By Shayna Mace | Photography by Shalicia Johnson
Most of us love a good before-and-after, whether it’s a jaw-dropping home renovation or a new cut and ’do. And two lucky recipients experienced their own magical makeover moment during the Madison Women’s Weekend this past November. Cynde Larson (shown above) underwent a hair transformation with a makeup application—and she went home in a new outfit and undergarments, too. Since Larson’s name was chosen from a drawing, Jesse Marcks, stylist and owner of Au Fait salon, had no idea who the makeover winner would be. She and her team had limited time to convene with Larson on her new look—since the makeover took place during a three-hour window.
“When we first saw Cynde we thought, ‘She’s beautiful, but she is hiding under all [of] that hair,’” ex- plains Marcks. “I needed to give her a look that was easy and low-maintenance. She doesn’t blow-dry very often, so I was inspired to give her a haircut that would air-dry with a great shape. I knew that Cynde would look great in a lob (a long A-line bob). We brightened her [color] up by slightly adjusting her natural dirty blonde to a softer, warmer golden blond and added lighter, face-framing [pieces] using a balayage technique.”
Larson also met with Krystle Marks, CEO of Lev Apparel, to select a new outfit. “Cynde expressed that she sticks to a neutral color palette and likes to keep her look classic,” says Marks. “I wanted to keep her comfortable but stretch her a bit by working in a color that would brighten her up without overwhelming her.”
In the end, Marcks and Marks were able to give Larson a new look that she was extremely happy with. “I entered the makeover contest because I al- ways thought it would be fun, but also needed help [on how] to polish up my style since I’ve never known how to fix myself up—for lack of a better term!” says Larson. “It was so nice and such a wonderful experience to have people who knew what they were doing guide me through the process.”
About Her Look:
“We kept Cynde’s makeup soft and natural by using a BB cream with medium coverage with SPF and a soft shimmer. We added a mauve shadow stick on her eyelids to complement her eye color and finished with a soft, sheer mauve lip gloss,” says Marcks.
“I selected Lev Apparel’s Nolan dress because it’s designed for pear body shapes. It has a tie waist that highlights her lovely waist and an A-line skirt that floats away from her bottom half. The gray moto jacket added another layer of detail, texture and warmth. We added black fleece-lined leggings and booties to elongate her legs,” explains Marks.
We selected a T-shirt bra that has an infinity edge so it disappeared under her clothing,” says Tia Lyn, owner of Contours Lingerie. “It was all about giving [Cynde] an invisible lift.”
To see more of the photos from our two makeovers, and from the 2019 expo, visit our Event Recap page.
