Rock & roll is my blood,” says Australian Danijela Pavic, the mother of Dane (12), Mila (10), and Maksim (7) who has lived in Beijing for two years. Although she was initially hesitant to undergo a makeover due to the “cheesiness factor,” she just celebrated a milestone birthday and decided to embrace the offer. Danijela usually dons jeans, Converses and Ramones T-shirts that she shares with her son, Dane, and although she was a cosmetic consultant at David Jones in 1991, her daily regimen now is only undereye concealer and mascara. “Mornings are crazy. I prepare lunches for the kids and they also want a three-star breakfast, like omelets or pancakes,” she laughs, “and then I have to get them out the door in time for the bus.” The Sydneysider with Serbian heritage stays in shape with classes at Alona Pilates Studio three times a week: “I want to defy gravity as much as possible,” she jokes. She wanted a glamorous evening look, so hairstylists at Private I Salon and a makeup artist accentuated her olive skin and dark hair to help her achieve her goal. A gift certificate for an aromatherapy massage at the The Spa at Hilton Wangfujing completed the day of a luxury. Danijela’s list of things to do includes learning to surf and traveling more – but now she can cross off “Be a starlet.”
Get the Look:
1. Wen Qi, a private makeup artist, first applied tinted eye brightener (Bobbi Brown), foundation (Giorgio Armani) and powder to brighten Danijela’s face. She then brushed on powder in the shade Absynnia (Nars) under her eyebrows, eyes and on the bridge of her nose. To achieve dramatic eyes, she painted on long-wear gel eyeliner (Bobbi Brown) and brushed on copper eye shadow (Shu Uemura), layered with Gunmetal eyeshadow (Bobbi Brown). A peach blush (Shu Uemura) on Danijela’s cheeks balanced out her dark eyes. To complete the glamorous look, Wen Qi glued fake eyelashes onto her upper lashes.
2. Kevin Leung, a hairstylist from Hong Kong, trimmed Danijela’s curly, wiry locks into a shape modeled after a tousled Meg Ryan haircut from InStyle magazine.
3. For larger-than-life locks, Kevin divided her hair into two-inch sections, sprayed each piece with hairspray, and rolled her hair into curlers. After the curls sat for two minutes, he unveiled her thick curls. Danijela’s reaction? “Rawr!”
Private I Salon RS-07 SOLANA Lifestyle Shopping Park, 6 Chaoyang Park Road, Chaoyang District (5905 6881).
Wen Qi, a private makeup artist for six years, can be reached at qiqivipyj@yahoo.com.cn.
The Spa Daily 10am – 11pm. 6/F Hilton Wangfujing Beijing, 8 Wangfujing East Street, Dongcheng District (5812 8888 ext 8560).
Photos By Judy Zhou
