www.mohaphotoblog.com

“My very first exhibit happened this past week up in Santa Barbara, CA. The first Thursday of each month, the town has various galleries, coffee houses, salons, etc put together a show or viewing of local artists. I was thrilled when a friend and fellow artist (musician/hair stylist) Bryan Allen of Avia Salon asked me to be their featured artist. With all the excitement came the daunting tasking of creating a body of work to display. I did not have anything in mind that I would want to shoot, as almost everywhere you go you see landscapes or something of that nature. Then it hit me! This past year, I had done a series titled “Textiles” for a portraiture class. It might have been the most exciting project that I had done thus far, and I had invested a lot of time, money, and resources into the project. Because of its “beauty” nature, I thought this beauty salon was the perfect place to make its debut (outside of school). Here are some shots, from my handy-dandy iPhone, of the actual reception and I must say, it came together quite nicely. Thank you to Christian and Oreana Winery for donating an essential pairing for an event like this!  I was overwhelmed at the amount of support I received from friends and strangers! It was AWESOME!!!!! Cannot thank everyone enough for coming to see the show and your overall support of this endeavor!! It feels good. – XO, Molly

Below are clusters of the images themselves which entail both a female and male model that have been body-painted to match textiles that I had purchased. The makeup was done by the amazing duo, Ashley and Christin, of LunaBella Makeup Art. It was so much fun!!!

Whether you are sixteen or over sixty, remember, understatement is the rule of a fine makeup artist.
- Helena Rubinstein

We had the absolute pleasure of working with Sahar for her big day. We had an initial consultation with her in January 2011, although her wedding wasn’t until October 2011. Talk about being on it! Upon meeting with Sahar in the Four Seasons, we knew right away we were going to get along great. We discussed the inspiration behind her wedding and her wedding style. She was going for classic bridal glam with a touch of drama. She wanted her eyes to pop and for her skin to glow. She was still unsure about having her hair up or down, but wanted our expertise to help  decide. We scheduled her trial two weeks before her wedding , which is always highly recommended. This allowed her ample time to gather ideas and inspirations, as clients tend to change their minds throughout the course of planning.

Sahar after her trial

For her trial, Sahar wanted to try a slightly dramatic smokey purple eye with pink  lips and long faux lashes. After discussing her hair concerns, we all felt hair down would look best, especially with the strapless cut on her dress. Sahar and her mom loved what we did at the trial and we looked forward to seeing them in the coming weeks.

When we arrived on the day of, Sahar was all smiles. She waited patiently as we worked on her wedding party. The weather was truly unique and gave a spa like ambiance to the day. The low coastal fog had not burned off the shore, yet the sun was shining. When Sahar sat in our chair, she began to decribe some changes from the trial. As much as she loved the smokey look, we decided to brighten it up a bit. She completely trusted her artist Ashley, and did not ask to see a mirror until she was completed. We went with  more matte eyeshadows and emphasis on the eye liner.

The new look came out perfect and Sahar was overjoyed with everything as well. Trials are great because they really narrow down everything to the finest of detail. Even if you do change your mind on a certain style, at least you will never have to say “Wish I would have had a trial.”

For her hair, we decided on keeping it down with a deep, romantic wave. We added extensions in her hair, which created length and desired volume. We built volume to the crown of the head,  where her Swarsovski headband was placed as  pop of dazzle to the style.

The whole event was captured by Photography by Charise and coordinated by Kristin at Joy De Vivre.

What a truly magical day for such an awesome Bride. Sahar, hope it was everything and more… Best Wishes! xoxo

Artists/Owners Christin and Ashley w/ Photographer Shannon Jayne Miller

This past holiday, we had the pleasure of working with the oh-so-chic Diani Boutique and talented Photographer Shannon Jayne Miller. Diani owner Caroline Diani wanted a magazine worthy photo shoot of the clothes she sells in her boutique, along with the ladies who help sell them. When she told us about the shoot, she asked for us to transform her and her employees into Fashion Models. She asked that everyone look unlike themselves and that their inner sexy be brought to light. We excitedly said yes and the rest was history in the making. With the the help of lashes, airbrush and killer hair artistry, we made it happen. We managed to do 10 girls in an 8 hour span and everyone was jaw dropping gorgeous! It was so much fun transforming these beautiful canvases and the pictures came out amazing! Check em’ out, with the behind the scene Hipstamatic shots. Love!

Caroline Diani, Owner of Diani Boutique

Thanks for being such great models ladies! Until next time….

Tatianna was such a stunning bride, her beauty and wedding style was that  of what you would see  from the pages of Grace Armonde magazine. Tatianna’s trial was held in the city of angels, Los Angeles. When we arrived Tatianna knew exactly what she wanted for her hair and make-up, with pictures to boot. She described her wedding style as classic vintage with a modern feeling.  Tatianna was not a stranger to hair and make-up and therefore had high expectations. As expected, we nailed exactly what she was going for and she booked us on the spot.

On the day of, she was a ball of nerves but kept her cool by trusting her talented artist, Christin. Her make-up was natural but extremely glamorous. Her eyes were highlighted with white and honey golds on her lid. Then followed by warm golden smokey brown in her crease. Her cheekbones were accented with the perfect shade of pink and contoured with a touch of bronzer. Her lips were kissed with a soft pale peach. For hair, her locks were were loosely curled to create a soft wave. It was then gathered and twisted into an intricate side chignon. There was major attention to detail for her look and she couldn’t have been more pleased.

From the words of her amazing photographer Linda Arredondo “The full lace dress–by one of my absolute favorite designers, Monique Lhuillier–was exquisite, romantic, elegant perfection. And that was just one of her dresses, as she chose a different one for the reception (and a few others that remained un-used!). “

Truly a gorgeous canvas with amazing wedding style. Tatianna, thank you and congrats love! xoxo

To see more of this stunning wedding and beautiful photography from Linda Arredondo , Click Here.

When we met Lila Rose we knew were a match made in wedding heaven. Not only did she have naturally curly locks such as ourselves, she also had a great vibe about her. At her trial we tried different shades of warm brown, soft plums, and soft earth tones to compliment her gorgeous green eyes and olive skin tone. With her hair we wanted to mimic her curl pattern and style it in a natural “effortless” side up-do. Lila’s wedding style was very true to herself, natural, soft spoken with a touch of glam. We were able to give her what most brides ask for, a true enhancement themselves.

On the Day of , Lila was nothing but smiles amongst her 8 wonderful bridesmaids, which all were treated to hair and make-up, and manicures.  She allowed everyone to do whatever they wanted with their hair and make-up, which really captured their individual styles. You could feel the positive buzz in the room as everyone was pampered. When it was finally Lila’s turn in the hot seat, she was cool, calm, and excited. She asked her florist to provide hair flowers and flare. The peacock feathers were such a fun and cute addition to the style. Lila was overjoyed with how the morning went and we loved every minute of working with her and her wedding party.

The whole event was expertly coordinated by a truly wonderful Coordinator, Robin Sonner (805-453-1804).We managed to schedule all 10 ladies with hair, make, and manicures all in 4 hours. Everything ran smoothly, of course The event was captured by the ever-so-talented photographer Kristin Renee.

For the full slideshow of their wedding, click here.

Lila, thanks again for including us in your special day. You were an absolute pleasure to work with. All the best!!!

I don’t think I could live without hair, makeup and styling, let alone be the performer I am. I am a glamour girl through and through. I believe in the glamorous life and I live one.

- Lady Gaga

Great Engagement shoot with Patrick Moyer, hair and make-up by yours truly!

Click Here to see the full shoot

Double Cotton Candy Trouble

The lovely Lindsey Hartsough, of Magnolia Events in Santa Barbara is having her Vintage Carnival Themed B-day party at ‘Blush’. This means tutus, fishnet tights, mini hats, tightrope umbrellas….or was this just Ashley & I’s costumes? There were amazing confections by Jessica Foster and I mean AMAZING ! Mini churros, bags of carnival popcorn, cotton candy, sprinkled old-fashioned doughnuts……SUPER YUM!!! Before the party, we arrived at Lindsey’s house and did her hair & make-up, to get her ready for the big bash. It was great treating one of our industry peeps to a pamper session.

The floral arrangements and event design was by the ever-so-clever Nico Cervantes of NCL Productions in Santa Barbara. Gorgeous pink flowers, candles, and feathers were decorated on the tables at the event and damn were they cute! There was also a photo booth with a whole bunch of props, which we all hopped in on and had a blast ! Definitely cannot wait until her next birthday! -xo, LunaBella Make-up Art

Girls do not dress for boys. They dress for themselves, and of course, each other. If girls dressed for boys, they’d just walk around naked at all times.”

- Betsey Johnson