Glam Session with 3 of my Favs!

One of the great things about my friends is they are so supportive with every dream I chase... even if that  means their photos will be on the internet without any makeup lol. This week, my cousin Jackie, and my close friends Ashli and Kelly came over so that I could try a few looks out. Please note, the before pictures were edited to black and white to make everyone feel more comfortable with being so "exposed." The after images have not been edited (with the exception of cropping.)

My first look with cousin Jackie, is what I would call the Bridal look. So many of the brides I've worked with have had a similar look - eyes that stand out, natural tones elsewhere. Naturally, Jackie is verryyyy beautiful so I was really excited to see what she would like like all done up. In reality, she looked even better than I imagined - her eyes popped with the green metallic (prettier than it sounds lol) & black eyeshadow- finished off with some extreme false eyelashes. Check her out!

Next was the model worthy Ashli. You have not seen perfect skin until you have seen hers. I didn't even need to use full coverage liquid foundation, mineral powder only!!! For Ash, I used a light eye with some awesome gold shimmers and made her lips pop with a bright cherry color that I love! So glamorous!

Last is my stunning Kelly with the full on Glam look, and she is a wuss and wouldn't let me post the "before" picture (but I promise you, she looked cute in it lol.) Anyway, I smoothed her skin tone with Revlon Photo Finish liquid foundation (best stuff ever) and I went to work on color! I have these really fun denim blue shades with grey tones and I knew they would really make her eyes pop...did they ever! With the heavy eye, we did a light peachy-pink tone lip as to not look too overdone. LOVED the final look!

I have the sweetest friends in the whole world, but what makes it even better is they are all so hot!! lol I love you guys <3 And special thanks to my cousin Jillian for taking some photos for me! :)

PS - The next time I do my own glam makeup, I promise I will do a before and after and post it... I guess that's only fair ;) 

Bridal Makeup: Mrs. Mariah Olney :)

 One of the highlights of my little makeup career thus far has been the wedding of my best friend Mariah. Mariah and I worked our first "real" job together in a marketing department with a bunch of awesome women (hi girls!) and we just hit it off in an effortless friendship. We've gotten closer through the years through lots of ups and downs, but the hardest yet was her move to Alaska. (Those of you who read my previous post, YES I have one best friend in Florida, and one in Alaska...wtf! lol) So for me, Mariah being in Alaska sucks but she loves it there and so does Dale, her awesome husband who made the big move with her. Mariah's wedding was a stunning event with the ceremony in an outdoor setting of a winery and the reception at the Summit Inn Resort near Uniontown.

Mariah is never one to wear a lot of makeup, so I was conscious of that in her bridal look. She has perfect skin, with only a touch of redness so it took very little liquid foundation to smooth out her color. With her brown eyes as the desired focus, I used a dark cocoa liner with a matching shadow over top, this immediately make them pop. I used some light silver tones on the rest of the lid and finished off with some false eyelashes (a girl's best friend!). Her lips naturally have nice pigment to them, so all I did was use a matching tone to make them stand out a little more. Mariah's look was quick and easy and only took about 30 minutes! This was a good thing considering I then did the makeup for 3 bridesmaids and 2 mothers in less than 2 hours - ahhh!! It was a crazy morning but everyone looked great! :)

On a sidenote, Mariah had the great idea to have her closest friends bring their wedding dresses to the Summit. All 4 of us got married in the same year, and with all four of us in our gowns, the photographer was able to get some great shots!

Love you Mariah, and many years of health and happiness to you and Dale :)

Makeup for an Angel

I admit, I've been dragging my feet on writing this post, mostly because I'm not sure what to say that can really convey how this makeup session made me feel. I'll start from the beginning...

My best friend Sam works at the amazing Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital. She is a Child Life Specialist in the Hematology and Oncology ward and is given the wonderful task of creating trusting relationships with young patients and their families. I commend her for the job she does, as many of these children are terminally ill it is something I know I couldn't handle. 

Naturally, these kids LOVE Sam, and she loves them just as much, in particular a sweet young girl Shaniece. Shaniece was admitted to Joe DiMaggio with a severe illness and even more tragically, her mother passed of a terminal illness earlier this year.  

Sam and her team worked to keep her in good spirits, Shaniece even told her "you're like my white mom" :) Struggling with self esteem, one of the things she loved most was makeup but she really didn't know how to put it on. Sam gave it a go and played with putting different products on her but Shaniece felt she looked like a clown... her words, not mine lol. So before one of my trips to Florida, Sam asked if I could bring some makeup for her and see what I could do.

Manned with a ton of products, I went to the hospital with Sam with slight apprehension. What on earth could I say to this girl without making myself sound like an idiot? Would she be depressed? Angry? To my relief and admiration, I met a wonderful, funny, beautiful young woman who without the loss of hair and laying in a hospital bed, I would never know was sick. 

Step by step, I showed her what she should do for her make up. She was so focused on everything I did and asked several questions to make sure she understood what I was doing. She was so gorgeous it was easy to make her look like a little model. When I handed her a mirror when I was done, she had a huge grin on her face and it was very obvious that she was so pleased with her new look. Sam told me that the next day she saw her, Shaniece said "you know how I call you my white mom? I think Alicia could be my white auntie!" That meant more than I can express. 

Heartbreakingly, Shaniece lost her battle and passed away this summer, at 14 years old. I smile at the thought of her in heaven with her mother, and I look forward to the day that I can see her again. She is truly someone I will never forget and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to meet her. God bless you, sweet angel <3

For donations for the Love Jen Fund - helping families cope with cancer at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital - please click here. 

Bridal Make Up: Mrs. Jen Blough :)

Meet one of my first "official" clients, the beautifulllll bride Jen :)

It's pretty obvious that my job was going to be very easy with Jen. She has big, beautiful blue eyes, wonderful complexion and a great skin tone. We decided that her 'wedding look' would be best to enhance her eyes, and use light tones for her lips. 

Jen and I live close to one another, so her trial was broken into 2 parts :) During her first trial, I prepped her skin by matching the foundation to her skin tone, which to her appeared too light. In her words "I feel like Twilight," lol. With Jen being an avid tanner, I'm not surprised that she felt that way. Often times, we chose a color that is darker than we actually need and in artificial light it looks fine, but you have to be careful of how it looks in natural light. So to help her feel more comfortable in her own skin, literally ;) I chose a foundation one shade darker, then used a lot of bronzer to enhance her sun-kissed look. Sidenote, it killed her, but I did recommend that she did not tan 2 days before the wedding. The reason being is tanning dries your skin out, and when you lay foundation on top of that, it won't look as smooth. So it's good to give your skin a little break before being heavily photographed. And it is a must, if you tan, use a facial moisturizer every day/night! :)

To give Jen a dramatic eye, I used dark brown eyeliner with a dark brown shadow on top of the line, light brown on the brow bone and gold tones for blending. During her 2nd trial, we experimented with silver tones and black eyeliner (we even put the two different looks on each eye lol) and while both looked great, we agreed the gold looked amazing on her. 

To finish her look off, we used a nude lipliner (lip liner is important, not for everyday, but when you want your makeup to last and stay in place, use it!) On top we used a pale pink lipstick that was the perfect shade for her. 

And with that, we have a beautiful bridal look. Thank you Jen, and many healthy and happy years for you and Hayden! :) 

Special thanks to JenMcken for the use of her amazing photography! :)

A Weird Passion

I decided before I get completely immersed in all that I have to share, it would be good to provide some background info ;)

 A few weeks ago, my friend Ashli came over to drink some wine and chat. Our talks either tend to be completely superficial and ridiculous (repeating grade school hilariousness over and over), or they get intensely deep in trying to figure out the purpose of our lives. During this chat, Ashli asked me "What are you passionate about?" I hate this question and can sum up why in 3 little words: I.Don't.Know. I LOVE a lot of different things, but passionate? That seems so intense... like a higher level of commitment then just something you enjoy doing. So while I responded, I realized I was giving her an answer on something that I'm good at... but not really something that I fully enjoyed.

So I fessed up. I told her, "I feel like this is my passion, but I feel that it's really weird... I am passionate about makeup and makeup artistry." Not batting an eye, my friend seems to think this is completely normal, which made me think... Yes, I have a heart for many things. I am a deeply spiritual person, I love taking care of my family, I am happiest when I'm with people I care about... but when I'm truly honest with myself about something that makes me happy, that has nothing to do with anyone else... I am passionate about makeup! PHEW that felt like a confession!!! ;)

While I felt like this was a huge revelation, my friends and family find this completely normal. When I was 6 my parents put a regulation on the days I could wear makeup (Saturday and Sunday) because when I'd scrub it off every evening, my eyes would be all red and puffy for school the next morning. (This obviously was long before I realized there was eye makeup remover! lol) I've just always loved it.

SO, after years of building a house, planning a wedding, and now raising a puppy, being a wife and a full time marketing manager, it's time for me to do something for me, and I am pouring that into Dixi Makeup Artistry. While I have always done makeup for random weddings or events, I've decided it's time to make it official with this business and I plan to share the ups and downs on this page.

I hope you check back to see upload of photos, tips, and full instruction on some of the beautiful brides I have in my line up! For more information, please feel free to contact me at diximakeupartist@gmail.com!

<3 Alicia