LFW AW 2011, Central St Martins MA

Saturday 19th Febuary, 5:30pm

After having had a bit of a snooze back home, I return to Somerset House for my next show. I get there about half an hour before the call time, and it's already bedlam backstage. Hair are taking up the whole space for hair and make-up, so we have to wait for the show before to finish and clear out next door so we can use the other side to get ready also. Luckily we are the last show of the day so can spread out. The reason why there is already no space is because there are loads of designers showing in the one show, and there are a lot of outfit changes for each designer, so you can imagine the amount of clothes rails, and the amount of bodies there are. Already, everybody is in everybody else's way, and it's only going to get a lot worse!

So once they've finished hovering up the hairy carpet next door, we move in to get set up. Mac's very own Neil Young is keying this show, go Neil! The look is a little grungy, a little gothic. The brows are meant to look a bit wild, like a school girl who hasn't yet started plucking them. We use Sculpt foundation, if the models lashes are naturally dark we knock them out a bit with foundation also, brow pencil warmed on the hand first then applied with a #266 brush, Brow Set in Mink, or brown mascara on the inner eyebrow, pushing the brows up and in a bit so they look a bit angry almost, it's not meant to look pretty, Groundwork paint pot blended under the eyes, sculpting cream to contour the cheeks, concealer to blank out the lips with Femme Noir lipstick buffed in to the centre, gloss texture on cheekbones, centre of eyelid, and cupids bow.

The show seemed to go on forever, at least an hour. Trying to fix the models make-up in between outfits was near impossible, they were just running in, changing, and then running back out again. Apparently some models were just pushing make-up artists out of the way, and we were constantly being told that we couldn't stand here and we couldn't stand there. So most of it was left up to Neil who was allowed to stand at the entrance to the catwalk. He said that by the end of the show some girls looked like they didn't have any make-up on! It's a good job the look was meant to be a bit grunge!!!

London Fashion Week AW 2011

Saturday 19th Febuary- Daks

My first show of the season assisting Val Garland!!! I was so excited to be working with her, what a lucky girl I am! As usual, when I know I've got to be up early (4am to be precise!) I could not get to sleep! I lay in bed for hours tossing and turning, and before you know it the alarm is going off. I'm not one of these people who can just get up, throw some clothes on and be out of the door. I need time to come around properly, have breakfast and a cup of tea (without fail, otherwise I feel like I'm going to vomit), and shower and wash my hair, because it looks like I've been electricuted otherwise. So that gave me just the right amount of time before my 5:15 taxi was due, to get me to Somerset House for 6am!

So shortly after 6am in comes Val, I silently have an OMG moment to myself and crowd around to watch the demo. She asks her first assistant to do it, and I am a little dissapointed I'm not going to get to watch her at work. But then a second model arrives, so she starts on her. Great stuff, I run around to watch ;o) The look is quite simple- face and body, bamboo cream colour base to contour the cheeks, fawntastic CCB through socket of eye, blacktrack liner on top lash line (about the thickness of a cotton bud), mascara on top lashes, and peachstock on the lips.

I do two models make-up, both of which are approved by Val, and then do a third in slight chaos in hair. (I wish hair could come to us, but it's always the other way around. Always have your set bag ready to go!) Despite the models head being pulled around, I manage to do a good job with the liner. Then it's off to the line up. Which was actuallly fine because the models were mostly covered up, so there wasn't any bodies to do.

Once the show was finished, Val made a point of thanking us and saying what a great team she had, which was lovely. And I told her how honoured I felt to be working with her, to which she replied 'well you've done great make-ups', so I left with a big smile on my face, looking forward to working with her again on Tuesday! :oD

Fellowship for British Hairdressing Iconics Live Show

Monday 7th Febuary

Sean Dawson, of HOB Camden, is an Icon in the hairdressing industry, and so he was asked to take part in this show held at The Thistle hotel, Marble Arch. He had to present two models on stage in front of an audience, and I was on hand to do the models make-up. Rosie, the model pictured here, had an amazing face and made my job very easy! :o)

InStyle magazine shoot

Thursday 20th January

There is going to be a supplement coming out with the April edition of InStyle magazine, and in it will be a feature about what the 'InStylers' wear to work. So I got to spruce the girls up for their photo shoot at the Blue Fin Building, including the website editor, Maria Milano. It was probably the quickest shoot I've ever been on- in for 1pm, and I left just before 3pm! They kindly gave me the current edition to look at for my journey home. I've never bought a copy before, and I've got to say it's a dam good read! So go and buy yourself a copy!!

http://www.instyle.co.uk/

Steve Strange press pictures.

Thursday 6th January

Steve Strange, one of the biggest influences behind the New Romantic movement in the late 1970's, was in need of some new press pictures, and I was on hand to do his make-up! It's been quite some time since the last event at The Blitz club, but Steve Strange and Rusty Egan are back together to hold the first official event in over 3o years.

Originally from South Wales, Steve Strange was best known as the lead singer in the 1980's pop band Visage. Since the late 1970's, he has also been a prominent nightclub host and promoter. He worked on the door, whilst Egan was the DJ, and Boy George, the cloakroom attendant!

Read more at http://www.theblitzclub.com/.

Pukka Up

Wednesday 8th December

It's 'All About the Party' at Pukka Up! Originally known for their infamous boat parties along the River Thames, they have since exploded on to many a dance floor, including internationally renowned venues such as Pacha and The Cross. And it's not just the UK and Ireland where you can join in the party, the Pukka Up tour is now bigger than ever with a series of international residencies including Delhi, Singapore, Dubai, Bangkok, Miami and Sydney to name a few.

So I was on hand to do hair and make-up for a shoot for their artwork, which is going to be used for the next 12 months. The images will be used for their clubbing events in Ibiza and around the world, and their sponsor http://www.missguided.com/ will have billboards and tube ads across London.

The models from the shoot will be super imposed on to exotic looking backgrounds. Hopefully, if there's a next time, we'll be flown out to shoot there for real! Well I can dream.........

http://www.pukkaup.com/

L'uomo Vogue Shoot

Tuesday 7th December

I received a call in the morning from photographer Iain Mckell, asking me if I was available later that day for a last minute shoot. And thankfully I was! The reason that it was so last minute was because we were going to be shooting Susan Philipsz, who was announced the Turner Prize winner just the night before. She is the first person in the history of the award to have created nothing you can see or touch. Instead, she sculpted her prize winning work in sound- from the sound of her own voice, singing a Scottish lament over the river Clyde in her hometown, Glasgow. The location for the shoot was the beautiful Tate Britain, where you can see (or hear!), the exhibits from The Turner Prize nominees. Look out for the shoot in the January issue!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWeKzTDi-OA