How did you start Odalisque?

S: “Having a magazine has always been something I wanted to do. It’s a lot easier to start one today than it was 10 years ago. After living abroad, I wanted to create the platform in Sweden that I felt was missing. My sister suggested that we should start it together, which was the main catalyst. And another thing that made the site possible is my husband who’s a rock star programmer.”

What’s it like working full-time with your sister?

S: “I love working with my sister! It’s a really non-competitive relationship. We have a similar aesthetic, which makes thing really easy. We inspire and motivate each other; it’s such a pleasure.

What is your beauty routine?

S: “I’m a busy mother of two, so I have a quick routine. I use the Dermalogica Chroma White TRxrange and always wear a high SPF. Currently, I’m into Elizabeth Arden’s Prevage line. I take collagen pills to reduce any wrinkles. I don’t wear heavy makeup during the day but go for the basics like foundation and mascara. I like to keep my hair natural and let it air-dry or pull it up into a high ponytail.”

What is your beauty routine?

M: “During the day I wear Lancôme Hypnose Mascara. I’ve tried hundreds of different brands but I always go back to Hypnose — it’s the best. I throw on some Nars Blush in Orgasm and that’s about it. If I’m in the mood I might do a thick liner but I don’t go for a strong eye every day. I also love a bushy brow, so I try not to pluck them — skinny eyebrows are my worst nightmare. I also dye them dark black so that they stand out against my light eyes. I only wash my face at night and clean off my makeup with hot water and an organic cleanser from Origins. Afterwards I use Verso Super Facial Serum, but I tend to switch up my products often.”

Who are your beauty influences?

M: “Claire Danes in Romeo and Juliet. I like the ’90s approach to style because it’s all ‘wrong’ but somehow still looks together. You’re really supposed to abandon all the rules and disregard what you know about coordinating outfits. Growing up, Sandra was my biggest role model — she used to wear her hair in small knots, like Björk and Gwen Stefani.

Photos by: Aimee Blaut in Stockholm

I don’t wash my face in the morning only at night because I have such dry skin. In the winter I use Body Butter from The Body Shop as a moisturizer. Here in Sweden it gets so cold and the Body Butter helps keep everything hydrated so I don’t have any dry skin falling off my face. When it comes to makeup I usually only use mascara and I love Lancôme Hypnôse. I don’t ever wear foundation unless it’s a special night and I want to be extra pretty. I think it looks good in photos but not in reality. But sometimes I do wear blush from bareMinerals.

I dye my hair lighter and then leave L’Oréal Silver Shampoo in. I’ve been going blue/silver for about six months. I want to go even bluer but I don’t have the time to leave the shampoo in for that long. I used to have really dark brown hair but a year and a half ago I tried to go blonder so I had to see the hairdresser for quite a while. It’s really hard to move from dark to light. Now finally I’m light but it took about eight months.

I always did makeup for my relatives when they were getting married; and two years ago my sister, who is a photographer, asked if I could help with the makeup for one of her shoots. I said of course. So I started working with her doing makeup and then other photographers began to contact me. It wasn’t something that I was aiming for but it fell in my lap so now I am also a makeup artist.”

Photos by: Aimee Blaut in Stockholm

In 1989 Björn and I were in Paris for the couture shows and I met Kim Robinson who was an Australian running salons in Hong Kong. We had dinner and he invited me to come work with him. I thought about it for a while and eventually called Kim and decided to go. First it was hard but after one year it got a lot better. In Scandinavia you demand respect but in Asia you have to earn your respect so that was a very interesting journey. I worked with a team in Hong Kong for hair and set up my own makeup practice. Eventually I left Le Salon and Kim Robinson and worked a lot with the magazines. I eventually opened my own which I later sold to Elle Hong Kong when I moved back to Sweden.

(some of Maria’s favorite products)

I teach makeup to people and I teach in a different way. A lot of brands have a very scheduled process of how to wash the brushes and do things from light to dark; then I come in and am like ‘okay we are going to break all these rules! Anyone who went to a classic school is going to hate me but people who want to try something else, enjoy the ride!’ I do a lot of patchwork and work mainly with my fingers when I can. I work the best when it’s hands on and I can touch and feel things.

Since I don’t wear much makeup if I want to do something more dramatic I’ll wear red lipstick. So from time to time I throw on a red lip and put on my Tom Ford glasses.”– To see more images and learn about Maria’s daily beauty routine click here to read here.

Photos by: Aimee Blaut in Stockholm

I love a beautiful compact; I tend to just hoarde those, like all of the limited edition Lancôme packages where they just feel like little jewels. I love beautiful packaging, I want to display them. I am not the kind of person who wants to shove everything into a makeup bag and put it away. I love the thought and the care that went into packaging.

I love the Caudalie Spa at the Plaza; almost all my body care is by them. They have the greatest lip balm, which they get almost no credit for but is the greatest lip balm ever. Their hand cream is the only thing I’ve used for years, their facials are terrific and their massages are heaven. I used to live on the upper west side so I would go there and then kind of walk dazed through Central Park towards home, it was so nice. We work with Caudalie on the site, so I always stock up whenever they are on Gilt.”

See more pictures and learn about Melissa’s daily beauty favorites click here on Makeup Dot Com.

Photos by: Aimee Blaut

“I’ve transitioned all of my products to organic skincare over the past six months. I’ve become really aware of what I put on my skin. My face wash is a really gentle one called Melvita; it’ss very moisturizing. I have dry skin so I don’t like to scrub it too much. There’s this incredible brand called Kahina Giving Beauty, it’s Argan oil based and the lady who runs it is amazing. She gives twenty percent of her profits to women in Morocco who harvest the Argan oil… it’s an interesting brand and her products are so wonderful. They have this Toning Mist that I love. I used to use rose water but I felt like it didn’t do anything. This stuff smells divine and really perks up my complexion.”

“My favorite moisturizers are by Dr. Hauschka. I use her basic moisturizer in the summer and the Rose Day Cream in the winter because it’s much thicker and feels like it’s giving me a barrier. Rose is one of my favorite smells. My grandma used to use a lot of rose as well.”

“Makeup I love. I’m a big makeup junkie, though most days I have a pretty natural look. I have more fun playing up my lips than my eyes.  I’ve got small eyes that tend to disappear when I smile, so they can’t take that much makeup. Sometimes I do a smokey brown eye though. I love Lancome Définicils Precious Cells for mascara. I have pretty fine lashes and their brush is pretty delicate and thin. I’m having a harder transition into natural makeup products. I just bought this amazing concealer by RMS, Uncover Up. It’s moisturizing and it doesn’t cake, so it goes on under your eyes in a lovely way.”

“My biggest makeup vice, though, is lipstick. I have so many. Recently I have been into Armani lipsticks for my natural color days. They have a smooth texture and are moisturizing but not too shiny. Then for bright colors, I like the NARS pencils. There is something really cool about it being a chunky pencil [laughs]; it looks like my colored pencils. Red Square is my favorite. Revlon also has some great colors. And Tom Ford, I have a couple of those that my husband bought for me. I adore the packaging; it’s so beautiful and they smell gorgeous and feel luxurious. They remind me of my mom. I rememeber the first time I went traveling by myself and my mom bought me a little pink lipstick and told me, ‘you should always have a pink lipstick with you.’ And now I have bowls of lipstick everywhere.”

“I’m quite a stressy, anxious person most of the time. I’m always buzzing around so I try to have a bath everyday. They really calm me down and are so relaxing. I make my own bath salts with lavender oil and epsom salts. My newest thing is using pure coconut oil to shave your legs — it’s amazing. I make my own body scrubs as well with essential oils and sugar.”

Photos by: Aimee Blaut / Illustrations by: Katy Smail

“Um. . . I try to keep fairly simple, not too complicated. When I get up I use the Clarins pure melt cleansing wash, which I love. It’s kind of like an oil when you put it on and then it turns into a milk after you add water. It’s really moisturizing which I need a lot of in New York, especially in the winter. I start with that, well I brush my teeth first actually (laughs) and then I wash my face. I use a YSL toner that I love. It’s gone through different incarnations but it’s basically been the same thing. Then I use my Clarins hydraquench serum to keep all the moisture in and an eye cream by Shiseido.”

“I use a YSL concealer everyday and then touch éclat on special occasions if I need more coverage. I don’t like to wear too much on a daily basis; I don’t like the feeling of having stuff on my face. That’s why I feel like the base is really important, so I pay attention, making sure my skin’s hydrated and clean and exfoliated. If I do a bright lip or a dark lip then I’ll do less on the eye, just mascara. I use a Chanel lip gloss everyday or a good matte lipstick from NARS. I don’t like wearing lip liner and NARS stays in place super well. I love cheek stains, and use Givenchy and Tarte a lot.”

“I use mascara to keep my eyelashes in place. They’re really long and get in the way. When I was younger I wanted to have shorter lashes so I could be more versatile with my makeup. I use Lancôme doll lashes mascara because it gives my lashes a bit of a lift. I find black eyeliner looks harsh on me since I have dark features, brown softens me up a bit but gives the same kind of drama. The black liner I have is by Dior and my brown one is just from Duane Reade. Lancôme has a great artliner that is really easy to use. I can get the real 60’s look without messing up and looking like Halloween. I have a strong brow though it’s really sparse in some places so I fill it in with MAC brow set to look more polished.”

“I just started getting my hair dyed at Whittemore House and I love love love it. The people are great, the salon is so cute and I am obsessed with the way my hair looks. It has been more then a few months and I still am as happy as the day I walked out. They seem to go with what will look best on you long-term—they’re amazing.”

Photos by: Aimee Blaut

“My routine always changes because I get so many products to try. I learned not to try every single product that I receive. I never tried anything that wasn’t for my skin type, but still trying so many different things can breakout my skin. For a while, I had to use products specifically designed for sensitive skin and even had to see a dermatologist. Now I know what my skin needs. Of course I try what brands send me because it’s my job and I need to write about them but I choose more carefully.”

“In the mornings I usually start with a gentle cleanser and I change my cleanser a lot, right now I am using one by Avene with my Clarasonic. I use the one with bristles for sensitive skin so it’s not harsh but still removes all the dirt really well. Right now I am using the Givenchy toner after I cleanse, it’s really good. I am in love with this toner. It’s an anti-aging toner, which is rare to find. It also feels amazing, the texture is super soft, and it leaves my skin so fresh. Toner is a step that a lot of people skip, but I think it is really important because it preps your skin to receive your moisturizer. Next I use the La Mer radiant serum. It’s outstanding, amazing, absolutely incredible—I love it! And there is a new Lancôme serum that removes dark spots and fine lines, and its ingredients are very gentle, which I also love. I usually uses Iroisie eye cream in the morning, it erases dark circles really well. Then comes the moisturizer—I am a big believer in moisturizer. I always use one even though I have combination skin. After I moisturize I use some La Roche Posay 50+ SPF. I use the fluid because it is light and not greasy like most sunscreens out there and it lasts all day.”

“I came into my job at Glamour by luck really. After college I was working as a news broadcaster but took a risk, quit my job and went to makeup school in New York. When I got back to Mexico I met our fashion editor Mauricio Valdespino and things seemed meant to be. We were talking and he told me Glamour was looking for a beauty coordinator. He went back to the Editor-in-Chief, Mar Abascal, who is my boss now, and told her about me. I had actually gone in to interview at Glamour a few years earlier and didn’t get the job–but when Mauricio said my name she remembered me. After their conversation she went through her emails and remembered that she interviewed me two years before. Mar called me for an interview and then told me to start on Monday. I came in as a beauty assistant but the Beauty Editor left three weeks after I started. Mar took a chance on me and told me that the job was mine if I wanted it. She told me that she thought I would do amazing. Obviously I was really scared but went ahead and took the promotion anyway. I will always be so grateful to Mar; she was the first person who took a chance on me. She believed in me and hopefully I haven’t disappointed her over these past years!”

“It’s funny because even though I am a makeup artist I don’t wear a lot of it. I start off with Estée Lauder double wear concealer and then I use Bare Minerals since I’m not a foundation girl. I never wear foundation; I don’t really like the way it feels. Sometimes for TV or for important photo shoots I will wear some, but in my personal life it feels like too much. I prefer a more natural look. For my blush I love MAC mineralize blush in gentle, it’s my favorite. Then I use a little bit of eye shadow, I really like one by NARS called all about eve, which Francois Nars has told me is actually his favorite eye shadow from his collection. Then I curl my eyelashes and use cover girl lash blast waterproof mascara—but just on the top lashes. Mascara is my number one makeup staple, but my eyelashes are so straight so I need an eyelash curler. MAC has an amazing brow gel that is like a brow mascara and it works like a miracle. The gel magically settles your eyebrows and adds a little bit of color, but still looks natural. My last few steps involve adding a touch of powder highlighter on my cheekbones and a lip gloss before I’m out the door.

If I have to go somewhere at night, chances are I will need to apply my makeup in a hurry. I’ll wear a little bit of eyeliner on the inside of my eyes. It sounds kind of silly but I can get a quick smoky eye really easily if I wink a few times after applying eyeliner. My favorite liner is MAC teddy. I usually add a bit of lipstick for an evening look. I’m all about schiap by NARS; it’s a rich magenta with tons of pigment. Oh I almost forgot, I love Yves Saint Laurent’s touche éclat. I always wear it at night, and put it on after my concealer. It helps to brighten everything. I can’t live without it.”

“My book Mundo Rosa just came out. This whole experience of writing a book feels a bit like I’m having a child. I always planned to write a book about beauty and it just happened that I was lucky enough to write one with two of my friends. I co-wrote Mundo Rosa with Olivia Peralta and Angie Taddei, and the whole idea to collaborate came up really casually one night. We were chatting and I mentioned how one of my big plans was to write a beauty book and then Olivia and Angie were like, “Oh my god! We’ve been wanting to write one too.” And from there things just took off. Angie and Olivia have a Mexican television show, Picnic, that deals with girl’s issues. They have an online magazine connected to the show called Mundo Rosa or “Pink Life” so the name was an obvious extension of that. It got a little hard at times because I worked full time for Glamour while writing the book, but somehow, I am still not sure how, it all worked out. The book is really amazing and stylish; it’s the little black book of beauty except it’s pink. It’s really a total beauty guide, and one of our big points is reinforcing the importance of wearing sun block. In Mexico we don’t have a sunscreen culture and as a result we have a lot of skin cancer. We wanted to give girls tools not only for how to look good but how to be healthy.”

“To take off my makeup at the end of the day I use Almay moisturizing makeup remover pads, the ones in the blue package. They somehow manage to take off all of my waterproof makeup. I like to wash my face again with the same Avene cleanser and Clarisonic, use my Givenchy toner, and my serums. I recently started to use the Lancôme firming night cream. My facialist recently told me to start using firming lotions, and that traumatized me a bit. We all age, but no one likes to hear about it! Before bed I apply a heavy-duty eye cream, rénergie lift by Lancôme and try to get a lot of beauty sleep.”

photos by: THE FORMULA