Tastemaker, Blogger, Makeup Guru - Catalina Su Knows What You Need In Your Life, Now

CATALINA SU: PROFESSIONAL CONSUMER

Full disclosure: Lina and I have been friends for ten years. We met at a mutual friends birthday party where our kids met for the first time. She is an avid TV news watcher and at the time watched E! religiously. She told me I had the BEST voice. It was an unexpected compliment. She made me laugh and has been making me laugh ever since. I was new to LA and my fashion was - meh - but she was head to toe designer done in precisely the right way. Cut to one afternoon shortly after when she was asked to fill-in for another makeup artist at our studios. She did my makeup that day and not only did I love my “face” but fell in love with this unapologetic human who has become like a sister to me. She’s flawed (maybe that’s where we connect) but simultaneously is one of the strongest most beautiful people I know and is one of my very best friends. We’ve always said it’s hard to know what to put on her business card because her gift is hard to define. YES she’s great at doing makeup (she’s done Kim, Khloe, Kourtney AND Britney Spears) but she also has this eye for fashion. Like wearable, what you really need in your closet pieces - not the unattainable, unrealistic offerings some bloggers are hocking. So, please, read below as I pick Lina’s brain on what she thinks are the standout styles and trends of the season. Enjoy!

Catt:
Well here we are old friend.

Lina:
Hiya.

C:
Back at one of our old stomping grounds. We're at the Montage Hotel - one of our favorite haunts. Thank you for joining me for my Naked series.

L:
Thank you for having me.

C:
You're one of the few people in my life that really looks good naked. I'm just kidding.

L:
What do you mean just kidding?

C:
I'm not kidding. I'm so not kidding. Okay. You are a makeup artist. Did you always want to be?

L:
You know, I've always wanted to work with makeup. I never like grew up saying, "Oh I want to do makeup" but I think that's like what was reachable as far as fashion and makeup go from where I'm from. But I think more or less it's a natural niche.

C:
Yeah, you are a legitimate product whore. Is that fair to say?

L:
Oh yeah. 100%.

C:
And you're self taught?

L:
Well, kind of. I was working for MAC when they were just MAC and not owned by Estée Lauder, so there was a huge artist aspect of it. So we went to school every month and I think that was the best training ever. It was straight to the point. To learn from MAC. The pigments, they are so strong. They deliver, but there are so many different ones. So I didn't have to work to see the color. I had to work with pigments. MAC eyeshadow is still one of my favorites, but yeah I think that was tremendous training.

C:
So you've been a celebrity makeup artist, you are a blogger, and you have a huge blog following. Maybe you’re not an insta star per say, but your blog, in and of itself, gets a lot of traffic.

L:
Yeah. It does.

C:
What was your philosophy with your blog?

L:
So, I started my blog when I was working at E! so it was just like a side thing, but I really enjoyed it. I feel like it's always been from my heart, and there's zero effort. Just a platform. I started it kind of as a hobby, but really naturally. But, I was at a point in my life where I had a good platform but I didn't really have like a marketing strategy, because I didn't need it. So, therefore, through all those years, I developed a loyal following.

C:
Yeah.

L:
People trust what I'm saying. They know that I'm not like-

C:
Talking shit.

L:
Yeah. It's not a job. Like, You know? I'm really thankful for it’s popularity. It's still a huge pressure in my life. I know I can do more things, this and that, but as far as my vision of what I think, that hasn't slipped.

C:
Your aesthetic is one of the clearest I've ever seen. There is no gray area when it comes to what you like, what you wear, what you know. Has the monetization of your blog really sustained you?

L:
Oh yeah. Yeah. It's totally my living. Sometimes I wanna let people know, like "Hey, shout out for my blog!" It still does well, and it's a blessing because it's what I love and it makes money.

C:
It feeds your children. Hello.

L:
And sometimes I'll post things or I'm about to upload a post, and then I won't post it because I'm like "I wouldn't buy that shit". And so I don’t do it or after the fact I will take it down. And I think it speaks. There is a truth to my blog. For everything that I write. If I won't do it, I won't post it. And it's so weird, if I do, maybe three days later, I'm like "Fuck." I'll still think about that one thing and I'll take it down.

C:
It's hard to put a title on, I think, what your gifts are, because obviously, you're a makeup artist, you have great taste, but you have a real skill in identifying, in the market, at any given moment, at any particular season, what you, me, our friends, your following, should have in their closet. Like, everyone should know that you send us links, you're like "buy this now,"or "you need this." You have a keen eye to sift through all the crap that's out there, and hone in on what it is we need. So I want to give that gift to my audience right now, and pick out a couple things right now. If you have to name three pieces people should have in their closet this season, what would they be?

FAUX FUR

The first one is faux fur. Like, I wear real fur. Like, all my fur is real. I don't have one faux. I'm not opposed to it, but I'm really happy that there's a trend of it, because all the brands that I love are doing it like Theory and A.L.C. It's loud, it's colored, and it's obnoxious. So like, this level of faux, it looks so good, because it looks almost real. So, there's not a cheap element. It's not like Forever 21. I really wouldn't recommend faux from Forever, ever. Right now there's like pale, bright blue, yellow.. it reaches from 600 bucks to like 2,000 bucks. Elyse Walker has a ton of faux stuff! Even H&M. Like I would have to touch it and know it. I have to incorporate pieces every season that make me current, and that's just perfect. I'm going to learn to love it.

TURTLENECKS

Second - turtle necks. All types of turtle necks where the neck is emphasized, where the arms are ballooned and bizarre and crazy. It's not just your classic turtle neck. They're having fun with it. They're going thicker, they're going chicer, different materials, ballooned arms.

SLOUCHY BOOTS

Lastly I had kind of stepped out of the ‘boots’ stage because it was just so cliché. Like that high boot, sleek trend. I'm very excited about this new boot trend though. We're doing scrunchy, we're pushing it back down. Very relaxed. It’s not so uptight.

COLORED JEANS

So that’s three. But I also keep seeing colored jeans. Weird. I was just in Zara the other day and I do this whole scan. Like I walk in, my eyes are like darting, and I just pick up things that are different. And I picked up silver jeans. I really liked that. Bright and loud.

C:
Like iridescent looking?

L:
Yeah. Iridescent.

BRIGHT EYESHADOW WASH

C:
Okay. What about makeup?

L:
Makeup. So, I think we no longer like that whole smokey eye thing. Obviously that's out, so I was like into this sort of huge natural kick, but you have been doing this like reddish eye shadow. And I was like "red is the new brown," so, that like took a turn for color. And now what I'm noticing more, or what I see now, is just a wash of color, but it's bright. It's like a purple, like a lilac bright. Like a violet. Or like a green or blue. Would I ever do those? Maybe not. Maybe purple, maybe.

C:
Well, you used to do a mean navy.

L:
Yeah. Navy. With your eye makeup, think vibrant. I see it on the runways. I do study. I just need a mental picture so I look at sites a lot, because I just wanna get used to seeing what's out there, and let me tell you, it's bright.

The second play is with lips. Even if you're going to go nude, it’s a foil lip. Like a pearl foil. Or like a red foil, or like a purple foil, but it's not just a color that’s loud. Every single line is doing it.

L:
When it comes to overall style, I feel like everything is getting a little neater. I'm trying not to show pockets coming out of my ripped jeans. I'm looking for jeans without holes. And I think it kind of applies to everyone. We could be a little bit better.

C:
So, a hint of preppy?

L:
Yeah. Just that whole thrashed jean thing it took such a strong precedence for a long time. I think everyone is kind of stepping away from that. Oh, another thing to add to that, what really blew my mind, is the Manolo heel. They're tweaking the heel. They are pushing it in a little rather then when we always look for heels straight up and sexy. Now they are going a little ‘lady.’ Like, a little 60's if you will. Listen, I'm like consumer.com.

C:
I know you are.

L:
And I will tell you this, when it's good it's gone.

C:
Oh. Right. Right.

L:
Fucking gone. So I daily always check on Shopbop because I just like the aesthetic of the blog. It's clean, I can sift through it fast. Everything is in order. I like their price point, so I spend money where it needs to be spent, And then I will do Net-A-Porter because theirs is the best world wide, right? It's from continent to continent, and they morph that into one destination. And it's there and then it's gone.

C:
Yeah.

L:
So I always check with them. I love Elyse Walker, because it's very unique, and she has a tremendous gift for buying.

C:
You mean Frwd?

L:
Fwrd. Yeah. Stuff that you can't find really even in stores.

C:
Oh. I just thought of your official title. Catalina, professional consumer.

L:
Yes. Give me your money and I will spend it for you. I enjoy that.

C:
So true.

L:
But see I'm always like, looking out for women.

Follow Lina’s adventures on her blog where you can also purchase her makeup line.
www.catalinasu.com