#bridallookbook

Joyce is my January bride. We finally had her hair and makeup (airbrush) trial today. As soon as I met her, I just fell in-love with the color of her eyes! She had light brown eyes which went perfectly with the coral/pink shadow I applied on her... I also used other shades of brown to complete the look.

Topped with glossy coral/apricot puckers... She looked fresh and radiant... Joyce even said that after our session she wanted to wear her gown already! Hahaha!

For the hair, this is what hairstylist Helen did:


Joyce wanted to leave her hair down because according to her she had a "big face"... which she didn't! She looked absolutely gorgeous!! What Helen did was give her volume at the top to give the illusion of height and to elongate her beautiful face.


PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup and Photographed by Sabs Hernandez
Hair by Helen Egan

Today after my shoot, I went on a shopping spree and bought 5 new shades of eye shadows from MAC. I was always scrambling around my makeup kit when I am at work looking for matte shades for brides and always failed. I would always substitue with something else so finally, in spite of my aching back, legs and feet from a whole afternoon of shooting, I went to Glorietta and bought myself a whole set of shades that I always wished I had!!

Thank goodness my sister was in my condo when I arrived so I tested my new products on her... yes, complete with foundation and false eyelashes!

I used 4 shades on her eyes, and the 5th shade was just plain black so I used it only on her lash lines.

I created a bridal look that was lightly heavy on the eyes. I just wanted to do this because brides are always afraid to use eyeliner, afraid that they might look "too made up" or "too dramatic". So, this is just to show women out there that eyeliner is always, always, always a best option. It looks best in pictures too.

Of course, the decision is always up to my brides because I want them to not only look their best on their big day, but to be comfortable with the makeup as much as possible.


PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup and Photography by Sabs Hernandez
Model: Margs Lopez

Tony curled Cristina's hair and pinned it up to show her the up-style. Cristina told Tony that she wanted curls and an up-do but doesn't want it to look too fixed. She used conditioner so the style wouldn't hold up for too long so Tony just gave her a short preview on the wedding look.



PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup and Photographed by Sabs Hernandez
Hair by Tony Dusich

Trina had her trial hair and makeup session with me today. She has beautiful fair skin but doesn't want to look to "pale" during her January wedding.

Michelle is such a lovely girl! She has the height of a model! Hehehe... I actually had to tip toe to take her picture :) Anyway, Michelle wanted to go for the traditional makeup but I convinced her to try airbrush.

I wanted to give her that natural look for her wedding so that the makeup "shouting" and "straight forward". I wanted her to still look like her, and radiant without a whole lot of products.




PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup by Sabs Hernandez
Photographed by Sabs Hernandez

My beautiful March bride Kit, had her trial makeup session with me today. I must say, I love her skin tone! Kit has fair skin and a cool tone which made the smokey eye look cool as well. It didn't look heavy at all.

Mocha blush and dark eyeshadow was the perfect look for her. Of course, she chose this look and it suits her!

I am doing airbrush makeup on her on her wedding day.



PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup by Sabs Hernandez
Photographed by Sabs Hernandez

Ces' Trial session: Airbrush makeup, fresh and clean makeup look for day wedding!

My sister Margs is attending another wedding today. Good thing I didn't have any shoots today so I was able to do her makeup again, which is one of my favorites! I love doing her makeup because her face is versatile, but her features are unique... It's so fun to experiment on her! Plus, she wears different gowns every time so it gives me the opportunity to change looks. From nude gowns to red carpet big gowns... I am able to update my makeup look too!


I was with her when she bought her gown so I knew the color. She's wearing a plum tube gown with a long train so I can ask Tony (my hairstylist) to keep her hair up (my favorite). I always want it up and loose to keep it "young and fresh".


For her makeup, I never used gold eyeshadow on her before so that is the color I chose. My inspiration was a cross between an Egyptian princess with a 1920s twist.


I washed her lid with yellow gold shimmer shadow, and contoured with a light brown shadow. I lined her eyes with a plum & gold liner, from Lancôme's current "Onyx Splendor" (or in some countries known as Beauty of India) collection. I smudged it with a deep plum eyeshadow and patted liquid gold shadow on the inner corners of her eyes. I applied 2 coats of L'Extreme mascara on her lashes.

For the cheeks, I used a deep rose sheer blush to keep it on the light side. I want her skin to show underneath all the makeup products to keep her looking youthful... Oh! And I should mention, she's pregnant with her 3rd baby, that's also why I didn't want to use a lot of products on her face :)

The main focus of the look is the lips. I want it to stand out! Even though I was using a daring, bold eye shadow color, I wanted the lips to give that 1920s twist I imagined. I lined and filled her lips with Lancôme's plum lip liner and glossed it with a bronze gloss to give dimension and a pouty look.

I had a trial hair and makeup today with Mitzi Benares. I must say, she is as lovely as how she sounded on the phone.

Mitzi has gorgeous skin so opting for airbrush makeup is just a plus for her. She could have done without the foundation, but of course it is necessary for photographs and the video. She is having a kind of a late-afternoon wedding so I did her eyes in a light lilac/violet eyeshadow color so that the golden-orange sun set will reflect nicely on her makeup when she does pictorials before the reception. I was thinking if I should put false lashes on her but she didn't need them either. Mitzi had nice long lashes, plenty to work with that defined her eyes beautifully.

For her lips, I gave her a slight stain so that she wouldn't look to made up for the photographs... Just glossed it up to give her a sexy pout!






PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup by Sabs Hernandez
Hair by Tony Dusich

BRIDAL TIPS

♥ A beautiful wedding day look starts with the right cleanser and moisturizer for your skin's needs; follow with a great hydrating cream for your eye area. Allow 5-10 minutes for the moisturizers to get fully absorbed by your skin.

♥ Lighten undereye circles with a creamy concealer and even out your skin tone with a foundation that matches your skin in natural light. Set with loose powder for a polished look that lasts, and yet gives you that dewy and supple look.

♥ Warm up your skin by sweeping on a bronzer powder with a bronzing brush. If your skin is exceptionally fair, skip the bronzer.

♥ Define your eyebrows using a product that you are already used to that's toned to your hair color. If you have a product to set your eyebrows, add a thin layer just enough to keep your eyebrow hairs in place the entire night.

♥ Use a white colored eyeshadow as an all over shadow base and highlighter on brow bone; choose BONE or VANILLA for darker skin (Like Angie here). Apply medium eyeshadow shades like sable, old rose, or taupe on your lid (from lash line to crease). If you want a more dramatic look, add shimmer shadow on top of your entire eye area in champagne or beige.

♥ For a long-lasting eye liner, line your eyes with an ultra-thin brush by wetting the tip and dipping it in charcoal, navy, or dark brown eyeshadow. Brush your lashes to brush off excess powder and other products before curling your lashes and finishing with 2 coats of mascara.

♥ Dust blush on the apples of your cheeks, blending up towards the hairline, then downwards to soften. Add a pop of brighter blush in the same color family just on the apples of the cheeks. For a pretty glow, dust on shimmer. There are a lot of brands now that offer shimmer brick compacts.

♥ Brighten your normal lip shade with a neutral shade of pencil, and apply a bright color on top! In Angie's case, I used a bright peach-orange color to match with the apricot blush I applied on her cheeks. Blot and re-apply. To make your lipstick really last, repeat this step 2-3 times. Finish with gloss for added shine.






PHOTO CREDITS
Hair and Makeup: Sabs Hernandez for Lancôme Paris
Photographer: Filrobes
Model: Angie Sandel
Accessories by: OLEIC

One of my sister's friends, Mich, has gorgeous fair skin that I notice every time I see her. Extremely fair skin is very hard to play up since their white appearance can appear dry (even when they are not) when you put too much powder, or even with no product.

So one day, I was able to convince Mich to model for me for a "beach/garden bride" look. Instead of trying to make her look tan by using bronzers and other products that would make her darker, I actually highlighted her fair skin more. If you have extremely dark skin, altering it will only make you look uneven and orange. So deal with the color you are blessed with... At least on your wedding day :)




Instead of a full coverage foundation, I used a light to medium coverage foundation mixed with an illuminizer, and spot concealed any unwanted spots.

I also used translucent powder on her skin because Mich has pink undertones. I didn't want to use a loose powder with pink undertones since this may highlight it even more making her appear too pink or red. So tone it down with translucent powder. Be careful though, too much of this may make you look very white on camera. So don't over do it, just use enough to set your foundation.

A sheer wash of light pink eyeshadow blended with a light gold highlight should do it. I used falsies on Mich to give her a doll-eyed look, and lined her lash lines with a thick liquid liner to add intensity on the eyes. For the blush, just a sweep of light pink blush and matching lipstick polished her look.

*For bright eyes, add shimmer to the inner corner of her eyes! The result is a fresh look for a garden/beach wedding!







PHOTO CREDITS
Hair and Makeup: Sabs Hernandez for Lancôme Paris
Photographed by: Sabs Hernandez
Model: Mich Rodriguez-Del Rosario

Meet Vida, my bride. She had great color, and I know that high glossed lips would make her skin tone shine more. I LOVE LIP GLOSS, I think lip gloss adds character and attitude to any outfit or face. Some people may have told you that as a bride (or bride-to-be), it is advisable not to wear lip gloss for it may be hard to maintain. In my job as a bridal makeup artist, I have experimented on every possible way to make lip gloss last. here are a few pointers on making your gloss last during your wedding.

The first step is to choose a good lip gloss—pick a quality brand. (You can never go wrong with choosing a name brand when it comes to cosmetics; however, if generic is the way for you, then don't hesitate—you can still make it work.) Within your lip gloss choices you have a handful of "long lasting" glosses, or glosses that are meant to stay on all day. If all-day lip gloss is your goal then go ahead and try out the gloss' brand promise. I've found that many claims of cosmetics have some validity to them.

When you settle on a lip gloss and are ready to apply, make sure your lips are already moisturized because if they aren't then your lips will probably just absorb what they can from the gloss leaving your lips gloss-less. Another trick I've found useful is to apply a couple different lip glosses on at the same time. (This is also a nice aesthetic trick). Pick colors that mix well together and the added layer of gloss and moisture will help your gloss to stay on longer. A plus is also the added dimension a color mix can give to your lips.

*On Vida, I used 2 colors of lip glosses. First, I lined her lips with a deep wine pencil and filled her lips with the same pencil. Then, I used a purple colored gloss on the outer part of her lips to make the lip liner color "pop" out more. Then, a gloss with a more shiny effect that is colored hot pink on the inner most part of her lips to give her the pouty effect. Remember -- when doing your lips, make sure that you are using shades in the same color family!

Just know that if you're eating or drinking anything, your lip gloss will definitely rub off faster than if you don't eat or drink, so don't be too upset if you have to reapply after a meal. Fortunately there are ways in which you can keep that sophisticated sheen of gloss on your lips for extended periods of time—you just need to know the right tricks!








PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup by Sabs Hernandez
Photo from Vida

I already posted a blog about April and Johncy's wedding last March (CLICK HERE), but it's only now I got a picture of April from her wedding.


I want to talk about April's makeup. April had great skin and a great smile. With that combination, you don't need a whole lot of makeup on your face. You just need to highlight the areas that need more attention and you are good to go!

On April's chinita eyes, I wanted to give her a more bright-eyed look by washing the lid with a sort of a silver-gray sheer shadow, and load up on mascara. I defined her beautiful eyebrows and brushed her cheeks with a beautiful deep rose blush. I used moose, not powder. Blend it with your hands so that it will really blend beautifully on the skin.

On her lips, I used a matching shade of the blush that is a lip liner and lined and filled her lips with it. I glossed it and finished with a thin layer of loose iridescent powder.

Don't fix areas that don't need fixing! This is one mistake that is common. Sometimes, people think that when you are a bride, you need to be made up to the maximum! With me, when you are a bride, I use as little product as possible, and I make sure it lasts!





Here's April about 7 hours into the makeup...















PHOTO CREDITS
Makeup: Sabs Hernandez for Lancôme Paris
Hair: Paulo Lopez