An Interview with Jerrod Blandino

Happy Friday everyone! Today I’ve got a much anticipated interview with Jerrod Blandino from Too Faced. As you know, I won the August 2012 Too Faced Beauty Blogger of the Month award, and one of the perks was being able to interview Jerrod Blandino. I am very excited to share this interview with you!

1. I know and LOVE that Too Faced is a cruelty-free brand. One of the questions that my readers wanted me to ask is whether or not you have plans to ever sell Too Faced in China?

I love animals. I always have. Being cruelty-free is not an option for us, it’s part of who we are. We do not plan to enter China’s market until alternatives to animal testing methods are accepted by their government.

2. How do you decide what the next ‘it’ colors will be?

I draw inspiration from so many different facets of my life. From the latest fashions in Vogue Italia to different textures and fabrics in interior design, even details in metallic, sparkly car paint or the color of different confections… It’s a mix of my own intuitive thought plus all the inspiration that I draw around me.

3. What are your favorite shades from the La Creme lipstick line? Do you feel any of the shades are universally flattering?

I love a strong, bold lip! Fuchsia Shock is such a modern, beautiful color that really does look good on everybody. Popping on a bright lip color is the easiest way to looking pretty and polished in no time. If that’s too much color for you, I suggest Honey Bear from the spice family. This pinky mauve is a gorgeous neutral that doesn’t overpower your face, and it adds the perfect amount of definition to your natural lip.

4. What is your favorite trend that you’ve created?

There are so many! We created the first glitter eye shadow and we developed Lip Injection, which is the most efficacious lip plumper on the market. Even recently, the process of reinventing Asian BB Creams and turning them into a more makeup-centric product for our audience with Beauty Balm Multi-Benefit Skincare is a trend that I am so happy to be a part of.

5. Do you have any plans for another collaboration collection? (like the Smurfette collection)

Absolutely! Our team is always being approached by studios, celebrities and makeup artists, so you never know what’s around the corner.

6. Are there any products that you feel don’t get enough love?

Based on the ratings and reviews, every single Too Faced product on the market is loved by someone. I’m always striving to make amazing and innovative products for my Too Faced girls to love even more.

7. What is your favorite product this year?

The amount of feedback that I’ve received on 3-Way Lash Lining Tool is absolutely incredible. I love exposing women to new easy techniques that take the mystery out of their makeup, and 3-Way does just that. To be able to use this to dot between the lashes for extra emphasis, then to use it as a basic eyeliner is great for women who want amazing eyes in no time. Another product I really love from our Fall 2012 collection is La Crème. The formula and packaging are so luxurious. I’m so glad I was able to develop a variety of colors for women to choose from. We curated them into four color families (Nude, Pink, Red, and Spice) of the most wanted, most relevant shades to create the perfect lip wardrobe.

8. What’s the most challenging thing about running Too Faced?

Finding the time to do everything I want. As soon as I get into the office, it’s meeting after meeting. I like having face time with all the different departments to make sure that we have a collective vision of what it means to bring Too Faced to life every day.

9. What are your favorite makeup tricks?

Prep work with primers! If you take the time to apply primers – Primed & Poreless Face Primer, Shadow Insurance Eye Shadow Primer, Lip Insurance Primer – before applying the rest of your makeup, you can lock down color for all day wear and minimize the amount of touch-ups you’d need. It’s the best 5-second trick, I share it with all my girls.

10. If we listened to your music play list, what would we find on it?

I love music that moves me and makes me move! It’s not unusual for me and my team to have sing-offs during meetings. Everything from vintage Madonna to Depeche Mode to The Killers, to one of the BEST Too Faced girls – Carrie Underwood, I love a good beat and meaningful lyrics. Oh, my summer jam? Goyte! I can’t always make out the lyrics, but what a great song.

Thank you so much Jerrod for allowing me to interview you!

You can follow Jerrod Blandino on Twitter.