UNDRESSED VEILING:

I thought very hard about this shoot, and how to maintain a classic, vintage, and conservative style. One of my favorite things about building my business is creating new pieces and then creating a beautiful photo shoot to match. When I designed this new collection, which included my first long veil, I knew the veils were unique and needed to be featured as a solo shoot. I had the privilege during this veil shoot to have the lovely Miss Melisa Dixon as a model, who didn't miss a beat. I was also very excited to work with the incredible Michelle Ketchum for hair design, the very talented Kacy Kizer for photography, and Miss Shannon Berecek, who also assisted. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as we enjoyed producing them!

Just when you think your job couldn’t get any more exciting it does! Last year was the first year I decided to be a part of Portland Fashion Week. I had so much fun, met so many talented, encouraging, and inspiring people that this year I wanted to be even more involved. I was given the privilege to team up with an incredible group of artists as part of the 2010 makeup team. Having more responsibility this year allowed me to involve my interns as part of the makeup staff for the show as well. Aubrey Childers, Shannon Berecek, Courtney Rogers, and Destiny Taylor came in as interns and left as super stars. I was so proud of these incredibly talented women that show so much enthusiasm and talent for what they do!

One of the most incredible opportunities I was given by Sunny Fire, the lead Make up artist for the show, was to be the key makeup artist for Project Runway winner Seth Aaron. His talent and charisma was electrifying! Being back stage with this designing genius was nothing I have experienced before. I wanted to share some of the shots from that night, as well as thank Sunny Fire and Portland Fashion week for this amazing opportunity. I would also like to thank the amazing Jared Birt for capturing all the images.

One of my most favorite parts of new hair pieces is photographing them. When I make a piece the photo shoot usually comes to me right away. For this collection of Summer Pieces I was thrilled to be able to work with two beautiful models Justin Roisom and Jessica Hansen. The chemistry these two had on set was addicting. Kacy Kizer was loving life because shooting them was just a breeze… The beautiful garments Jessica is wearing as well as some of the accessories worn by Justin were all made by the very talented and up and coming designer Maggie Saunders. Maggie recently won Judges Choice for the 2010 Oregon State annual fashion show. What a beautiful collaboration…

I am so proud to share my beautiful feature from Portland Bride and Groom magazine. I could not have been happier when I found out I was going to be featured…I actually started tearing up at the blessing of this feature. Working with the magazine was amazing! The creativity and thoughtfulness that combines seamlessly with their professionalism is an ideal work environment for anyone. Allison Jones worked so hard to turn the feature into a beautiful piece of art. I was also part of another published wedding for the magazine and want to thank Hillary Barbour and Zachary Traasdahl for allowing me to be part of their special day. I want to thank everyone at the Portland Bride and Groom magazine for creating such a beautiful spread for me and allowing me to share my passion with a much broader audience. I can’t imagine a better way to start what is going to be a busy wedding season- so thank you Portland Bride and Groom!

When I started making hair accessories I never thought I would be making a custom piece for someone sitting in the millionaire row at the Kentucky Derby. Sylvia B my Kentucky Derby client had this to share:

Derby 2010..... What a Derby it was! If you've never been to Louisville to experience Derby, the best way to describe it is "Rites of Spring". The entire city is redolent with flowers, blossoming trees, and buckets of bourbon. If you've never been to Derby, it's the best party you've ever been to in your life- it's the time where we all connect, fall in love and come out to play!

Photo of my sister Selena wearing the hair piece

Derby is the ultimate mix of highbrow and lowbrow- You have the infield where it's muddy, crazy, fun:

And then, up above, Millionaire's Row:

A woman's hat is a piece of performance art she'll create in Louisville all year- it tells a story about who she is.
Derby hats are typically something like this:

BIG! And full of all kinds of ornaments. When I thought about what I wanted to wear to Derby this year, I really wanted something different. The work I saw of Austie Eckley on Etsy I knew I had found an artist who I could trust.

Austie made a hat of legends. I swear, I was stopped maybe 50 times with people commenting on the hat. It was sooooo beautiful, different, light and easy to wear (some of these hats are so heavy they give people headaches). Mine was so comfortable I wore it 12 hours without a break- and it never slipped, I never even felt it on my head. So many people took pictures of the hat- even, Ruben Stoddard- the guy from American Idol- he asked to pose with me because he loved- the hat!

This photo is of Sylvia B wearing the hair piece with Ruben

Did I mention that there are horses at Derby too? We love our horses, and we bet on them for sentimental reasons- the name, the jockey, the color of the blanket on the horse, the number- really it's a game of luck, there is very little science in picking your horse. That's what makes it so much fun- anyone can win. And if you bet against the odds, and win- the payouts are huge!

My husband has a sixth sense- he's picked the Derby winning horse every year we've gone, and this year was no different- Super Saver took the prize and we cashed in a fat ticket after the race- hurrah!!!

So, from Louisville, Happy Derby!

“Before & After”

Hair and makeup by Austie Eckley with images by Kacy Kizer

I have always been fascinated by the “before & after” page of many websites. I don’t like to do things like other people so I knew my “before & after” shoot would be something different and totally my own.

When I think of the pictures on those pages, I immediately think of improvements. The improvements on those pages though, tend to focus solely on the outside…hair and makeup aren’t the only things that make a woman beautiful. I tend to believe that true beauty lies on the inside and that awoman can be just as beautiful picking up her kids from school as when she is walking the red carpet.

When I decided to collaborate with Kacy Kizer for my “before & after” page, I knew I wanted to show not only how great makeup and great hairstyles can make a woman beautiful, but how a woman is already beautiful without anything added to her at all. I also wanted to show how fun a mini-makeover can be and how everyone deserves to be treated like a celebrity once in a while. I truly believe the way a woman feels on the inside will reflect how she looks on the outside. I really enjoyed turning the already beautiful women on my page into stunning red-carpet-ready celebrities.

I got to work with some amazing mother/daughter combos for my shoot. I think my favorite part of doing a wedding is being able to observe the intimate relationships between the bride and the women she surrounds herself with on her special day.

I want to say thank you to all the wonderful, beautiful (inside and outside) women who gave of their time to help me with this project. I also want to thank Kacy Kizer for being an amazing photographer and capturing the images that show off the true beauty of these women. Thank you to everyone!

This video was produced and filmed by the very talented brother of my good friend Jared Birt. Josh Birt is a very fun guy to work with and was really great at putting me at ease while we filmed (I know, it’s shocking to think of me as nervous!). He was very professional and gracious about all the takes I ended up requiring!

I hope the video helps you get to know me and what I do a little better- I also hope it inspires you to do what you love too!

I am very lucky to know (and be able to work with) this extremely talented family. Thank you Josh for all your help!

Watch my video!!