A radiant Erin in the hotel room ready to go to the limo waiting downstairs to take her to the Kodak theater.
That time I went to the Oscars
The Oscars was a month ago but I came across these images and, upon remembering that crazy weekend in LA many years ago, I felt compelled to share my tale. Enjoy the read.
The excitement of the Oscars for me is the glamour and it was the 77th Academy Awards that brought me there as part of a dream team for nominee Erin Faith Young, producer for the nominated Best Short Documentary HARDWOOD. It was planned that Fashion Television would shoot the dream team getting her ready for the red carpet and Kodak theater stage.
At the dress fitting in Toronto two weeks before the Academy Awards. The tan line was very visible then but when she arrived in LA one day before the big night it was a peeling burn!
I had met Erin briefly in Toronto where she was having a fitting for her dress. I wanted to see the shape, color, and how it moved when she walked. This comes from my many years working on fashion shoots. I want to see how everything looks 360 degrees. Most of the time people just think about how they look in the front, never realizing people will see them from the back. And Erin, not used to all of this attention, wanted to be as relaxed as possible walking on the red carpet. I always say when you are on a red carpet you should feel the ease of being in your pajamas but with the wow factor.
One thing that caught my eye was Erin was sporting a summer tan that cut right across her chest. I knew she was going on vacation so I asked her to wear a t-shirt and to protect her arms. Those were my last words to her before I would see her in LA.
I met Erin at the hotel the day before the Oscar’s. She opened the door in her robe and did not appear to be as excited as I thought she would. She said, "I am so sorry I have a nasty burn." "I was learning how to windsurf and did not feel anything." One thing I have learned over the years is never to panic. When she revealed the burn it was peeling and bubbling up still in some areas. Now the line was even more defined across her chest.
Without hesitation I sprung into action, I asked the stylist and dress designer if there was jewelry we could use to take away the attention of the sharp contrast of the two tones of her skin. We tried a few options but it didn't look right, and no matter what we did we could not disguise the area.
I said to Erin I wanted to help heal this burn as quick;y as possible and asked her if she trusted me. She said yes. So we went into the bathroom and I proceeded to gently exfoliate the flaking dry skin. Due to the skin being so sensitive the process took over 2 hours. I began to gently massage her skin with honey, long known for its healing properties and used in burn units because of its antimicrobial, anti-fungus properties. When I finished, her skin was smooth all over which would make applying the foundation so much easier. Erin took the rest of the day off to relax.
Fast forward to the next day. THE big day. You could feel the buzz in the air. Erin's skin was in the process of healing beautifully. The team began to start their work. The hairstylist and Erin decided to put her hair up and the dress was steamed and checked for any last-minute details.
Instead of trying to create Erin's beautiful pale skin tone, I went with tanning the parts of her alabaster skin tone to match the very tanned areas of her body. This is imperative to blend because the flash from the cameras can pick up any demarcation. I added some shimmer on top to make the appearance of her skin look like it was glowing as it was still very, very tender.
Finally, she was ready. The team had gotten her as far as we could, now it was for her to enjoy the moment and shine.
On the phone the next day with Erin we found out that while at the award ceremony she happen to find herself in the powder room with Oprah who commented how beautiful she looked and could not place her. Oprah asked if she one of the new up and coming actresses? Success! Erin was indeed a star that night! Her transformation complete and noted by many. Oprah wasn’t the only one.