center of your lower lip. This adds a great sheen and makes your face look lit from within.

What can we expect next from Ramy Beauty Therapy?
I’m going back to my roots to launch Eye Grow Brows, a product that stimulates brow and eyelash growth. It’s amazing and will be available in about a month. I’m also working on a new Total Eyebrow Kit, and we’re repackaging our award-winning Triumph Mascara Revitalizer with our One Stop Shopping Mascara as a boxed set called Lash Extension 101. I’m also working on some very innovative skin-care products that we hope to launch next year. And who knows what crazy ideas I’ll come up with next?

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