Makeup Artisty by Christy - The Blog
Before and After Photos of Hair and Makeup for Melanie's Wedding - Leominster, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 05/12/12
We are deep in the midst of wedding season again, and after a crazy busy April, early May has given me enough of a breather to be able to do a blog post! And just in time, because I'm really excited to share these before and after photos of our wedding party from yesterday. Melanie and her bridesmaids are quite a good-looking group of girls to begin with, but their transformations with airbrush makeup & bridal hair design are quite fantastic!
Here are the before and after shots, starting off with our beautiful bride Melanie! I had to apply foundation a couple shades darker on her, as the spray tan she had received a few days before had almost completely washed off her face, leaving her chest and arms noticeably darker. Nothing a little airbrushing can't fix. :)
And her bridesmaids....
And of course, you need beautiful hair to go along with the beautiful makeup, and our hair designer Renee was on hand to do just that! All the bridesmaids decided to wear different styles, but kept it cohesive by adding a braid into each one. Here's a few shots of some of these beautiful hair designs.
Unfortunately, there was one other bridesmaid whose hair I did not get a picture of. It started to get a little crazy towards the end, which also explains why I didn't get a shot of the back of the bride's head either! But here's a picture of her hair from her trial at my studio. For her wedding day, Renee added in extensions to add some additional length and volume, and I also inserted some Stephanotis flowers that her florist had given her into the twist at the top of her head. It looked beautiful! I'm sure her photographers, Ericson-Wolfe Photography, got some amazing hair shots that they'll be willing to share with me.
Everyone looked so beautiful, and they were such a fun group to be around. Congratulations Melanie! Thank you for choosing us to be a part of your day!
Airbrush Makeup for Julie's Trash The Dress Shoot - Medfield, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 03/14/12
So as I mentioned in my previous blogpost, I had the opportunity to do makeup for my past bride Julie's Trash The Dress photoshoot. For anyone who doesn't know what a TTD shoot is, it's an amazingly fun opportunity to wear your wedding dress a second time - but instead of acting all prim and proper (as a bride is expected to do), this time you're wearing it while doing something out of the ordinary - romping around on the beach, hanging out at a carnival, building a snowman, or being creative with finger paints (yes, I've seen this before!).
Julie chose to do her shoot 'over the river and through the woods' in her hometown of Medfield, MA (actually, make that IN the river.. wading boots and all!). Of course she once again hired the fabulous Suzanna March Photography to photograph her, and what fabulous photos they are! Here are a couple of my faves from the shoot.
And it looks like I even had a little helper after I left...
Are these not gorgeous? Trash The Dress shoots are very popular in the western half of the US, but they've been slow to hit the east coast for some reason. I did one after my own wedding in 2007 and they are some of my fave photos of all time. For all you future brides out there, DO IT! You will love it!
To see additional shots from this shoot, check out Suzanna March Photography's blog post.
1 Bride, 2 Moms, 7 Bridesmaids and 1 Groom - Makeup for Julie's Wedding! - Worcester, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 02/04/12
I spent a few months stalking the photographer's Facebook page. Waiting for something, anything.. a single shot... a sneak peek... from my bride Julie's wedding. These wedding photos had me all kinds of excited for a couple reasons. 1) The entire bridal party was gorgeous. 2) The photographer is amazing. 3) I did some touch-ups on the groom and I knew there was photo proof of it. So when the day finally came, and Julie sent me her photos, you'd think I would have put them up immediately, right? Nope. They were so amazing, it took me a week to figure out which ones I wanted to use! Suzanna March Photography, these wedding photos are a bridal makeup artist's (and bride's!) dream-come-true!
Julie came to me armed with a photo of what she wanted her makeup to look like - very natural with a hint of shimmer, the eyeliner being the one feature that gave it that red carpet look. And it looked absolutely stunning on her!
Getting ready...
Since Julie's look was a focus on the eyes, everything else was kept very soft and natural. After airbrushing her face, I added some contour and highlights using Make Up For Ever's Sculpting Kit. I applied a natural rose shade of blush to the apples of her cheeks along with a slight dusting of shimmer on her cheekbones to really make them pop (both by La Femme). Her eyeshadow was kept natural, but I used three different neutral shades to really sculpt her eyes - a light creamy beige shade (MAC's Brule) for the lids and brow bones, a muted golden brown (MAC's Cork) in the crease and along the lower lash line to contour, and a light shimmery neutral pink shade (MAC's Naked Lunch) in the center of her lids and in the inner corners of her eyes. Deep espresso colored gel liner was applied all across her upper lash line (from corner to corner) and along her lower waterline, and topped off with a pair of false lashes and my favorite mascara, L'Oreal's Voluminous in Carbon Black. I filled in Julie's brows using a custom-blended light taupe liquid brow filler (TemptuPro's Airbrow) and lined and filled in her lips with a neutral lip-colored liner, topped off with a layer of sheer plum gloss. She looked amazing!
Here are the before and after photos I took of her:
Before 
After 
And some stunning professional shots:
One of my team's artists, Betsy, was working alongside me that day to ensure we had all 10 ladies (and one gentleman) ready in a timely manner. Here's our teamwork on some of the bridesmaids.
And I absolutely LOVE this next shot of some of the bridesmaids. You can actually FEEL the joy you see in their faces as they are watching Julie get dressed in her gown.
Now, us makeup artists preach this all the time - for flawless pictures, the groom should be touched up! Unfortunately there is a stigma behind this that makes most grooms feel uncomfortable with it, but if the bride is going through all this effort to look perfect in their photos, why would she want a red-faced, shiny groom in them next to her? And when applied properly, the makeup will be completely invisible to both the naked eye and the camera. Julie's husband, Jimmy, had no issue sitting in my seat and getting "groomed" (actually, one of his groomsmen was so impressed with the whole thing, he asked if he could have his done, too!). Note how perfect and shine-free Jimmy's skin looks in his photos.
And here are pictures of Julie and Jimmy with their moms, who we also did makeup for.
And here are two extra gorgeous photos of the couple. Suzanna March Photography, your work is amazing!
Thank you Julie, for not only choosing me to be a part of your amazing day, but sharing all these stunning photos with me. And folks, this isn't the end of the gorgeousness that is Julie. She hired me to do the makeup for her Trash the Dress photos as well (and the sneak peek I saw of them has me giddily waiting for more!).
Congrats Jimmy and Julie! Happy Saturday everyone!
More Awards! 2012 Best of the Knot & WeddingWire Bride's Choice
by Christy Lavallee on 01/16/12
I am once again elated to announce that Makeup Artistry by Christy & Co. has been awarded two very prestigious bridal industry honors - 2012 Best of the Knot and 2012 WeddingWire Bride's Choice awards!
I know I say this a lot, but I can't state it enough. It means so much to me that my clients appreciate what I do for them, and it makes me feel so good that they want to share this appreciation with brides everywhere. These awards wouldn't be possible without all of you. Thank you!
Before & After Photos of Kaitlyn - Winter Semi-formal
by Christy Lavallee on 01/08/12
This weekend I once again had the pleasure of doing makeup for Kaitlyn, a high-school student attending her school's winter semi-formal. I first met Kaitlyn exactly a year ago, when Sarah and I teamed up to do her hair and makeup for last year's winter dance (I've also done makeup for Kaitlyn's modeling headshots since then as well). She's grown up a bit since then, and it's really fun to see the change in her when I compare the photos from both years together!
Here was Kaitlyn back in January 2011.
And here are Kaitlyn's before & after shots from this weekend.
Before 
After 
What a difference! After evening out her skin with airbrush makeup, I used gold and brown shadows to bring out Kaitlyn's beautiful blue eyes, paired with a simple neutral lip and a rosy blush for a pop of color on her cheeks. Sarah added strands of tinsel to Kaityln's hair and added in some long curls, pulling back the top. So pretty!
I hope you had a great time at the dance Kaitlyn!
Summer Editorial Shoot with Jessica Weiser Photography - Falmouth, ME
by Christy Lavallee on 01/04/12
Brrrr.. it's cold outside! With single digit temps, it looks like winter has finally arrived here in New England. To help combat this chilly weather, I figured today would be a great day to post photos from a gorgeous summer editorial shoot I worked on this past June at the breathtakingly beautiful Gilsland Farm Audubon Center in Falmouth, ME. Just looking at these photos is bringing me back to that amazing place!
Photographer: Jessica Weiser, Styling: Christen Mitchell Styling, Hair: Nancy Brown of NV My Hair, Models: Genevieve Lane and Leah Ogawa from Models Club Inc.
And since it's only a few days into the new year, let me wish everyone an amazing, beauty-filled 2012!
Before and After Airbrush Bridal Makeup for Kate K. - The Publick House - Sturbridge, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 11/27/11
Phew!! This amazingly crazy wedding season is slowly starting to wind down. Which means a lot more time to keep up with my blog posts, among other things!
In the meantime, while I start getting myself reorganized, here's a quick before & after of Kate, my bride from yesterday who was getting married at the Publick House here in Sturbridge, MA. What a difference airbrush makeup makes on her skin! It totally evened out her complexion while completely concealing her blemishes. If you've never tried it, you should. It's amazing!
And Kate, I can't wait to hear about your husband's reaction as he saw you walking down the aisle! I'm sure you took his breath away. Congratulations and thank you for letting me be a part of your special day!
Before 
After 
Makeup for My Sister's Wedding - Harding Allen Estate - Barre, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 10/13/11
It's official. I'm crazy. Or just too nice. Or more likely, a combination of both. But I couldn't help it - when my sister Angela announced she was getting married in September, I immediately volunteered to do her makeup. Plus my own. And my daughter's. And my sister Sarah's. And yes, I was a bridesmaid, which meant I had to fulfill all those duties as well. Let's just say it wound up being one heck of a hectic yet beauty-filled day! So I was thrilled to see that my sister's wedding photographer, Julie Morawski of Carla Ten Eyck Photography, got some great closeup shots of all of us that I can share with all of you.
My sister requested a very natural bridal look. She likes very simple everyday makeup and wanted to make sure she looked like herself on her wedding day. Of course, my sister is just so naturally gorgeous that simple suits her just fine. Here's a couple shots of me putting on her makeup and a final shot of her looking absolutely stunning.
On my sister Sarah, I opted to go with a teal smoky eye, to really make her chocolate brown eyes pop, paired with a neutral lip.
For my daughter Ciana, I wanted to give her an age-appropriate, very clean, almost no-makeup look. Her eyes are so dark they are almost black, so they are striking even with very little makeup on them.
And on myself, I chose to go with a slightly smoky plum eye to bring out the green tones in them, paired with a soft coral lip.
And here's a couple bonus black & white shots that I absolutely love. My sister looked amazing!
So anyways, to come full circle, remember how I said I must be crazy? Clearly it runs in the family. :)
Congratulations Dr. & Mrs. Terry!! I wish you a lifetime full of love and happiness. xoxo
Makeup for Commercial Photoshoot for Shoptiques - Chelsea, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 10/06/11
Last month I had the pleasure of teaming up with Olga Vidisheva, founder and CEO of Shoptiques, a new website where consumers can shop all of their favorite local boutiques online in one place. Shoptiques currently showcases clothing and accessories for 20 different boutique stores, located nationwide in cities such as Chicago, New York and Boston. Of course, all of these items needed to be modeled and photographed to be featured on her site, and I was selected to do makeup for one of the Boston models, Alexandria, who would be showcasing the merchandise of three local MA boutiques - Thirty Petals, Melene Kent Jewels, and Turtle.
Makeup for commercial shoots is always very clean and natural. The object is for the merchandise being modeled to be the focus of the images, not the makeup. On Alexandria, I created a soft, subtle smoky eye paired with a nude lip.
Here's a few shots of Alexandria modeling some of the merchandise. You'd never guess she's only 16 years old. Man, can that girl pose! I see a bright future in the modeling world ahead for her!
Photos by Ryan Kenner Photography.
And as an added bonus, photographer Ian Bull was also on hand during the shoot, taking some behind-the-scenes footage to create this video clip featuring the models - Alexandria & Emily - doing what they do best - working it. :)
Bridal Airbrush Makeup for Chelsea & Her Sisters - Harrington Farm - Princeton, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 09/13/11
Whenever someone in the beauty industry hires me to do their wedding makeup, I am always super flattered. These are people who come across others who work in my field on a regular basis, see the best of them, and know exactly what they want. So when they choose me, how can I not feel complimented? So is the case with Chelsea, a beautiful hairdresser/bride who chose me to do the makeup for herself, her two sisters and her mom on her wedding day this past July. Chelsea was sweet enough to send me these photos of her and her sisters, which I absolutely love. Christian LaVache Photography did a great job capturing the beauty of these three women.
And this one is definitely my fave....
Thank you Chelsea, for choosing me to be a part of your wedding day, and for sending me these gorgeous photos! I will most certainly be featuring this shot of you and your sisters prominently on my website. <3
Makeup for My Sister's Wedding - Videography by DL Video Productions
by Christy Lavallee on 09/07/11
This past Friday was a very special day for me - it was my younger sister Angela's wedding at the Harding Allen Estate in Barre, MA. As a member of the bridal party, I was on double duty - not only did I have to perform my bridesmaid functions but I also had to make up the bride, two other bridesmaids, and myself, of course! Usually I get amazing photos from the weddings that I work, but this one was special. I decided to suprise the bride and groom with a Same Day Edit film through their videographer, DL Video Productions, to be featured on a large screen during the reception at the end of the night.
I thought I would share this video with you all, as it shows me doing what I do best - making people beautiful! Enjoy!
Bridal Makeup and Tattoo Cover-up for Michelle C. - New Bedford, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 09/06/11
A couple weeks ago I had the pleasure of doing makeup for Michelle C. and her bridal party at her beautiful home in New Bedford. Michelle requested a smoky, dramatic eye - and provided me with inspiration photos of what she liked, which was very helpful considering we had not done a trial together beforehand - and also needed two good-sized tattoos covered up on her upper back.
Michelle is Portugese, and has those beautiful dark brown eyes that pull off a dramatic, smoky eye oh-so-well. Paired with her tan skin tone, it was a very Kim Kardashian-style look, sans false lashes (Michelle was pretty adamant that she did not want false lashes!).
Here are Michelle's before and after photos from her wedding day.
Before 
After 
And because I have received numerous inquiries for tattoo cover-ups lately, here are before and after photos of Michelle's now-you-see-them-now-you-don't tattoos. Tattoo covering is never 100% perfect, mainly because the finish of multiple layers of makeup can never exactly duplicate the look of natural skin, but I think I got pretty darn close.
Before 
After 
I really had a great time with Michelle, her friends and family. It's nice to click with a group of people, especially when I'm going to be around them for 6 hours! :) And Michelle was wonderful enough to leave me this really amazing review on The Knot.
Brides Dream!!
Christy is one AMAZING artist! Thank you for making all of us feel so comfortable. The girls and I absolutely loved our makeup! Anyone who is looking for a makeup artist for their special day, definitely book with Christy! She is one highly professional makeup artist! We enjoyed your company and laughs while getting our makeup done, we felt like you were part of the family! Christy, I can't thank you enough for doing such an amazing job with all of our makeup and making my dream of looking stunning come true! Thank you again!
Thank you so much Michelle! You guys were fantastic, and I'm so happy to have been a part of your special day! Best wishes for a lifetime of love and happiness!
Editorial-style Warrioress Photoshoot - Canton, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 08/24/11
It happens to be inching towards the end of August, which means I am currently in the midst of my busiest wedding season ever! I figured I'd take a quick break from all the chaos to make a quick blog post of some photos I recently received from a Warrioress-themed photoshoot I worked on earlier this year.
I hope this summer has been wonderful for everyone! Enjoy!
Photography: Myke Yeager Photography; Model: Mara Adriana of Thompson Model & Talent Management, NYC; Wardrobe: Kate Alves of Beresta Designs
We're Boston's Best Wedding Makeup for 2011 - 2nd Year in a Row!!
by Christy Lavallee on 07/26/11
It's official. Boston.com's 2011 A-List winners were announced today and Makeup Artistry by Christy was awarded the title of Boston's Best Wedding Makeup - for the 2nd year in a row! What an amazing feeling it is to be recognized for something I work so hard to achieve! I want to thank everyone who put in their votes for me. It wouldn't be possible without any of you!
Before & After Photos of Vintage-style Wedding Makeup - Patti in Sturbridge, MA
by Christy Lavallee on 07/16/11
Since the first time I met Patti at her makeup trial back in April, I've really been looking forward to doing the makeup for her wedding at the Publick House in Sturbridge, MA. I absolutely LOVE doing bridal makeup that is a bit different, something absolutely stunning yet varied from your standard "bridal look." As soon as Patti told me she had a very vintage feel to her gown and veil, I knew exactly the look I was going to go for - a clean look on the eyes, the slightest flush of color on her cheeks and a bold berry-toned lip. A classic vintage beauty!
Patti has a very light complexion and tends to turn red with excitement very easily. You can see how flushed and blotchy her skin looks in her "before" photo, on both her cheeks and neck. The silicone-based foundation that I use from Temptu evens out her complexion effortlessly, and stays on for 12-15 hours. She will not have to worry about looking blotchy in any of her wedding photos! I gave Patti a light spray of Temptu's airbrush blush in Plum just on the apples of her cheeks and a dusting of highlighter on her cheekbones to brighten her face.
Because I wanted to keep a clean vintage look on Patti's eyes, I opted to go with very neutral shades from my MAC bridal palette. I applied Blanc Type all over her lids and contoured the crease and under her eyes with Cork. Naked Lunch was used as a highlighter on her brow bones and in the inner corners of her eyes to brighten them up a bit and give her a more wide-eyed look. A slick of espresso gel liner on her upper lids and a set of false lashes completed her eyes.
I chose a beautiful berry shade from Bobbi Brown - Roseberry - for Patti's lips.
Here are Patti's before & after shots, from natural to vintage glam! Amazing!
Before 
After 
I'm hoping I get to see some shots of Patti in her gown. :) There's just something about seeing all the pieces of the puzzle fit together to create one amazingly beautiful bride!
