Liv –The Blog

New season, new shoes & a new home office

This is not about weddings or makeup, this is just about me and new work life over here.
Winter is very different here in Sydney.
I am from Germany, where winters get bitter cold and the atmosphere completely changes.
Although it’s chilly now and I do turn the gas heater on in the evenings, drink tea, eat pumpkin soup and sleep with hot water bottles on my feet,
during the day it still feels nice enough to sit outdoors in a cafe.
Some trees loose their leaves, but the city is still very green even now.
I wear shoes without socks even in winter! It’s amazing. My favourite new little “winter” shoes are pretty ballerinas, from House of Harlow 1960.
A little treat to make Winter time more fun.
I think I can safely say, I like Winter over here, a completely new experience for me.

While weddings are slowing down in June and July over here, there is plenty of admin to catch up on for me.
My beloved laptop just died, and after being a little confused and upset for a week, I am now all set up with a spanking new iMac,
which makes me feel all settled.
Winter work consists of plenty of paperwork, admin and business planning.
At the same time also of realizing my own makeup projects for my portfolio and collaborating with some wonderful people.
While most people in the industry are taking time off, I take time to settle in and organize myself for the busy season ahead.

I am only now finally getting into a bit of a routine in my new Sydney life and feels very good.

Little Winter Bride

I had recently had the honor to be part of Dunja and Veteran’s beautiful winter wedding in Bowral.
Doing the wedding hair and makeup.
I shot a little sneak peek with my phone of the bride and cute little flowergirls.

Happy Winter-season you all!

Love Sparkle?

Our Glitter inspiration wedding photo shoot was featured over at the great Polka Dot Bride.

Dream team with Allie from The Wedding Weaver, who styled and planned the whole shoot, Photographer Jo Bartholomew & Makeup Artist Liv Lundelius. Floral Headpiece by Liv Lundelius. Compliment the shoot was an incredible floral hairpiece from The Sisters at Engadine Florist.

Check it out for more images! I love my job.

I am freshly in love…

photo taken by the fabulous Lisa Diederich

…with our life over here in Australia and with my job.
With the change of seasons and the crisp cool days. With Sydney and the colours.
I love being a makeup artist, I am in love with teaching people about skin care, I am passionate about nutrition and I rediscovered my love for writing.
I am in love with weddings and everyone I get to work with.

Lately I had the chance to collaborate with the wonderful White Magazine and I am writing a series of guest posts for them as Beauty Expert. Read the first part of my Get The Glow Series here and try my favourite smoothie recipes.
I will share my insider tips on how to achieve a healthy radiant skin step by step.
Thanks White Team, for inviting me as a guest!

happy change of seasons

Inspired by all the beautiful coloured leaves here in Sydney I have recently teamed up with Gentlemen Take Pictures for a male fashion editorial. See some more on my website here, if you like.
It’s time for soups and hot water bottles now, and I no longer go swimming at the beach.
The seasons have changed, and I love Sydney for it’s blue skies and sunny afternoons.
We also finally ordered a couch and settling up for general coziness.
I am somehow looking forward to my first Winter over here.
Happy change of seasons, where ever you are.

The coolest bride of this season…

…goes to…drumroll…
No! I am not actually awarding anyone. All weddings I work on are different and beautiful and I love working with every single bride.
This one stood out for her style though and I really wanted to share a few of their gorgeous photos with you.
What a stunner!
Wearing a vintage mini lace dress, nude heals and just rocking a minimal styling for a Coogee Beach wedding on the most beautiful sunny day.
Congrats again to Alice&Xavier! Staying true to their style on their wedding, having the best time and treating everyone involved like a friend!
A truly great couple and a wonderful wedding.
I feel incredibly grateful that I had the chance to become part of their special day doing their wedding makeup.
I love my job. Soooo much.

Brand New FB Page

First of all:
Thanks to everyone for their amazing support!
I have FINALLY created a Facebook page for my makeup artistry (that is no longer called “Blushless” like my former fashion label, Fb doesn’t allow to change the name of a page, so I had to create a new one from scratch)
From now on please find me over here!
I am looking forward to seeing you over at my new page.
Liv Lundelius Makeup Artist.
Thanks again for your support.

Something cobalt blue

images via Spartoo.co.uk.
It’s the latest colour trend, and I have to say I am really feeling it.
I love blues at the moment. I am wearing lovely cobalt nail polish a lot.
Feeling so blue right now (in a good way- I am feeling happy blue!)
I picked some awesome blue wedding shoes for you. I really hope you like!

From cute peep-toes from Paul & Joe Sister, over adorable retro heels and flat sandals, to cool comfy flats, I love them all.
Which shoes are you going for on your wedding day?
I love all blues not just cobalt, but was is the cobalt trend all about?

Fun (and not so fun) Facts about cobalt:
Cobalt blue in numbers with hex and rgb values #0047AB, rgb(0,71,171)
Wikipedia says: Cobalt blue is the cool blue color of the pigments made using cobalt salts of alumina. Cobalt blue pigments are extremely stable, and have historically been used as coloring agents in ceramics, (especially Chinese porcelain), jewellery, and paint. Transparent glasses are tinted with the silica-based cobalt pigment. Chemically, cobalt blue pigment is a cobalt oxide-aluminium oxide, or cobalt aluminate, CoAl2O4.
The compound is made by sintering finely ground CoO and Al2O3 (alumina) at 1200 °C. Cobalt blue is lighter and less intense than (iron-cyanide based) Prussian blue.
Cobalt blue in impure forms had long been used in Chinese porcelain, but it was independently discovered as a pure alumina-based pigment by Louis Jacques Thénard in 1802.
Commercial production began in France in 1807. The first recorded use of cobalt blue as a color name in English was in 1777. The leading world manufacturer of cobalt blue in the 19th century was Benjamin Wegner’s Norwegian company Blaafarveværket, (“blue colour works” in Dano-Norwegian).
Germany was also famous for production, especially the blue colour works (Blaufarbenwerke) in the Ore Mountains of Saxony.

Grooming and Gentlemen

I have lately collaborated with Gentlemen Take Pictures for a couple of shoots, with some great results.
It was a great change to be able to some professional male grooming and male hairstyling work in between
all the gorgeous brides and bridesmaids in the peek of the wedding season over the last months.
These studio shoots were great fun and those aspiring male supermodels were a dream to work with.
Check out more of my male editorial work on my website here.

Sydney Sunrise Street Style

The other day I got up way before sunrise, for an early morning photoshoot by the beach. It was lovely being able to see the sun peeking up above the water and while I was doing the makeup on location in the dark, (with some work lights obvsly) it turned out to be a great shoot. More on the edgy street style side as opposed to my romantic, dreamy wedding shoots.
The model was a great talent Shana who is signed with The Agency Models in Sydney. The photos are by the aspiring fashion photographer Jack Grayson.
There is something magical about working in Sydney, while I am as super busy and working the early and the long hours it feels like the sun recharges me in the meantime.

A laid back garden wedding

It was such a pleasure being part of this super cool couples wedding.
Vicky & Warren and their cheeky pup Pancho the dachshound had a super laid back wedding
in the park round the corner from their house. They were just the kind of people you want to hang out with!
Plenty of DIY, fun games and a artsy vibe made this wedding really stand out.
The gorgeous photos were taken by the uber-talented Jo Bartholomew
The bride was after a super natural no-makeup makeup look, as she usually doesn’t wear makeup, she just wanted
her skin to look even and nice in the photographs and a simple loose side bun for the hair.
And so we did! In these photos you don’t even notice any makeup at all, exactly what she was after.
Can you spot me in the first photo?
Congratulations to this gorgeous couple. And check out even more photos of this wedding at Jo’s blog you will see all the super fun shots over there!

Little getaways

While I have been flat out with work lately, ranging from applying flawless wedding makeup to beautiful glowing brides, groomed and styled men fashion editorials and applied for some exciting opportunities.
I am a little flat out by now and can’t wait for our upcoming little Easter getaway.
We are going on a road trip down south to Jervis Bay in New South Wales.
Where you can watch dolphins and wales. We are staying in a little cottage right be water and I am daydreaming away already while typing this. Check out the cute little luxury cottages we are staying in!
I love how they are all painted in different beautiful colours and the interiors are looking amazing in all pastel tones too.
I am crossing all my fingers, that we will spot some dolphins!
For all of you that crave a little getaway or romantic weekend here in Sydney, I thought I share what we are up to right now.
And I can’t wait to pack my suitcase for this little trip. Only 4 more sleeps, and here is what I am packing:

Here is what I will bring with me for this little Autumn getaway:

Shoes: These are from Koah and look just like the perfect ankle boots for this trip.
A little Bag: French Connection Small Crossbody Bag.
Navy Nailpolish! This one is by Bio Sculpture.
A Hat: Jones New York Wide Brim Fedora
A natural lipstick: Like Nars Mayflower.

What are you up to this Easter?

Green smoothies, Glowing Skin…

Green smoothies, glowing skin and other essential items I couldn’t live without lately, as I have have been busy buzzing it’s all about keeping the right balance.

In January I joined a “green smoothie a day challenge” hosted by Simple Green Smoothies,I loved it so much that I am still going. Not every day maybe, but almost. And they are having another challenge in April, which I will definitely join.
It’s so good for your whole body and it’s super easy. It makes a real difference to your skin, I promise!
If you are a buzzing bee as well, or if you are on a pre-wedding detox this is definitely for you.

I put together a few things for you that really help me when I am flat out with work:

Green Smoothies: Healthy fresh food makes all the difference, and although I don’t have the time to prepare complicated meals right now,
chucking some fruit and veggies into a blender and pressing a button can be done in 5min. I make a different one every day.
My Favourite right now: 1 banana, 1 pear, 1 apple, 1 handful of baby spinach, 1/2 cup of soya or almond milk, 1 tsp. chia seeds, 1/2 cup water, 1 tsp Supergreens Powder. This recipe makes about 3 sundae glasses of smoothie!

Comfy shoes: I do like to look somewhat professional at work and won’t rock up to a shoot or wedding in flip flops (although I sometimes have to bring them along when shooting on the beach!) So: Comfortable chic shoes, that look like I am happy to work in them all day, but still somewhat stylish.
The ones above are from Geox. There is nothing worse then painful feet, on a long day of work, it’s so distracting, flat shoes are the way to go!

Little Lunch Break Swims: Whenever I can I sneak out for a quick swim in my lunch break, not just a little exercise and movement, but also great relaxation for sore muscles. I also get the best ideas why swimming and find it clears my head.
Love Balm: So small, it fits in every pocket, it keeps my lips nicely moisturized, soothes any dehydrated areas or dry patches and makes a great cuticle balm too. It smells divine of natural rose oil too, the smell that opens the heart chakra. Jurlique Love Balm in Rose, sooo goood!

What keeps you balanced when you are super busy?

Hello Autumn,Hello May,Hello White!

It’s just the beginning of March, which is the beginning of Autumn here in Australia!
So why Hello May? Hello May is a lovely new wedding Magazine based in Sydney!
Definitely check them out you will find some very different unique inspiration.
They have just featured my latest work over there as well. I was lucky enough to to the makeup for the gorgeous bride to be Amelia and her Fiance John.
The photos were taken by the talented Gentlemen Take Pictures.
So go and have a look here for some more photos.
I have been living and breathing weddings lately and am so loving my work here in Sydney. I have worked with so many wonderful brides and feel incredibly blessed for my job. Autumn still seems busy and it’s great to see so many people getting hitched.

Another favorite Magazine of mine, full of incredible writing, inspiration and wedding gorgeousness is WHITE magazine based in Newcastle.
They just updated their website too and it’s looking fantastic!
Click over here to see more. You can thank me later ;)
I am so loved up with their work! And feeling delighted and excited about upcoming projects with them.

And…Kiss! Stained Lips that stay put.

One of the challenges with Bridal makeup is how to find a cute lipstick that is kiss proof and doesn’t budge throughout the day.
I am not a fan of most long wearing lipsticks for a good reason: They do stay, but they don’t last nicely.
Instead they dry the lips and flake off over time. A pretty scary thought for your wedding day.
Most of the lovely hydrating creamy lipsticks that so look gorgeous however wear off rather quickly.
Which is fine, if you are happy to top up your lipstick. Topping up is better then flaky lips!

A perfect solution however is to use a Lip Stain! They stain the skin of your lips for the day without changing the texture. You see natural stained lips a lot on the catwalks lately and I love their contemporary feel. If you prefer a sheen, you can easily wear your favourite gloss over the top, just a dot in the center of your lips, will give you the volume and shine you love without turning everything into a sticky mess. As a professional makeup artist I love using Becca Beach Tint, Stila Crush Lip and ans Cheek stain, and Benefit Tints they all do great stains in a wide colour range.

How to master the stained lip:
1.Exfoliate your lips first, to make sure you remove all dry skin.
2. Moisturize your lips with a hydrating lipbalm.
3. Remove excess lipbalm by pressing lips onto a tissue.
4. Apply lipstain- let it set for a few seconds. Layer lipgloss over the top if you like.
5. KISS!

images via 1 Imaxtree/ look for Roland Mouret, 2The Goddess Guide