Embrace Your Natural Glow: Tips from Celebrity Makeup Artist Christina Flach

Welcome back to the Real Life Momz podcast. This is a place where we can take a break from the chaos of parenting and take time to focus on ourselves. I'm Lisa Foster, your host. And today we're discussing beauty from the inside out. And I'm here with fellow mom, Christina Flach.

She is a celebrity makeup artist and the CEO and founder of Pretty Girl Makeup. She inspires women to be the best version of themselves and to overcome life's greatest obstacles.

Hi, Christina. Welcome to the show. Hi. Thanks so much for having me. 

 I love the message you convey on your brand. The importance of that inner beauty. Can you talk a little bit more about what really inner beauty means to you and why you're so passionate about it? Because I think, you know, people get, have this misconception about, you know, that makeup and taking care of oneself is, It's superficial, and I disagree.

I think, you know, we all try to look our best when we go out. We want to feel our best. So when I speak about beauty from the [00:01:00] inside out, to me that means what we eat, what we drink, our rest, our exercise, laughter, joy, gratitude. These are all the things that make you beautiful from the inside out. When someone is happy and positive, They have a totally different energy than someone that has, you know, a difficult attitude.

Um, and also I believe it makes my job easier when my clients take good care of their skin, obviously. So, you know, I'm all about drinking the water with the Bragg's apple cider vinegar, lemon first thing in the morning, the green juice. not drinking a lot of alcohol, and getting enough rest and taking care of our skin.

It's super important, with the vitamin C serums and the different moisturizers and oils on our face. So when I talk about beauty from the inside out, that's where I'm coming from. Oh, I love that. I love that nutritional aspect of it. Cause I think we forget how important that is to our skin.

It just seems like we think about it as [00:02:00] weight loss or heart health, but the skin they say, right, is the mirror to. Your inside really, right? Absolutely. It definitely is. And it just, you know, people want to cover up with makeup and, you know, I don't agree with that. I mean, makeup is, is supposed to make you look like a better version of you, but it's also supposed to just enhance.

It's not supposed to completely mask. Your your face and your skin. So, when I, do makeup on a client, it's all about making sure that the skin is prepped well and having, you know, just hiding gently the, the flaws that we all have the dark circles or the blemishes that, you know, everyone gets.

So if there's someone who really wants to work on that inner beauty to start, because that seems like the foundation, like you could put foundation on your face, right? But you need the foundation to, to start with. What would you tell moms to start with? What would be that first thing?

Well, first thing is stop making excuses behind your [00:03:00] children. Oh, I have so much to do because I have five children. So don't tell me you're so busy. Okay. Cause I have a pile of children. Self care is not selfish. It actually makes you become a better version of you. I'm able to take care of all my children and my coworker and my clients, everything, because I've taken a bit of time to work out to make sure that first thing in the morning I have my water.

I have my green juice. I have my tea. I make sure that I've slept. It is super important sleep. It's not called beauty rest for. No reason at all. It really is the key to everything. When you're rested, you just feel better. And I think, you know, just taking a few moments, you don't need to spend an hour on your makeup at all.

You need to just be able to cover up, the dark circles. You know fill in the brows make your eyes look a little bit more bright And a little bit of color on your cheeks and your lips and you're ready to go out the door It literally you can spend five minutes on [00:04:00] yourself.

It'll make a huge difference and I just know we're all visual people and when we take a moment to just look like the best version of ourselves, even if it's just five minutes, we're going to feel better. Our attitude is going to be more positive. Our confidence is going to be greater than it was when we're just, I mean, when I wake up in the morning and I look, I look at myself, I think, how, what happened?

I went to sleep. I know I didn't look this unfortunate when I went to bed. I wake up, I look like I got beaten with the ugly stick. So, it's just important in the morning to wake up. I use the little you know, those jade roller brushes I keep one in the freezer Roll my eyes out in the morning put some moisturizer on and then start my day and it just makes me feel better Yeah, That's such a good point because granted, I think the busy thing that parents say all the time, I'm too busy, I'm too busy.

But there is an excuse factor. And I also think we just forget about ourselves. Like I know that I [00:05:00] get up, I'm like busy doing stuff. And then I'm like, Oh my God, I'm walking out the door to go to work. And I haven't really looked in the mirror. Thank goodness I brushed my teeth, maybe some deodorant, which is good.

Awesome. And helpful. You're already ahead of the game. Yay. And everybody appreciates it also, I know, but the makeup thing, I mean, I, I also don't know what to do. I'm going to be honest. I have to. Yeah. I have this makeup. 

That is fair. Bag that I swear I have had since high school and I know I've watched a video of yours that was shocked because there's like expiration dates on I think we should probably highlight because I swear my my makeup is probably like five years plus I know right.

Sorry No, it's fine. It's just like, for example, mascara last two to three months, get a new one. They're not that you can get them at CVS, get them somewhere that are reasonable. I'm actually starting a new company. I just trademarked, I'm too busy for [00:06:00] skincare and cosmetics because I hear this all the time.

People don't know what to do. They've been doing the same makeup routine since high school. And now there are 45, 50, 60 years old. They're like, okay. I know there's got to be some other thing to do, and so I want to make it simple. You don't need to have, you have to remember when you go to a department store or to a Sephora or an Ulta, they are there to sell you products.

They're not really there to train you. That's not their job. They're there to sell you products. So you don't need to buy just because you saw it on Instagram or Tik TOK. It doesn't mean it's appropriate for your lifestyle. If you're a CEO or you're an executive or your mom, you're just going to a PTA meeting, whatever it is you're doing.

That's not. Those things the baking and the contouring that's not appropriate for an everyday person to go out into the world I mean I do I still do photo shoots. I never do all of that show on my clients. It doesn't happen. First of all, I don't have time. And second of all, it's a, it's distracting. So I don't want my clients to feel [00:07:00] distracted when they go in front of the camera.

I want them to feel like the best versions of themselves. And so I just make sure that, you know, the, the dark circles are gone and the brows are filled in, the cheeks are, have a little glow and the lips are, Have a little bit of color. And that's really all you need to do. You don't need a million things.

You need a mascara, an eyeliner, some neutral eyeshadows, a bronzer, and some blush, and something for your lips. That's it. You don't need an obviously concealer because concealer is literally everything to me. I'll do a couple of two or three, you know, very thin, rounds of it under the eyes while, when I start some foundation, obviously, and then, sunscreen is super important.

Sunscreen is 365 days of the year, even if it's raining, even if it's snowing, you need it. Consistency is everything with your skin. You need to protect it. And you will be surprised, your, your face will look like it's taken care of. It will look hydrated and fresh and dewy. And that's, That's all it [00:08:00] needs to be.

It doesn't need to be this whole big thing. It needs to be simple So you can do it every day. I mean I get told by clients all the time Oh, I bought this whole new skincare regime. It's so amazing It's 19 steps and i'm like, okay, how many times are you going to do those 19 steps? I did it once. I go, well, how long have you had it?

I don't know, about a year. So I started, I'm too busy. So it's three steps. We're doing a reverse cleansing, which is really interesting. I, I love working with these beauty chemists, these scientists, they're fascinating. My beauty chemist is, the man that invented the urban decay, the setting spray.

He's amazing. And so he asked me what I did first thing in the morning. And I'm like, Oh, well, I splashed my face with water and he's like, ding, ding, ding, ding wrong. I'm like, what, what do you mean? He goes, no. He goes, do you drink the water out of your faucet? And I'm like, hell no. And he said, well, why would you put it on your face?

 If that's what dries your skin, because the minerals, the chlorine and God knows what's in our water. Right. So we're doing a reverse cleansing, which means we [00:09:00] put, The cleanser and the moisturizer on the face and as a barrier, and then the water to take it off. And then we have the third step is to protect the skin.

From the elements. So I think three steps is doable for, you know, the average person, they will do three steps. They're not going to do, you know, 19 or 10 or whatever. So we're doing that. And then with, with the makeup, I want everyone to just be able to be confident that I'm a makeup artist. I want you to look like the best version of you.

So I'm not going to sell you a bunch of things that you don't need. Why are you going to have confidence? And that's another thing. If you think about it, why are our customers going to have any confidence in a brand when they're being sold things that they don't use? All they're going to think is that brand just sells me a bunch of stuff that that's like not necessary.

You know, I have clients that will bring me, I'll do a consultation and they'll bring me all their makeup. And it's like, more than I have in my whole kit, which I have, you can imagine tons of things. I [00:10:00] go, how many of these products do you use? And they're like, I don't know, four or five.

So those things that you have that you get gift with purchase that we all love to get, put them in little gift bags and 

give it to your friends. And get rid of it. I mean, believe me, I've done the same thing. Like, Oh, I'm going to use it one day. I don't even use it in my kit for my clients.

So simplify your life and just use the products that you need to look like the best version of you. So much information. Awesome. If I'm a busy mom, right? Busy mom. That's who we're talking to. And I don't know how to apply makeup maybe correctly air quotes. So can you walk me through like, just, Easy, maybe three products.

How to apply it. Absolutely. What do I do? I'm on my way to work. I'm busy, but I want to walk out of my home with confidence. I want to feel good that I took care of myself even in this little bit. So, okay. So first things first moisturize the face. Okay. After that, we're going to [00:11:00] do some concealer underneath the eye and on the eyelid.

The eyelid, everyone has discoloration. We have veins, we have pink, we have dark, we have all kinds of colors going on. So when you think about it, when you paint a wall, you put a primer down first, right? So what we want on your eyelids, so we can see the true color that we're going to put on there is we want it to be just an even color.

We put some concealer underneath the eye and then on the lid use, Oh, another thing, wash your makeup brushes, ladies, super important, wash them. Soap, water, conditioner. You can use vinegar and olive oil to disinfect and get it all off. I did a segment on NBC on California Live on cleaning makeup brushes.

Needs to be done at least once a week. Back to the face. So once we've got the eyelids done underneath and on top, And can I, can I ask you one more question? Cause I'm really like basic at this. Is concealer the same as foundation or is that totally different? It can, you [00:12:00] can use a foundation, but a concealer is a little bit thicker and you want to moisturize one and you don't want to put powder underneath the eyes shows fine lines and wrinkles.

So after we put on an eye cream or a moisturizer, we'll put on just a concealer, which is a little bit heavier to just kind of tone down the darkness underneath the eyes and on the lids. Use a makeup brush, use your fingers. Whichever you're more comfortable with. Um, then we're gonna go fill in the brows.

All brows need just a tiny bit. You can use a shadow, you can use an eyebrow pencil. Totally up to you. Either work. Then, the, back to the eyelid. We're gonna get like a creamy color eyeshadow on the whole lid. We want it light. And in here, in these little dark, in the corners of your eye, like right there, it's always a little dark.

You wanna make sure especially that that's lightened up. Then we go to an eyeliner. We'll get an eyeliner. We'll start in the corner, go to the other corner, and you want it thin in the lashes. You don't want it too thick because that's going to shrink your eyes. We want our eyes to look bigger. So we're going to make a [00:13:00] thin little line in the right above the lashes and underneath the lashes in the lash line.

Then you can use a shadow to go on top. It'll give a little longevity. It will also correct any mistakes that we've made and also soften the look a bit. You can use, if you don't have an eyeline pencil, you can use an eye shadow to go underneath the eye, either work. You can fill in, people complain a lot about hooded eyes.

 Like, you know, we have a crease. If you want to put a little shadow, you're going to look straight into the mirror and create your own. Crease, but that's might get a little too complicated for someone, but just keep it light Okay, so we'll leave it at that we'll just do the liner top and bottom Okay, and the lid and then the mascara you're gonna get your brand new mascara and we're gonna start You know in the corner go all the way to the end and extend it in the outer corners of the lashes Top and bottom.

You don't have to do bottom. Some people get a little teary [00:14:00] so their mascara runs So just put it on the top and do a couple Of you know rounds of it of the mascara out in the corner totally pops the eyes you've got your brows filled in and then you know put a little bit of uh, You've got the foundation all over the face Get a little bit on your neck just for protection and then put a little bit of blush Or some bronzer and then fill in your lips and that's it.

You're done out the door So should take like five minutes. It doesn't sound five minutes. It's not long doing okay Yeah, and don't worry you q tips are your friend you can Do something and it's not going to last forever. Try something different. We did a really fun thing on California live.

We did a, um, a beauty dare, beauty dare challenge. And what that was for those of us that were a ton of makeup, tone it down like five notches. And those of us who were very little or none, take it up a few notches and see, do it for a week. [00:15:00] See how you feel. And it was so interesting how many people were so incredibly uncomfortable.

with changing the way they do their makeup. People have been doing, it's almost like a mask. And the ones that felt the most uncomfortable were the ones that had the same routine of a lot. They have big black heavy eyeliner, liquid liner, which I don't think is appropriate for day. Um, I just think it's a little harsh.

You know, you just don't need that. Save that for when you're going out, um, or to an event or something. So it was really interesting to hear how many people felt so incredibly uncomfortable, toning down their makeup. The ones that, you know, did it up a little bit, they were like, Oh, wow, I do look a lot better.

So it was just interesting to feel like, why is it that you feel like you need this mask to go out into the world? Yeah, I love that question because either way like I obviously don't wear a lot of makeup Mostly because I don't know what I'm really doing and I just kind of [00:16:00] put myself towards. 

Oh, i'm just natural I'm natural, you know, that's part of you feel comfortable and confident confident That's great. You don't, I don't, that's what I'm saying. I don't like, I would like to look better. Cause I catch a glimpse in the mirror at like work or somewhere. And I'm going to have to do a little consultation when we get off this segment.

But, you know, think about this as well. I hear some, you know, and I have a ton of friends and they're like, Oh, I'm so busy with my life. And, you know, I'm doing and doing and doing and giving and giving for my kids. I think the best example that we can set for our children is balance and our kids. We want our kids to have a healthy, happy life.

They're going to emulate whatever it is they're seeing growing up. So if they see that we don't take care of ourselves, we eat poorly, we don't, you know, Do our makeup, our houses. That is the life our children are going to have. So it's important that we set a good example with our hygiene, with our [00:17:00] nutrition, with, you know, how we dress, how we take care of ourselves, how we present ourselves to the world.

They watch everything. I didn't even realize until a few years ago. My kids are older. My oldest is 30. Next one's 28, 23, 17. I was shocked that she said, you know, mom, your lectures on pretty much everything were lame. And, and I'm like, What are you talking about? They were award winning. And she's like, no, actually, the example that you set, how you take care of our house, how you treat people, how you, you know, how well you eat, your extras, all the things how, you know, your work ethic, all the things you do are so much more impactful.

So I was floored that she told me that, but it really, if you think about it, if we want our kids to have healthy, happy relationships with other people, with food, with exercise. They need to see you doing it. So you're doing no one a favor by being the martyr that you are. [00:18:00] That's what these mothers are.

They're martyrs. And I'm so tired of this, Oh, I do everything for my kids. I'm so tired. Well, don't. They don't care. They would rather you be a happy human. Then, you know, sitting there being a martyr telling everyone how hard you work and how exhausted you are. No one wants to hear it. Sorry. And we want them when their parents to take care of themselves.

So yeah, exactly. First now is important. Absolutely. So you are a celebrity makeup artist. And I have a question that I have to ask. Oh my gosh, tell me. Yes, is, is there a celebrity that you've worked with that really represents you and your brand that you feel like? Yes. This person definitely shows who I am.

And if so, why? Oh my gosh. There's so many of them that I just, I love them all. They're like, you can love them all, but do they represent you or, you know, what you stand for a lot of them really do men and [00:19:00] women. So I can't think of exactly one, but. You know, I would see Marie Barlomo. She's on Fox. Cameron Brink.

She's a Stanford basketball player. They just have a glow about them that I love that they look fresh and dewy and pretty. And that's kind of how I want my brand to be. But also my makeup artistry. I am represented by three different agents. I'm with Ford Artists, Zenobia. And Brandy moore. And I kind of have a certain, if you go to Christina Flach

com, you can look at my portfolio, my celebrities and my athletes and all the different people I work with and just see, they all kind of have the same, they don't look the same, obviously, but they have a S I have definitely have a certain style that I do makeup that, that looks like you'll like start singing and go, Oh yeah, she did their makeup.

Yeah. That's the brows are filled in. Their eyes are bright, their skin looks fresh and dewy . It sounds like they're all glowing is what you do. You make them glow from the inside out, right? [00:20:00] Yes. Well, I mean, also part of my job as a makeup artist, you know, I get someone in my chair and I have to figure out really quickly, what do they want?

Do they want quiet? Do they need a cup of tea, some water? Do they want silence? You really have to be very intuitive, which thank God I am, to people's needs and what they want. And so. I have clients sometimes that want to chit chat and then I have some that just want silence and so I have to be very respectful of them because I want them to be feel like I start with like aromatherapy and hand massage just to start because it kind of gets their face glowing and calms them down and they're in a good place.

And so I really just want them to feel when they leave my chair confident with how they look but how they feel. Hmm. I love that. Now I know there's a lot more to you than just the makeup. You have started some foundations for your son and your husband. Can you talk a little bit about what those are and why you're so passionate about that?

Yes. Well, I'm [00:21:00] very passionate about my philanthropic work. Um, my son, Beau passed away, uh, 17 years ago, um, on Christmas day. Okay. And so there's a school here in the Bay Area in San Francisco called the Northern Light School, and it is a private school for underprivileged children. And we have been, my family, my kids and I, 

we've been raising money for them, for, My gosh, like 17 years.

And then when my husband, Ken Flack, he was a professional former number one tennis player in the world. He was very involved with raising money as well for the school. So when he passed away six years ago, yesterday, actually, I wanted to start another fund for him as well. So we have the baby Beau fund and the Ken Flack educational fund at the Northern light school education and nutrition are incredibly important to me. 

Um, and I've And I want all the kids in the world to have the same experience my children have been blessed with. My son, my youngest son, Ben Beaus twin, um, [00:22:00] last October raised 71, 000 playing golf at the celebrity golf tournament. And he's been doing that for the last eight years. So he's raised over 200, 000.

Which I'm so proud of, but it's so funny. He's so humble and gracious. I'm like, man, you're so amazing. You know what you did today? And he's like, mom, I golfed and ate cookies. Like what's the big deal? And I'm like, Ben, 71, 000 is going to mean seven children can go to private school for an entire year.

Yeah. That changes lives, families, communities. And so I feel really proud of my family, for, for doing this. I just think it's, you know, especially with my husband being a professional athlete, you know, it's not all about just, well, what can we get for free? We get free tickets and all these great things that, you know, all the perks that you get being a professional athlete, family of, you know, And so it's not just that we have to use,, his name to help others.

And I think that's also helped with our grieving and healing our [00:23:00] process, um, having lost them way too soon. So it's, um, it's a big part of our life and, um, I feel really blessed to be a part of it. Well, I'm sorry for obviously your loss, but it's amazing what you're doing in their memory. So if there are links that we can put in the show notes to donate to those, that would Oh, that would be fabulous.

I would be so grateful. so much. Oh, we'd love to. So what can moms do today after, stop listening to this podcast, they're going out into the real world. What is that one thing you want them to start doing today? Laughing, taking care of themselves. Go have fun. Stop what you're doing and just say, fuck it and just go, go get your nails done.

Go get a massage, get your hair done. Just take a little bit time for yourself. You are going to be so much happier and such a better version of you. Your family's going to be like, Oh my gosh, this is so [00:24:00] great. Self care, I know I said it earlier, is not selfish. It is the greatest gift that you can give to your family is taking good care of you.

Go take a bubble bath. Go to bed early. Go read a book. Enjoy your life. If you want your kids to enjoy their life, start enjoying your own. And I love that you said, like, before even all the go get your nails done, laugh. Like laughing is free. It's also contagious. It's the best. It is. And it makes you glow.

It does. And if you think about it, look, we all have debacles. Okay. I mean, you can imagine with all my kids and all the stuff that goes on, look, we, the only thing that we control in our life is how we react to things. You know, when these things get, you know, I used to get angry about stuff like, oh, there's a mess and all this stuff.

And then I just started laughing because I'm like, okay, this just gives me comedy for my comedy routine, my mommy comedy routine, because, the best thing, my kids are so much happier when I'm happy. So how I've had to deal with these, [00:25:00] you know, bumps in the road, very big bumps,, I've had to learn to find a new normal.

I've had to learn to be happy and find joy in my life. And so, because if I'm a disaster emotionally, it's going to affect my children. And that's the last thing they need after all they've been through. Yeah, so true. So true. So where can the listeners find you and also tell us a little bit what you offer?

So you can go to Christina flach. com to see my makeup artistry and there's videos and, you know, how tos and everything. The show on, uh, California live on NBC, you can go to pretty girl makeup. com and see their products. We're offering a discount code with discount code, pretty girl for all your listeners.

And, on Instagram, Christina flach makeup and pretty girl makeup is P R E T T Y G I R L M K U P. I'm too busy. It's coming soon. Yes. I'm so excited about that. And I'll have all this in the show notes. Thank you so much. I [00:26:00] appreciate that. Yeah. And thank you for coming on and you just glow.

I can see it from just talking to you right now. I just really appreciate you talking to us about. Everything. Well, thank you so much. I appreciate you for having me. It was such a pleasure