October 15, 2016

Meet Orange County Makeup Artist : Phoebe B

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to FIVI BERINDEI ( PHOEBE)

Phoebe, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
We are surrounded by beauty.
I believe that to all of us was given a gift; mines is to bring forward the beautiful aspects of an individual while diminishing the aspects that are not very favorable and I can accomplish that with makeup. The power of makeup is amazing if used right,(makeup is not a tool used to fix something “ugly” is meant to magnify the existence of beauty).
I love doing beauty differently; in a world where social media has a big influence on makeup trend I think it’s important to step out of the cookie cutter makeup that we see everywhere with lots of layers of makeup, winged liner, tons of highlighter and fake lashes, they might look okay on some faces but not on everyone and not everyone needs it. So when I say beauty done differently I’m talking about makeup done right, applied where is needed with the right colors, tones not just because we are following a trend but because we are embracing our beauty enforcing the features that we want to bring attention to while diminishing the imperfections, after all, we are all imperfectly perfect, beautiful and unique.

Has it been a smooth road?
Not really, but no beginning is easy. Looking back to where it all started, I’ve always had a passion, talent for makeup and had a creative side, but getting the right start and education mattered a lot to me. The social media and our culture where makeup is been used by very young girls and everyone is following a trend wasn’t satisfying, I wanted to understand the product so I had to learn more about how makeup, what goes in it, how was it used in the beginning, how can I get the right effect, what’s the
reason / logic behind the makeup and how did It get to be a multi-billion industry used by so many. I was fortunate to find all that at MUD Makeup Designory school under Ms. Jane K. instruction.
Of course, school wasn’t enough, with all the YouTube, Instagram, social media feed where you can find a self-taught artist instructing others it’s hard to break in and build a clientele but with lots of work it’s possible to get there…it might take a while but the effort will pay off (no pain no gain)…

Have you ever wanted to stop doing what you do and just start over?
Sure, I had days when I wanted to, but I’ve only found myself drawn back to school for more, doing more classes. 🙂 It’s not and it definitely was not easy to break into the fashion/beauty Industry. With the social media and the YouTube on hand it’s hard to find your place among so many talented makeup artists and even though social media is helpful, is some way it makes it harder(unless you have the same “style” or makeup “method” like everyone) you wont be appreciated for doing beauty differently . These days everyone thinks that they can do the job better than you, they can watch a makeup tutorial and think “hey why would I pay a makeup artist to come do my makeup when I can do it myself?( looks very easy)”…so it’s definitely hard to get people to trust you and your work, it requires lots of sacrifice, time / dedication and believing in yourself, but if you love what you are doing, is worth keep doing it.

What advice do you wish to give to those thinking about pursuing a path similar to yours?
My advice that I would give others is the same that was given to me, “DON’T GIVE UP!”, if this is what your passionate about , yes the competition is huge and is hard to start but we all have our unique way and your work will get noticed, word of mouth makes all the difference. Be positive and consider any small job important, we won’t all get to do makeup for TV studios, celebrities, or on Victoria Secrets models, but we can brighten someone’s day if we bring on positive energy and truly do our best .

What are you most excited about these days?
Personally, I’m trying to spend time and enjoy my family as much as I can.

Professionally, I’m excited and curious to see how makeup industry will evolve (on some level it’s kinda like with the technology, always something new)…we just have to be smart enough to know what’s worth embracing.

Pricing ( is custom based on the type of makeup that is required) I do: