Being the makeup advocates we are at Seen in the City, we jumped at the chance to spend a day with talented Makeup Up Artist Tori Harris…
Sunday the 21st of September was a sunny day for September, and as we arrived outside the Bingham Hotel in Richmond Hotel for Tori Harris makeup masterclass, we knew it was to be a promising day.
The event we were attending was a unique make up masterclass taught by Tori Harris and specifically for ten bloggers to ensure a personal experience. Aswell as Zoe Liddiard and myself from Seen in the City, we were joined by Alexandra Merri from Bijous bride, Sara at Darling Lovely Life blog, Grace from chartwell magazine, Paricia from Ellie, Marina Ionina from Stylish Events, Louise Beukes from Bloved and from 5 Star Weddings.
The event was promised to include a top make up class from wedding makeup-up artists Tori Harris (Read our top lips tips here) as well as a tour of the beautiful Bingham Hotel and a tapas style wedding taster lunch.
From the outside the Hotel is beautiful but not a testament to just how beautiful it is once you step through the door. A deceivingly ordinary front paves way to a beautiful, contemporary boutique hotel. We were led into the bar for a light breakfast of croissants, tea and pastries; the bar area was tastefully decorated and beautifully light and airy thanks to double french doors which reveal tumbling views of the quant riverside of the Thames. In here we were introduced to Tori and had a chance to get to know one another before being led downstairs for the masterclass.
As we were led down, we were told a little information about the hotel. I was unsurprised to learn it was voted one of the number one Hotels for weddings, it truly is a memorable venue.
The room downstairs, drenched in sunlight and with the most stunning views from the large bay windows, was occupied by a grand table adorned with beautiful vases of flowers. We received a face mirror each and a handy makeup tip sheet.
I am no stranger to makeup, but was surprised at just how much there was to learn.
The beautiful boutique Hotel was wonderful, and I was un-surprised to find it was voted one of the number one hotels for weddings.
We were led into a room downstairs with a grand table adorned with sweet vases of flowers, and a face mirror each, as well as a makeup tip sheet.
Tori began the day with an introduction into the different techniques of applying your makeup base- primer, foundation, and then a very useful lesson in contouring, which (whilst we may not all have a personal make up artist very day to put forth the technique a la Kim Kardashian, showed how easy it is to do. She explains how”the look” is down to the individual and what we want to look like in our day to day appearance.
Tori recommended and lent out her own products in between steps, so we could use and try out new products that we mightn’t have used before.
She was a complete mine of information, dropping many hints and tips throughout the day- such as putting a highlighter under your brow bone can enhance your eyes and add definition to your eyebrows. She demonstrated each step on individuals to ensure we could all see, before we tried it ourselves.
Tori has had work featured on leading wedding blogs such as Rock my Wedding and Love my Dress, as well as at prestigious events such as the Queen’s Jubilee in 2012. She says of weddings “I tend to attract brides who want to look like the best version of themselves on their big day, as opposed to being transformed into an entirely different person. my brides like to look natural and effortless, bringing out her natural beauty and giving her confidence. The most rewarding part of the job is the moment I see the bride in her full hair, makeup and dress looking beautiful, glowing and delighted with the way she looks.”
Once we had completed a natural day look, we were led outside to a beautiful terrace where we were given a glass of wine, and had all of our photos taken- both together and separately, so as to show off our newly applied techniques.
We were then treated to a delicious five course tapas menu- a sample of just some of the dishes which the Hotel offers to wedding parties. Each dish was presented and cooked absolutely beautifully on site with plenty of fresh ingredient.
Once we had eaten the food, we were give a tour of the majestic Hotel, including a chance to see the bridal suite- a beautifully spacious set of rooms with a four poster bed (that looked so comfortable I had to restrain from launching myself straight into the centre.)
It was after this we were shown how to take our day look effortlessly into night, with Tori continuing to give her one to one expertise, offering insight and advice which would ensure we could recreate the techniques at home.
The class is a great fun and interesting way to get to know a whole variety of different makeup looks and tips. Whether you book a lesson on your own (£100) or with a group of friends (£55 per person on a group of 2-4) you will leave with a whole new knowledge of makeup techniques- what suits you, how to enhance certain features, and how to tailor your makeup to your features, as well as a list of beauty products on your mental wish-llist! For more information on Tori or her makeup classes, follow this link here!
Meanwhile, here is the video from our experience, and more photos below…
A huge thanks to Nicola from Propose PR, Gaby from Sweet Pea PR, Tori Harris, and Gary Nunn for such amazing photos.
