No, I’m not talking about my daily makeup routine.

I don’t wear makeup to work most of the time. Only when we have openings or other events that require me to be a decent human being in a public place. I then will apply my 5 mins makeup routine that my cousin told me over the phone 7 years ago.

Don’t get me wrong, I have so much respect for the ladies out there who get up an hour earlier just to get their makeup done. They seem so “put together”. I wish I can be one of them (when I grow up)? So far I’m just a girl who eats a banana in the car whilst put some tinted moisture on and calls it a day.

So when China born, Canada raised Makeup artist Tina Cai reached out and asked if I can be her model, I was sold in a heartbeat.
Just like I get my nails done by professionals because I’m so bad at doing it myself, I love the touch of a makeup artist’s hand and the brushes swipe over my face. When you do your own makeup, you look at yourself in the mirror all the time, when someone else is doing, I usually only check when it’s all done to see the final result.

Tina studied my face and said she would give me a very light look, a look that is still very me.
Wait, I thought my look is “just add the red lipstick”?

The truth is, “No Makeup” Makeup is definitely Not ” No Makeup.” Tina spent about an hour to finish the entire look, and I love it very much. It’s refreshing, light, yet delicate. Using my friend Liya’s words, “It looks like it’s there, but it’s not at the same time.” when I do my own makeup. I thought because I don’t wear anything on my face I need a bold lip color to wake me up. And red lipstick is my security blanket, if I don’t wear it I feel like I’m naked… but Tina believes that nude lipstick is my new best friend and I am willing to give it a go.

“Why can’t you be like this every day?” Liya asked me.

Well, I wish I could, can we talk about it, Tina?

Makeup by Tina Cai, photo by Xiaoyu shot in Art+ Shanghai Gallery.