Cause for a celebration...

A double whammy today....!... Not only is it the 25th anniversary of London Fashion Week but also one of my favourite cosmetic brands - Make Up For Ever...!

A great time for all you artists and fashionistas out there to gain tons of inspiration from... London has always produced some of the best and most cutting edge designers in tout le monde... so Mulain cannot wait to see their creations on ze catwalk and also what trends they predict for spring / summer '10...(mon dieu... where does the time fly...! ).

Also to celebrate the silver Jubilee of London Fashion Week... on display at all London undergrounds are 25 works of art that have been commisioned by people who have helped shape British fashion.. what a great idea... I love ze British for this.. (even tho i am french...!)... so if you are in London make sure you don't miss it....(actually highly unlikely that...)

... and in the meantime here are some uber inspiring works of art from the experts at Make Up For Ever to get your very own creative juices flowing....(I know mine are.....!)

So get inspired and start creating..... M x

Pat McGrath

Mulain loves her use of colour!

Final touches on a Pat McGrath design

A McGrath face on the ramp

Pat McGrath in action!

What a talent......Mulain is in total awe of make-up artist Pat McGrath. Called the most influential make-up artist in the world by Vogue she leads the beauty and fashion packs and creates influential looks that totally wow and inspire other makeup artists to launch trends. The McGrath way is to combine radical innovation with expert makeup artistry, which makes her a favorite among today's top designers, models and celebrities.

She is avant-garde, has a creative vision second to none, unparalleled. She began 17 years ago, and since then her renowned, cutting-edge work has been showcased in international fashion magazines and runways. The world fell in love with her as did Mulain. Her defining moment occurred in the mid 1990s when she signed on to create the makeup concepts for Prada and Miu Miu, a collaboration that continued for 10 seasons. Her hallmark has been dewdrop skinned faces, irradiated with light and moisture and now, today, La McGrath designs catwalk beauty looks on anybody who is anybody, working with the most sought-after designers and is a favourite among Hollywood stars, like J-Lo, Oprah and Madonna.

Have posted some of her work - so amazing and so much fun - hope you are as inspired as I am.

Mulain x

It's Telluride again can you believe it?

Slumdog's La Pinto - Make-up and Hair by our very own Mu Natasha Nischol, for fat mu

Virginia and Natasha holding one of the Slumdog Oscars!

Mulain just can't believe a year has passed since Slumdog was 'discovered' at the Telluride Film Festival.....the 36th festival has just passed http://telluridefilmfestival.org/show/program_guide and just don't think there was the same buzz as last year with La Boyle's hit-film. Mulain still remembers how excited all the MUs at fat mu were when the Oscar buzz started.....Oh la la! Just so much fun. Can you believe the Oscar band-wagon starts now.....all the festivals will be rolling out films galore and we will wait excitedly to see the new releases.

Mulain is still so proud of La Pinto and La Patel still wow-ing the planet and working hard on their up-coming projects. All the fat mu team wish you well my dears - and let's catch up soon....

Do let me know any new films you see my darlings - sharing is caring...

Mwah Mulain x

The year was 1987....

.....and a little American dance film hit the screens world-wide and teenage girls went wild!!!!!!!!! Mulain remembers it well....all the girls wanted to have 'Johnny' as their own boyfriends and truly believed that if he could fall in love with 'Baby', and forgive her for saying 'I carried a watermelon'....then dreams really do come true. Patrick Swayze....R.I.P.....we will miss you and thank you for making dancing cool, for making such a fantastique film.....we had the time of our lives just watching you.
Today people is Patrick Swayze day....put on the DD soundtrack and dance away.....if you have a partner fabulous, but even if you don't.....pas de probleme....just dance and celebrate him, the film and yourselves.....'I'm a love man, oo baby I'm a love man'......



Monsieur Swayze there was n't a girl alive who did n't want to be doing this.....(see above).... lifted high with your fabulous, strong 'Johnny' arms.....and the 'nobody puts Baby in a corner' line had us just lost. Then came 'Ghost' and your iconic status was cemented!

'I carried a water-melon!'

Mulain is off to fat mu HQ this morning, meeting the lovely Natasha and Virginia. There are scripts to be read, looks to create, emails to read, emails to write and full designing of our make-up courses is on. Do watch this space.

Mulain x

New York Fashion Week!

Traditional Alice

Disney's Alice

'Alice In Wonderland' inspired make-up at the NYC Fashion Week Sept 09

As Mulain has already told you my dears, Tim Burton is releasing his version of 'Alice In Wonderland' next year (cannot wait)....in the meantime looks like the NY fashionistas are also grabbing Alice's looks for the ramps of 09/10. Make-up artist Tina Turnbow, using NYC make-up, brought a doll-like look to the models focusing on pink cheeks, pearly white eye-shadow, a black eye-line and lots of lashes! Lashes are big for next year...(check out the new Tokyo lash bar in Selfridges, London courtesy Mr. Uemura). Other film influences observed was the 'Sherlock Holmes' look for guys...will this spark a trend for Victoriana make-up, facial hair for men? Ummm..... Let's wait and see. Dying to see Guy Richie's film version too....without wishing our lives and the rest of 2009 away my friends, there are some fantastique things coming our way for 2010.

Mulain thinks...knows..... it's going to be a great year.

P.S - To brighten your Monday morning....has anyone seen 'Tajik Jimmy'.....a man who since his childhood has sung Bollywood film songs....quite heartwarming.....the next Susan Boyle from Russia....please see and smile....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7azBYOHQooE

Retro Chic

Mulain loves Sophie Ellis Bextor and her fantastique eye-lines!

60's inspired Pixie Geldof

Retro Chic Queen Lily Allen

Darlings - nobody can miss the vintage / retro chic that has exploded all over the cities and all over the faces of Europe, the US and our global vill-age in general. Mulain can remember watching the loo-ver-ly Sophie Ellis Bextor singing 'Murder On The Dancefloor' and loving her retro make-up looks in the early noughties (00s). She wore 50s eye-lines, 60s eye-lines, 50s lips, 80s lips all with a contemporary twist...an electric blue pop of colour on her eyes or an acid-yellow eye-shade....Mulain thinks she laid the way for the likes of Madamoiselles Lily Allen and Pixie Geldof to grab the retro style baton and run with it.....all these young pop-starlets, socialites are striding out on the fashion scene with 60s flashbacks, 50s eye-creations.....70s and 80s to boot. Disco glam, rockchick chic....it's all out there on display.

Mulain hopes you are all having fun with this vintage phase? Even the make-up companies are on the band wagon....Lovely Stila is taking lips to a whole new level with vintage fun. Its incredibly buttery soft formula feels like silk across your lips, adding intense shine to seductively sheer color. The vintage classic shades are available for a limited time only! So check them out.

Mulain x

P.s - To-tally enjoying the Monsoon thunderstorm that Mumbai is experiencing.

Wedding belles

fat mu bridal make-up

Virginia in action!

Brides to be! Mulain begs to please BE YOURSELF on your wedding day! Create a look that is unique, YOU and not what everyone wants you to be. How many times have we seen photos of a wedding and the bride looks to-tally unrecognizable!? Sometimes like a cake! Of course my darlings it is up to you....if you love a very glamourous look then bravo...go for it....if you have more simple tastes then Chalo....keep it simple....there is much to be said about understated beauty...think Freida Pinto! So be yourself, the individual, there are many bridal looks - gothic bride, traditional brides, simple brides, fashion brides, eccentric brides....(bride of frankenstein...!?)..... such choice is wonderful so embrace it!!!!

The fat mu team had a bridal trial today and the bride was talking about getting highlights in her hair, a new hair style and possibly new facial treatment. Our MU Virginia immediately said 'Non....Stop'! Keep it simple my dears - it's a big day and now is not the time to experiment with different looks...stick with creatives that you are comfortable with....keep your hair simple....don't trigger off any skin problems with new treatments...could be disastrous. It's a big day ... so keep it simple and stress-free....get a trial done beforehand so you know what the look is et voila enjoy the day.

Do visit our website to find out about our fat mu wedding belle packages..www.fat-mu.com

Mulain x

The day that changed the world....

Mulain was speaking to his grandfather (who is 90) a few days ago and he was complaining that the world is in a total mess....this is a man who has fought in the Second World War, lived through countless wars since, plus terror attacks and assasinations and massacres. He still sticks to his opinion that 'the world is in an awful state'. Today is the anniversairy of 9/11 when the Twin Towers came rumbling, crashing down and stunned the world - live on TV! Terrible my darlings, just terrible! My grandfather is absolutely convinced that if he steps out the door that he will be murdered as everyone now (in 2009) is evil and has no moral code of conduct.......Mulain is to-tally blaming the media for creating that fear. We all know (or should know) that most people in life are good and nice....and it's always that small pocket which causes the problems....you go to any village in India and people will treat you like a king or queen. I truly believe that the world is like this. MU's Natasha and Virginia have travelled the globe from Alaska to Aberdeen, from Dollywood to Delhi, from Ladakh to Las Vegas, from Brazil to Burnham......and in the main, both agree that people are nice, different, interesting, kind, compassionate, quirky and that the world is WONDERFUL.

Why is Mulain rambling today? Well my dears.....Mulain cannot be 'Mulain', the MU's could not do their work and create make-up magic in a world with no tolerance, acceptance and LOVE.......so am encouraging all today, especially today....to be cool! Be thankful for where you are in the world (excluding a Taliban hideout)...and we must ALL keep working towards a positive, bright future for our leetle planet.

Make the world a beautiful place....starting with yourself of course and your make-up!

Mulain x

Girls on the go...

Rush hour is a nightmare......getting ready in the morning has to be fast and furious yet the look must be polished and professional. Mulain and the fat mu team are always being asked about 'fast make-up' tips and tricks. The world moo-ves so fast non? It's a luxury if you have twenty minutes to spend doing your make-up for going out.....working girls and guys know that getting ready to work in the morning is rushed and on a tight time-line. So how to do your working/polished/professional face in 5 mins? There is a way and it involves 7 make-up products!

Important to visualize your look....think the 'Sex and the city' girls - polished and professional....nothing that jumps out from the face...just under-stated chic.....Go!

Tinted moisturizer - apply your favourite - we say Benefit's You Rebel.

Concealer - Mac do great little concealer pots.

Blush - gel or cream or powder - essential for a quick injection of colour.

Eyeliner - or Kajal -quick and easy definition on the eyes.

Mascara - your favourite mascara is good - Maybelline is fab.

Brow fix - fix your brows in order to complete this quick, polished professional face.

Lips - gloss or lipstick - quick easy way to pop your face with colour - you can have 5 different shades everyday to make you look different and up-to-date.

Et voila - ready to fly out the door - remember to carry your powder compact with you to blot that 'rushed' glow....and smile it will light up your face.

(Mulain says please check your morning lighting though - as much 'natural' light as possible.....in the wrong light your 5-min 'polished look' might become 5-min 'night of the living dead look'....beware....you have been warned.)

Mulain x

A woman to be admired...

Madame Kristin Scott Thomas is a woman close to Mulain's heart. Not only beautiful, she has a talent and charisma that is extraordinary. She also lives in Paris, speaks English and French impeccably and is, I think, a fantastic role-model for women all over the world. At 49, she is still getting fantastic roles as an actress...cleverly and probably intuitively working in French cinema not just on the Brit or American scene. She has said that French cinema has offered her great roles....'I've Loved You So Long' being one. Mulain loves the fact that she does not chase the Hollywood route but does it her own way....in Paris....dipping into roles that she likes and raising her family at the same time. Private, cool and chic.....hanging with Charlotte Rampling, Jane Birkin and Juliette Binoche.....she is truly a fat mu muse. She seems not to be vain but recently insisted in an interview with 'The New York Times' that she is, saying and I quote.......‘‘It’s because of my vanity and my pride that I don’t want to have my skin drawn tight across my face, I don’t want to have big lips. Isn’t perfection really about being able to wear your years in a way that is agreeable to look at?’’. Mulain is in total agreement with her.....

Mulain recommends her films 'The English Patient', 'Gosford Park', 'I've Loved You So Long', 'Four Weddings And A Funeral' to start with. A great woman to admire....

Bravo ...Mulain x

So here's to you Mrs.Robinson...

Mrs. Robinson from the 1967 movie 'The Graduate' is a legend! Every young man's fantasy. An experienced, mature, attractive woman seducing you and willing to show you the way dans la chambre.....am I right boys? Well Mulain watched 'The Graduate' recently and was blown away by how sexy and alluring Mrs. Robinson was. Great hair, lovely 60's make-up and an incredibly confident approach. As the character unfolds we see how actually she is afraid of her life and her age and the youth of her daughter....an equally sexy Miss. Robinson (also great hair, lashes and eye-lines to die for).

Mulain has observed that nothing has really changed from 1967 when the film was made to now 2009 when women are meant to be in control of their lives....women still hanker for youth or lost youth! So sad my friends.....and so self-destructive. I think Mrs. Robinson and Miss. Robinson are equally attractive but in different ways....there is the innocence and freshness in youth but confidence and feminine knowingness is fabulous as well. Lesson is don't worry about age - it's going to come. Face it, embrace it, run with it...or it will eat you alive. As Bette Davis said....'Old age ain't for sissies!'....How right she is.

Please watch and observe in the film the fabulous hair, great lashes and in the wedding scene please take note of the wonderful natural coral gloss on both femmes Robinson. Just stunning....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9eIXN6Sp40
So here's to you Mrs. Robinson,
Mulain loves you more than you will know,
Wow-wo-wo....oh-ho-ho....Mwah!

Mulain x

Mannequin make-up!

The finished job! Mannequin make-up and hair...

Today MU Virginia's make-up brief for a jean's campaign was to make the male model look like a Mannequin. The MU's love any make-up challenge and it's always fun to do different get-ups! The most important feature for this look is the skin.... it is essential that it should have that plastic, polished, shiny look - basically unreal. So working in co-ordination with the photographer and his lighting (a make-up artist's best friend my dears!) we played around with different products til we all reached a common conclusion of the best look. So using a small bowl some MAC face and body (cool tone) was placed with some Revlon Skinlights and a lovely dollop of body moisturizer was added to the mixture. After it was stirred up and mixed together it was placed, with a large foundation brush on any flesh that could might be seen - arms, feet, neck, ears.....thus giving the body a lovely sheeny, plastic looking base. Important to work closely with the stylist so that you don't ruin the clothes...otherwise you will become the most unpopular person on set!

For the face a Ben Nye base was put on to create a flat look. From this the sculpting of the face began.....lots of contouring, using a lovely Ben Nye shade.....and Highlighted with a Derma palette. We really played with the lights and darks...changing the face to look unreal and very structured but not feminine. Have to say the star of the day was Benefit's Highbeam which was placed on any protruding body features to really pop the look....the bridge of the nose, the cheekbones, the brow bones, the collar bones, the wrist bones, the finger joints, the toe joints! We went highbeam mad but it made the look complete and everyone was 'appy....

For the lips and eyes we played around with different looks - nude matt lips, then using model's natural lips, black eye line on top of the lid for definition, also a beige eye line on top, with a strong nude colour on the eyelide. Eyebrows were brushed up high and set with browfix, and transparent mascara used on the lashes.......it was great fun and all day was like sculpting or painting a lovely canvas.

Virginia could n't resist adding a little rouge in a couple of shots......just for a little Oh la la!

The hair we also made into a Mannequin look....like a wig, making it look unreal with different products - wax and gel, different directions, always covering the model's natural hairline.....fine balance between high fashion look and bad wig! Very challenging for all involved, especially the model who had such hard poses to maintain. Bravo Gaurav.....you are a superstar......so patient with us all day.

Mulain is off home for an early night - quite exhausted by it all and having the need to remove Bombay from his face....facepack is programme for the night and a good rest - it is quite 'ard the life an artiste!

Til tomorrow...Mulain x

MAC and the artist!

To quote MAC....."Art is in M∙A∙C's DNA".... so for this season they have taken three celebrated artists to create images for the Fall 09 Make-Up Art Cosmetics collection. See these artists as they work with M∙A∙C colour. First they show Richard Phillips with his trademark approach to hyper-glamour, digitally retouches an image with supersaturated M∙A∙C colour and finishes. Then there is Illustrator, Maira Kalman who is bold with shades and is playfully eccentric with her take on life. Lastly there is Marilyn Minter, whose creative juices go towards seduction and sexiness, using MAC's Pigments and Glitter.

As always, MAC are ahead of the make-up game my friends in celebrating the art of make-up not just a trend in cosmetics. So much soul and creative talent. J'aime. Bravo.

Mulain x

Keep calm and carry on!

Mulain has been watching the news over the last few days about the memories of World War II. The Second World War started 70 years ago yesterday 3rd September 1939 and finished 6 years later in 1945. I don't think any of us can imagine those dark days and the horrors that come with wars. I know my friends that conflicts and isolated violence/wars happen everyday all over the world.....but this war involved all of us in our little global village non? 2194 days of war! Families torn apart, countries torn apart, the world torn apart. It really must never 'appen again......we must all remain neutral, kind, compassionate as human beings. Not easy I know.

The above poster was used during the London Blitz....'Keep calm and carry on'....so British non? But London was not the only city affected......London, Paris, Athens, Berlin, Prague, Vienna, Tokyo, Casablanca (loo-ve the movie), Moscow, Stalingrad, Warsaw, Rome, Stockholm, Brussels, Singapore, Rangoon......all these cities and hundreds more turned on their heads. We must all remember and take note of the suffering and huge sacrifice that people made......Russia alone lost 39 million during this time!!!

Mulain must add though, as disastrous and catastrophic as the war was, it allowed women on a mass scale to prove their worth in the workplace - in the UK for example, the men were away fighting so ladies had to fill the gap! This broke through gender barriers in a huge way and laid a path for post-war women to study, work, seek a career.....giving them a huge boost of self-esteem and confidence. Bravo!

And who can forget the lovely Betty Grable as the favourite war-time pin-up girl. All the troops loo-ved her....those legs, the hair, that smile. Mulain's grandfather in the navy used to bring Max Factor make-up back from New York, I think trying to re-invent my grandmother as the UK's version of La Grable.....lipstick and powder! Amazing, even in hard times people still want to look good and have fun. You can't keep the human spirit down I tell you.

So Mulain says thank you for those that sacrificed their lives so we can all live in liberty and peace. For those interested Mulain suggests the following flicks to see the 1940s style and feel the mood......'Downfall' ***** (5 stars - excellente), 'Inglourious Basterds' **** (4 stars - mad!), 'Casablanca' ***** (5 stars - classic cinema), 'The Sound of Music' ***** (5 stars - fantastique), 'South Pacific' ***** (5 stars - wonderful), 'Schindler's List' ***** (5 stars - heartbreaking), 'Sophie's Choice' ***** (5 stars - traumatic).....I could go on...but think that these movies will give you a roller-coaster of a weekend.

Keep calm, carry on .....Mulain x

Xavier D'Souza

Our MU Xavier D'Souza is such a super-star...completely versatile in his work, jumping from brides to monsters, from clowns to fashion...super talented and super lovely. This is some of his latest work in August GQ. Today he is with MU Natasha, assisting her on a Garnier TVC. It's a-buzzing at fat mu HQ...lots of exciting stuff in the pipeline. Virginia has been holed up in a studio for the last 5 days shooting for the latest 'Lifestyles - Autumn and Winter Collection' - she is in desperate need for some Benefit's tan-tastique facial bronze tint...she has not seen the sun for days! All work and no play makes fat mu super dull...that's why we make sure we have fun too...Oh la la...as if Mulain will tell you what the MUs get up to......Sssshhhhh! Mulain's the word.

Keep busy my friends and happy!

Mulain x

Talk to the tan!

Talk about a bronze facial tint with 'tan-i-tude' - that's what the Benefit website says...and so true. Today MU Virginia used this tube of tan-tastique facial tint to warm up one of the lovely male models on her shoot. Easily applied onto the face, with the right brush of course, Virginia used a foundation brush to get an even finish.....just gives a lovely colour/tint to the skin, after you've put on your fave moisturizer....and the best bit is you can keep applying til you get the right shade, then wash off at the end of the day. Great for warming your skin up for a slight sun-kissed look....if you're in an office all day and need some help in putting life back into your palour, do try this leetle gem....be warned...you may get addicted....

Mulain x

Scar-y stuff

Mulain loves this photo of a scar test, done by MU Natasha for friend Arjun Mathur....the two had great fun preparing the gruesome look and creating the scar.....special effects are just too much fun to do and the fat mu team love the change / chance of working with character looks as well as beauty and glam.

We love it all my friends!
Mulain x

P.S. Have to ask has anyone else seen QT's 'Inglourious Basterds'?....Some great special effects scenes to be watched, if you're a fan.....great scalping and cutting into flesh. Also check out Brad Pitt's throat scar....not bad methinks....

Give me RED.......!

The power of the red lipstick is often underestimated. A bold, confident and sexy style statement in itself that not many women think they can carry off. Mais that's where you're wrong mes cheries... from a classic movie star red to a scarlet blue red to deep wine or a brick red... there's a red for every girl of any colour... and any age...! My Grandma still has her bright red lipstick on everyday at the age of 81 and I have to say she looks just marvellous...! So if she can do it girls you definitely can... and I promise you won't be sorry... so pick your favourite red to suit your complexion and put it on the next time you go out and see how fabulous you look and feel...!... and the beauty of it is .... its always in fashion...!

Available at most beauty counters to suit every budget... follow the link below for tips on how to wear red lipstick and how to chose the right shade for you!

http://www.easylivingmagazine.com/TestedSelected/PracticalGuides/RedLipstick/default.aspx

Mx

Beetroot blush!

La Beetroot!

Recessionista blush is on! Mulain is introducing La Beetroot! Even Madame Shilpa Shetty has been known to say that she uses Beetroot as a blusher. Not that it's a new idee....Beetroot was also used as a hair dye in Victorian times as well as on the cheeks for that lovely English Rose look (you thought it was natural?). Mulain's grandmother was telling him only last week that his Great, Great Aunt Phoebe (who married a diamond-mine owner from Nigeria in the late 1880s!?!) always used the beetroot to keep herself looking flushed, blushed and rouged up, from Africa to Europe, wherever she travelled! An easy, healthy, cost-effective option - simply boil the beetroot and put on your cheeks on top of your moisturizer. Voila!

Be 'beetroot' beautiful and see people comment on your glow!

Mulain x

Spoilt for Choice!

Mulain is finding it hard to keep up with the speed of new make-up brands that are being launched all over the planet, what an explosion! Even in a recession people are still buying beauty products. There are so many, are we spoilt for choice? It's fantistique on one hand as we have so much choice but YOU, the people, mu-st find it hard to keep up to speed on what's new and good and worth the bucks. No need to stress you know you have moi. I do my best to wade through the world of maquillage to keep it simple and find out the true little treasures and tricks, tips and truths.


Am on the pulse my darlings, 24/7......Interestingly there are two pop-stars recently who have both turned out 'niched' cosmetic brands - red haired beauty Nicola Roberts from mega girl group Girls Aloud has designed her products to suit pale skins and red/light/strawberry blonde haired gals - 'Dainty Doll'. Obviously a gap was there in the market that needed to be filled. Another (coming to Selfridges in two weeks) is another songstress Beverly Knight's creation, offering her K' make-up range for darker skin tones and shades and again seeing a gap in the beauty market that perhaps was not being filled.



We at fat mu HQ are always open to new brands and trying them out....Mulain tries to not get cynical about the business side of make-up and the 'sell, sell, sell' culture........was a little sceptical when checking out the Primark new make-up range...I feel it's just too cheap! And I am never truly 'appy putting a product on my skin if I can't read the ingredients...not too keen on glitter gels and creams that burn the skin...not a good, feel or look....umm....but you never know...anyone out there tried them?


'Pure' is another new one, 'Jemma Kidd' is on the move up in popularity, mineral make-up brands too......'Soap and Glory', 'Illamasqua', 'Too Faced' and 'Urban Decay' still going strong....it's a tough, fickle and fast paced market.....do let me know if you know of any new 'brands' on the block my friends...always good to know...


Mulain x