Friday, October 29, 2010

Team Supastar!!!

Yesterday was amazing!  Earlier in the week, a designer that I was supposed to do makeup for LA Fashion Week contacted me and asked if I was interested in doing makeup for a photo shoot for her line sheets.  OF COURSE I was interested!

The Designer herself was incredible and such a pleasure to work with... and her clothes are just gorgeous... and oh so sexy!  The models were beautiful, which made my job extremely easy, and I was able to work with an amazing hair stylist.

I realized that I love doing what I do so much that it doesn't even feel like its work... but it is.  This was just another reminder that I am doing exactly what I have always wanted to do.  What's more rewarding is that I got to meet and work with some very talented people.

We got to see some of the pictures before I left, and I am so excited to get them and share with you all.  Ahhhh!  I know Photographers put in so much time and work in their art, but I just don't have enough patience to wait.  Eeeps!  Okay... I will have to wait because I know it will be worth it.

OH... and I am officially part of team SUPASTARRRRR!!  Whoot whoot...!

I was able to capture some pictures with my own camera and on my phone, but I think I should just wait for the REAL deal!

;)

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

LA Fashion Week was CANCELED

As most of you may already know, I was VERY excited for Los Angeles Fashion Week.  It was going to be my first ever Fashion Week to work on. 

Unfortunately, things didn't work out as planned.  My bookings for shows on Thursday, Wednesday, and Saturday night were for designers that was part of WCM (World Coast Management) were canceled.  You can read more here:  FashionWeekLA.com - WCM LAFW Canceled

I was so heart broken, but was still excited for Friday evening where I would be doing makeup for another designer at a different location (W Hotel, to be exact).  Anyway, the night before the show, I got another sad email saying that the show was also canceled due to being unable to obtain permit from the LA Fire Department.  :(  I felt like I was getting shot at and just dodged bullets to survive.  Okay thats a bit dramatic, but I was really really sad.

I guess it didn't work out so well for LA Fashion Week this season, but better luck next season. 

*sigh* 

Thank goodness I still had photoshoots lined up for that Sunday though or else I would have been really sad.  Hopefully I will get those pictures from those photo shoots soon and I can share them with you lovelies here.

Okay that's all.  I just wanted to update anyone who is interested and curious why I didn't post anything up from LA Fashion Week.

Hugs and Kisses!

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

All the FUN is Backstage... really!

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to work with some amazing Makeup Artists in downtown Los Angeles.  We worked on a theatrical fashion show, which turned out to be FABULOUS!  I cannot wait to get the pictures from the show to share with all of you. 

One of the most rewarding things about being a Makeup Artist is meeting and working with people who share the same passion as you.  Each one of these artists and I met for the first time backstage, and we just had SO much in common and to talk about.  We even had some down time to be silly and have a little fun.  Here are some of the pictures of us backstage.  I wish I could have taken more pictures, especially of the models, but working on a runway show, there is no such thing as time to take pictures of and/or with the models because our focus and attention is 100% on getting the job done.  There is no time out card or redo... its intense, crazy, and I love it! 

When I first walked in, there were about 30 makeup artists from a makeup school.  Boy, was I intimidated because I never went to makeup school.  After talking to some of them though, it was their first makeup gig, so I felt a little bit better about not having the background they did because I have experience to compensate (I think).  I must say though, that all of their skills were superb!  Lucky for me, I was one of the four makeup artists chosen to work upstairs... backstage during the show.  That means we were the chosen ones to do the harder work... the transition of about 7 or 8 looks between 40+ models within a two hour show.  Gosh... that was probably the most intense two hours of my life.  I loved the rush of it all though... and I definitely want to do it all over again.  Runway makeup is a challenge, but I love the adrenaline rush and I am up for that challenge!  :)

Oh... the glamour of BACKSTAGE! Haha...!
I need to go find me one of these hats. SO adorable!
Definitely need to start my own wig collection. They are SO fun!
"MJ! Can I have some lipstick too?" - haha thanks girl!
Showin' off our pretty lip colors... and hair colors too!
Hard at work... but it doesn't even feel like work!

Serious business. Look at that concentration! HAHA
With one of our beautiful models... the Queen. Her dress was so awesome... pure leather and it was so heavy! LOVE it!
Had to take a picture with one of the Hairstylists... thanks for my braid!
US with one of the best Makeup Artists in the area... Eric!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Soft & Pretty!

My next model is a young lady who has big beautiful eyes that I loved working with.  She is blessed with the most gorgeous long lashes I've seen in awhile.  Since she is so young, I didn't want to mess with her natural full eyebrows (which I love) too much... I liked how you can see that they were naturally kept.  She has beautiful thick hair which I attempted to put into a loose fishtail braid.  The layers made it a bit difficult, but it worked.  Such a natural beauty, I wanted to keep her look soft and pretty. Personally, I love the lip color I used.  It was a mixture of a few different colors that I had... and this is exactly why I don't stick with just one lipstick at a time.  Mixing and experimenting is more fun and I am pleased with my outcome.  Same goes for the cheeks.  Its normal to love your own work, right?  :)

Monday, October 18, 2010

Bronze Goddess

Its so hard to find anyone who doesn't look good as a bronzed Goddess.  This model is already beautiful, so my job was a breeze!  Her eyes are gorgeous, so I wanted to play that up more and leave the lips soft and neutral... but not nude enough to make her look pale.  She has a very strong jawline, so I wanted to contour and bring out her cheeks more.  Not to toot my own horn, but I think she looks amazing!

Rockin' it out...!

A few weeks ago, I was doing makeup for a photo shoot.  This is an aspiring model and these are a few of the headshots that she will be using for future bookings.  For this look, we wanted something simple, yet bold that would go with her outfit.  I figured a smokey eye is always good with the tough biker girl slash rocker outfit (hence the fishnets and the thigh high leather boots).  Though her eye makeup is already bold, I figured red lips would complete the look... and a little pop of color never hurt anyone, right? :)

Friday, October 15, 2010

UPDATE

Hey LOVES!

So yesterday, I picked up some pictures from a past photoshoot (not of me... yeah right! HA!).  I am so excited to share them with anyone who is curious.  They are just headshots again.  I am looking to do more editorial or beauty shots so that it would showcase more of my makeup artistry skills, but its been difficult to schedule something and to find the right photographers and models to work with me on those.  Its still in progress, but if you know of any editorial or beauty photographers in the LA area... AND models, please send them my way.  Also looking to find a muse or two to be the face of my work.  Interested and in the area?  Let me know!

Currently working on my website.  Its times like these when I wish I had more/better skills with web design and anything along those lines.  My website currently sucks and the one I am working on is not all that much better, but I like it just a tad bit more.  Hopefully I will get it up by today.  I am still frustrated with how I should structure my portfolio.  Any suggestions?  Anyone wanna lend a helping hand?  Pleeeeease?

Guess what!  I have another makeup gig next weekend and tomorrow, I will be helping with makeup for


I'm not exactly the key makeup artist, but I will be assisting her.  I am so excited just to see how this works and also gain the experience to work on a project like this.  I will try my best to take as many pictures as I can.  Its so hard to do so when you are running around like crazy at a busy production, but I promise to try my best.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend also! 

XOXO

Friday, October 1, 2010

Makeup - Young & Youthful

Whenever I am doing a young girl's makeup, it is so important for me to keep her youth and not go over the top with the "look" that I am giving or trying to achieve for her.  Whenever I feel that a model is more on the younger side, I tend to ask her how old she is.  In this photoshoot, the director wanted her to look young and fresh (as she is). 

What I did was conceal any "imperfections" (I hate that word) such as undereye circles and blemishes... without hiding her sweet freckles.  I hate sticking to only one color of concealer because no one's face is completely one color.  I almost always custom blend any foundation to fit my clients (again, I don't think its possible to have one color to suit each person I may work on)... so thank goodness for multiple colors that I can play with.  I also gave her cheeks a subtle peachy pink color with a bit of highlight at the top of her cheekbones and a soft stroke or two of bronzer at the hollow of her cheeks.  For her eyes, I wanted to make her pretty blues pop, so a shimmery light gold color at the inner corner of her eyes was what I chose.  After the foundation and concealers, we tend to lose a little depth in the eyes, so I used a light brown to bring back that depth.  I wish I remember what exact colors I use, but in such a rush, I don't usually pay attention to the name of the colors like most, I just try to find what looks good and move on (since we were in a time crunch).  Since I didn't give her eyes too much color, I figured that the pink lips would give her lips a slight pop... and it did.

Note:  It is so important to fill in eyebrows because it really defines the eyes and the face... especially when in harsh light (such as for a photoshoot).  It might look a bit harsh and dramatic in natural light, but trust that if you don't fill it in, your eyebrows will look thinned out and sometimes barely there if you don't fill it in.  But do NOT go overboard... no sharpie looks, please.