Making Up Fashion Make-up artist for L'Oreal Paris Monica Lee is gearing up for KL's most exciting fashion event. THAM AI MEI finds out more about the artist's preparations. No one can argue that make-up artist Monica Lee is not meticulous. This ultra-chic and funky-looking 39-year-old make-up maven takes pictures of her work and stores them in her computer. "I like to refer to my past work for reference," said this curly-haired lady who has been the make-up force behind KL Fashion Week for the past three years. Monica Lee is L'Oreal's make-up artist of choice. Having worked as cosmetics giant L'Oreal's make-up artist of choice for the glamorous events, Lee feels privileged to continue her partnership with the brand. "It has been such pleasure working with L'Oreal because first of all, it's such a prestigious brand. Secondly, the people there have always given me a lot of freedom to express my work," said a beaming Lee. For a woman who revels in creating fabulous looks and matching them to the various fashion designers' requirements, the KL Fashion Week will prove to be the ultimate canvas for the expressive artist. "I had to plan ahead for this event but I think I am more experienced after having been through this twice before," she said with a laugh. "The first year was tough." Before she presents her make-up creations on stage, Lee has to ascertain what look each designer is aiming for and the general "mood" of the collections. "Because the designers generally share the models, I have to ensure that the make-up on the models matches the clothes," she explained. "We can't do a heavy, smoky-eyed look for a designer whose clothes are mainly pastel-hued, for example. " With what little break time they have during the fashion show, Lee makes a slight tweak to the models' make-up. "Even if we have a one-hour break in between the shows, we have to be really quick because there are about 20 or more models and the make-up team typically consists of only about four to six members. We try hard to cater to the specifics of each designer but sometimes time just does not allow for this," she said. With the KL Fashion Week, Lee is hoping to try on some bolder looks but "it all depends on what the designers specify". This graduate of Grease Paint Make-Up School in Northfield, London recently set up her own make-up academy after having freelanced for most of her career. Face Art Academy is Lee's "baby" as she had always hoped to set up something of her own. "I hope that I can contribute to the growth of the make-up industry in Malaysia with my academy," said this free-spirited artist who has worked on print ads of Celcom and Coca Cola as well as television commercials for the likes of Pizza Hut and Astro. Even as she is equally adept at theatre, television and special effects make-up, Lee's first and foremost passion will always be make-up for fashion runways and photo shoots. "I find that in fashion, I get to express myself more. With commercials and theatre, you are confined to a specific look. With fashion, it's up to me to interpret what the designer wants to convey. I find that my passion for make-up grows when I am doing something fashion-related because I have so much room for creativity," said Lee with obvious enthusiasm. As for her favourite make-up products, this versatile one cites L'Oreal Paris' Panoramic Curl mascara as a definite must-have item. Fluttering her incredibly long lashes, Lee quipped:" This instantly opens up Asian eyes!" Another long-time favourite of hers is the French brand's black eyeliner that gives off that "smoky-eye" effect. In any case, this flamboyant make-up maestro hopes that the KL Fashion Week will put the fashion spotlight on the country. "I am glad that events like the (KL) Fashion Week are gaining more publicity with each passing year. Hopefully with time, Malaysia will be a name to reckon with in the world of fashion and beauty," Lee opined.