I think we all enjoy dressing up and looking like a star. Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could have four of the country’s best makeup artists to do our makeup and make us look glamorous every day?” says Rissa Mananquil-Trillo, one half of homegrown skincare-in-makeup brand Happy Skin.
A girl can dream, but Happy Skin is bringing us all a step closer to that dream with their Glam Squad Collection where top makeup artists Denise Go-Ochoa, Jigs Mayuga, Juan Sarte III and Mickey See come up with their go-to eye shadow colors and lipstick so everyone can cop their signature look on the daily.
“I have been modeling for 15 years and I see how their careers have endured all trends and through different styles. If you look at their work, even 10 years ago it was amazing, if you look at it today. The kinds of standards they set make them very aspirational not just to their co-makeup artists. That’s why a lot of celebrities look up to them and want to be made up by them,” Mananquil-Trillo explains.
Like all Happy Skin collabs, the four makeup artists worked closely with the brand. “They were very hands-on. They were particular with the color, the finish, the texture,” Mananquil-Trillo said. She and her Happy Skin partner Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez were going back and forth with all makeup artists for nine months to nail the perfect product.
Even the collaboration itself was influenced by the artists. “One of us was supposed to do liquid lipstick, another would do the eyebrows. I was supposed to do blush and contour but we were all thinking it’s bitin,” Go-Ochoa recalled. They all suggested to go forward with the collection in the format it is in now. “Good thing we all had different tastes and considered each other’s signatures.”
Each makeup artist did an eye shadow palette, ranging from matte to satin to frost and liquid matte lipsticks. Also in this collaboration are a double-ended pencil arch definer and brow mascara pen (which both come in light brown and medium brown), a rose gold brush set, and a contour and blush palette in peachy pink.
“It’s a blush and contour shade we all use. We all combine peach and pink blush when applying makeup on our clients,” Mayuga says.
Yuengtian-Gutierrez reveals the collection will be in stores for one year. “The brushes and cases are all special, in rose gold,” she points out, also adding that the makeup artists chose to donate all their proceeds to their chosen charity.
“In today’s techie world where everything is somewhat personal we want collaborations to be meaningful and have soul. There is always a connection with people we work with or the brand we work with,” Mananquil-Trillo says, explaining the common thread behind their string of successful collaborations. As for the next one? She hints, “We have one more collection for the holidays with a big global brand.”
Mickey See
“Rissa and Jacqe were my brides. We always talked about makeup, so I was excited when they excited me! When I was starting out as a makeup artist 12 years ago, I worked for a Japanese brand whose look was avant-garde. When I ventured on my own, I knew I had to create my signature look but I didn’t want it to be avant-garde. Clients won’t be able to relate to it. I established my blushing, fresh look after working with a lot of brides and celebrities because that’s the look they want. They don’t want to transform their features. A lot of them are in their 30s and they want to look younger. My philosophy when working with brides is to make them look the way they did when the groom first fell in love with them, when they walk down the aisle.”
Pretty in pink: “For the lipstick, the deep blush shade I went for is between nectar and pink. It’s a bit mauve. It’s meant to pop on the Filipina yellow skin tones so it looks natural. It flatters both fair-skinned Filipinas and morenas.”
Glow on, girl: “In my palette is a flesh-colored shimmer shadow which can be used as an illuminizer. You should dab a small amount on the inner corners of your eyes. I tried the darker, contour shade on eyebrows and it works.”
Mix and match: “Mix mine and Juan’s and you can have a deeper shade of pink.”
Create a smooth canvas: “I use the Happy Skin InstaBeauty blur cream which minimizes the pores. Their lipsticks are so moist, while having long-lasting and intense pigmentation.”
Jigs Mayuga
“The existing eye shadows of Happy Skin are all browns and very wearable but since this is a collection by makeup artists I wanted basic staples in my kit to be in the collection. I chose matte black and matte dark brown, a basic eye shadow palette that you can translate into a bolder look at night by using black eyeshadow. My liquid lip color is a matte rosy brown lip color. Matte browns are very popular now and the rosiness flatters most Filipinas’ skin tones.”
Day-to-night look: “For day, apply the dark brown all over the lid. Apply the lipstick like a lip stain by dabbing it on the center of the lip then mix it with a little bit of lip balm. For evening, you can start layering the black all over your lid with the dark brown as the base shade. You can line the lower lid with black and brown.”
Multi-way beauty: “Because it’s a matte dark brown, you can use the shadow as a contour, and also to fill your eyebrows.”
It’s in the details: “I love their yellow and orange Eye Need a Miracle concealers. Their peach corrector is perfect for bluish dark eye circles. I also like their gel eye liners, the black, brown and green ones. Once you apply it, it sets. It doesn’t move. Denise (Go-Ochoa) and I use it when we’re lining the waterline to tight line using black because it doesn’t bleed down to the lower lash line.”
Juan Sarte III
“The modern woman herself inspired me for the collection. For her needs, I focused on the texture. Before, highlight and contour was made for cameras. It was a trick used by makeup artists for photo shoots and film but now everyone has a phone. Everyone takes selfies. When I do makeup, I also look at the lighting being used on set.
These are my default shades in my kit. One is bronze, the other is champagne. They are contour and highlight shades. You can create so many looks with these two shades alone depending on the amount and where you are applying it.”
Shimmering splendid: “I went with shimmer for the women who do makeup on themselves because it comes in a silky finish that is easier to blend. If it’s extremely brown or light, when you blend them together, it’s easy as opposed to working with a matte where you can see the lines. Shimmer bounces light back. I use the champagne all over the lid for a natural look. For an evening look, I use the bronze on the entire socket.”
Subtle drama: “I have the darkest lip shade. It is pigmented but you can adjust the shade depending on the amount you put on. It’s buildable. I call it universal mauve because it’s close to the natural color of the lips. If you just put a bit and smudge it, you achieve a ‘just bitten’ effect. It contrasts the skin and enhances your natural lip color. If you want to use it full on, you get a more dramatic effect.”
His Happy Skin essentials: “I have all lippies in my kit. I also use the eyeliner.”
Denise Go-Ochoa
“I’m known for doing natural and fresh makeup, but it’s also my personal taste. It’s the kind of makeup I do on myself. I don’t overpower the face with makeup, and I’d rather that the client’s face gets complimented more than the makeup. For me, that is more flattering. Makeup enthusiasts will know she’s wearing makeup of course, but they will still see the person first. All colors in my collection complement each other. Everything is a peachy caramel shade of brown. The darker one is a rich natural brown with a bit of frost, not shimmer. In my observation, I like the effect of the not-so-shimmery eye shadow in flash photography. It’s natural looking for daily use while giving you a glow.”
DIY airbrush look: “Really put an effort into blending in all your makeup, whether for daytime or glam. It’s a staple trick to make it look natural. Really buff it in. Use the angled flat top brush to buff your makeup after doing your whole face.”
Accentuate your cupid’s bow: “You can do this with my favorite in the brush collection, the lipstick brush. It’s so chic.”
Blushing beauty: “For any look, never skip blush and apply it on the apples of the cheeks, always.”
Walk the tightline: “I have several kits for each regular client and for weddings. In all of them, I have their gel eyeliner, Eye Am Here To Stay. I buy six of them so I don’t forget it in each kit. Of all gel eyeliners I’ve tried, it’s the only one that doesn’t smudge. It looks soft on the eyes, not sharp.”
Photos by ERNIE PEÑAREDONDO