Having a curious, persistent, even tenacious, personality, Marilyn Kraft’s professional life was devoted to careers in retail management, computer analysis, and seniors’ activity.
“My passions have led me in many directions, allowing me to meet new friends and explore new cultures while travelling to distant locations,” she says.
Now retired, this North Vancouver resident enjoys time with her two “rambunctious” grandchildren.
“Dabbling in artistic hobbies, such as jewellery-making, pottery, mosaic design and music continue to nourish my creative spirit,” says Marilyn.
Like many people, she felt isolated over the last two years and thought a makeover would inspire her to climb out of her rut and re-engage with life. What better way than to trust in a process she’s never tried before!
“Giving someone permission to change your appearance in whatever way they choose can make an introvert feel very vulnerable,” says Marilyn. “However, being optimistic enough to leave the familiar behind, I soon found the process to be a lot of fun.”
“The treatments I received felt fabulously self-indulgent. However, even more importantly, I found all the people on the makeover team, as well as the other participants, to be very talented, interesting and inspiring. They gave me the encouragement to break out of my shell and they treated me like royalty.”
Marilyn says her new look has re-energized her and she’s ready to take on new challenges.
“I have always been a lifelong learner,” she says. “The learning that was reinforced for me is that following my heart and trusting my intuition is usually the best path for me.”
WHAT THE STYLIST DID:
HAIR: “Marilyn had the most beautiful, long hair with almost all natural colour and some grey coming through. Because she had so much length to her hair, I decided to take the cut to just below her shoulders.
Marilyn didn’t want a lot of upkeep with her hair colour, so I decided on a balayage highlight, which is a soft diffused highlight that grows out very nicely and blends well with her natural hair colour.
I also added some low lights, which mimic her natural hair colour and, blended with her darker natural colour, it adds brightness and richness to her colour.
We modernize the colour by giving her (what they’re calling nowadays) a bright money piece in the front. With all that it would still grow out nicely and she won’t need to have it kept up if she doesn’t want to.
I also gave her a longer, cheekbone-length curtain bang, again to modernize her style and frame her face.”
MAKEUP: “For Marilyn’s makeup, we started with the primer. A primer’s purpose is to fill in pores and any fine lines, so when we put on the concealer, it glides over the skin rather than falling into any cracks.
Next, I chose a concealer that had BB cream in it. BB cream is a moisturizer and foundation in one, it blends well on the skin, and it skims over some of the fine lines. I also used a concealer with a slight yellow tone to help cancel out some of the slight purple from the darker tones under the eyes.
For the eye shadow colour, I went with a slight triangle of brown on the outer corners of her eye lids and lighter brown-beige along the crease of the eye. I used a light white-beige just under the brow to highlight it. The light colour was also used in the corners of the eye. Adding a shimmery highlight to the inner corners of your eyes creates a bright, open, and youthful appearance, perfect for day or night. It reflects light and counters the look of fatigue.
Finally, I added false lashes to bring more attention to Marilyn’s beautiful eyes. A light peach lip gloss completed the look.
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
• Hana Akai of Akai Hair Design & Esthetics in Victoria for Marilyn’s hair and makeup. 2559 Quadra St Suite 101, Victoria, BC. 250-383-3227.
• Chelsea Michelle Esthetics for Marilyn’s manicure and facial. 350 Marigold Rd, Victoria, BC. 250-580-2799.
• Suzanne & Jenny’s for Marilyn’s outfit. 777 Royal Oak Dr #190, Victoria, BC. 250-658-3618.
• “After” photography by Timothy West. timothywest.com
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