THANK YOU : TVISUAL TEAM

December marks a year of features for the TVISUAL project. A year of fun collaborations, teamwork and creativity. As we look back on the eventful journey, each member recites their gratitude and insight on this achievement:

“A very special thank you to all who has supported TVISUAL for the past year. Firstly, I’ll address the TVISUAL team: much love from me to you, as you guys have made this experience entertaining, insightful and above all always a learning experience. To our guests and features, I say thank you for showing up and showing out. Thank you for the amazing content you have allowed us to create and for baring with us for your entire feature experience. Lastly to the viewers, for you we continue to create content and it is you who inspire us to keep going. All the best for the New Year everyone. Keep love in our hearts and success on our minds.”  –  Kambe Lovelace

“Reflecting on this past year of doing TVISUAL; I am grateful and tremendously proud of every partner that contributed to its success. This project helped me to promote myself as something that I shied away from for so long; the title of MUA. Terrance allowed me to fully step into this position and trusted my vision without qualms, even when I second guessed myself at times. It allowed me to really invest in the craft and get comfortable with having strangers in my makeup chair. It took not only our individual talents to a new level but also heightened our cohesiveness as a group and as friends. TVISUAL 2017 has brought a spotlight to many other individuals with every feature posted, evidently, with great writing and images! Going forward for 2018, I wish that everyone involved achieves great success! And that TVISUAL grows into an unstoppable force in T&T’s arts industry!” – Lynda DLM

“I must say that it has been a great honor being a part of  TVISUAL for the past year. It gave me the opportunity to be a part of something amazing and empowering for entrepreneurs and talents around Trinidad and Tobago. Though there were obstacles along the way, the support that my team gave each other encouraged me to overcome those obstacles. I thank you for your contributions and continued support on this project and may your new year be filled with love, blessings and endless opportunities.” – Kerby Young

“Terrance harassed me to write a great many of the articles on TVISUAL, and I must say, he's particularly good at harassment. Terrance you've proven that your creativity is limitless and business oriented, a true inspiration. I learned that I've always called myself a writer but if there's no one behind me with a big stick, I won't write. So I'm truly grateful to Terrance for teaching me the discipline to follow through on article ideas, hunt down my interviewees, and put pen to paper no matter how difficult it was. Thank you to everyone who has read my words and chuckled at the wry attempts at humor. Thanks to those who allowed me a splice of their time and agreed to my painting a perception of them to broadcast on the internet. I'm honored to have captured a fraction of who you guys are and I wish you a blessed, wholesome new year.” - Anastasia Tomkin

 “TVISUAL has been a massive ride for me. I’ve truly gained a family out of my team and a wealth of knowledge from our features. To be honest, I’ve dreamt of this project happening but never imagined the amount of work it would require. Fast-forward to our very first interview and shoot and suddenly it didn’t matter how challenging the project was, feeling the infectious energy in the room made it all worth it! I was fortunate enough to work amongst dedicated individuals, going the extra mile was child’s play! They dared to challenge themselves and the project, questioned every ‘no’ and boldly stood behind TVISUAL. I could not possibly be more grateful to you guys. Getting a chance to sit with our features, some regionally known for their craft; seeing beyond their instagrams, learning about their passions and inspirations; goes on the list of things that I will never forget. Our readers were also amazing; they seemed to double with each post. My DMs were on fire with reactions and interest in our blog. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything! To my teammates, our features and readers, THANK YOU!” - Terrance

TVISUAL instagram handles

DREAMING OF DIVERSITY : MEKELIA MILLER

Visuals by Terrance Make Up by Mekelia Miller Model Lynda De La Mothe

Written by Anastasia Tomkin

Now that Carnival fever is in full swing in many of our Caribbean isles, most of us are getting ready to slay those costumes and when you’re stepping out like the glam goddess you are, don’t be afraid to accentuate those facial features that make you uniquely beautiful. To celebrate the diversity of beauty, we’re catching up with Mekelia Miller, the Trinidadian makeup artist who’s all about breaking barriers in the industry. She can attest to the fact that for ages it had been ingrained in women's minds that makeup was intended to cover, rather than enhance. We're now witnessing a time of reform within the beauty industry, where women are actually encouraged to use products that highlight their beauty marks and distinctive traits.

Visuals by Terrance Make Up by Mekelia Miller Model Mekelia Miller

With this dramatic, avant garde look on Lynda de la Mothe, Mekelia gives us an idea of how our perceived flaws can still be attractive. Now, ladies, we know you love your fleeky brows, so only the most outgoing fashionistas may dare to let the eyes speak for themselves! But the idea is to highlight your unique features, like Mekelia has shown off Lynda’s freckles, moles, and diamond sharp cheekbones.

"The look I created for Lynda, who is already a stunning canvas, was intended to showcase  the  striking beauty   in uniqueness .  This look shatters stereotypes and forces people to take a closer look in order to appreciate the artistry of it all. For starters, I chose a sheer tone foundation that would give a luminous healthy glow, paired with  a light contour  to enhance her incredible bone structure. I wanted to draw more attention to the eyes so I went for muted brows, then to really carve out those beautiful eyes I used a combination  of shimmer and matte  rusty brown colors.  Lastly the freckles, which to me, add the perfect finishing touches to her look."

She was once told that perfection is a myth, and that sentiment has stuck with her today. Mekelia believes that its time for the wider world to understand that true beauty has absolutely nothing to do with what  you look like, but how you feel about  yourself, even at your most vulnerable. The next image is of Mekelia herself, a proud, plus sized afro-trinidadian young woman.

"The makeup look on myself was very simplistic as I used a combination  of bronze neutral  colors  to enhance my complexion. I kept the cheeks pretty simple in terms of color  and opted for that all over highlighted effect. To finish off, I added a glossy lip. The great thing about this type of look is that it can be adapted to suit almost any occasion."

Visuals by Terrance Make Up by Mekelia Miller Model Mekelia Miller & Isaiah McClean

She spent her adolescent years seeing images of straight blonde-haired size zeros plastered throughout  the media . That type of unrealistic aesthetic was long held up as the standard for young women. It was only until the latter part of her teens that Mekelia gained unabashed confidence and knowledge of self, which led to a desire to share her message of true beauty with the world, through the art of makeup.

"I am beautiful for simply being who I am and LOVING IT. Any woman aware  of her uniqueness, which some may consider to be flaws , and who stands proud of all that she is,is truly beautiful."

Want to keep up with Mekelia’s flawless beats and sneak peak her new Carnival lookbook?
 Follow her at @BeautydreamsbyMekelia on Facebook or Instagram.

Mekelia's IG (Click)

Let's collaborate! Let us know that you are interested by emailing us at info.tvisual@gmail.com

TVISUAL instagram handles

 

 

GIVING GOOD FACE : LYNDA DLM

Visuals by Terrance 

Written by Anastasia Tomkin

Lynda speaks in parables. And each little quip is more quirky, more hilarious than the last as she settles into our interview after a long, tiring day of beating faces for a wedding. She tells me that while people love the glitz and glam of makeup, what they see is the finished product, not the hours of planning and preparing and perfecting that goes into the art.

Case in point: at the wedding, she had to plan ahead. Anticipating hours of traveling from her home town Arima to San Fernando, she decided to sleep over at her sister’s instead. Then, with only a few hours to do 6 faces, she had to time herself an hour and 15 minutes max per face, working on her feet the whole time without the proper high chair …

“It’s hard work, people see the lashes and the glam and they like it, but then it’s just makeup so they don’t want to pay. And they don’t see how much work goes into it.”

Ms De La Mothe was always very artsy, drawn to colors and painting. She grew up with a lot of mischievous cousins and found herself getting into trouble right along with them. Soon she started liming by herself, reading and watching movies, before she stumbled upon the treasure trove of makeup tutorials otherwise  known as YouTube.

“I think the first makeup tutorial that I watched was a Krispy video on how to do eyebrows. This bitch had horrible lighting, she had the ugliest yellow light, she was still trimming she eyebrows with a big paper scissors, and I was like omg I could do this, this is so simple, but it looks so effective, her entire face came through when she did it.”

She became obsessed with makeup ever after, and the hunt began for affordable makeup. Searching far and wide, she soon found the perfect ELF makeup palette with 144 colors, and she went “This is it! This is the shit!” That same Christmas, her friend Chanel gifted her the set. (Awww.)

“I stole my elder sister’s primer, she had a white Ambrosia primer, and that changed my life! I was like oh my gosh look at pigment! Color you can actually see!”

A new brush set came next, then her cousin became her first practice face. Every Sunday after church, they would eat lunch and go into her room to do different makeup looks. Soon everybody wanted Lynda to work her magic on their face.

Having no real favorite in terms of makeup artists, she admires anyone who takes the craft seriously, such as The Kate Project, Mario Francis, Alanna Villarule to name a few.

“I never compare myself to anyone, ya know ya girl long time, I ain’t in competition with nobody.If it takes me 5 years to reach where someone else reached in one and a half, God bless you but I’m on my own journey.”

And she admits that the journey isn’t a bed of roses. Like many of us, Lynda sometimes skeptical while building her brand - her capabilities, limitations, the saturation of the industry - all these fears surface from time to time. However, a little pep talk and a lot of love from her family and friends usually does the trick.

“Sometimes I be doubting myself and I be like, “Lynda, Lynda, shut up, shut up, you can do it. I turn it over and start to focus on everything I’ve done...to just trust in myself and just trust in my craft.”

When asked if she’ll be doing any of those crazy makeup videos with squiggly brows or dabbing on foundation with a chicken nugget ( this exists), she tells me that she’s not very big on the silly trends, it’s all about client satisfaction over fads and views.

“This is my craft, and I’m not doing it for social media, I’m actually doing it because I want people to feel confident in their look, and to be able to give somebody that smile that you see when you look in the mirror...that “WOW”...they ain’t gonna say no wow for no squiggly brows and chicken nuggets.”

Although she’s a self-proclaimed “cake face”, she believes that makeup shouldn’t drastically change your appearance, but rather enhance it.

“I’m not going to contour you a new nose, we gonna thank God for the nose you have, and I’ll cut (define) your cheek, but we not cutting it to the sky…”

Visual by Terrance, Wearing Afrodisiac Boutique starring Lynda DLM

In her early days of university she used to wear makeup everyday, but when she realised a dependency to the point where she did not feel pretty without it, she went bare faced for 6 months, renewing her appreciation for her natural beauty.

“I love a natural face, the way God made you, but ain’t nothing like a pair of lashes and a contour, yuh understand? Love yourself, be in love with yourself....but don’t be afraid to put on a lil powder, don’t be afraid to cake it up, put some glitter on them eyelids...it’s makeup, it washes off...and anybody who tells you that you’re wearing too much makeup, tell them mind your own business!”

So that’s Lynda in a nutshell. Delightfully blunt and incredibly strong-willed, she credits God for taking her through the storms of life and equipping her with the courage to pursue her dreams.

Lynda’s Law of Power

Believe in yourself, trust your capabilities and ignore the haters. Nobody else could be you.

From L to R : Renaldo Frederick, Chanel Glasgow, Anderson Delysia,
Shanice Vitalis & Lynda De La Mothe

POWER PLAYERS' instagram handles

Shanice Vitalis

Chanel Glasgow

Renaldo Frederick 

Anderson Delysia

Lynda De La Mothe

 Let's collaborate! Let us know that you are interested by emailing us at info.tvisual@gmail.com

TVISUAL instagram handles

Click

 

 

BODY CONFIDENT : SHANICE VITALIS

Shanice Vitalis Shot by Terrance, Wearing Afrodisiac Boutique, Make-Up by Lynda DLM shot at the Kerby Young Studio

Written by Anastasia Tomkin

Shanice Vitalis has a deliciously stalkable page on the Insta. And I don’t mean for the guys. Ladies of all ages, shapes and sizes will swoon over her sizzling swimwear collection. A lot of folks might come for the views, not even realising that behind the dougla-in-paradise motif is a hard-working, risk-taking businesswoman.

As Shanice reveals that she handles every nitty-gritty aspect of Monochrome Swimwear, from the administration, to the social media management, to making the tricky decision to model the pieces herself, I interject with a compliment.

“Well you lucky you had the body for it, could model your own stuff and make it look hot!”

“I mean, I would have done it with whatever body I had!” Shan clarified gently.

I had unwittingly struck on a value central to Shan’s retail philosophy - that women of all body types can wear whatever the **** they want (my words).

She passionately explained that society really needs to stop policing women’s bodies, trying to dictate their sexuality, and determining that certain women can’t wear certain things.

She recalls one customer falling in love with a sexy bikini, but not finding herself “skinny enough” to pull it off.

“I told her “You don’t have to be skinny to wear it!” People feel like you have to be a certain size to wear swimsuits, or a certain cut of swimsuit and I’m like you can literally do whatever you want.”

Helping ladies to get wet and wild was a whole new wave for Ms. Vitalis. She holds a degree in Graphic Designing and secured a job in her field, working full-time at NALIS in Port of Spain.Then one day, a friend who was opening up a business suggested that she try her hand at selling something.

“I legit sat on my bed and looked around. And I saw, I have this huge drawer of swimsuits,and I was like, “I does rel wear swimsuits!” I had like over 50 pieces,and I felt like that was something I could probably get into, something I’m comfortable with, something that I know really well. So I decided, well ok! I’m just gonna sell swimsuits.”

This impulsive move turned into Monochrome Swimwear. She was able to import merchandise through her friend’s business, and the side hustle began to blossom. Now, she is able to dedicate most of her time to Monochrome.

“I just knew I needed to find another way to make a living, I couldn’t work for someone the rest of my life, it just didn’t fit my personality.”

Shanice Vitalis Shot by Terrance, Wearing Afrodisiac Boutique, Make-Up by Lynda DLM shot at the Kerby Young Studio

Shan gushes over her family and friends’ relentless support of her business. Apart from offering loving encouragement in times of distress, they even help out with the day-to-day operations whenever necessary, from making deliveries to modeling.

“They have more faith in me than I have in myself,” she says.

And when it comes to aesthetic goals for her brand, Balmain, and Olivier Rousteing especially, represent the ideal. She believes that Balmain empowers women through clothing; showing that women are warriors, that they are strong and powerful. Shan found her own inner strength when she finally decided to model her own pieces. Growing up, she was taught to be quite conservative and wary of her online image. So initially, she feared that people seeing her in swimsuits on social media might judge her and assume that she was doin’ it for the likes...But as her brand evolved, so did her confidence, and eventually she no longer cared for the opinions of others.

“My personal IG is a reflection of Monochrome, mostly pictures of me in a swimsuit, because I want to show people that it’s okay to be in a swimsuit and to be an entrepreneur or a businesswoman, and get RESPECT... I don’t need to wear a suit to get respect.”

Her advice to others is straightforward: Expect the unexpected at all times, know that your passion takes a lot of hard work and dedication, but that it will be worth it in the end.

When all's said and done, Shanice’s law of power is no surprise:

Self-love and power go hand-in-hand.

From L to R : Renaldo Frederick, Chanel Glasgow, Anderson Delysia,
Shanice Vitalis & Lynda De La Mothe

POWER PLAYERS' instagram handles

Shanice Vitalis

Chanel Glasgow

Renaldo Frederick 

Anderson Delysia

Lynda De La Mothe

 Let's collaborate! Let us know that you are interested by emailing us at info.tvisual@gmail.com

TVISUAL instagram handles

Click