The two trends that are big in Asia which I never seem to understand is the 'doll-like' trend and the 'westernization' trend.  The former look comprises of colored circle lenses (often in blue, green, gray, purple, etc), big often unnatural-looking false eyelashes, and sometimes bleached hair.  The latter utilizes the doll-like trend to some extent, at its least extreme, girls use 'double eye-lid tapes' and at its most extreme, some girls even get eyelid surgery.  Ouch!

Personally, I always believe in keeping as natural a look as possible.  It's a style that never goes out of style and always looks real.  I'm a big fan of makeup that subtly accentuates one's features.  Of course, that doesn't mean I don't go crazy with the eye shadow palette or the lipstick once in a while.  After all, girls just wanna have fun!

Now then, Asians are blessed with coarse dark hair, naturally rich in color and easily kept looking good by regular conditioning to maintain luster.  The dark hair suits the Asian skin which has a lot of underlying yellow tones, whereas blonde hair tends to bring that out usually in very unflattering ways.  Bleached hair is notoriously hard to keep soft and healthy as well as maintain, especially on a budget!  So, the lightest I've ever gone on my whole head of hair was a moderate brown, just dark enough that it matches my eyebrows without my having to tint them a different color yet light enough that there's a subtle difference (or as the agency had said to me "a lighter color to look a bit younger").

Asian girls seem to have a lot of issues with monolid eyes and small eyes, forever in pursuit of larger eyes and/or double eyelids.  As I was born with naturally larger eyes and double eyelids, I don't have a lot of experience in this department but I will say that a set of false lashes, the type that's made to mimic natural lashes, do make a difference.  You don't need a set of big full lashes, just a set of subtle natural-looking ones!  I don't recommend double-eyelid tapes or surgery, but what I will recommend is learning how to play up your unique set of eyes.  Monolids can be beautiful and are unique in their own way.

I wear Acuvue Daily Define Brown Lenses every now and then, but for everyday purposes, I am always either in my glasses or my usual contact lenses.  Circle lenses are not highly recommended because their opacity also means that less oxygen gets through to your eyes.  Buying colored ones for parties and special occasions is all well and good, but I have always thought that we Asians look better sticking to a color that blends well into our own existing color.  My brown ones add a subtle difference that is natural (although my mother says she can't tell the difference between my wearing them and not... fail much?), but I reckon that if I were to go for a lighter colour, I'd go for a hazel or honey color.  Please be careful when purchasing circle lenses or colored lenses, by the way.  Always get them from an licensed optometrist!

This is one of my favorite shots from modeling.  I was wearing almost virtually no makeup, because the theme was "Goddesses of Shangri-la" and we were told to come as natural-looking as possible to better emulate how a Goddess was likely to look.  And I think, like a Goddess, we did look!

So celebrate your natural beauty, baby you were born this way!

I thought I'd share this photo with you all - I'm the one holding the brown and green sock monkey (and yes, I made the monkey all by myself)!  One of my fellow contestants managed to grab a hold of the goodie bag given out to guests of the Mega Show event, and this poster was in it.

Anyhow, after the Mega Show, I got to have dinner with some of my supporters.  It was really touching to know that there were people who came to the show and gave me all their support, particularly since unlike everyone else, I didn't have friends coming to the event because the tickets were so expensive.  So it was a really pleasant surprise to have supporters who genuinely supported me!  Apparently they made a big sign with my contestant number on it, but I couldn't see anything on stage because of the spotlights.

Some of my supporters have pointed out that I looked like a Westerner at the show.  So can I please set this straight for the record?  I am Asian.  I may look Caucasian sometimes because of my Eurasian heritage, but I do consider myself Asian.  Both Russia and China, my two ancestral motherlands, are in APEC and therefore are Asian (at least politically).  My nose is one of those stubbornly distinctive Russian features that has been passed down through the generations to me (as well as one or two freckles on the nasal bridge... seems to run in the family!)

Love,
Winnie