Lei's 8th Grade Dance H&M!

Who: Lei

What: H&M for an 8th Grade Dance

When: Friday, June 7

So how many of you remember your 8th grade dance? I DO! I DO! It was a looooooong time ago, but I still remember so many of the awkward details... like how I didn't have the foggiest clue how to dance, and how I still thought most of the boys were gross (except for a few). Fast forward a few years and here stepping in my studio is my friend from middle school, Micah, with her supersweet daughter Lei, getting ready for her own 8th grade dance! It was fun to reminisce as we started talking about all the things we remembered from our middle school days. What's even more crazy is finding out there are still teachers there today that taught when we were middle schoolers!

I was able to help Lei with some very simple makeup and a hairstyle she liked. We didn't have a lot of time, so the few after pictures I have were actually taken with my iphone. I didn't take any before shots  :)

We gave Lei some gorgeous, relaxed curls. She didn't want anything too curly so I intentionally didn't spray as much with hairspray so that the curls would loosen even more as time went on. She requested some kind of braid to be incorporated in, so I took the left side of her hair part, french braided out, then finished it up with a regular braid for the remaining strand.

Lei, I hope you had a super fun time at your 8th grade dance! Looking forward to hearing about your basketball glory in highschool :) You'll do great!

Micah, it really was a blast from the past to be able to catch up with you and see where life has taken us. I'm so happy for you!

Stefanie's H&M Trial!

Who: Stefanie
What: Wedding H&M Trial
When: Sunday, April 28

Thank you Brandon for introducing me to your sister, Stefanie! Meeting Stefanie was so much fun, and as we had the chance to share with one another during our H&M Trial, it turned out we had a lot in common! Yay for teachers! ... and super easy conversations, and similar approaches to relationships, and even to our one double eyelid vs. monolid!  :)

Makeup

Before and After #1



Before and After #2



Before and After #3
Making Stefanie's eyes pop was one of the things we focused on. With the thumbs up from Stefanie, I used some bolder lashes and rimmed her eyes using gel liner.


Hair

We ended up going with a half up-half down look, with some incorporated braids that Stefanie had requested.



Before and After
Front swoop and slight bump for some volume



Sides and profile views


Stefanie, you are an amazingly Godly woman and I'm so excited to hear of what future plans God has for you and Nathan, whether it be continuing on in both of your teaching, or possibly moving forward into missions work!

MUA and Hairstylist for a Retro Photoshoot!

Photo courtesy Jean Fernandez

What: Hair and Makeup for Retro Photoshoot

When: Saturday, April 27

Where: Santa Clara Studio

When George asked if I might be interested in helping out with a Retro photoshoot, I immediately knew I'd want to do it if all the timing worked out. And it did! Yay! There's something special about that era that I love... the simple bold eyes and daring lipcolor I'm especially drawn to.

As we were e-mailing back and forth with the details, it worked out that I would help our model Deanna with her hair too. I was excited and nervous since I had an idea for how the hair would look, but didn't know if it would turn out or not.

Thanks for the photo Bob! I started out with curling Deanna's hair first. We were on a time crunch, so the whole prep time for hair and makeup was under 1.5 hours. Eeks!

Before and After

I curled and pinned all of Deanna's hair first. While the curls were setting, we moved on to the makeup application

Please excuse the flash! I was using my iphone :)

Here are some of the things I did to achieve the retro look on Deanna:

- Flawless complexion

- Bold brows (I darkened them a bit from her natural brows and created a slightly higher arch)

- Thick, winged out upper liner with connections to lower outer lined bottom half

- Three tones of matte brown to create the look of a deeper crease

- Light application of blush on higher points of cheekbones

- Bold red liner to reshape lips to be slightly fuller and filled in with bold red lipcolor

With photographers waiting to get started, the finalizing of the look was a tight 5 minutes of letting the pins down, shaping the curls, hairspraying, and pinning one side back. Here's the final look!

I have to say it was a joy meeting Deanna and her mother Carlie. Both super nice and laid back, you could tell they have a wonderful relationship with one another. Chatting with Deanna was refreshing, hearing about the goals and plans she and her boyfriend (now fiance!) have for the future. Once makeup and hair were done, Deanna changed and slipped easily into model mode,  giving the photographers some great shot opportunities and poses.

A peek at the first set

George had built a set and described it with the following words:

       " Think smoky jazz bar, think vivacious blonde in 40's fashion, and you'll have the 'first' of two scenes for our shoot."

Photo courtesy Bob Stine

Photo courtesy Rennis Kaufman

I hung out for a bit between set changes and had a chance to meet most of the photographers. Again, super nice people with passions outside of their careers. A fun and diverse group with lots of energy :)

After they had a couple of rounds of shooting, there was a quick break as the set was changed. Deanna switched outfits and I was able to do some quick touch ups along with helping to add the black netting head piece.

Outfit change and hair addition

Gallery:

Photo courtesy Jean Fernandez

Photo courtesy Hannah

Photo courtesy Lynn

Great vision George! Being a part of the behind the scenes process is such a fun experience. There are plenty more AWESOME photos from this photoshoot that I couldn't highlight on my blog. Please click here to see more from this event!

MUA for a Photoshoot and Fashion Lighting Workshop!

What: Photoshoot and Workshop
When: Saturday, April 13
Where: Santa Clara Studio

A while back, George had contacted me about possibly being a MUA for his Fashion Lighting Workshop and Photoshoot.  Everything worked out and I'm so glad I was able to have this opportunity to work with him, Claire (the model), and the other fantastic photographers.

George's studio was set up nicely with a brightly lit corner area sectioned off by curtains for any models to change and prep in. After meeting Claire and setting up my work station, we got started! The other photographers were getting some lessons/tips from George while I was helping Claire with her makeup look.


Photo courtesy George Ricci



Before and After #1 (Natural look)
I did two looks for Claire. The first being a super natural, fresh daytime look that would show up well under bright studio lights. I used natural matte browns and coral tones on her eyes and cheeks. For Claire's lips, I used a nude colored lip liner to neutralize her bright lips, then when over with a subtle gloss.

Here's the same makeup from perspective of two different photographers:

Photo courtesy Fred Floresca (photo 1) and Chetan Mahendru (photos 2 & 3)

Once the photographers had a chance to take their photos, Claire was back in my makeup chair for a bit more makeup. With the backdrop and lighting being changed, George gave me the green light to add a bit more drama to Claire's look.


Before and After #2 (Dramatic evening look)



Eyes open, eyes closed
I added a plum shade to Claire's lids, then darkened the outer edge with a charcoal color. I also thickened the eyeliner width, loaded on a deeper pink toned blush, and dabbed on some lipstick with some purple pigments.


The results from photographers:


Photo courtesy George Ricci










Photos courtesy Chetan Mahendru


I had such a blast! George was super easy to work with and really knows how to share his photography skills with others, Claire was so sweet and such a fun person to chat with, and all the photographers were so eager to learn and practice new techniques. Thanks especially to Chetan who followed through and sent me some wonderful photos to include in my blog!

I was really impressed when I had a chance to chat with some of the photographers. Most of them have other full time jobs and were just taking a relaxing Saturday to juice up on their photography hobbies and skills. What a way to continue on and pursue their passions!

I'm definitely looking forward to more photoshoot opportunities!