My Most Bubbly Bride Ever, Julia!

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You know those bright, cheerful, effervescent people that you love to be around? Those folks that remind you of puppies and weekends, with whom you’d picture yourself watching a really juicy episode of Real Housewives with a glass of rose’ in hand?

This is Julia.

Julia is joyful. Julia is effervescent. Julia is bubbly, like champagne kinds of bubbly. She has an easy laugh, thinks of others often, speaks her mind, and sees no shame in enjoying things that others would judge you for and label as “guilty pleasures”, things like a deep love for Lauren Conrad, the best undereye concealer, and the Bachelor. Julia is fun. And she married her man in uniform, Roy, on a beautiful day in May at the church that my husband had worked at for over four years by that time.

Julia was a college student when my husband and I were first welcomed to Trinity United Presbyterian Church in Santa Ana, California. She was part of the first round of students that we worked with, and there was never a doubt that whenever she was present, you would hear Julia’s giggle fill the room. Everyone knows that giggle! She is an unmistakably happy woman.

Julia is also beautiful.

One thing that I especially loved about doing Julia’s makeup for her wedding was that she had such deep product knowledge. She’s tried this, she loves that. She had clear ideas for what she wanted and so it was easy to get right to work. She knew she wanted a purple somewhat-smoky eye with nice, defined eyebrows and a relatively nude lip. I used a combination of MAC eyeshadows such as Sketch and Shroom along with Dior’s 5-Coleur Palette in Stylish Move to create a smoky plum look. We used Urban Decay’s Naked Flushed palette in Native for bronzer and blush. I loved this blush on Julia. We tried a couple things for her lips but for her pictures she went with a classic- MAC lipstick in Blankety.

The foundation we used also turned out to be one of the best I’d ever tried on a client- Tarte Amazonian Clay foundation. It’s great for a matte, full coverage look and it has awesome staying power.

I also had the privilege of doing four out of five bridesmaids’ makeup as well, and once again teamed up with the WonderWoman of wedding hair, Laura Licata. It was definitely a marathon day, but my favorite part of the bridesmaid portion was spending time on Marlene, the girl on the far right. She hadn’t really gotten “glammed” up this much before and wow- she looked stunning, especially with that gorgeous red hair! It was great to start the day with her, and everyone wound up looking just lovely.

A military uniform like Roy’s always looks fantastic in photos like these, and my goodness, Julia looks incredible! Is anyone getting Will and Kate flashbacks from this picture?! Sheesh!

Julia, you looked breathtaking and were an absolute delight to work with. I can only hope that any brides I work with in the future will be as happy, hilarious, and easygoing as you were. It’s an honor and a privilege to serve as a witness to you and Roy’s vows, and you make a truly stunning couple! xo, MR

All image (except for the last) are credited to the award-winning Eric Slay of Paperwhite Photography. For more of his awesome work, check out http://www.paperwhitephotography.com.

September 14, 2015the Friends stuff., the Makeup stuff.

With Love From Chicagoland- My Bride Erin

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So, it’s not like a lot hasn’t been happening in my life, but I admit that I am very late in posting my weddings from this past year. Very late. However, it is a sweet and beautiful thing to be able to sit down here in Illinois, after all this transition, and look back at an amazing day in California that was only four months ago.

I had the pleasure and the honor of making up my dear friend Erin on her wedding day. This day was a marathon because the party was an all-day affair, literally. We hit the ground in the early morning and things didn’t stop until late in the evening, and there might have even been a happy hour stop during an hour or so of downtime. There were a lot of tears, a lot of tacos, plenty of wine, and an abundance of good, good people.

I remember when a friend of mine suggested I meet Erin because he was convinced that we were sort of the same person. No two people are ever quite alike, but some of my most authentic, messy conversations have been with this woman. I have felt safe to be my unfiltered self around Erin, and I have received nothing but grace, edification, and laughter (loud, soul-empowering laughter) in return. There’s no conversation too frightening and no drink too strong for this girl, and I am thankful to be called her friend.

When Erin and I talked about what she wanted for her makeup, she immediately mentioned Princess Kate. Inspiration like the Duchess of Cambridge fits well within my philosophy of “natural-but-enhanced”, with glowing skin and a bit of extra drama for the eyes. I even managed to pick up the exact lipstick used by Kate on her wedding day- Bobbi Brown Lip Color in Sandwash Pink. Nothing crazy; a perfect bridal neutral-pink. I also did some research and managed to use one of the eye colors from Kate’s wedding day- Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow in Taupe. I love this color. It’s not brown, it’s not grey. It’s perfectly in between the two and extremely flattering. You can wear it everyday as a liner or build it to create a slightly smokey eye as I did for Erin. I blended this shade with my trusty MAC Shroom, maybe a shade or two from Dior’s Earth Reflection palette, and Christian Siriano for VS Makeup in Royal (yes, I’ve had this shadow for YEARS and I’m not sure what I’ll do when it runs out because I’ve yet to find a perfect match). I used Bobbie Brown’s Long-Wear Gel Liner in Black to line Erin’s upper lids.

For Erin’s skin, we used her BareMinerals Original SPF15 Foundation after applying Hourglass’ Veil Mineral Primer. I used Urban Decay’s Naked Flushed palette in Native for some light bronzer-based contouring and blush, along with MAC’s Mineralize SkinFinish in Soft and Gentle for highlighting. Once I’ve applied everything (including lips), I tend to finish off the face with an all-over dusting of Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Mood Light and a couple sprays of setting spray.

We also put a lot of focus on Erin’s brows (never a problem with me, as you know) using a powder eyeshadow of her choice and a gel to set. We used accent half-strip lashes instead of full strips because we agreed (after some discussion) that while full strips work nicely for photos, they just didn’t quite fit the look we were going for. Moreover, Erin already has long, beautiful eyelashes that really don’t need much help.

I don’t know why but for some reason I’m obsessed with this shot displaying the finished product (minus the dress). It might be the fact that I would wear Erin’s shirt and sweatpants out to dinner, but it might also be that I am just really, really happy with how she turned out and I love shots of the bride looking down.

Seriously, would you check out those eyes?! She looked stunning.

And in case you’re dying of curiosity, here’s a shot of the dress, which was like nothing that I had ever seen before …

What a great day this was. I wish all weddings could be like this one, with this much laughter and this much open display of emotion and the sense that you have been invited into a marriage as a witness and an encourager. Love you so much, Erin, and oceans of love to you and Carp. I’ll be seeing you soon. xo, MR

All photography (except still shot of makeup) credited to the fabulous John and Michelle Klewer, who turned out to be a special find amongst the beautiful chaos of the day. If you like what you see, be sure to check out more of John’s work here.

November 27, 2012the Makeup stuff., the Me stuff.

Bridal makeup on the fly … or, my bride Krista :)

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So a while back on a Thursday, I was busily crafting drinks at my other job (one of them) when a couple girls came rushing toward me asking, “Hey, you do wedding makeup right?!” “Yes, I do … when would you need me to do it?” “Could you do it this Saturday?!” …………….. GAME ON.

I popped over to Krista’s house the very next day for a trial run, and I have to say that I so appreciated her chill attitude and clear trust that she had in me. I stuck to a couple wedding makeup stand-by’s that I knew I could rely on: NARS blush in Orgasm, a good set of false lashes (Ardell‘s demi set in 120 is my favorite), and, of course, Bare Minerals Original. Everything else is negotiable and can be experimented with, but the three aforementioned items are the most effective way to look awesome.

I’d known Krista a little bit in high school (I actually remember sitting behind her in math class my freshman year), and it was so fun reconnecting over such a great occasion. What was crazy was listening to Krista and her bridesmaids discuss her current situation, too- she was waiting for a phone call regarding a huge job promotion during this same weekend as her wedding, and when I saw her at my coffee shop she’d literally flown in from her home in New Jersey just hours before (and her wedding was in California in 72 hours from that point!). Krista is a girl on-the-GO! But I felt that it kind of worked perfectly with the makeup situation … sometimes things have to happen on the fly and under pressure, but those situations can yield the best results when it comes to things like makeup and fashion. You have no time to really fret or think or build up your anxieties or mess around … you just have to do it. Everything’s based on sheer moments of inspiration, and you just have to make executive decision upon executive decision (and yes, even when it’s something as seemingly small as choosing which eyeshadow to use, it still feels like an executive decision).

Krista’s makeup was one of my proudest moments because it affirmed (at least unto myself) that I could think fast on my feet, and that I’d built up enough know-how to be an effective makeup artist on short notice. I loved how Krista looked. She looked glowy and classically beautiful.

I’ll always remember this one moment when I’d just about finished with Krista, and she had her hair and veil all set, and her mom turned to her to check out the finished product and all she did was nod approvingly with a sweet smile, and then the tears came. My heart just about melted. It’s awesome to be part of moments like that.

Congratulations, Krista and Gerhard! You looked incredible! xo, MR

All photography is credited to Frenzel Photographers. For more of their work, check them out at http://www.frenzelphotographers.com. And you might, just might, stumble across yours truly in their “Married!” gallery! 😉