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27 May, 2014

ALL PINK EVERYTHING: Xanthia Pink Interview

I first discovered Xanthia Pink on Instagram after the amazing NicCoCoCreations reposted an image of her in one of her lovely hair flower creations. I was immediately drawn to her bright hair and even brighter smile. I clicked across to her profile and decided I needed to follow this beauty and self-professed make up artist, model, light worker and life enthusiast - and I'm glad I did! Ever since, Xanthia has been a constant inspiration to me. Not only does she have kind shining eyes and the kind of thousand watt smile that could power a large city, but she of course has a great bod and a fantastic style! But most of all, she is such a loving, caring, happy and positive person! Everyday I enjoy the shot of sunshine that she injects into my day with her affirming posts, not to mention she's always busy doing lots of fun things. I love her so much and I just knew I wanted to share her with you. I hope you continue to follow her for your daily dose of happy!
 
 
You wear so many different hats, but primarily you are a make up artist – have you had any formal training?

Yes I do, and I thoroughly enjoy wearing all of my hats! Figuratively speaking. But yes primarily I am a makeup artist. I am self-taught, no schooling although I have attended various workshops and always enjoy learning new techniques and products! I have always had a passion for makeup and practiced over the years. When I started modelling, I would do my own makeup for shoots and every once in a while I'd have the opportunity to work with makeup artists and really loved watching and learning techniques from them too! I would practice on my own and on girlfriends and then into shoots doing both hair and makeup for myself and other models I'd be shooting with. After I took a bit of a break in modelling I decided to propel myself forward as a true makeup artist and hone in my skills and intention on that. It has been a very beautiful and rewarding start to my career being able to meet all kinds of people and accentuate their natural beauty and create with them! It's always a new experience and I'm very grateful and excited to continue forward with it! 

You’re also a published model, what are some of the favourite projects and brands you’ve worked for?

It's been a real honour and treat to be published and to now say that I've had 3 covers! My first cover and biggest deal, honestly was the cover of OC Weekly shot by Riley Kern.  I'm from Orange County and it was a huge deal for it to be so widely distributed down there. I was so giggly and excited to find stacks of them with my parents! I'm still so grateful for that opportunity and also for the most recent cover of Cupcake Quarterly magazine that I'm on! I was and AM so excited because it's one of my favourite images ever photographed by one of my best friends and very talented photographer Tommy O! It was also a wonderful experience shooting it at Bahooka - one of the oldest tiki restaurants- in its final days! That was a big deal! And some of my makeup artist work is in that same issue.  Some of my other favourite modelling projects are for Sweethearts Salute a non-profit organisation that all the proceeds go to the Wounded Warrior Project which is really awesome! Working with non-profits makes my heart happy!

I also absolutely love working with Danger Ninja Photography, Radiant Inc and Bad Bones Photography as they are stellar artists and just awesome loving and creative people! I feel so lucky to have connected with them as artists and as friends! Bad Bones is also leader of a Pinup Community called the Luscious Ladies, that I just recently became a part of! I'm excited to say that I am the Vice President of the LA chapter and we will be starting a whole bunch of fun creative action in the pinup scene!!!

Brands I absolutely love love love are Ribbons & Rockabilly who creates unique playing card flowers that are so awesome! She is a killer independent business woman and I love rocking her stuff!!!! I feel the same about my girl NiccoCoCreations as well and I'm ALWAYS wearing her gorgeous flowers! I'm honoured that I have had the pleasure to work with a lot of designers both clothing and jewellery from Del Vintage, KWCreations, Steady Clothing, Red Dolly Swim, Exquisite Restraint Corsets, Wonderland Corsetry and many others! I'm so grateful and I'm always looking to work with more designers! 

 
You always seem to be busy with something fun and interesting! Aside from being a make up artist and model, how else to you spend your time?

I really have learned how to maximize my life with AWESOME! I insist on having fun and enjoying all the beauty in life and believe we play a huge part in creating the life we have.  When I'm not doing makeup and or modelling, I am spending time with my  family  who I'm very close with (they're my best friends, soul mates and heroes) and we go to Disneyland a lot! It's my second home, really and I absolutely love it there! I also have a regular yoga practice that keeps me very centred and connected as well as writing and meditation! I love spending time with my friends and my CHUG Diego (Pug Chihuahua mix) who is my magical rescue pup! They recharge me with love!

What are some of your career highlights so far?

I would say that the publications have been wonderful (that I mentioned above ) but more importantly It's the JOURNEY that has really been very special! I look at all of these things as experiences and adventures and I'm so grateful that the opportunities came into my life and brought wonderful people with them! Being able to express myself and share my life of love and adventures has truly manifested more goodness and I believe that sharing it and helping other people find their light has been a HUGE GIFT! Doing makeup and helping people feel beautiful is such an incredible feeling! To help someone really FEEL it, and know how beautiful they are! THAT is a highlight! When you look good, you FEEL good and you present yourself to the world differently, and it responds! Everything is energy and it's a delight to be able to help someone have that experience!
 
Another highlight that I must include is the opportunity to do a breast cast for Keep A Breast Foundation! I believe it really came about because I AM very involved in art and communication and living a positive life! I got to cast my breasts with founder Shaney Joe for a project with KAB, Rockstar Energy on the  Inked UP World Tour! An incredible artist , Moni Marino, painted my cast and it was absolutely breathtaking! I was so honoured! At the end of the tour and when all the casts were painted (12 ladies were casted) there was a gallery opening and celebration! All of the casts were on sale and all proceeds went to KEEP A BREAST to help inform young people and the public to check themselves and prevent breast cancer! My Mom came to the opening and we got to meet a bunch of wonderful artists and supporters of all these wonderful causes, including meeting the artist who painted my cast, Moni! It was such an electric night and I was so happy to be there! I fell completely in love with my cast and my mom and I both decided that we needed to buy it! So I now have this gorgeous piece of art sculpted from my breasts to remind me of this stellar experience and wonderful cause! I hope to do more work with Keep A Breast in the very near future! I love them!

Editors Note: Xanthia has also recently worked with Danny Trejo for the Nerdist Channel. As a massive Danny fan , this made me very happy and I just couldn't help but mention it.

 
How long have you had your signature ‘pink’ look and how did you end up creating it?

I've had pink hair for almost 10 years now! It's kind of crazy to think about it almost being a decade of PINK! I toyed with some red at one point, threw in some purple a year or so ago, and currently have orange  in there too (which I LOVE)! But I've maintained the pink hair through it all! Pink isn't just a colour, it's an energy! I've always loved pink and when I finally committed to it, I fell in love with it! It's like colour therapy! It makes me happy and other people happy too! It's ultimate woman and I'm VERY girly and bubbly so it's very suiting! It's just ME! <3 I can see myself when I’m a super old lady and STILL having pink hair! I'm in it for life!

I discovered you on Instagram and was immediately drawn to your colourful and positive personality. Can you explain a little more about your positivity posts?

Thank you! I believe that positivity is a way of life, habits that we build and live by! Everything is energy and everything is habit! I love Instagram for many reasons, and it gave me an opportunity to share my life through photos and reach people I would have never met before! Over a year ago I had a calling to do what I call a "LOVE MOVEMENT", and the idea was to commit to posting a positive affirmation every day for 30 days to help and inspire other people to follow along and build positive habits for themselves! It all starts with how we feel about ourselves and loving ourselves! That's how we create our lives, through how we perceive ourselves and the world we are in. So I thought if I can do this, maybe it will help other people. So I started doing it and immediately people started keeping up and then some would share theirs too! I got incredible feedback and stories from others saying that this love movement "Operation Love Affirmation" was really helping  so I kept up. Shortly after the completion of the first love movement, I had gotten more supporters and they asked for more. I followed it with a Love movement called "LOVE FOUND HERE" and this one was focused to get other people more active on their own and sharing where in their lives they found love! In a person, an action, a song, an object, something in themselves, wherever it was I wanted them to share it and help me make a ripple effect. It was incredible what people were sharing and very loving and powerful. It really helped reinforce the positive habits that I have already in my life!

Gratitude changes everything and that's been proven to be one of the most MAGICAL things in my life! Sure I get upset and angry and have battled depression in my life, the darkness doesn't go away forever, but when we build positive habits and thoughts and find the things that we love and things we can do for ourselves, we can turn it around! We can save ourselves from the upsets and stop ourselves from wasting time on energy on the things that don't matter and focus on why we are really here!

 
You describe yourself as a ‘Light Worker’ and practice Reiki using crystals. Can you tell us a little more about this?

I've considered myself a Light Worker for the past 3 years and by that I mean focusing on living a life of love and light and really manifesting positivity and helping others find that too. Everything is energy and it's important to be aware and how to direct your own energy. Positive living habits and sharing my life of love is something I also consider light work because it’s sharing energy, a feeling, an experience. It's sharing beauty in hopes that you FEEL it too! I've been told that others do and I also send loving energy to my makeup clients in a supportive way. It's beautiful how it's all connected and expanded for me!  Reiki Energy Healing is one of my more recent endeavours.  It's a Japanese technique for relaxation and it is channelling Life Force energy through the hands. It's a very wonderful technique! I have been working with and collecting gemstones and crystals for the past 3 years and love them. They all have unique properties of healing and energy so I include them in my Reiki and card readings too. I've started working on family and close friends but do intend to expand my practice to others. I'm very Spiritual and have a personal connection and understanding that is very special to me! I'm very open and have found what works for me and have found beautiful keys to my path this way!

As a make up artist, what are some of your top tips?

I would say that it's very important to have good products that work with your skin type and that you take good care of your skin and cleansing process as well. I can tell you some of my favourite products which are my beauty MUST haves which might help! For my facial cleanser I use Philosphy and have for a very long time as well as ALMAY makeup remover wipes for waterproof eye makeup. My favourite cover up, and makeup for the face is Makeup Forever in their Pro Finish Powder foundation. Favourite eye liner is Stila stay all day liquid Black liner ( WATERPROOF ALWAYS) Mac Cosmetics Paint Primer for the lids before your shadow ALWAYS! It makes your shadow stay on like a dream!  I have tons of favourite brands for shadows, blushes and lip colour like Too Faced, Tarina Tarantino Makeup Forever, SugarPill, and many more but those are some of the favs! Oh and LASHES, I'm obsessed with lashes! Make sure you cut yours to shape your eye too! That's a great trick to keep in mind! Sometimes I cut mine in half so I can shape them to my eye and also use all of the lash so they look fuller! Just a lil trick! 


What are your plans and goals for the future?

My plans and goals for the future are to expand even more with my career as a makeup artist, light worker and Reiki practice! Ultimately I want to work for myself, helping people sharing my life of love and helping others get in touch with why they are here and how to love themselves and their lives.  I also of course love modelling so I definitely plan to continue that! I would absolutely LOVE to have my own studio and space for beauty clients to come as well as have a set up for photoshoots and a space for healing and Reiki! I feel that is not too far out in the future and will make it happen!  I have some projects in the works including writing a self-improvement book too which is really special to share my story and life and I know there is so much more to explore and discover and many adventures to be had!

I'm really all about arts, communication, healing and having an absolute blast in life and LOVING yourself completely! There is always a new adventure ahead of me and I can't wait to see what is next! I trust that the Universe will support me!

Thank you so much Sheri for this wonderful interview!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

A big thank you to Xanthia for taking the time out of her busy schedule to share some of her love, light and life with us. If you don't already follow this doll on Facebook and/or Instagram I highly recommend that you do! Everything about her is neon, including her shining heart and I guarantee that everyday her posts so full of happiness and positivity will be just the shot of sunshine you need in your day.

13 May, 2014

Brisbane Alternative Expo - Alt Style Showcase


In case you missed the exciting news I announced on Facebook over the weekend, I thought I'd word you all up on here so you can mark your diaries. The Brisbane Alternative Expo will be held at the RNA Showgrounds on Sunday June 22 and I will be MCing the Alternative Style Showcase!! I'm very excited to be a part of what promises to be a fantastic day. Read on to see how you could also be a part of the show!
 
Presented by Brisbane Pop Culture, the Brisbane Alternative Bazaar will be held from 9am to 4pm on Sunday 22 June at the RNA Showgrounds. Children are FREE while adults pay just $5 entry with the money raised going to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. A large scale market and expo event, the Bazaar brings together 50 of Brisbane's best alternative vendors catering to all things unique, quirky and just plain cool! Retailers will be selling a variety of Pop Culture collectables, comic books, prop weapons, clothing, shoes, jewellery, leather craft, art and graffiti, unique hand made items and much more!
 
There is also a Cosplay Competition, the Delorean Time Machine from Back to the Future and much more to be announced. This is a great opportunity to get your hands on some of  Brisbane's coolest and most unique merchandise while supporting local Australian businesses, not to mention a great day out! Some of the vendors I am looking forward to checking out are Beserk, Voodoo Lulu, Narni Rose Couture, Sugar Bomb, Ella Mobbs, Wild Thing Creations and of course, Geek Girl Collective, who have kindly asked me to MC the Alternative Style Showcase.
 
I've not actually done anything like this before, but I'm really looking forward to it! If you would like to be part of the showcase, we're actually looking for plus sized models 16-22/24. If this sounds like something you'd like to be involved in, please get in touch with me so I can pass your details along. Either way, I hope to see you there on the day!

06 May, 2014

April Round Up AKA Where The Heck I've Been

It’s been a bit quiet on the blog the last few weeks, but don’t let that fool you into thinking life has been quiet for me because it’s been the exact opposite! In between working and my busy personal life, my regular posts got away from me a little bit. Sorry about that! Hopefully you missed me a little, though not too much. A lot has happened since I last checked in with y’all.

Easter Weekend was a series of awesome times with friends, kicking off with a raucous get together and delicious cook up at my new place on Good Friday. I was lucky enough to snag the place to myself so I filled it with some of my closest friends and we feasted on Mexican prawn skewers, my famous chicken wings, delicious pulled pork soft tacos and lots of cake and chocolate. We all lapsed into a food coma but it was brilliant. Plenty of great tunes and great company, I had a fantastic time.
 
 
Saturday we were destined for Krash & Vicki’s Tiki Bar but called into Old Skool Tattoo’s Pin Ups & Pinball day to say hi to our friend Evan, better known as Johnny Voodoo, who was cutting hair on the day with his pop up barber shop. Somehow I managed to get roped into the pinball competition and wouldn’t you know it, I came second! Not bad for a girl who’s only played pinball a few times in her life. Lucky The Man taught me a thing or two on the machine at Southside Tea Room, it must have come in handy. How amazing is this trophy!?
 

Sunday we dragged ourselves to Greig & Bianca’s for a wonderful lunch feast, nursing hangovers from a rather big but very fun night Saturday night at the Tiki Bar. There was a beautiful boxer called Matilda and three, yes THREE, sweet pugs called Lily, George and Aisha not to mention a Frenchie called Biggie Smalls – how cute is that!? I was in doggie and food heaven haha We spent the night and enjoyed a delicious breakfast the next morning, admiring the views.
 

ANZAC weekend was just as full on with another night at the Soused Seas and this time it was my turn to drink, rather than being designated driver. I was super excited as the last time we went they were making brilliant drinks that I could only have a sip of a drool over. It was great catching up with friends and meeting new ones while planning shenanigans for the US and Tiki Oasis. It was a really fun night and although some were a little more soused than others, I woke up fresh as a daisy the next day.
 

Which was lucky as we had a day planned to go see the Vintage Speedway at Caboolture with a bunch of mates. To be quite honest, the racing wasn’t quite what I had imagined or was hoping for but I had a really fun day just the same. It was really hot to begin with but we had a shady gazebo, some comfy chairs and some smuggled booze and it was really nice just hanging out with everyone and catching up somewhere it was actually quiet enough to just chat. Besides, we make our own fun wherever we go.
 

After a spectacular sunset and some trackside shenanigans, we headed back to Brenton and Katrina’s for some drinks by the firepit. We also stayed the night that night and enjoyed a big breakfast cook up on the BBQ, swapping drunken stories of the night before, before heading inside to watch the V8s and chomping down on MORE Easter chocolate.
 

I must admit there’s been lots of over-indulgence the past few weeks and I’m keen to get back on track so that I’m in good shape for being poolside in the US. Speaking of which, we finalised all our plans on the weekend and have now officially booked and paid for every single thing we need for our trip!! So from here on out it’s just spending money. SO exciting!! There’s only about 13 weeks to go and I know it’s going to zoom by. I hope so anyway, I can’t wait!!

Thanks for sticking out this post and my slackness lately. I promise it will be back to regular programming next week.