Helllloooo,
And welcome to so many new readers! I’m so glad that last week’s post on Investment Pieces seemed to resonate. I thought it might be nice for a little intro to me since we have quite a few new people here. I’m Michèle Ouellet, I grew up in Napa Valley in a food and wine obsessed family. Growing up, my father was the managing partner of Mustard’s Grill (if you know, you know), my mom was a marketing consultant for wineries, and we lived in the little house behind the restaurant. When I was 15, I got scouted and began modeling and traveling the world to and from photo shoots, and at one point I even skipped walking the Miu Miu show in Milan Fashion Week because I had volleyball playoffs. Still kicking myself for that one lol. After high school, I moved to NY to model full time. From there, I did stints living in London and Paris. A couple years into it, my mother and I realized the fashion world was fickle and tough, so we had the bright idea to start a wine company together to stay connected as mother and daughter while I tried to ‘make it’. Hence, Lorenza was created! (Sidenote: we just launched our new NA sparkling wine this week!)
This was back in the day when being a multi-hyphenate was not the norm and being a model/vintner was rather unique! Clients seemed to like the fact that I had more going on than ‘just’ modeling. It was around this time that I started shooting a lot for Madewell and then J.Crew which became my loyal clients for over a decade… The Baby Jenna years! Although I didn’t have the typical high fashion big break that many of the girls I work with had, I have been really fortunate to have created a successful commercial career. Many of my biggest shoots, such as in American Vogue, I’ve been featured as myself, rather than a model, which is cool, but not the usual path for the models of my generation. I never found huge success during fashion week, but I have walked for The Row and opened Libertine many times and am proud of that! Modeling has sent me all around the world, from Tokyo to Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town, all over Europe, Vietnam, Bolivia, Cuba and beyond. All the while, my mom and I were growing our wine business and I would meet her every late August, early September for harvest in Northern California.
Just before Covid, I made the decision to leave NY after 13 years and move to LA. It was good timing for personal reasons - I had just gotten engaged and wanted to live with my now husband in LA, and after over a decade in NYC, I was ready for a change. However, I was moving away from most of my clients in NY and would now be farther away from the European clients. People love to ask if I’m ‘still modeling’… the answer is yes! I’m so encouraged by the opportunities that exist for ‘older’ models (I’m 36 lol), and my relationship with my agency, Heroes. There’s actually plenty of work and while I could probably be doing even more if I still lived in NY, but I feel really good about my decision to choose happiness and quality of life over career. Anyway, I didn’t necessarily intend on going this deep for this intro but here we are and now you have a little context.
Also, big shout out to everyone who gave me a chance and booked a “kinda short” girl (I’m alllmost 5’9”) without the Paris Vogue editorials. Modeling is a job that can bring out insecurities you never knew you had. Hair and makeup artists can be the difference between feeling good and confident or… not so much. They can be your therapist, your ally on set, bring you back to life after a red eye, and they become your family! I’ve had my hair and makeup done hundreds even thousands of times. And these people deserve way more credit than they get. I count myself lucky to have worked with some of the most lovely and talented teams in fashion.
So this week, I want to do a little beauty update for fall which you can watch above. I asked some of my favorite hair and makeup artists to share a tip or product they’re loving for fall which I share below… I normally keep things super natural makeup wise, but recently I’ve been having a little fun with it! (See my friend’s black tie circus party for a chic clown lewk.) Without further ado, here are some thoughts from some of the best…
Skin:
I have been trying out the Dr Diamond Instafacial for the past month and I really like it! The texture of the Emulsion is really nice and almost gel-like. It creates a nice smooth layer on the skin. My favorite eye cream is by Susanne Kauffman. $$ but worth it. I also highly recommend the YSE eye masks! Next, I put on the Chanel Les Beiges in shade BD31with the Saie Big Brush. I like this fuller coverage if I’m going out, getting photos taken, etc.
Cheek:
I use a few dabs of Saie Dew Bronzer in Salt on my cheekbones and a little on the forehead which I blend out for some light contouring. I then pop a little Saie Dew Blush in Rosy on the apples of my cheeks. Finish with a couple taps of RMS Living Luminizer for a highlight. This is in literally every makeup artist’s kit and adds a perfect glow without being sparkly.
Brows:
Brows are the only thing I must do. I recently worked with the legendary makeup artist, Fulvia Farolfi who is a Chanel Beauty Ambassador and has worked with every mega brand you can think of including Dior, Ralph Lauren, Tom Ford, Calvin Klein etc. While we were on set for an exciting campaign (coming soon!) she taught me the best trick. Take a brow pencil like this one from Chanel and only fill in from the center arch outwards using short strokes. This creates a super natural and never heavy look! Just fill in the brow slightly. Also choose a pencil color that’s the same or lighter than your brow color. Use a brow gel to set.
Eyes:
My friend Amy Chin is an incredible hair and makeup artist and we’ve worked together countless times for J.Crew and many other clients. She makes me look just like myself, but better and I trust her implicitly! She even did my makeup for my wedding! I asked what look she’s loving for fall and it's a brown smokey eye. Here is how she says how to do it: “First go in with Tom Ford’s eye primer, then layer a creamy base like Surratt eye Lid Lacquer in Hadaka, then layer with colors like Komugi, and Kochega. Start closer to your lid line and work your way up to give the smokey effect. Then if you want more drama, line it with Chanel waterproof liner in espresso, not too heavy with the liner, then buff out. Use in the waterline of top lashes for a fuller effect. Add liner on the bottom lashes for maximum DRAMA!”
I am adding all of Amy’s picks to cart, but in the meantime, these are the products I used above. I started out by using the Westman Atelier contour in biscuit on my eyes as a base. Then did a rough line with Victoria Beckham eye liner in Cocoa which I then blended out. Next, I added some VB eye shadow in Mink. This is a really nice buildable shade that adds a lot of dimension. Finished off with VB mascara which is my fave!
Lips:
I’ve always loved working with Fara Homidi and was thrillllled when she launched her own chic beyond chic line last year, Fara Homidi Beauty. She’s known for her minimalist makeup and her work has been seen in publications such as US Vogue, British Vogue, Self Service and in campaigns and runways for the likes of Hermes, Coperni, Miu Miu and beyond. Her entire line is perfection and her latest launch, the Holiday Lip Set is no exception. I asked Fara to tell us exactly how to apply it and here’s what she says: “If you want that elusive shade that you’ve always dreamed of, berry-bitten lips that can take you from day to night…this the ONE. I created it with neutral undertones so that it never veers too fuschia or too vampy. My makeup artist tip is to begin with a light layer of the Prime Baume, then softly fill in the entire lip with the Smudge & Contour Lip Pencil. Finally build the Holiday 1 shade from the center of the lips outwards. You’ll have more control of the color intensity that way, and with this layering technique the color will be holiday-party proof!” Don’t forget the FH lip brush it makes the whole process super easy.
Hair:
I have been loving all my ROZ products. They’ve been helping my hair be less fluffy especially when it’s been humid out. I start by spritzing the Air Thickening Spray kind of all over. Founder and celebrity hair stylist Mara Roszak recommends mixing one pump of Milk Hair Serum with one pump of Santa Lucia Styling Oil, so that’s what I do! I’ve also been loving Reverie’s Mare Sea Salt Mist as a final touch for a little texture.
And finally use Dore La Micellair water to take it all off at the end of the night!!
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out in the comments. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial! Again, I am no pro, but I’m lucky to know some! On the topic of beauty, my new campaign for
’ YSE Beauty came out yesterday and is pretty fun! If you’re looking for a balm/mask/gloss, they got ya covered! Also highly recommend their back in stock SPF primer. Use MICHELE15 for a lil discount!Thanks again for being here!
xo Michele
P.S. If you make a purchase using the links above, I may make a small commission at no expense to you! Merci!
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