Gems!

Because everyone knows how much I love sparkle.

I'm alive, I swear! It's just been a busy couple of months filled with bridal faces, the weddings of close friends, and lots of celebrating. 

Here's what you need to know to catch up. First of all, my best friend just flies back and forth from Oklahoma because she loves me so much. Second, my sister knows all the things that I love best and rolled them into one wonderful party just for me. The basics consist of Hello Kitty, Ring Pops, Asian snack foods, sparkly things and amazing people. Below are a few of my favorite images from my bridal shower from a few weeks ago. 

I had a lot of fun. And I am so grateful that all of the important women in my life were there to celebrate with me! 

The Fairmont, San Francisco

There's really nothing quite like this venue.

 Hosting an intimate wedding with just your closest people couldn't be more perfect, and that's just what Ali did for her family and friends. 

Fun facts about the Fairmont: the movie "The Rock" was filmed there, it houses the infamous Tonga Room, and (for all you museum people) it was added to 

National Register of Historic Places

 in 2002. 

The day started with Jenn and I arriving to one of the beautiful luxury suites and meeting all of Ali's fun and boisterous family. People had flown in from all over the world just to celebrate with these two sophisticated people. 

Here are just a few of the beautiful details of the penthouse suite. 

Paul Blackfield

captured all of these amazing moments and was kind enough to send them over to me. 

We started with hair, then a light lunch then it was off to the penthouse to help Ali get glam and stay calm in the serene bathroom. Ali requested a look 

reminiscent

 of Old Hollywood, yet still natural. I placed some soft individual lashes at the corners and she provided her favorite coral long wear lipgloss. Her skin couldn't have been more perfect, she absolutely glowed. 

Ali looks so happy! 

(Loving Jenn's purple ombre.)

It was really great working with Jenn, and we'll be reprising our work together again in August! Congrats to Ali and Felipe - best wishes for a wonderful life together. 

This Weekend...

Phew!

 One day it was June 30th. Then the next July 1st! Where has the time gone? 

Here are a few images from this weekend - two weddings. The first was my cousin Melissa who married her long time love Alex at the Shannon Community Center on Saturday. (For those of you looking for a spacious and affordable venue, this is a great option!) We cousins had a great time hanging out, eating, and making silly faces for the camera. The first picture is of Melissa holding back tears and trying not to smudge her makeup after reading Alex's card. 

And of course it's always a good time when I get to hang out and dance with my dude. 

Then came Sunday. Ali chose the Fairmont, San Francisco for a perfectly intimate wedding. Her sisters and family were so nice and fun to hang out with. I can't believe I got to wander around the penthouse and check out all the gorgeous details (billiards, kitchen, BIDET!) where Mick Jagger and JFK have stayed. Wish I had time to go to the infamous Tonga Room... maybe next time! 

Needless to say, I'm pretty exhausted. Resting up for the remainder of wedding season! 

Twenty. Eight.

Feeling pretty great.

 Today is my birthday! This day also marks my 100th post on Makeup Design by Michaela and I'm so appreciative of all the positive feedback I've gotten since launching this endeavor five years ago. I have come to adore this blog as a place where I get to share my thoughts and musings. Thanks to whoever is out there reading! 

This past weekend I worked on a boudoir session, met a bride for her wedding trial/engagement photos, and even prepped a director for her film premiere! All of this inspiring work makes me really appreciate what I get to do. I am looking forward to the many, many brides I'll be working with this season and can't wait to share more weddings with you. 

When I reflect on all of the things this year that have made me happy I think about my awesome friends, my extremely close family and most of all, my partner in crime. Behind the scenes, Kevin helps pack up my train case, organize my calendar, wash my brushes and clean my palettes. He is a great assistant! In honor of Kevin, who makes me feel special every day, I thought I'd share some portraits of us taken by the spectacular 

Nirav

! I wanted to look pretty natural so I threw on some individual lashes and packed on the bronzer. I chose a look that would transition from dressed up to dressed down and just changed my lipstick in between. We couldn't have asked for better San Francisco weather and we love how these photos came out! 

First, we were fancy. 

Then we did casual (or cajjjj, as my friend Kim and I like to say. Still not sure how to spell it. But I feel the need to write it a lot, and for that I should probably learn.). 

Love, love, love all of the light in the trees. As Nirav said, it was epic! He made us feel so comfortable and we had so much fun wandering around San Francisco with him, the city where we went on many of our first dates. 

Oh yeah. By the way, these are our engagement photos! We will be tying the knot this October and

Nirav Photography

will be there to capture it all. 

Looking forward to hanging out with Kevin at my birthday dinner tonight (and for the rest of my life). 

Happy 100, little blog.