Beauty Tip 101: Protect your skin from the sun.

I finally get the chance to sit down and do my first blog entry for this year. I have been working non-stop doing makeup for brides in November and December 2009. These two months are considered the super-peak popular wedding months in Malaysia.

My first  beauty tip for 2010 is to block, block, BLOCK!

If you only have time to apply one product on your skin, make it a moisturiser with sunblock of SPF15 and above. If you can do this daily without fail, I guarantee that you will look years younger than someone who doesn't. Age-spots and wrinkles caused by sun-damage literally age someone beyond their years.

I wish to state here that this is only my personal review. There are many other beauty products out there which are equally good. Find products that agree with your skin. When in doubt, please consult your dermatologist. Here are my current picks.

From Left to Right:
Artistry Multi-Protect SPF30,
Benefit You Rebel Lite SPF15,
Sunkiller Perfect Strong SPF50,
Sunkiller UV Milk SPF50 and
Avene Ultra High Protection Cream SPF50.

Autumn in Shanghai

This is a personal entry. The person behind the blog needed to get away for a short breather. So, my husband and I decided to head to Shanghai for a ten-day trip with our three children.

The moment we landed in Pudong Airport, we were whisked away literally on the Maglev train. Short for magnetic levitational train, it went up to a top-speed of 430km/h and we reached the heart of the city in less than 10minutes.

We continued our journey to Suzhou, a couple of hours away. It's a city filled with elegant Chinese gardens and meandering canals. I lost track of the number of bridges criss-crossing the whole city. Here is one of the many gardens we visited.

At night, we went to a well-preserved night market in Suzhou where the shops still looked as they have been for centuries. Many Chinese couples were there too, doing their pre-wedding shoots. Perfect backdrop for the nostalgic oriental atmosphere.

Hangzhou West Lake at dusk is so serene. No wonder it was the favourite holiday destination of past emperors.

We took a boat ride to reach the scenic island in the middle of the lake. We explored the gardens on the island. Every nook and cranny is a nice spot.

We had lovely weather, blue skies almost everyday. This is the view while we were going up the pagoda of the Lady White Snake legend. Escalators and elevators made the journey up a breeze for us.

The three of them having a short break from all the walking.

Shanghai is a bustling city of 20 million people. We went up to the highest observatory floor of the Shanghai World Financial Centre. One feels on top of the world at that height. Baby is admiring the view.








Here are the little globetrotters. They were good little travellers. It was a lovely family holiday.

Autumn in Melbourne

Autumn in Melbourne presented an amazing kaleidoscope of colours. The changing foliage was the perfect backdrop for Bernard and Ivy's pre-wedding shoot. This amazing shot was taken by the talented photographer Jon Low who worked tirelessly to capture the perfect moment for them.

Destination pre-wedding photoshoots are now all the rage with the advent of low-cost carriers such as Air Asia offering affordable flights. Even our national carrier Malaysia Airlines offers great promotional rates during certain periods. The world is now in your backyard.

Stella & Ben's Wedding

I still remember the first time that Stella and I spoke on the phone. She sounded so warm and friendly. It was as if we have been friends for the longest time. Before even meeting me, she made me promise that I must do her bridal makeup for her wedding dinner at The Palace of The Golden Horses, Kuala Lumpur.

It was indeed a pleasure to be her makeup artist. Throughout the session, we had heaps of fun chatting away about everything under the sun. She was absolutely gorgeous to begin with, so by the time I finished her makeup, her friends were saying ooh and ahh when they came up to the room to greet her.

She wore a very unusual wedding gown with a see-through lace panel with a dramatic black sash and a long train. For her hair, she wanted to look fresh and vibrant. Since she loved flowers, I arranged a combination of orchids and roses for her hair.

This is me and the radiant bride Stella. We made the bridegroom Ben, take our picture for us. I truly cherish their friendship and wish them much love, joy and abundance in their marriage.

Please Don't Make Me White !

We get that request a lot... "Please don't make me white!" Especially from brides with tanned skin.

In multi-racial Malaysia, we have a diverse range of ethnicities. As such, many of our friends and clients are from Indian and Malay backgrounds. It is not uncommon for Chinese to have tanned skin as well. It is imperative to apply the perfect foundation to match the brides's complexion.

There are no two ways about it. If one gets it wrong, the bride may end up looking like a walking disaster on her wedding day. Hence, we always recommend a trial makeup to discover the right shade for her.

Sophia, is a lovely Muslim bride with Pakistani heritage. She was all dressed for her traditional ceremony to welcome her groom. She also had an Akad Nikah ceremony.

Juli's is a beautiful Indian bride with a diverse family background. Her wedding itinerary included separate ceremonies consisting of a Christian church ceremony and Hindu rites to accomodate both sides of the family. She was dressed in a lovely red saree and was being formally veiled in this photograph.

This was me posing with Juli and her friends and family.

Pretty Dresses and Long Tresses

Jessie from xocolati is a fellow colleague in our close-knit wedding industry, who is now a dear friend. She is soft-spoken and always has a smile for everyone. We planned her pre-wedding shoot in her friend's house located in a private residential enclave near to her hometown.

Her brief was just that, brief. She simply told me to create a soft look to complement all her pretty dresses. With that in mind, I set about to curl her long hair in soft curls and piled them up loosely.

Soft tendrils framed her face. The result was extraordinary. Jessie was transformed into the belle of the ball for her photoshoot.

I wanted to her to look like a fairy-tale princess. Her beautiful gowns were specially designed by Kris and Louisa from That Special Occasion.

The pictures here were taken with my nifty iPhone as a sneak peek. I haven't seen the professional set of photographs yet.

Zach Chin was the photographer and Anna-Rina was the second shooter in attendance. You can see what went on behind-the-scene for this pre-wedding shoot.

Don't you agree she looks like Cinderella in this impromptu shot?

We all look forward to see the beautiful photographs which shall only be revealed during Jessie & Yoong's wedding in December.

Brides with Short Hair

Brides with short hair have to consider whether they want to leave their hair short, camouflage hair to appear long or add hair extensions.

You are a unique individual and no one can really dictate how you should wear your hair on your wedding day. Short hair can very stylish too.

Nicole has a chin-length bob and she chose to camouflage her hair to appear longer. We felt that she would look great with her hair pinned back to appear as if her hair is bunned in a low chignon.

In actual fact, we accessorized her hair with cymbidium orchids and berries to make her bun "fuller". We left wisps of hair at the sides to frame her face.

For her makeup, we applied a thick eyeliner to enhance her large, beautiful eyes and blended in a darker eye shadow shade to lift the corner of her eyes. Long false lashes, a dash of blusher and lip gloss completed her natural bridal look.

Sherly & Graham's Wedding Dinner in KL

Sherly is a sweet and friendly lady. I can tell why Graham must have fallen head over heels in love with his beautiful bride.

Their wedding spanned three locations. Her Chinese tea ceremony was in her hometown Kampar, Perak and her wedding ceremony took place in England where Graham hails from.

I did her makeup for her wedding dinner reception in Kuala Lumpur.

My team of makeup artists did the evening makeup for both sides of the family at Prince Hotel, Jalan Conlay, Kuala Lumpur. Chinese and Caucasian complexions required different range of foundation colours to ensure a perfect match.

For Sherly, I created a soft makeup look for her grand entrance. Her natural glow and radiance shone through.

Her long hair cascaded down in soft waves. I dressed up her hair with fresh flowers and small pearl hairpins.

For her second look, I pinned back more of her hair to show off the lovely embroidery and details on her Chinese kua, a traditional two-piece bright red brocade gown worn by brides.

These images were taken with my iPhone. Shall replace them with the professionally taken set of photographs once I get them from Sherly.

Bridal Glam Makeup Artists

We are a team of professional bridal makeup artists in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We wield our magic wands a.k.a makeup brushes to help our bride look her most glamourous on her wedding day.

This is the single most important day that she will cherish and remember for the rest of her life. It is our job to do the most beautiful makeup, to style her hair in the most flattering way and to calm her wedding day jitters.

We sincerely hope you will be one of our glamourous brides too. It would be an honour for us to do your beautiful bridal makeup on your wedding day. We wish to be your friends, not just during the wedding but long after that.

If you believe that we are destined to meet for a reason, that our friendship is meant to be, please contact us.