Another pic from the photography workshop last week - this time courtesy of Steve. Our model, Erin, has such gorgeous features and huuuge eyes - I could play make-up with with her all day! Looking forward to the next time :)Make-up: Rhia Amio (www.artistrhi.com)
Photo: Steve
Model: Erin

This week I had the absolute pleasure of meeting the lovely Emily at a bridal trial for her upcoming wedding next June 2009. Emily had me laughing throughout the entire session even though it was our first time meeting! It's moments like this when I have the chance to connect with clients who let me in on their special day that make me sincerely appreciative of being able to do what I love. So, thank you Emily and all the brides that have contributed to who and where I am today. Next year's shaping up to be another great one in make-up already! For now, here are some pics from my fun night with Emily:

Now that a fantastic wedding season has quieted down, I've been trying to work on more creatives with photographers and models. Here are some pics from a photography workshop I helped out with last week. These wonderful captures come courtesy of Dave Abreu:Make-up: Rhia Amio (www.artistrhi.com)
Photo and Post-Processing: Dave Abreu Photography
Models: Joanna (top pic), Sterling (bottom pic)

Check out Make-up Junkie's extensive post on the gift of gloss this upcoming season! I got to test-run Benefit's Peace, Love & Glossiness set and it's definitely an item that will be on many a wish list. Gloss on!
Benefit's Peace, Love and Glossiness makes the perfect Christmas gift of gloss this holiday season! Lip gloss fanatics and Makeup Junkies will love the set of 3 gloss duos that contain 6 of Benefit’s most popular lips glosses with such irresistable names: 1. My people, Your people, 2. Talk To My Agent, 3. 24K, 4. Who Does Your Work?, 5. Magic, and 6. Kiss You.

Shine-on with Smart Packaging
I test ran the lip glosses this week wearing it from my daytime job to a night out. I did touch up mid-day after lunch to keep the lips looking glossy-fresh. The shine of one application was just right for an all-day look and perfectly suitable for a corporate office, where you may want to ensure co-workers are not distracted by over-glossed and gooey lips. What's great is that you can easily change up your look for evening with any of the alternate glosses in the set, and all you have to carry is one tube for 2 different looks! Well, unless of course you’re a super junkie and want all 6 glosses handy!! (Guilty as charged).

Stick factor
The glosses have just the right amount of stick to give a great shine, keep the product where it belongs, and not catch your hair as it blows in the wind! The downside of not being too sticky is that a midday touch-up is likely necessary, as the product will tend to wear away sooner than an overly sticky gloss.

Smell
It does have a slight fragrance-y smell that was initially noticeable. I tend to use products without fragrance (as a personal preference), but overall the smell was negligible and not unpleasant.

Benefit's Peace, Love & Glossiness set is limited edition only and at a steal of price of $30 for the six glosses, it's surely not going to stay on store shelves very long! It definitely makes a great gift, but be careful when buying it that you don’t end up keeping it for yourself!

Available at Sephora, Shoppers Drug Mart or online at www.benefitcosmetics.com

Read the full post at Make-up Junkie.

Today in Toronto, we had one of the coldest days yet this fall season which served as a quick reminder of the chilly winter months ahead. Winter weather is something that I (and my skin) can never get used to. The colder and drier temperatures tend to make my skin dull and dry. So to avoid the winter skin blues, other than diligently applying moisturizer, I use bronzer and/or highlighter to add a glow to otherwise lacklustre skin. Bronzers and highlighters aren't seasonal products that are only limited to the warmer summer months. Rather, they can be used all year-round, as glowing skin never goes out of season!

I love MAC Mineralize Skinfinish powders for achieving this effect, but another favourite product that's available at your local drugstore (at a fraction of the cost) is Bonne Belle's Glimmer Bronze. Glimmer Bronze goes for only about $6 per container, and the effect it achieves is priceless. You only need a tiny amount per application (remember starting off with less and building layers is always better than ending up looking like one of King Midas's victims!) . Use Glimmer Bronze with a clean blush brush (a powder brush will be too big). Sweep the powder atop the cheekbone to bring this area of the face forward and to get your glow on!