Etalk Features Headmistress

This is sort of cool!  Just found out that Etalk (Canadian Entertainment Show) just did a feature on Hot Spring/Summer trends and they mentioned Headmistress Accessories - A LOT!  Like the whole first part of the segment is dedicated to the brand and features tons of the campaign pictures from the Spring/Summer line (Mad Men Goes Country) which I did the Hair & Makeup for.  If I do say so myself those pics look good on T.V lol!

Check out the segment here

Another Princess & Her Special Day

Every little girl dreams about growing up and being a princess on her wedding day.  Of course as we get older and mature the idea of what a "princess" is to us evolves and develops to fit our personality and style but no matter what on your wedding every bride wants to at least feel like a "princess". 

Last Sat. I had the pleasure of working w/ a lovely bride named Bre-Ann.  When I think of that traditional idea of a princess bride Bre-Ann and her bridal style fit it perfectly.  From the dress, to the veil, to the tiara, to the hair and makeup she empitomized the idea of a princess!  Plus she was getting married at Casa Loma (one of my fav. wedding destination in Toronto) you can't get much more princess then that IMO.

I think what really added to the whole princess look was the hair extensions I made for Bre-Ann (I make extensions for a lot of my brides actually).  They blended in beautifully w/ her blonde hair and really gave her that beautiful, long and full look she was going for and the look that SO MANY brides want these days - you know half up w/ a soft curl.  It's really great to experiment w/ clip in extensions and I can't think of a better time then your wedding.  They are a fun, non permanent, non damaging way to give your hair the fullness, length and body you've always dreamed of (or at least I have w/ my straight, flat hair lol). 

For her makeup I gave her a really pretty shimmery purple/grey smokey eye and pink lip gloss.  Bre-Ann was actually a lot more tan then when I did the initial trial a few mths ago which looked great on her and really did actually help to camouflage a lot of the natural redness in her face but I have to admit I'm still NOT A FAN of tanning.  1. It's unhealthy and it prematurely ages the skin 2. It really dries out the skin and a lot of times makes it harder for the foundation to lay nicely on the skin...no matter how much moisturizing you do sometimes it just sits on top of the skin!

I actually used a different foundation on Bre-Ann then at the trial.  At the trial I used Yaby liquid foundation and set it w/ Yaby powder foundation.  Because her skin was a bit drier I wanted to use soemthing a little more dewy so I went w/ the Face Atelier liquid foundation which looked gorgeous and really left a nice glow to the skin.  It's also a great foundation choice for more mature clients - 1. b/c their skin can tend to be on the dry side and it is more dewy 2. the silicone helps it from laying in fine lines and wrinkles which is always a good thing :)

I never actually got to see Bre-Ann all done up in her dress which is unfortunate b/c I love seeing my brides completely finished if possible so I really hope she sends me a couple of pictures from the actual wedding b/c I KNOW she will look gorgeous in them.

I want to send a special thanks to Ashley Readings for helping me that day w/ all the hair and for doing the final hairstyling on Bre-Ann.

BLO @ Bloor West Giveaway Winner!

First off Thank You to EVERYONE that entered my Blo @ Bloor West Blow Out Giveaway Draw courtesy of Ashley Readings and the wonderful ppl at BLO down on Bloor West!
So I have a WINNER to the contest....Drum Roll Please...

FARAH - Congratulations!

I have your email and I will be contacting you so you can collect your prize.  I can either mail the gift card out to you or if we're close by in Toronto I can always meet up w/ you...always happy to meet fellow bloggers anyway!

For those that care I used random-draw.com again to pick the Winner!  I wish you ALL could win seriously.  But I still totally suggest checking out Blo next time you have a special night planned and you want to look pretty b/c it's really affordable and it just makes you feel super special and hot...and who doesn't deserve that sometime!

So again congrats Farah on winning the Blow Out at Blo...ask for Ashley if she's working (as you know she does amazing work...and don't forget to tip her big ;) )

Prom Time - The Beauty of Youth!

Ahh Prom Season is upon us and I got to meet and work w/ a great young lady today - Alexia and her equally awesome mom Siobhan, who is actually close to my age...I'm not going to lie...it's sort of weird when the mom's of my prom clients are in my age group (well a few yrs older).  I'm use to my brides and I being the same age but mom's it's different...but she's like a really cool, hot, young mom - you know the kind you wanted when YOU were young!  Siobhan and I also have the same b-day which I always think is really neat b/c 1. I never meet anyone w/ my bday 2. I'm into that sort of thing...probably why we hit it off so well!  Can't wait to give her a makeup lesson or do her Hair & Makeup for a special event!

Anyway, back to Alexia.  Gorgeous girl w/ great eyebrows and amazing blonde hair!  Seriously, so long but healthy and curls like a dream and so thick too! She was wearing this really cute spaghetti strapped cherry print mini dress from Dolce & Gabbana (actually her mom's).  It had a retro feel so I wanted to go w/ that for the makeup too so I did a really bright red lip to match the cherries in the dress and a bit of bronze/brown on the eyes w/ some black liner just slightly winged (a full wing liner was just a bit too much for Alexia).  I also really wanted to give her a gorgeous glow on the cheeks and of course I used my favourite Yaby Highlighter for that...seriously it just ALWAYS looks amazing on everyone. 

Like many teenagers, Alexia has a little bit of acne but you'd never know it once you put a bit of foundation and concealer to cover it up.  I actually started w/ the MUFE green primer which helped to minimize any redness on the face.  I used Yaby concealer, Graftobian HD cream foundation and lightly finished it off w/ Yaby Powder Foundation for just a bit of extra coverage.  It's important to remember you don't need to cake on the products to get good coverage.  If you use the right products w/ the right technique a little bit goes a long way!

For the hair I just went through and curled 1 inch sections using my favourite curling iron - my Herstyler 3P wand.  Her hair was very long and very thick but it curled so well.  Some ppl just have hair that curls beautifully and she is one of them...lucky girl!.  Originally, we had talked about putting it up into a messy bun ala Taylor Swift but in the end we just left it down and I pinned it to the side which I think went really well w/ the style of the dress.

I've included a few quick snap shots I took of Alexia before I ran out the door.  Excuse the quality it's not the best but she had tons of ppl taking her picture and I didn't want to wear the girl out before the night even started lol!  Plus I think she was starting to get annoyed w/ everyone taking her picture lol!  The pics really don't do justice to the shine of her hair or the highlight on her cheeks but you get the idea.

My Work + Vogue Italia = :) :) :)

I've shown you guys this pic already but I'll throw it up here again as a reminder of it's awesomeness lol!  Anyway, got some pretty cool news today.  The pic featuring the beautiful Mikayla (Ford) shot by Manolo Ceron (although they used his birth name on the site) got picked up by Vogue Italia Pic of the Day or something...not exactly sure what the deal is w/ it all I know is my work is up on Vogue Italia's website and it even lists my name (spelt correctly) so that makes this automatically a pretty good day!

So follow the link to see the pic up on the site in all it's gloriousness!  Also please vote for said picture on the site...I'm not sure what voting does but it can't be bad so if you love me you'll do it lol!

Super Sexy Hair Time - BLO Blow Dry Bar Giveaway!

Yesterday morning I got a text from my frequently mentioned friend/colleague Ashley Readings.  She was working at Blo @ Bloor West and it was a Monday (and voting day) so of course it was a bit slow.  For those of you not in the know Blo is a salon where you go to get amazing blow outs, updos and styles all really reasonably prices and relatively quick...no cuts no colour just styling!  This job btw has made Ashley an amazing hair person and I'm very envious of her insane skills!

Anyway, back to the text!  She wanted to know if I wanted to come down to the salon get my hair done and do a giveaway for my fellow bloggers!  Of course I JUMPED at this opportunity.  Funny thing - Ashley and I have been friends for a long while now and I've never visited her at Blo...I don't know why it was lots of fun and it had been SO LONG since I had any sort of professional do ANYTHING w/ my  hair (seriously if my clients knew my last haircut they call me a hypocrite for always preaching reg. trims...which I am I guess lol).  Plus I don't know about you guys but I've been feeling rather bluesy lately w/ all the rain...really affects my mood something fierce.  I think if I was richer I'd go get my hair done every day I was feeling down...it really helps lol!  Also I had dinner plans last night so I knew the hair wasn't going to go to waste ;)

So after I did my National Duty and cast my Vote I headed down to the salon to get pampered!  Ashley did her thing - washed my hair, dried it w/ a round brush, pinned it, teased the hell out of if and finally shook it and smoothed it all out to create some of the most glorious and voluminous hair my head has seen in a long time...possibly EVER! 

I should note that at no time did she use a curling iron..this was all done w/ a round brush and blow dryer!  I have insanely straight, long and silky hair...I need to put layers in it...ppl are shocked when I tell them I do not straighten or even dry my hair a lot of times and how straight it is (probably also why I can go so long between cuts w/ no split ends).  Ashley even was shocked w/ how shiny and slippery my hair was even when she tried to "dirty it up and give it grip" w/ various products lol.   So even to say that Ashley did an AMAZING job is an understatement lol.  I'm not going to lie when she first finished it was a bit Jersey Shore and I was a bit embarrassed to leave the salon in my hoodie and lulu lemons on the subway but of course after a couple of hrs it settled into just gorgeous soft voluminous curls.

FYI the picture above is after a couple of hrs in my apt.  Still gorgeous looking!  The picture below was at Blo just after my hair was finished.  Sorry not the best quality it was taken w/ Ashley's iPhone.

This picture is to remind you guys what my natural hair looks like - it has not been straightened in this picture and in fact this was a couple of mths ago in my old apt. and it's a bit longer now lol!

So now on to the GIVEAWAY!  This one is only open to TORONTO residents or surrounding area (as long as you don't mind travelling to Blo @ Bloor West).  I have a gift card for 1 FREE BLOW OUT at the Blo @ Bloor West location - it is ONLY good for that location fyi. 

How do you ENTER - I'm going to make it INSANELY simple...nothing fancy here.  Just leave a comment in my comment box w/ your name and email and we're all good!  Yes, that's it!  I want to make this as easy as possible for everyone! 

So come on and ENTER who doesn't want gorgeous hair for that special night on the town...or just b/c you're having a crappy day like I was!

GOOD LUCK!

Forgot to mention the contest will run until Tues May 10!  I'll announce the winner then!

Timeless Bridal Beauty

So on Sat. afternoon I had the pleasure of working on a really unique wedding w/ a really fun Bride - Tina and her Mother in Law - Winnie.  What made this wedding so unique you ask?  Well to start it wasn't overly formal at all...almost just like a big party w/ all your fav. ppl coming together which I guess is what a wedding is suppose to be lol. 

Also, the couple were doing their pictures over at The Distillery District at around 5 before the ceremony which was actually at night.  But what really made this wedding unique was the fact that it was a Time Period costume party wedding...but it wasn't decade specific you could come dressed in ANY time period you wanted!  So as you can imagine the couple obviously has a bit of whimsy to them.  The bride didn't even have a Maid of Honour but a Man of Honour instead lol!

Originally, Tina was going to do a completely 20's themed wedding but couldn't find a dress that was 20's specific and good for a wedding dress but then she found this amazing 50's inspired dress and they decided to change things up and let their guests choose any time period they wanted. 

To be honest I'm really glad Tina went w/ a 50's style b/c her features were made for that style and the makeup just suited her so well...she wore the look, the look wasn't wearing her which if she went completely 20's I fear it might have b/c that's a lot more costumey style IMO then 50's which is much more classic.  That's one of the reasons I love that classic 50's look of a strong red lip and winged eyeliner so much - you totally recognize it as vintage but it still looks modern and wearable today!  I mean years from now when she's looking at her wedding pictures of course she'll know it was a vintage look but I don't think she'll ever have any regrets about it or think what was I thinking b/c the pictures will be timeless! 

I also did her hair and boy does she have a lot of it!  I actually did an authentic wet set pin curl and dried it using my portable hair dryer hood that you hook up to your hair dryer...check it out if you don't know what I'm talking about.  Really useful for weddings or shoots b/c then you can go on to makeup and don't have to stand over the person drying their hair w/ a hair dryer.  After it the hair was set I brushed in out and pulled it into half crescent style side bun and finished it off w/ the perfect headband accessory that she had.  Man if you want a strong curl that you can brush and manipulate I strongly suggest trying a wet set pin curl technique.

Overall, I was really happy w/ the way Tina looked in the end...esp. since I didn't actually get to do a trial on her beforehand.  We did meet up for a drink to discuss looks and ideas and to sign the contract (we lived right near each other before I moved) but I never physically did a trial on her so it can always be a bit nerve wracking when it's your first go at the bride and it's the actually wedding day!

I also did the makeup for her Mother in Law - Winnie which actually was a lot of fun and turned out really well IMO.  I'm not going to lie I was a bit nervous about it beforehand...she actually was doing the 20's theme and had this amazing flapper dress that looked fantastic on her.  It's not that I don't know how to do a 20's makeup or anything it's just it can as I mentioned be a bit costumey or sad clown looking and a bit harsh w/ the heavy heavy dark eyes (not always the best thing for more mature clients).  But I modified it a little and it worked out really well and she totally pulled it off!  For once it was actually good a client didn't have full brows b/c anyone who knows 20s knows the brows were basically just thin lines so I was able to do those really authentically.  I did the eyes in a softer purple/grey smokey style and I didn't rim the bottom w/ any shadow b/c I didn't want to make her eyes smaller looking.  The thing of course that really defines the 20s is of course the lips w/ that little bow lip.  I was able to really camouflage her natural lips well and make a really cute bow lip which just totally set the look!

I really hope Tina sends me some pictures of the wedding b/c they are bound to interesting, a little off the wall and totally different than any other wedding I've done yet lol!  Also excuse the quality of the couple of pictures I was able to get of the bride she was literally jetting out the door for pictures when I took them!