| Interview with 'M·A·C' Senior Artists - AMBER DREADON & NICOLE THOMPSON! |
| Written by Sacha Young | ||
| Saturday, 30 July 2011 13:50 | ||
Coup De Main was lucky enough to squeeze a few precious mintues out of AMBER DREADON and NICOLE THOMPSON's busy schedules as they embark from Montreal to Auckland, in time for the opening of the amazing new flagship 'M·A·C' Britomart store! In our interview, the two 'M·A·C' Senior Artists gush over nostalgic songs, how they still manage to get nervous over their incredible occupation... and share their own number one make-up tips. Check out the super special Coup De Main interview below... COUP DE MAIN: What can people expect next Monday/Thursday at the 'M·A·C' Britomart store if they make appointments with you? AMBER DREADON: Great advice and tips on how to achieve what they would like their make-up to do for them. Awesome suggestions on how to update their make-up wardrobe. Make-up advice that is on trend... Oh, and to leave looking totally babe'in! NICOLE THOMPSON: They can expect to have some fun with me and of course have fun with make-up! They can expect to learn some great tricks that they can take home and use and they can expect to try something new! CDM: Can you share any insider information on what the new flagship store is like? AMBER DREADON: It's sleek and the ultimate make-up lovers dream! Full to the brim with colour, texture and things to try! NICOLE THOMPSON: Every time a MAC store opens you can always expect the best. The store will be a shiny funhouse of colour, creativity and amazing make-up artists! CDM: What is your favourite part of doing one-on-one make-up sessions? AMBER DREADON: It's so rewarding to be able to help make women (and sometimes men!) feel better about themselves - sometimes it can be just a small change in your everyday make-up routine that can make your whole look more modern and fresh! This is the best way to keep your look current. NICOLE THOMPSON: I love seeing people happy in their own skin. It is really special to be able to show people the effect a little make-up can have on your whole aura! CDM: How is Montreal?! AMBER DREADON: Montreal is crazzzzzyyy! We have been talking MAC non-stop. Add in a sprinkling of jetlag and it gets that little bit more insane! Talking make-up, doing make-up, breathing make-up... amazing! NICOLE THOMPSON: Unreal! I love Canada! Everyone is so friendly and happy - It reminds me a lot of Australia. CDM: Can you explain what you are there for exactly? AMBER DREADON: We are here for Senior Artist meetings. That means the team of sixty Senior Artists from around the world are all here to talk about everything from ideas for new products to a site visit at Cirque Du Soleil! NICOLE THOMPSON: I am here for an annual Senior Artist meeting. All the Senior Artists from the worldwide MAC Pro Team get together for a meeting of the minds and make-up brushes! It is a jam packed few days of new product, innovation, information, artistic workshops, photography, body painting and yesterday they took us to the home of Cirque Du Soleil and we got to explore their HQ! Juggling and all! It is completely inspirational. CDM: Just out of curiosity how many hours are you there for in total? AMBER DREADON: I arrived Monday morning and leave on Friday. NICOLE THOMPSON: In Montreal for four days... So ninety-six hours. CDM: What is the highlight about travelling so much with work? AMBER DREADON: I get to work with the most insanely talented people who are at the forefront of what they do. We are always learning and able to experience make-up with a worldly perspective. NICOLE THOMPSON: The places I have seen, the people I have met, and the make-up I have been lucky enough to do - and it's called work? It is non-stop highlights. CDM: Do you ever get nervous when applying make-up? AMBER DREADON: I get nervous A LOT! I got to work with Hayley from Paramore recently and I was soooo nervous and tried to play it cool, while my hands were shaking like crazy! She tweeted me afterward and posted a pic of her make-up to her blog and my Twitter went crazy. She loves wearing make-up and colour so I used MAC Pigments and MAC PRO Chromalines to make the colour pop! NICOLE THOMPSON: Of course! Backstage make-up is about so much more than just the make-up. It's a mixture of timing, mood, personalities and opinions that all need to come together to succeed - this combination has the ability to make anyone nervous! When I'm actually applying the makeup though, this is my safe zone. I get lost in it... and try to enjoy every moment. CDM: Can you share with us one pinch-yourself-moment since working for 'M·A·C'? AMBER DREADON: I honestly have them all the time! From backstage at Vivienne Westwood in Paris, to working on Cirque Du Soleil, to being super excited when a new editorial comes out that I worked on! NICOLE THOMPSON: Touchdown at Paris Fashion Week. It was a dream of mine since I started make-up. Working with Val Garland on Vivienne Westwood Gold Label was a jaw-dropping experience. Doing make-up with my make-up hero on an iconic show? A moment I will never forget. CDM: Please share one tip for our Coup De Main readers in regards to application of make-up / or make-up in general? AMBER DREADON: Prep, prime and look after your skin! It's so hard to get maximum beauty with minimal care. Pay attention to detail - a comb of MAC clear brow set can take a make-up from nice, to ultra clean and professional looking. MAC are the leaders in priming products and primers can benefit the overall make-up look by diffusing the appearance of fine lines and helping makeup last longer. NICOLE THOMPSON: Everyone needs to try and fall in love with lashes. They can be quite tricky to put them on yourself, so try chopping the lashes up into 3 small pieces and apply each piece 1 at a time. This will make it so much faster and easier to do! Also, try buffing your liquid foundation on with a soft blush brush (I love the MAC #168 Brush). This will give you a super smooth air brush finish to your foundation! Quick Fire Five - AMBER DREADON: 1. Most nostalgic song that comes to mind? Dolly Parton / Kenny Rodgers - 'Islands in the Stream'... Reminds me of my Dad! 2. Sneans? Ewwwwwwww. 3. Favourite place to eat a meal? 'Lao Tsei' Chinese restaurant in Paris. 4. Black lips? Yes please. 5. Summer vs. Winter? Winter for sure... Summer for holidays only. Quick Fire Five - NICOLE THOMPSON: 1. Most nostalgic song that comes to mind? Pearl Jam - 'Alive'. 2. Sneans? As long as they are not bright white, with black jeans - a.k.a. Jerry Seinfeld! 3. Favourite place to eat a meal? 'Ms G's' or Tokyo in Sydney, 4. Black lips? Yes - but only with creamy skin and nothing else! 5. Summer vs. Winter? Winter! AMBER hearts... HEART LISTENING: Rap music and singing/rapping along in the car with my boyfriend. Hideous if I accidentally did a handbag phone call... but so fun. 'GunPlay', 'Rick Ross' and 'Kanye' better watch out! HEART WATCHING: 'True Blood'... Ohhhh Eric. (And they have make-up support from MAC - Woop!) HEART READING: My funny Mum's book review blog. So good but so embarrassing - www.cover-me-books.blogspot.com. HEART OF THE WEEK: MAC Prolongwear foundation, concealer, eyeshadows, lipstick, lip pencils, lipglass!!!!! Prolongwear everything! NICOLE hearts... HEART LISTENING: At the moment... Early 90's hip hop! HEART WATCHING: 'Entourage'. HEART READING: Self-help books. HEART OF THE WEEK: My husband sending me a picture of himself and my bulldog (with said dog licking his face). A hilarious picture to remind me of home!
To book an appointment with either Nicole Thompson (Monday 1st and Thursday 4th) or Amber Dreadon (Thursday 4th) for this coming week, contact M·A·C Britomart on 0800 MAC SHOP or macbritomart@macstores.co.nz. The appointments are 90 minute one-on-one's for $180.00 and are fully redeemable against products purchased on the same day. Limited appointments are available so book now! www.maccosmetics.com |
