A Red Letter Day

It was just one year ago, my first shoot with Tyler Gould. He is a dear friend of my best friend, Miss Victoria Jae (luvs to you!) who is an extremely talented photographer. We had been trying to get together for a shoot for weeks and weeks, but our schedules never seemed to mesh. Finally it was one cold December afternoon that he needed an extra model for a shoot, and was crossing his fingers that I would be free. Normally, I would not be - but as fate would have it, that day I was. I was so happy and excited to finally be working with Tyler. With his fantastic style for capturing stark and fashion minded photographs, I was more than eager to finally be one of his subjects.



I arrived and met the two other models, lovely girls. Dez and Lauren, I believe her name was. We each had our turn under the Makeup Artist's hand, as she applied dark heavy eyes and accented cheeks to all of us. Then on to the extremely creative Hair Stylist, who turned Dez's petite frame into a fierce haunting with a new age mohawk, Lauren into a rather swirly mass of an updo, and my own into an extreme backcombed fashion/dreds look. It was fantastic. We were each asked to bring an prom-sy type dresses that we had and heels, and we were soon zipped into our dresses and headed to the shoot location.

We started underneath one of the many bridges in downtown Portland. It was the one near Union Station...it's name escapes me at the moment. I remember it being around 40 degrees or so, and with us only wearing our formal dresses and heels, we were soon taking turns under as many coats as we could pile onto ourselves while we waited for setup. We were on location for more than 6 hours, but I've never enjoyed a shoot more. It makes so much of a difference when everyone is all happy to be there, and excited to create something amazing. Our breath was freezing in the air, and our fingers and toes were numb, but we were still laughing and sipping warm coffee on breaks.





Around five o'clock, Dez suggested another location nearby. It was an outdoor semi-private garage area that was a part of these spendy Condo's along the river - McCormick Pier. We headed over with our equipment and set up inside the garage. We were somewhat warmer in there, perhaps because we were partly shielded from the wind, and we took a few hours of fantastic shots in there as well. I look back over these pictures as some of my favorites from any shoots. It was such a fun day, despite the extreme conditions and I made new friends as well. But most of all, I remember that day as being a certain marker, for when I truly realized this was more of the life that I had always wanted, and being around creative, energetic souls that are kindred to mine.

Welcome to the Greatest Show

One of my favorite songs of all time.....

If you really listen to the words and understand the multiple meanings behind it....

Spolight - Tim VanBergen

I wanted to take a moment and write about one of my favorite people.

Tim VanBergen
http://www.blogger.com/profile/09715106170195144490

I only met Tim a year ago, in February I believe it was. I modeled for him at a shoot in the park and it was such a fun day. He was so easy going, made me laugh alot and really made me feel so comfortable. I was new to modeling then, and it was nice to meet a photographer who was so professional, but also made you feel comfortable in your own skin.

http://picasaweb.google.com/AimeeMUA/TimVanbergen21508#

Since then, Tim has always been such a great friend, us just emailing back and forth and sharing ups and downs about the photography world. He is a wonderful father to four girls, and a devoted husband. Tim is constantly putting himself last as he is there for his growing daughters to listen and show them what a good man is, while working full time AND building his photography career. Tim takes some of the most beautiful portraiture headshots I've ever seen. I think this is because he allows the subject to open up and be at peace, and be free to relax and just be themselves. That true joy and peace shines through his photos, and is just a mirror to the wonderful man that he is.

Thank you Tim for always being an inspiration to me, in photography and through life's ups and downs. You are a true friend and a truly good man!

Tori Coming Through!

I had the opportunity to work with Tori, a wonderful girl and passionate model. I caught her as she was visiting family for Thanksgiving, and she would soon be off to Asia to be shooting a campaign. I loved working with her; she was laid back and fun, and wasn't afraid to try anything. The look we did for her was one that a MAC Trainer had done on her for a big MAC seminar. She loved the look so much that she wanted me to recreate it. I'm tickled to say, that when Tori saw herself in the mirror, she squealed that I had done it better than the trainer :) Ah potato, potahto, you know the story.... ;)

(Sorry my blog seems to cut off the right side of pictures...I keep trying to figure out how to make it stop - so annoying...)

Taylor Made Mineral Makeup Shoot

I was asked to be a part of a shoot to showcase TaylorMade Mineral Makeup on several models. It was quite a day. There were several MUA's and hairstylists involved in the shoot as there were so many models that all needed to be done. I had the extreme pleasure of working with these lovely ladies.

Amber Prehn - A gorgeous and incredible model. Her portfolio screams beauty, class and sophistication. She's traveled over Europe, and has been in different ad campaigns, TV and print. To top it off, she was so down to earth and such a sweet person, she has a heart of gold!



Constantina - A beautiful, exotic looking lady. She was so sweet and wonderful to work with, and has much talent and experience behind her. And Congratulations to her, she's getting married this month! :)



Missy Weston - Newer to modeling, but stunning features no less. Such a tiny thing in real life, but still with the biggest beautiful eyes to capture the viewer. She was open to everything and loved it when the stylist when crazy with her hair!

Shoot at the Benson

Had to show this shoot....it was set at the Benson Hotel and the Paramount Hotel. It was so much fun! Chris Jernigan is a fantastic photographer, really low key and fun to work with.

The Shoot at the Causey

I had a fantastic shoot a few months ago. It was for a designer to show off her beautiful clothes in a million dollar Penthouse in downtown Portland. The Causey is an incredible building, and the Penthouse was superb. It was not owned yet, so the gaping spaces and wide open feel was amazing! The views of the city stretched as far as the eye could see.

I was called in to be the Makeup Artist for the shoot. One of the girls, Emma, was just 14. It was my job to dress her up and make her look old enough to drink! I was a little nervous because so much was hinging on this shoot. Not only was it for a designer and using this fab location, the photos were going to be marked up for a spread in a magazine. So of course, I needed everything to be perfect.



Emma was a doll to work with. This was her second or third shoot, and I could see she was nervous. A little, blond, lithe, and rail thin girl she was. Her mom was there, chatting away as I worked over Emma. After about an hour, I helped her into the dress, and tossed her hair up into an updo. I touched up her lipstick and then walked her into the main shooting area. Everyone exclaimed how mature and beautiful she looked! She really did look stunning. We had to pin the dress a little because it was even a little too big for her. And then Pete Green, the photographer, began to work his magic with the setting and the girl and the pictures came alive.




This is what I love to do. I help create art and bring these beautiful images to life.

Stereoblind

Just wanted to say I had a shoot with John and Christy at Stereoblind photography a few weeks ago and I just got the pictures in. :) I put up a few here so you could see. It was alot of fun and rather special to me.

The necklace I'm wearing is one of the many pieces from my Grandmother. My Gramda was - or should I say IS - Nora Martin, an incredible radio singing star from the 40's. She has so many amazing stories she tells about those days, and all the famous people she was friends with. As she got older and left Hollywood (She's always telling me that Hollywood nowadays is nothing at ALL like how it was back then!!), she collected hundreds of pieces of period jewelry. Some of it real, some of it costume. But I feel every single piece she's passed on to me is so very special and reminds me of the vivacious, wonderful woman that she is.

A Wedding

Last weekend I had the opportunity to do the makeup for a large bridal party. These ladies were some of my favorite wedding clients I've worked with so far. There were no bridezillas, or drama queens. No jealous bridesmaids or sibling rivalry here. They were all there to actually help the bride be relaxed and ready for her wedding day - imagine that!

The Bride and her sister struck me the most. They are the only children, and the happy home with their parents was evident by the ease of conversation and natural show of affection they all showed to one another. The framed pictures of the two hugging sisters throughout the house were bittersweet considering the significance of the day.



I had some time to sit back and reflect on all this, while I was waiting for one of the girls to be finished in the hairdressers chair. There is such a rollercoaster of emotions that are happening to the brides family members. Especially a family like this. Nowadays, this close family connection is an anomaly. The mother and father are trying to be brave and sensible, knowing they can't keep their daughter forever. They love their soon-to-be son in law, they appreciate his goodness and love for their daughter....but having the knowledge of the complicated changes of life in their own twenty-two year marriage, they wonder if the two young ones will stand the test of time. Sitting in my makeup chair, her Mother reflected nervously to me, but soon began to relax. She was worried that her daughter wasn't making the right choice, but at the same time, she trusted her daughters judgment and hope for the future. She asked, "As a parent, what else can we do?"

The other daughter, the Bride's younger sister was also very touching to me. She has a fascinating beauty about her. Tall and thin, she has the perfect fashion model physique. A very unique look, and air about her. She is only 19, but I felt she had somewhat of an "old soul" to her. Perhaps experiences in her life that happened too soon, some that felt darker or sadder to me. But her love for her sister and the sadness she was leaving was very much there. She was the one who had found me originally to be the Makeup Artist for the wedding. I could tell how much work she had put into this, and how much she wanted everything to be perfect for her big sister.

The Bride herself was happy and relaxed, giggling to herself as she painted her toenails and chatted with her bridesmaids. Her fiancee was in the army, and they would be moving to Alaska right after the honeymoon. What a shock to the system! Getting married is one thing, and then moving thousands of miles away from your close knit family when you've lived at home your whole life? Definitely climactic. But she seemed calm and reassuring, hoping for the best I'm sure. Full of fresh hope and dreams for the future. I remember that feeling.

Pageant Girl

Okay, this is just tweaky. It's just strange to me that parents would doll their kids up, put them out there and let them be judged by their looks, talent and charisma. Now don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm not talking the teenage/and up pageants, I'm talking about the little kid ones. Today I did a shoot for the Miss Jr Washington. She is 10 years old. My youngest client yet. She was an ABSOLUTE delight to work with. I've never met anyone so young and so sincerely sweet and charming. You can tell that so far, she is untainted by all that goes on around her. And her mother was very nice too, adamant against too much makeup or "doing her up" too much. I appreciate that. I truly believe a child can be so incredibly beautiful with just their naturalness about them. It's just the THOUGHT of what these children are thrown into at such a young age that repells me. Now I'm sure that there are many of you that might be angry at me for saying so, or feeling that you have to defend the idea of pageants. I am not trying to slap you in the face, or the parents of the girls in these pageants. I'm just putting out MY feelings on the subject, and having never been in a pageant or anyone in my family, I have no idea all that goes on with it. I know its scholarship program, and that is all well and good! I just get weirded out by the psychological effects that will inevitably be introduced to this girls at such an impressionable age.

Such as the sweet little girl I had today....she looked at herself in the mirror after I had done some light beauty makeup for her, and her eyes shone and said "I look SO much better with makeup on!" I impressed on her that she was even more beautiful without it, and that what she was seeing was only that the makeup was defining her naturally pretty eyes, lips and cheeks so that the camera would be better able to capture them. I said our eyes are like the camera eye but so much better, because we can see all the aspects of you inside and out that make you beautiful. She was quiet for a while and thought about that. And as I was leaning over in front of her to comb the hair from her face, she leaned forward and hugged me with her little arms and said, "I'm so happy that you were able to come and get me ready today." If I can protect one little girl from feeling insecure about herself because of what society tells us, then I feel I've been able to do something truly important today.

Speed Shoot April '08

One of my biggest challenges as a model and a Makeup Artist was at the Portland Speed Shoot on April 12, 2008. I fondly remember it as a day of endurance, passion and creativity.

The Speed Shoot was a competition to benefit a charity, to find the best model, Makeup Artist and Photographer, and the winners won a spread in Style is So You Magazine. www.styleissoyou.com/speedshoot08 The theme was Tokyo Street Fashion, and we models all pieced our outfits together ourselves. It was crazy fun.

At Pete's, [Study in Light Photography] urging, I entered myself as a model as well as doing the Makeup for two other contestants, Crystal Gregg [Miss Teen Oregon] and Marissa Ivana [Model and Blazer girl!].

It was a beyond hectic morning. I got up at 5am to do my own makeup and hair, and left by 7:00 to start the makeup for the other two models. Besides my own stress of competing physically, the work of my own hands was also competing for the Makeup Artistry spot. Talk about alot on your plate!

Turns out, I was a runner up in both cagetories! :) I was featured in the magazine, a headshot winner on pages 9 and 19. And my makeup artistry was featured on pages 27, 28, 33 and 35! It was a really huge accomplishment for me, and it was amazing to meet all the incredible photographers and models. I'll always remember that day fondly, because it really was my first chance to spread my wings and fly.

Welcome

Welcome. To the random musings of an average Makeup Artist.

I am a young woman, starting afresh, wending my way through a myriad of life's choices large and small. I now know what I want, and I am free to embrace everything I love.

{{creativity, ~music,]] /color, passion, [[design, depth,}+ and hard [[work.

Makeup Artistry is one of my great loves.

I am fun and emotional. Persistently speculating of life and its rhythm and patterns. Adept at deciphering the realistic motives and truths of those around me. Being attentive and being prepared. Bringing photographs to life with expression and color.

in love, perfectionist, irish temper, angry driver, driven by beauty, excellent cook, constant singer, Cali girl, detail obsessive, crazy dancer, water baby, animal lover, mad model, musical connoisseur, ultimate giggler, fashion focused, unforgiving, ultimately loving, always punctual and always modest *wink*.

Welcome to my world, whatever may come.