Slacker!

If you are still with me out there- I applaud you! I am super sorry for not having updated as much as I should have, but while I've slacking in updates I most certainly have not been slacking in business. Many new and exciting things have/are/will be happened/ing and I'll brief you in on just a few of them.

First off: I worked on a film at the beginning of the year with Award-Winning Director Robert X. Golphin where I met SFX Makeup Artist Delia de Cock (I know, I know- that's really her last name). She was amazing and even though she was keying the film she still had me do the lead actress. Recently collaborated on both a wedding and an FX photoshoot (pictured below) with me as the subject. She is an excellent contact and becoming a good friend and I relish the opportunity to collaborate in the near future!


Also while I've been away from you I've brought on two more partners and was charged with the national expansion of the Motives Cosmeceutical line in my organization! When I'm not bartending or on set, I'm sitting down with professionals in the industry to get their opinions on this incredible brand as well as teaching salons how to incorporate it into their businesses. On top of that I've also been doing custom blended mineral foundations and learning airbrushing (pauses to catch breath). It's been quite the busy few months, but very rewarding! I've done another Preston and Steve's: Philly's Hottest shoot and so hopefully I'll be able to share those pictures soon. I've also been contacted by one of my producers and offered 3 feature length films with the first beginning production in October. I'm really excited about the possibility of not only traveling and doing film full time, but becoming a producer. Pray for me! :)

I'll keep you posted! No...really....I will.

Make it a good day!

Maleeva xoxo

Breakthrough

It's the start of a new year and the sky is NOT the limit! (was that cheesy enough of a start for you ?) It's two and a half weeks into January and I've been a busy bee with both my internet and makeup businesses. There are some new and exciting things that I want to share involving the latter, but first I'd like to take a moment and share two things, insecurities or flaws if you will, that I have dealt with and how I have overcome them. I only hope that in sharing these I'll be able to help someone else move forward as well.

First: Fear of Failure. I think it is something that everyone deals with at some point in their life and is something that used to paralyze my growth. Whenever presented with a new opportunity, I would doubt myself to the point of almost not taking the job. With my internet business, I would fret so much about talking to someone on the phone that I wouldn't even pick it up. A person who thrives in a social environment afraid to pick up the phone. Funny right? I've been told though that the most successful people are those who have failed the most and CEO and Entrepreneur J.R. Ridinger is known to say "Hurry up and fail so you can succeed". This is what I had to do. I researched, I read, and I developed posture. I accepted that I'm not going to know everything, but I can learn anything. If there was a makeup look that I didn't know or a problem on location that I couldn't troubleshoot myself, I got help! No one thought less of me and probably weren't even the wiser. Surprisingly, most people don't expect you to know it all, but the humility and willingness to learn or find out the answer is what will attract others to you. Did I sound like a fool the first time I talked to someone on the phone about my vision or my business? Probably. But I found out what worked and what didn't and never made the same mistake twice. You can't say the right thing to the wrong person and the wrong thing to the right person. Go ahead and put yourself out there! The sooner you do the sooner that insecurity will disappear.

Second: Being a "Yes man". The Jim Carrey movie, while funny, can carry some serious repercussions in the business world. I am still dealing with this problem today because I am a people pleaser and love to yes to anyone and everyone. I'll get so excited about a project or event that I'll say yes before I even know what the commitment is! The problem with this is that I often find myself over-stretched with serious time management problems. I don't like to do anything I can't do 100% and yet this is exactly what I've been setting myself up for. I find myself saying yes to projects I don't have the time for and I end up letting people down. Don't do this to yourself! I am sure that someone would rather you be honest and say no (for whatever reason) than have you say yes and not be able to deliver. No matter how excited I am about a project I need to take a step back, see what other commitments I have going on (events, business, family, etc.) and then make a decision based on what is best for the person or project asking. Also, learn to prioritize and rearrange. What's more important? Your mother's, second cousin's baby dog's birthday or a charity networking event raising money for breast cancer awareness. That's for you to decide.

Now onto the fun stuff! I have a brand new partner Yvette who is becoming a skincare consultant and who will help me focus on helping salons. I'm excited to have someone to bounce ideas off of and also someone to help handle the workload for maximum efficiency. We hosted a kickoff event at her house yesterday to a wonderful turnout! We had many women interested in makeup and skincare, as well as other products, and I even got to test out my new brush set with some makeovers :) A salon owner was there so I can only hope that she was impressed. I think the makeup speaks for itself and she would be a wonderful person to test market the salon audience with. You can check out my new 15 piece, professional brush set at the link below. Firm but soft bristles allow for great layering and the angled eye liner brush is sensational!


Motives® Cosmetics by Loren Ridinger

I already have the subjects for my next few blog posts including more events, a new movie, and a trip to MIAMI!!!!

Have a wonderful and productive week!

Cheers!

Maleeva xoxo

New Year's Resolution

It's January 2nd, so of course everyone has been busy thinking about (and hopefully writing down) their New Year's Resolutions. Mine probably mirror some of yours: get healthy, exercise more, procrastinate less, be more tolerant ;) etc,. But instead of just focusing on my career and self-growth, I'm going to focus on helping other people realize their dreams and become successful. In my line of work I have found that I've had the most fun when I am sharing the experience with others and it's about time young entrepreneurs make a move in this economy. I firmly believe that we are going to be the push that begins to right the world and there's no better time to start than the present.

This blog is going to follow me along the way. It will not only be a place to find my adventures in beauty with the latest trends, products, and tips, and pictures, but also a place for individuals to learn about becoming successful and achieving their dreams. I'd like for it to incorporate a little bit of everything! Call it The Diary of a Young Entrepreneur: Ups, Downs, and Everything in Between. I'm laying myself open to the world, are you ready for an adventure?

I'm making the promise to myself to be able to look back on 2011 and say "Wow, what a fantastic year!".

What are your New Year's Resolutions?

Light and Love,

Maleeva xoxo

P.S. Updating regularly is a part of this resolution ;)

Haydenfilms Institute's Red Carpet Gala: Eugene Byrd (from "Bones"), myself (on the right), and some Kutztown Highschoolers (including my sister in the purple). The exciting story, and hopefully more pictures, to come in my next post :)

October!

Since it's November first, I will be posting about the great month of October- obvi (I'm running a bit behind aren't I??) ! Even though I'm a warm weather girl, October is my absolute favorite month! From cider to autumn leaves, pumpkin patches and Halloween to scarves and cute jackets, October is by far the best. And what a busy month it was!

In makeup news, I filmed my first ever TV pilot! Hopefully being looked at by FX and Comedy Central, this "Wings" meets "The Office" sitcom will have you rolling. Let me tell you though, shooting at an airport was no easy task. All of the rules and time constraints we had to abide by PLUS getting my makeup case through TSA- not the easiest circumstances for filmmaking but definitely the most rewarding. The cast and crew was incredible and I even worked with a few "celebrities" (Jeremy Axworthy, a UK child star from the 50's/60's and the little girl on all of the Barbie boxes). I've also topped my list of the most interesting places I've ever done makeup! My new #1: A gutted Fed-Ex cargo plane- check out the pic:

What's even more exciting- Jeremy is being funded by a council in Germany to film a spy movie and we might be going to Berlin next year to shoot! Keep your fingers crossed for me :)

Now for other Fall fun: Halloween Activities! This year I got to cross off a bunch of October to-dos including a pumpkin patch and hayride, carving pumpkins (although my Peter Pan and Tinkerbell was never fully finished), flashlight corn maze, trick-or-treating, and of course- a Halloween party. My costume this year was a forensic anthropologist from the TV show "Bones". A combination of Angela Montenegro's style and Temperance Brennan's haircut and Jeffersonian ID Badge (thank you Faceinhole.com). Only after I put together my costume did I realize my little brother's skeleton costume fit rather perfectly. We make a good pair! :

What did you do for October??

Maleeva xoxo

Philly's Hottest :Babe on a Bike

Hey everyone! It's my birthday week and so things are about to get a little crazy. I'm going to try some new looks from the September 2010 issue of Vogue so stay tuned for pics! In the meantime, I have the video from my latest Preston and Steve's Philly's Hottest shoot: Babe on a Bike. Our videographer and editor Nick Murphy is outstanding and I love his work! We might be collaborating on a short film this Fall.

Fall is here and it's going to rock- so buckle your seat belts!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsb88NFdJek&feature=player_embedded- Enjoy!

Fall Colors

Hey ladies! This one's for you. To act as a prelude to my big night in NYC for FNO- I'd like to introduce some of my favorite colors for this Fall. Summer is gone, sadly, but with Fall comes some bright, color concentrated shades that are great for any skin tone. Step aside bronze beauty and break out the color! Don't be scared to mix and match either- a lot of the smoky eyes out there are going with color opposites this season. Fun fun!

Celebrities like Jessica Alba and Kim Kardashian are rocking colorful nails and so should you! My favorite nail colors for the fall are "I Believe in UFO's" and "Glam Girl".

Motives® Cosmetics by Loren Ridinger

Want some fun, new eye color? The more color the better I say: Try the Eye Candy Creme Eyeshadows from Motives! By themselves or layered with powder shadows- these are definitely a beauty must have: Motives® Cosmetics by Loren Ridinger




And for lips...let's just say don't get shy now :) Try Magenta or Vamp to make a statement!

Motives® Cosmetics by Loren Ridinger


Don't just take my word for it! Check out the latest buzz and have fun!

XOXO Maleeva

New and Exciting Things!

Well my goodness it has been awhile since I posted! So many exciting things are happening so let's share a few shall we? First off I had another Preston and Steve's Philly's Hottest Photo Shoot. This time it was Philly's Hottest Babe on a Bike. We shot at the Penthouse Club in Philadelphia and it was amazing! Chic decor and plush seating with great music and food. What more could you ask for?? They have an amazing lunch special that the Chef likes to call "8 for 8": 8 lunch entrees including french fries and a drink for only $8. Can't be that! This is not your average Gentlemen's Club. Pretty soon it could be the hottest place in Philly. I can see why!

Check out their site: http://thepenthouseclubphilly.net/ (I would do a bit of pre-gaming before going- it was $7.50 for an Amstel Light).

Stay tuned for the pics from the shoot!

In other news, Fashion's Night Out in NYC is coming up (September 10th) and guess who will be in attendance?...ME! The owner of Motives Cosmetics: Loren Ridinger is a special guest speaker at the Touch Lounge for The Shopping Addict and I have VIP tickets. Come join us for an awesome night of fashion, beauty, celebrities, and free swag! Check out the Shopping Addicts site for more details: http://theshopaddicts.com/.

And of course don't forget to create your own customized itinerary at http://www.fashionsnightout.com/night-out/

A portion of the proceeds from over 150 participating stores goes to charity. Come join us for one of the world's biggest shopping events of the year!

In other news: my birthday is coming up! September 11th actually and so it's going to be a whirlwind weekend. I'll be in NYC for FNO and Philly the next night. If you're in the Philadelphia area come out and join my friends and I for a drink and let's talk beauty! I'm thinking of one of these looks for the night- which do you think?