Using the moniker “Makeup Mob” was no accident for D’Angelo Bethel. Because quite frankly, he’s been assassinating the local makeup artistry (MUA) game for several years now. Using his brushes and tools to paint, contour and transform the faces of many women, the Makeup Mob has solidified his place in makeup artistry in The Bahamas.

But what happens when you’re an MUA and you’re forced to shell out thousands of dollars each year to buy products from the likes of MAC, Smashbox, Covergirl, Color Pop and other brands to keep your craft poppin’? Well, if you’re anything like D’Angelo you rival them and create your own makeup line.

Introducing…PuckerUp Cosmetics

I got my hands on a few tubes of PuckerUp and I love!!!!! The colors are so warm, but still so bold and apply so smoothly. I’ve been wearing them for a few days now and I had to share the good news. Being the reporter that I am, (nosy, really) I had to get the deets on these new lippies!

“PuckerUp is going to be a full makeup line by next year and I’m super excited about its growth,” D’Angelo says. “We’re starting off with just lipsticks, glosses and pencils now, but we’re soon moving into eye shadows, foundations, powders, and all other makeup products you can get from other brands.”

With colors that rival the hues of the most beautiful bougainvillea flowers, compete with the pinks of the Eleuthera sands and can stand toe to toe with with the shades of an island sunset, D’Angelo says, that’s exactly the mood of the brand; vibrant, bright, island colors. That’s PuckerUp Cosmetics.

Top: Matte liquid lipstick “Brooklyn” Middle: Matte liquid lipstick “Relevant” Bottom: Matte lipstick “Hot Tamale”

“I’m thinking junkanoo! We have bright pinks, poppin’ purples, bold reds, delicious oranges, just beautiful colors that complement all skin tones, all ages, all races. I plan on visiting several carnivals throughout the region to see if I can tap into those markets there. Let them see that PuckerUp Cosmetics go well with everything because they’re vibrant and reflect our culture, our colors, our beautiful traditional events.”

What seems like it may have happened overnight, was actually a labour of love. Over the past two years the Makeup Mob says he’s been slaving over the new brand, travelling, mixing and finding the right colors and using the safest ingredients and contents. D’Angelo is working with a lab out of Toronto, Canada to develop the very best products.

“I love getting my hands dirty,” he says. “For me, I love the chemistry of it all just mixing colors and getting in the lab. Of course all of our PuckerUp Cosmetics products are made from the very best ingredients and are hypo-allergenic and not tested on animals. I’ve been an MUA for a very long time, and I pretty much just listened to my customers, heard what they wanted in their products and I delivered.”

D’Angelo hosted a small launch for PuckerUp Cosmetics several weeks ago but he’s planning a bigger launch to show off even more goodies.

“I can’t wait to get more colors on the line and bring out our eye and lip kits next year when we really present the line to the public,” he adds. “I’ve also been handpicking several local MUAs who I want to test PuckerUp products on their clients. I’ve been using the products on a while on my clients and they absolutely love it, it’s just been growing from there. I’m really trying to get a big name international celebrity to be the face of PuckerUp Cosmetics so we could really get the brand out there and take it international so people throughout the region and the world knows about us.

“About the name,” he adds laughing. “People always commented on my lips and they’re one of the most beautiful parts of the body. So what else would you do with your lips? PUCKER UP!”

From mattes and satin finishes, clear lip glosses, lipsticks and lip stains, get your hands on these gorgeous lippies!

They’re on sale at The Nail Lounge, Parliament Street and at Bliss Wax Boutique, On the Way Plaza, Saunders Beach.

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