Ivory and White 2016 Shoot

I'm glad I got the chance to work with Ivory and White bridal again. They're an awesome bunch to work with. Also, I get to take a sneak peek at their lovely 2016 collection.

Although brides nowadays are quite adventurous with their look, the classic, clean look wins for some. I played with corals this time, giving the rosies and smokies a rest.

Some behind-the-scenes shots:

The usual mugshot. Rebecca, our model is just simply gorgeous and fun to work with. Her skin is flawless. With her hair up and clean makeup, she looks like a beautiful ballerina. The corally colors really made her blue eyes stand out

Shooting all those gorgeous dresses is fun!

Stop and smell the flowers. BTS kakulitan. In my head, I wish that I held a bunch of kale and spinach and a pineapple for a nice smoothie. Haha.

Thanks again to the team of Ivory and White bridal for getting me once again to do makeup for their lookbooks. For brides looking for affordable gowns without sacrificing quality, you can check their website.


Lookbook Photos Credits:

Photos by Chyvin Reyes
Make up by Bambi Dela Cruz Dimapilis
Hair by Mara Ashida

Bridal Work: Paula

I find it amazing how cat lovers or animal lovers find a way to become friends, and here's a story.

Paula is my neighbor. How I met her is so funny. I was on my way out when I spotted her talking to my cat Candy by the window and another one of our building cats. As you all know, cat ladies have a constant click. We happened to belong to the same Facebook cat group. She sent me a Facebook message when we found each other's profiles.  I also met Paolo, who happened to be more of a cat person than I was.  My friend Romina met them in one of our cat rescues and she still remembers them and tells me, "They're a fun and nice couple. I like them a lot."

That was a couple of years ago. Sending food to each other like forreal Titas of Manila and exchanging cat stories and kitty playdates later, I was tasked to do a very important thing - to be the makeup artist on their wedding day, which I am just super stoked to do. I did Paula's makeup already as a bridesmaid in one of her friend's weddings as well as a YOLO moment photoshoot. Even if I practically memorized her face, I wanted of course her wedding to be the most perfect makeup she would ever have in her entire life.

For Paula's wedding look, she wanted to still look like her and not have a total operasyon-level makeover. You can still wear bright lipstick or have smokey cat eyes and contour but still look recognizable that you're you.

Paula has a full head of natural, gorgeous curls, which she embraces. She wanted her curls to show on her wedding day. No 5 hours of straightening then recurling here. We just humidity-proofed her hair. I think it was the quickest bridal hair my hairstylist ever did.

candy pink lips is MAC Pink Nouveau, a shade usually worn at the reception but we used it as a ceremony color. 

Adorable shoes + short wedding dress. 

The couple inserted their own individuality in their wedding, choosing food they really like and having a theme that fits them. They also inserted elements of them being cat people in their wedding.

Groom's gift to bride is an illustration of their life together - artwork done by Chichi Romero

wedding favors: Spanish fans. Note the kitties on the logo. I kept the cards. Hihihi. 

 Having a summer garden wedding, they chose a white-themed wedding where the guests wore summery whites to keep things cool and clean. I'm thankful for the discovery of airbrush makeup because they stayed on fresh up to the end of the festivities.

The three bridesmaids are the three sisters of the bride, each sister had makeup that fits their own style and personality, natural, smoky, rosy glow.

Family Photo

 Paula loves rom-coms and it fits that her prenup video would be rom-com themed. You guys can watch it here. The masterpiece was done by VOV Productions. Makeup and hair for the couple, both done by me.

The thing I loved about their wedding is that it expressed their individuality so much and it really shows who the couple is instead of following every single celebrity wedding or going through cookie cutter conventions. At the same time, the element of classiness is still there. All I felt was genuine happiness.  It was one occasion to be remembered by everyone.

Final touch-up before the ceremony. 

I've witnessed Paula during her preps up to the last part of their reception and she's super cool and calm about everything. As she wrote in her post-wedding status message, she emphasized one aspect: You can have a great wedding without being a bridezilla. I definitely would have to agree with that, and she's a perfect example to that part. It was so easy to do her makeup and her smile was all natural. She was talking to her friends, suppliers, eating the good food, and she had so much energy to really talk to everyone and make sure her suppliers are well taken care of. I would definitely recommend that as a number one advice to all brides.

The happy couple

Congratulations Paula and Paolo! It was one gorgeous and super cute wedding! Love, hugs, and lots of kitties.

Suppliers:

Photographer: Shutterpanda
Video: VOV Productions
Makeup: Bambi de la Cruz Makeup Artistry
Groom's Makeup: Jinky Ureta
Hairstylist: Annaliza Alejo
Bridal Gown: Curitthy Couture 
Venue; The Henry Hotel Manila
Caterer: Apartment 1B


Photo credits:
official wedding photos by Shutterpanda
Bambi with the couple, fan, and bridesmaids by the author

Yin Yoga For Brides

I have been to a few bridal showers in my life. Bridal showers come in a lot of flavors, from a very girly spa date, to a dance lesson, to the ever-so classic with strippers and naughty games.

I was contacted by my pole friend Val for a bridal shower gig last weekend. This bridal shower was different because it will be a yoga class. I told her that my practice is yin yoga instead of the active yoga that makes us sweat. Val assured me that yin yoga would be perfect because the bride would need to destress since her wedding would be this Thursday.

With that intention in mind, I created a sequence for relaxation, destressing, and detoxifying (the detox may not necessarily mean physical detox but it can be mental or emotional detox) sequence that's beginner-friendly and consulted with Kit on my sequence. I added a few hip openers too, for emotional release and to stick with the bridal shower theme. I also prepped the students for them to bring their yoga mat and necessary props. I brought all my blocks and my YYTT bolsters and asked them to bring throw pillows, bolsters, and probably yellow pages or heavy books as makeshift blocks.

Just like every face is different in makeup, every class is different, even if you teach the same sequence. The theme for my class is detox, destress, and let go, very similar to our theme last month with Yoga For Life. While they were in their Ananda Balasana or Happy Baby pose,  I talked about inhibitions. Inhibitions may prevent us from reaching our full potential. When we limit ourselves, our potential to grow is also inhibited. Since this is a very uninhibited pose (google it if you want to know how it looks, as I assured my class that their happy babies would have no photos), I thought of  putting the idea of inhibitions here, and how it comes in many forms - judgement, self-doubt, stress, and even the total opposite, which is ego, which instead of empowering you, can actually hold you back, especially if channelled wrongly.

Let go is always an underlying theme for my yoga classes. I kinda felt like Elsa singing as of this moment.

I realized that brides also need yin. Being in the supplier side in weddings for quite some time, I have been witness at how stressful wedding preparations can be. There's the sleepless night before due to anxiety and excitedness. And during the day, our lovely bride while in the makeup chair is still answering calls and making last-minute checks or worrying about teeny tiny details. Yin is very important for a bride-to-be for the following reasons:

1. Calms the mind.
"Oh no, I have a pimple!" "Oh no, Tita X is not yet here". or "Oh no, what did I miss?" A calm mind will let you focus more. Before a big gig, I do a quick yin practice if I need my brain to focus. A good meditation to clear my thoughts of worries, a few asanas to calm my center and and with a good pentacle pose. I shared this experience to Monica, our bride. "If you remember some of the poses in the session, you can do that the morning of your wedding." A calm mind will let you focus better on how to deal with those details.

2. Relieves stress
Wedding preps take months or years and it's a whole year of yang energy of all the preps and errands. Yin yoga brings you back to your center. Driving around and walking and carrying things gets you tight on the body too and releasing the kinks on the back, hips, and shoulders feel good.

3. Softens and relaxes the body.
When the body is stiff and tense, it shows and it shows well in photos. This is the day where we will have our photos taken and we don't want to look like we're so stiff and tense. Let yin soften the body for that effortless poise. I included the swan in my class because it can be symbolic for the body's transformation after the tensions are released. From ugly ducklings, we blossom into beautiful swans once all the negative energy from our bodies are released.

[Image source]

4.  Nice skin!
Of course there's the wonderful fairy godmother of your makeup artist and hairstylist to make that swan her most beautiful come wedding day. But remember, I quote from the legendary makeup master Shu Uemura that beautiful makeup starts with beautiful skin. Yin yoga does wonders to the skin (notice how these yogis have this lovely glow in them)  by stimulating the growth of cells responsible for producing collagen and elastin. In traditional Chinese medicine, yin yoga balances our energy flow in the body, removing the blockages enabling energy to flow freely.

5. Restful sleep
Because you need it and you will thank yourself for it. Sleep is important and now is not the time to caffeine-load your system. Caffeine makes you jittery and may enhance the butterflies that are already there in the belly.  Sleep is important as well for the first four reasons. Yin yoga will help train your body to sleep better and keep your energy in a steady flame instead of the firework jolt.

Thanks to my other pole sister Marsy for this group photo.

Our bride, Monica is at the center. It's her first yoga class ever and I'm so glad she started with yin. I'm sending her lots of good vibes as tomorrow shall be her wedding day!

I definitely hope that I get to do a yin yoga class once again for brides-to-be. It's a great way for the bride and her friends to give their body some love and take some time off from the stresses from all the wedding planning as well as help them during the big day ahead. I'm also thinking of adding this to my wedding supplier credentials.

Interested to have a yin yoga class before your big day? Then contact me at makeupbybambi@gmail.com

Ivory and White 2014 Shoot

I'm sharing with this post the photos and behind-the-scenes for the shoot last month I did with Ivory and White Bridal Store. For those who haven't heard it yet, Ivory and White is a bridal boutique based in Quezon City that sells ready-to-wear bridal gowns at a fraction of the cost of what usual designer gowns cost. Now couples have that extra money to spare for the honeymoon, a new TV set or oven, or whatever they want to buy in order to start their new life together.

Our model for the shoot is DJ/stage actress Carla Dunareanu (coincidentally, I was listening to her radio show on the way to QC for our shoot). You guys might have last seen her in the stage play Grease where she portrayed one of the Pink Ladies. I saw her first in The Kitchen Musical,a TV series in AXN, which I regularly followed.

I upgraded my candy pink palette that I had back in 2011 for something that's more neutral, like the bride is naturally glowy and rosy. Loose and big curls for effortless beauty. Veil optional for breezy garden weddings.

This look is more classic bride, like she can look back in her photos when she's 80 and go like, "Wow! I must be a hottie when I was younger!" I see a lot of smokey eyes in brides lately in weddings being posted in Facebook. For brides who want emphasis but still want the classic look overall. In other words, brides who go, "I want to look natural but I really want my eyes to pop out."

I recommend this look too for weddings at night or with receptions done in hotels, where there's mood lighting and light makeup can look washed out.

Oh, I also did hair in this shoot. Here's a close look on the updo I did. It's a classic low bun with loopy hair.

For the third and last look, we included a rose accessory which inspired me to change up the look altogether.

Pop of color for bridal? Why not? Red lips made a lot of difference. I made the features warmer by additional contouring and added a bit of eyeliner to tie the eyes with the lips so the eyes don't look that lost . The red by the way, is Collection Cosmetics Queen of Hearts. For those who have it, you guys agree with me on the staying power, right?

Carla's three looks. Each one is very different from the other. Awesome how makeup can change things.

It seems like we were whisked off at a faraway place for this shoot. We shot at Studio Namu in Quezon City, and this studio is quite popular for prenup sessions where the couple would want a lot of layouts without travelling away from the city. They've got a lot of layouts to play along in one big studio too.

Thank you everyone! It was such an awesome day and the first shoot of the year.

Official Photo Credits:Photographer: Niel Ong
Model: Carla Dunareanu
Clothes: Ivory and White Bridal
Makeup and Hair: Me!
Location: Studio Namu

Bridal: Cheriza

Cheriza is one of my first pole friends when I first started out doing pole. She gives us tips and tricks in nailing our pole moves and we bond outside the pole studio in her house for pole-jamming, and of course, eating really yummy food. As she gets married to her longtime love, I couldn't be happier to take part in her special day, which she planned herself, and made sure everything was perfect.

As most brides, they want fresh looks usually on their big days. Cheriza had the same, but told me that she wanted neutral colors and peaches instead of rose and pink. I put an emphasis on her eyes because according to the groom, he loves her eyes.

\

I used moderately thick lashes to get that right subtle smokeyness without black liner during the ceremony

 Love the details of her Veluz RTW gown! She really looks like a princess that day!

Photos: Mark de Guzman
Hair: Lei Ponce
Venue: Edsa Shangri-La Hotel.

Bridal: Vevette

Vevette was referred to me by my pole teacher Myla. She's all sunshine personified from our trial up to her wedding day - all happy and smiles.

She personally wanted neutral makeup for herself with just a tad of emphasis on the eyes, while her entourage would have smokey eyes and red lips.

It's almost going to be a year since her wedding last year but this was one of my most memorable 2012 weddings with an awesome crew, awesome people, and having such a fun-filled happy day.

Venue: Manila Peninsula
Hair: Lorybelle Barretto

Bridal Work: Grace

Most ladies are at their happiest and prettiest come their wedding day. My pole bud Grace was all megawatt smiles and giggles come the day of her wedding. She's been really excited planning about it since she and her longtime boyfriend Eph decided to get married. This wedding was held last December at Manila. Grace and I have been pole friends and batchmates since we started poleling. I have our pole bud Tricia to thank me for  this because she was the one who insisted Grace get me for her wedding to do her makeup. I think it all started when I brought my kit to the studio and Grace was early so I asked her if I could play my tools on her. Being the very kikay girl that she is, she said yes.

Her wedding preps were as early as 4 am and I told her the night before to get some sleep. Being the excited girl that she is, she was like "Please don't get mad. I wasn't able to sleep. I tried but ang hirap talaga." She didn't look like she was super sleepy or had no sleep at all.  It was a breeze doing her makeup. She loves pink and I gave her a very fresh pink palette for her wedding with just a bit tad of smokiness. For her hair, my good friend Lorybelle gave a very soft and romantic bun for her, one of my personal favorites in bridal hair.

 Her poler self is revealed at the bridal shoes, Pleaser shoes, nonetheless next to her very girly pink bouquet.

Happy lady at the bridal car. Excited and nervous at the same time.

 Prettiness as sunshine. It was a sunshiney morning December wedding.

Crazy pole friends represent! Hannah, Rj, and me were there for her and so were two of our pole teachers Amaya and Kayleen.

As of this moment, Grace is already expecting her first baby. Yay! Congratulations! She's having a very breezy and exciting pregnancy and we can all expect nice things for her. I'll be seeing her in a few weeks as she'll be watching us in our annual recital.

[All photos are taken from Grace's personal Facebook account, a mixture of photos from her family and the official photographer of the event, iSnap Creatives]

E-Session: Kris + Niki

Kris is one of my pole dance teachers. I still remember the day she announced that she was engaged. It happened during I think the first of April. I kinda sensed things because the Polecats were sending hearts and kilig expressions in her Facebook wall, but no final announcement yet. It was then that I confirmed my hunch when she changed her relationship status and posted a video of how Niki proposed to her. It was absolutely a cute and romantic video that had friends and family involved.  From that day on, Kris, despite the stress of wedding preparations, classes, Polecats gigs, and organizing plus performing at the Polecats third anniversary show was a picture of happiness and love. You could tell how excited she is. Being her student and her friend, I can't help but be happy for her.

I felt really flattered that I got to do Kris and Niki's prenup photoshoot. I've done Kris's makeup countless times already as she performs in many of their gigs and also our shoots. This time, the loud colors, glitter, and  heavy lip colors are replaced by neutral palettes enhancing her natural beauty and super-happy glow.

Usually, prenup photoshoots have a certain theme or concept or done at a remote place that requires the crew to go out of town. Kris and Niki decided to have their prenup right smack at Metro Manila with a very cute concept - it would be showcasing their future life together as a married couple.

What a pretty way to wake up in the morning!

I love that they are such a very laid back couple. Everyone was so relaxed in this shoot and enjoying every minute of it.

Dinner out. At this point, I pegged an Angelina Jolie look for Kris. I was inspired by her dress.

The shoot was awesome, pretty, and fast. Kris and Niki took care of us and fed us and I probably stuffed myself with five servings of pasta that day.

Niki and Kris got their friends Gino and Marco to help with the set up. They did such an amazing job! And yep, that's me hiding my makeup-less face with glasses and a default Hello Kitty shirt. :) 

Congratulations Kris and Niki! Thank you so much for trusting me to do your makeup!

Image Credits:

Photos: Bokehbug Wedding and Lifestyle Photography

Set Design: Gino Nacianceno and Marco Ortiga