My First Dance Performance: NUS Cactus Viva Latinus 2014

I started writing this post with the intention to incorporate a full makeup tutorial plus some photos of the performance and what went on backstage. Turns out there were WAYYY TOO MANY! The step-by-step makeup tutorial will make the next post then!

That was the ending pose. SPOT ME! 😀

To get to the ending pose, there were weeks and weeks of training. Nobody in the team would know how it feels to do this at age 30.

When those sweet young things say they're tired, they go "Aw... I'm tired. YAYYY!! Let's do it again! ENERGIZER BUNNY!!!"

When I say I'm tired, I mean "FTS. I WANT TO GO HOME". It's really not easy, I tell you. But it was a promise to myself, that I would perform on stage before I hit 30. Okie, I am 30 by year, but technically only 29+ by month.

Anyhoooo, mission accomplished and achievement unlocked! 😀

Our dance item had a 70's theme, hence the colorful leg warmers, leotards, sequined skirt and belt, and big poofy hair.

SEXY BO?

It's funny that when they asked during practice who was performing on stage the first time, my hand was the only one raised. Wah, kids these days have so much exposure and courage. Must be the milk powder.

I realized I LOVE performing on stage. I was nervous for all of 30 seconds before we went on stage, but the moment my toes hit the invisible barrier upon which would reveal me to the audience, I was on a constant high throughout the performance.

It's harder to smile during practice (you really have to psyche yourself up), but on stage I was SO HAPPY. Like, YAY!! THIS IS SO FUN!!! 😀

What happened backstage was quite an experience as well. Oh, actually I HAVE performed on stage before, but that was more than a decade ago when I played the clarinet in my secondary school symphonic band. No makeup nor fancy hair needed. People came to hear our music - chest-pumps and feet-tapping were inappropriate.

I kinda saw it coming, and being the makeup-enthusiast that I am, I naturally became the accidental MUA for the girls.

I did my own hair and makeup pretty quickly and helped the rest. I got asked so many times why am I not a professional makeup artist.

If you know me, I absolutely HATE touching people's faces. It is my number one pet peeve. People have offered to pay me for my makeup services, for events, parties, etc, but NO. The OCD trait in me vehemently objects.

But there are times in life when the needs of others is worth putting before your own. 😀

It was an internal struggle, to have to cross the psychological barrier of having to do work on someone else's face OR look at them struggle with makeup application, eye makeup specifically. The latter was too much to bear. I wanted the team to look good!

Backstage mania. Love the lights!

The thing that pissed me off the most wasn't the application of makeup on faces of strangers (not as in the literal term of the word, but you know, faces other than my own familiar one). It was the severe lack of proper makeup products and tools. OMG TOOLS. I cannot even. =.=" Thinking back induces bitter laughter.

Nobody had proper makeup. The eyeshadows in the room were among the worst I've ever seen - old, patchy, chalky, poor pigmentation, lousy blendability.

Please don't feel offended! This is from the point of a beauty blogger who sees and uses makeup everyday and believes that $3.90 eyeshadows and $4.90 eyeliners can be awesome too, but those were simply atrocious. *faints*

Between lousy products and lousy tools, I would choose lousy products over lousy tools anytime. Good tools make lousy products okie to work with, but lousy tools will NEVER make good products work to their potential. The tools the girls had were my most detested tools - SPONGE APPLICATORS.

You know how I always tell you guys that I always throw out the free applicators that come with palettes? They came back to haunt me. I cursed under my breath every time I held one in my hand. LOL.

I hate the leotard. SO TIGHT. Everyone got downgraded 2 cup sizes. >.<"

For the first day of our performance, I had such a hard time trying to make lousy products work with lousy tools. On the second day, someone showed me her Maybelline palette (pictured above), and with 3 brushes I personally brought for the team, application was such a breeze.

My own three brushes (1 precise blender, 1 overall blender, 1 smudger) made my life so much easier. I was ten times more efficient, I tell ya! They weren't even MAC or Sigma or Hakuhodo or Koyudo. Just e.l.f Studio brushes which I dug out from a box containing my no-longer-in-use brushes. Unfortunately, they got lost in the chaos. Sigh. They're not too expensive, but they did cost something! 🙁

Why didn't I just use my own makeup and tools on them?

I wanted to and was so close to taking mine out but I have really sensitive skin and if I went home to wash and sanitize them after the first day, they wouldn't dry in time for the second day!

Also, imagine if the 3 brushes I used on them were more expensive. I would cry if I lost any of my good brushes. That's one of the reasons I don't like to share makeup.

Besides my OCD and reluctance to do makeup for others, it was also incredible tiring to work on so many faces in such a short amount of time. When I did for the 1st girl, I was like 'Okie, this is quite fun' >> 2nd girl 'Okie, not so bad' >> by the 4th girl, I wanted to go home. Lol.

Lipstick on and ready to go! Step-by-step makeup tutorial in the next post! =D

Happy faces after performance! 😀

On stage

Viva LatiNUS

Inviting our seniors back, the same way they did for us!

2 of my favorite people in the world <3

Thank you Abel for the wonderful photos! (Those not watermarked were taken by him)

Super creepy something-something in the reflection LOL

My dance partner, ZK, was such a sweetie! He gave ALL THE GIRLS flowers. A BOUQUET for each of us. Wo de tian.=O

If you want to have a group of beautiful girls blow you kisses, just give them flowers. HAHAHA! He was so cute, kept mumbling "wo yao hyperventilate liao" (translates to 'I'm gonna hyperventilate'. Just ten times funnier in Chin-glish)