Back To Regular Programming

I think I just grew wrinkles that aged me 20 years older, due to some site problems. This blog had several issues the past week. It was loading uber slow that I decided to change hosts after encountering various problems with my previous host. Also, I was using an old version of wordpress which puts this blog at risk for more troubles.

I’ve attempted in the past to upgrade to the latest wordpress but I ended up with an empty blog. The techie wanna-be in me tends to try out things that often leads me to technical misadventures. Good thing I was able to restore my blog that time although I didn’t know how I did it.?!? Uh, divine intervention?

I transferred to a host specializing in wordpress just so they’ll have my back the next time I encounter difficulties troubleshooting my blog. However, the issues plaguing my site was larger than life and it had to take the award-winning  technology blogger, Jaypee of Jaypeeonline.net to figure things out. If you are reading this far from its sickly disposition, I owe that to him. Thank God I was also saved from bleeding my brains out trying to solve something way beyond my capacity. To think I was considering using Drupal and Joomla before. *covers self in shame* Yeah, I just heard you say, “ambisyosa.”

Aside from the upgrading, Jaypee was able to find some errors that were making this site an easy prey for attacks. Some of which, were probably of my own doing. I could just imagine him shaking his head in disgust over the mess I created in my own site, but  I couldn’t thank him enough for sharing his expertise that would have cost me an arm and leg had I hired a techie professional. No wonder he’s blessed to have plenty of blogger friends who are all praises for him. And yes, he has minions who read his blog all the time.

If you’re having problems with your current web hosting and are looking for a new hosting service, you might want to try WP webhost where you can avail of 30% discount using Jaypee’s code: Jaypee30. Cool, huh?

Thanks are also in order for CDO Bloggers president and wordpress theme designer, Chiq Montes for her expert advice.

By the way, my apologies to the email subscribers of vanityclinic.com who received an alert yesterday about an entry I wrote for my semi-personal blog on another site. I didn’t know how that happened (yet again!). Oh well, welcome to another episode of my technical misadventures. It’s so creepy, it’s like parking my car in the wrong house. Sorry about that.

Ok, now that my blog just came out of the ICU, prepare for for more makeup tricks and answers to some of your beauty questions. Til then!

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JLo’s Beauty Secrets

If you’re wondering who’s the artist responsible for most of Jlo’s trend setting makeup looks, it’s Scott Barnes. He is Jennifer Lopez’ favorite makeup artist who just launched a book called ” About Face,”  revealing celebrity beauty secrets.

J.Lo was there to attend the book launching, wearing a strapless classic black Louis Vuitton dress. She appears on the book’s cover, and wrote the foreword in support to her makeup stylist and beauty adviser. She shares that Scott Barnes taught her tricks on highlighting and contouring, among other tips that she learned from the beauty guru.

Scott Barnes spills his secrets on replicating JLo’s beauty in “About Face”. According to reports, he wrote easy to follow instructions on doing makeup on yourself. It’s just like hiring Scott Barnes himself to do your makeup, except that it’s your hands doing the moves.

JLo is starring in an upcoming movie, “The Back Up Plan,” which is due for release in April. There are rumors that she will be appearing on the hit TV series “Glee,” soon.

About Face is available from Amazon.com.

About Face is a compendium of everything make-up artist Scott Barnes has learned during his career working with A-list celebrities including Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Jennifer Aniston. About Face is packed with techniques for every area of makeup application. Part One focuses on dramatic makeovers of real women with a twist: each woman comes in looking the best she thinks she can look. The author then deconstructs and debunks their look taking them from attractive to (more…)

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Melai’s Transformation

If you’re a viewer of Pinoy Big Brother Double-Up, you were probably one of those mesmerized with the transformation of the funny crowd favorite, Melai. She underwent a makeover to prepare her for a celebrity date with actor Jericho Rosales.

Melissa Cantiveros is a teacher from General Santos city who cracks up the PBB house with her natural candor and witty remarks, hence was tagged as the resident “kengkay.” She does not see herself as an enchanting beauty despite her winsome personality and Fastin-svelte figure. Instead, her comedic tendencies deem her a threat to Pokwang, the famous local comedienne. The disparaging self-assessment of her looks gives her doubts about a fellow housemate’s (Jason Francisco’s) affection for her.  She has to be constantly reassured that she is beautiful in her own way.

With the help of make up artist Diane de Castro, a Maybelline Color Artist, the transformation that took place needed little effort into convincing Melai about the beauty lurking inside her.  She couldn’t contain her excitement on her newly discovered innate loveliness. This is the best thing about the proper application of makeup- it empowers a woman’s self-esteem. She obviously loved the way she looked that she didn’t want the makeup to go off.

Diane de Castro imparted a natural but sexy look on Melai. The colors are peaches and browns from the eyeshadows to the lipstick. A slight shimmer was added to the apples of the cheeks. The eyebrows were groomed, the lash lines were defined  and the nose was contoured. Simple but amazing.

Before

After

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Dear Santa, I Need A High Chair

One of the dilemmas of a make-up artist is having terrible back pains after a gig. We hardly engage in strenuous activities during an event, except for carrying heavy traincases, but the after effects we suffer are similar to being pinned down in a sumo wrestling match (not that I did any wrestling in the past). The pain has to do with all the bending and straining of the back when the client is seated in an ordinary chair. We have to move closer to her face to achieve our desired results. A few hours after, the muscle pain sets in. And you thought our job was easy. Part of our earnings should go to health savings account because of these risks.

Wearing flats and putting pillows on the chair are just not enough. Ideally, the make-up artist chair or high chair is used to prevent this problem. The other day, a client went to our house for prenup make-up and I used the high chair which comes with the mini-bar set at home. The whole process went smoothly, without any back-breaking moves. This is how I want my gigs to go- painless. Unfortunately, the high chair at home cannot fit into the car trunk and I don’t see myself bringing furniture around town. I need a portable type.

About 2 years ago, I saw some makeup artist chairs sold in multiply. It was Php7000. The shipping to my place would surely cost more. My classmate in makeup school told me that they are also available in Quiapo for a cheaper price. Still, the transit cost is a problem. The only solution I could think of is to hire a carpenter and have him follow the design in the picture. If only we had the right materials to copy the lightness of the structure. The last thing I want is another tool heavier than my traincase. After all, I am a make up artist, not a body builder. Unless Santa has plans of enlisting me into the next Ms. Iron Body Contest, I hope he grants my wish for this Christmas. Well, if he could throw in a Flip camera for vlogging along with the high chair, that would be nice. Ok, ok, Santa, I know I’m getting on your nerves. If you could find me well-paying gigs so I could buy my own toys, that would be good enough, thanks!

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Behind The Scenes Video

We had a Geisha/Indian Makeup Shoot last Friday for my friend, Malou  who’s here for a vacation from the US. She requested for Dustein Sibug of http://dustein.multiply.com, the exceptional photographer who took my Pre-nup and Wedding Photos. Before we did the Geisha Shoot with Audrey, Malou already contacted me to do a Geisha makeup on her. Geisha  just happens to be a most requested look for me these days, I don’t know why.

This time, I made the white makeup more opaque but darn, it took forever to blend it. The one on Audrey was much easier to apply because it was transparent white, just like putting makeup on the Twilight characters. I’m still on the hunt for the perfect white base that would pull off a smooth Geisha look as an alternative to its traditional materials, which aren’t available here. Perhaps office supplies like the liquid eraser would be a last resort, but I used  Snazaroo and Kryolan water-based white cake on this shoot.

My new apprentice, Jim Russel Cabanag, did the hair. I was holding the camera for this video, so as much as I wanted to document how the makeup was done, my hands were full. The pics that appear on the slide are just my shots. Watch out for the official photos from Dustein Sibug, soon!

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