Kellie Lewis - Working Hard Music Video Look

Kellie Lewis' "Working Hard"

A few months back I was lucky enough to get to meet and do makeup for Kellie Lewis, a contestant on The Voice of Ireland.
I love these kinds of jobs because everyone involved is so into what they're doing that it never feels like work.
Kellie is insanely talented and was so fun to work with, so funny! She's also quite into makeup which was great as I can talk about eyeshadow and lipstick all day long haha!

The video was shot in Miss Daisy Blue ,hair and styling was by the amazing Tommy Heffernan and photography and video were done by Kachmarsky Photographer.

Kellie has huge blue eyes so I wanted to make them stand out as much as possible while still keeping it chic so I used a yellow-gold shadow all over the lid and blended a slightly darker brown through the socket and just under the eye to keep it bright but still a little edgy. I used the Sleek Makeup Sunset Palette which is just amazing.
I then blended a little bronzer over the brown through the socket to warm it up and add depth, I believe it was Benefit's Hoola Bronzer.
To keep it chic, I lined the eyes in a semi cat like shape, getting right into the top inner corner and extending the outer corners slightly using Bobbi Brown Long Wear Eye Pencil in Jet as it's a super long lasting but creamy pencil that's really black and fantastic.
I added a few coats of mascara and added a few Liz Martin's individual lashes.
I kept the brows pared back slightly, just brushing them into place with Illamasqua Brow and Lash Gel which does not budge!






Skin was kept flawless but light using a mixture of Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation shades, concealer was used sparingly, with emphasis under the eyes and I used the Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer  (again in a mixture of shades). I contoured with Illamasqua Disobey Powder Blush and set everything with some Chanel transparent loose powder.

On the lips, I used a mix of coral and pink shades, which was custom mixed on the day from various MAC shades.

For Kellie's guitarist Ben, I used Revlon Colorstay Foundation in the Dry Skin formulation to even out any discoloration and under the eyes lightly, and set with powder.










Check out the video below!

Motley Series

Final issue of the University Term!

I can't believe how quickly the year has gone! I can't believe how quickly the last THREE years have gone!
University has been an incredible, life altering experience and I've loved it. I have had some amazing opportunities and changed so much for the better, as cliched as that sounds. Going back to college was daunting but so beyond rewarding and if anyone is thinking of doing so PLEASE do, it's completely brilliant.

I'll quit with the educational seminar and move on to the FINAL photo set we shot for Motley Magazine.
I have been a fan of Margaret's blog( http://www.4ngstyle.com/ )  and her personal style for a long time and having (very briefly) met her at last year's Cork Fashion Week I was really excited to get to work with her.
I had a concept in mind for what I wanted the shoot to look like, which was all about a kind of sultry, tropical but very chic and sophisticated style.
I have been to 6ix Bar Cork many times and as well as having some seriously amazing cocktails and food (margaritas and tacos, need I say more?!) I was completely blown away by the decor, fantastic Cuban inspired surroundings, stunning jewel tones and a little shrine tucked away under the stairs! Just fantastic and perfect for the concept I had in mind. (I was basically just wishing for summer!)
I sourced some amazing fashion from Amity Cork and Miss Daisy Blue, asked the always fantastic Amy Frahill if she'd shoot for us and we were off!

 This first shot is SO awesome, it also made the cover which is really exciting!

Fringed crop top and Zig-Zag Trousers both Amity Cork

Black Body-Con Dress - Amity Cork

This image really shows off the makeup look so I thought I'd mention what I used,where and how!
I wanted the skin to look plumped and dewy and Margaret already has flawless skin so I prepped with some of the completely amazing Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream which I highly, HIGHLY recommend as it's a transformative product.
I then buffed a little of my beloved Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation into Margaret's skin, using a Real Techniques Buffing Brush, really making sure it was worked into the skin for a polished look. I lightened the under-eye area using one of the Skin Base Lifts, also from Illamasqua, these little guys work wonders as a subtle but noticeable highlight and work really well with Illamasqua's Blending Brush #2 to buff the product into the skin.
I highlighted the tops of the cheekbones, down the center of the nose and on the cupids bow using MeMeMe Cosmetics Beat The Blues Highlighter in Oyster Gold and powdered lightly only in certain areas using the Paese Cosmetics Bamboo Powder.
I moved onto the brows and used a mixture of MAC shadows I have in a little brow quad, I'm not entirely sure which they were though, possibly Omega and Charcoal Brown or Brun!
I prepped the eyes using Paese Cosmetics Eye Primer, then worked some of the Maybelline Color Tattoo in Pink Gold onto the lid using an Ilamasqua Blending Brush #2. I worked a little soft pink shadow through the crease, I believe the shadows were a mixture of various pink shades I had in my kit and I remember using the bright pink from the Illamasqua Pink Smoke palette and the glittery pink from my Make Up Academy in Glitter Ball (incredible palettes and SO inexpensive!) I used a Real Techniques Deluxe Crease Brush and Domed Shadow Brush to apply and blend the shadows along with a MAC 217 to blend the edges of the shadows and make sure there were no harsh lines.
I ran a little bronzer through the crease the warm everything up a bit and make the pink less harsh, and lined the lash line with some Bobbi Brown Gel Liner which I winged out and up into the outer crease with some black shadow, I think was Laura Mercier's Noir.
I finished the eyes with a few coats of mascara, which was a Maybelline one (I think!) and used some of my favorite Liz Martin's individual lashes to wing out the outer corners.
On the cheeks, I used Illamasqua Disobey Blush to contour lightly, Margaret has AMAZING cheekbones, and I buffed some of the STUNNING Paese blush (with Argan Oil!) from Paese Cosmetics onto the cheeks and high onto the cheekbones.
This is such a great colour, similar enough to NARS famous Orgasm with that fantastic gold shimmer which works so well on the high points of the cheeks if you really buff it up and out.
For the lips, I used Paese Cosmetics (really into this brand at the moment) really amazing Manifesto Lip Creme in 905. These lip cremes are phenomenal, (and an absolute bargain at only €6.99!) they are so creamy (as you'd imagine from the name) and last for ages as they stain slightly and the colour was perfect for the look.
I sharpened up the edges of the lip by using some of the Skin Base Lift around the edges to add soft definition.

Cropped Red Jacket - Miss Daisy Blue

Bag - BooHoo

Cropped top and Trousers - Amity Cork

 White dress with Bird and Flower embroidery - Amity Cork

Shoes - BooHoo

 Vintage Sequined Top - Miss Daisy Blue

Black Body-Con Dress - Amity Cork


That's a wrap for this year!

It's been such a great year, and I've had an amazing time working with the magazine. Huge thank you to everyone involved with the magazine as well as to all of the photographers, stores, models and business owners without whom none of the shoots would have happened.

Thanks for stopping by!

LxK

Motley Editorials

Hello!
So it's that time of the month again, (not not that one) where I decide to blog, hopefully I won't become to distracted halfway through this post and just abandon it like...well every single every other blog I've ever had.

I've been thinking about things to post for ages and sometimes the best thing is the most obvious, so I thought I'd talk, or write as it were, through some of the looks I've done working as the Fashion & Beauty Editor of Motley Magazine!

I'll start from my first full editorial, which was shot by the fantastic Romona Mueller (www.facebook.com/Ramona-Mueller-Fotografie), styled by Sarah Corcoran (www.facebook.com/SarahCorcoranStylist) and featuring two lovely models Katie and Nathalie.
Sarah's has an amazing eye and the pieces she brings to a shoot are always individual and brilliantly thought out.
The location for the shoot was Fota Island's amazing gardens, just a stunning place.
The brief for this was a light, summery feeling with a hint of an edge so I kept the makeup following this theme but with a strong, stained red lip.

This first look (such a great shoot) was started by prepping the skin with a rich moisturizer, I'm a fan of  Embryolisse's Lait Creme Concentrate, which creates a fabulous smooth base. I then buffed Illamasqua's Skin Base Foundation in shade Number 7 onto Nathalie's skin using a Real Techniques Buffing Brush. The foundation is about a shade and a half darker than Nathalie's skin but is very lightweight so managed to warm up the skin without looking too full on "bronze".
For concealer I used a mixture from a Bobbi Brown palette, I'm not too sure of the exact shades, sorry!
I used a Tom Ford Brow Sculptor and some clear brow gel to keep brows defined but natural.
On the eyes, I began by smoothing a small amount of Urban Decay Primer Potion from the lash line to the brow bone as this really helps to even out the skin tone on the eyes.
I then moved on to a Maybelline Color Tattoo in "Pink Gold" using this all over the lid, then contoured the eye using a small amount of Hoola Bronzer (by Benefit) through the crease.
I can't quite remember the name of the shimmery shadow I used on the lid over the Maybelline cream shadow but I believe it is in my MAC "Wedding" palette (maybe "All That Glitters"?)
I used a very light coating of mascara and combed through with a disposable mascara wand to create a semi-clumped effect, really trying to keep with the low key feel of the clothing and location.
I used a mixture of NARS blushes on the cheeks with a tiny amount of Illamasqua's "Disobey" to give a light contour.
I wanted the lips to have a slightly "lived-in" feel as I felt a perfectly angular lip line would have looked odd next to the floaty fashion so I pressed some of MAC's Dubonnet into the lips using my fingers and lightly defined the edges using the same shade on a Real Techniques Detailer Brush.
I pressed a little extra lipstick into the center of the lips to create depth.
I finished the look with a very light dusting of a Chanel loose powder all over the face as the day was quite hot and we were shooting in what was basically a greenhouse so temperatures were high!

For the second look, I essentially used the same products, except for using a little "Pink Opal" pigment by MAC in the inner corners of the eye and a deeper shade of foundation as a contour rather than the powder of "Disobey" as it was more fitting with Katie's skin type.

Hope that's been of some interest, and perhaps even a little helpful in choosing products.
Please do check out the links for everyone involved as they are all fantastic.

Thanks for stopping by!

LxK