By Mahika Panditha

  Over the years, I have had the pleasure of meeting various people. Someone I have looked up to for the longest time, and have had the honour of knowing, is Krisheni Nanayakkara. Krisheni was born and raised in the UAE and has a background in fashion designing and marketing. She is currently working in Marketing Communications at Spa Ceylon while pursuing careers in beauty and fashion – both as an editorial hair and makeup artist as well as a fashion designer who has been featured at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week 2021. She is one of the most talented people I know, with a passion for all things creative: “I absolutely love evoking emotion through art, fashion, beauty, and marketing.” Fun fact before we get into it, if she was not doing what she is doing now, she would have pursued a career in law!   How did you get into makeup?   I’ve always loved makeup from the time I could remember. As a kid, it didn’t quite occur to me that it could be a career option (I loved music so much that I wanted to be a singer, haha!), but as I grew older my love for art, fashion, and beauty grew. This was when I decided to study fashion design and marketing – it was all-rounded and covered everything I wanted to do, in terms of designing, styling, photography, makeup, etc. My parents weren’t necessarily big fans of me being a professional ‘makeup artist’, which I completely understand from their point of view. Neither of them were fans of makeup, and this meant I had to work twice or thrice as hard to get what I wanted. But looking back, it occurred to me that I never asked for help either; I suppose it’s something I wanted to do by myself for myself. Having said that, they were extremely supportive of me studying fashion design and marketing so it was all in the works. I was figuring out what I wanted to do as well (I was 19). I’ve been practising makeup since I was about seven but fashion school was where I really took the opportunity to take my makeup skills to play. We had several photoshoots and I had a lot of friends come and ask me for help with the hair and makeup for theirs – so I did. I did this free of charge for a good year and then I came to the realisation that this would be a good opportunity for me to monetise, and that’s exactly what I did. Fast-forward five years later (four years as a student and one year as a graduate), I’m so grateful for where I am, and I’m extremely excited to see where this journey takes me!   What has been your best memory thus far as a makeup artist?   Definitely a recent shoot I did for a designer that I’ve been wanting to work with since the day I found out about them! Although I cannot reveal much information on it right now, the collection will be launched soon and I’m super stoked for everyone to see!   What is your favourite thing about being a digital creator?   The creative freedom. Creating content on my personal socials is something I do as a pastime, it’s not currently monetised. I don’t think everything you do needs to be monetised (to each their own). There are some things you do just because it makes you happy and this is one of those things for me. Social media can be quite overwhelming sometimes and something I really want to aim for is to give my audience a sense of relief when they look at my content. Besides my personal platforms, this is something I’m a part of at Spa Ceylon as well – conceptualising content and executing it for the social media platforms we’re on. In this case, there are a lot of things to consider and stick to, in terms of brand guidelines, etc. and most of the time it really takes me out of my comfort zone. I love this because it gives me so much space to grow and to apply in my other work aspects! I think I’ve really found the perfect balance here.   Walk us through your creative process. How do you come up with looks and so on?   Absolutely. Research: This is where I brush over anything and everything related to what I’m looking at. For example, in terms of fashion – if I’m looking at designing loungewear, I’d do my research on what currently exists in terms of loungewear (runway, high street, etc.) and look up historical references to loungewear. Shapes, colours, materials, accessories, and inspiration behind these pieces. It’s the same process in terms of makeup! Brainstorming: Here, I’d often note down/sketch out anything that strikes me as appealing, or something I want to incorporate into my work Concept development: This is where the magic happens! Once I get a clearer idea of what I want, I curate a mood board just so that I don’t stray away from the look and feel I want to execute. This may change sometimes, but most often it keeps you moving in the right direction. Ideally, I start drawing out rough sketches incorporating all my inspiration and whatever details that struck me Sampling/fine-tuning: Essentially, pick out the best designs/looks from my rough sketches and work on them in detail. Once the details are finalised – if it’s clothing, I usually get a sample manufactured, but if it’s a makeup look, I go straight to execution Execution: This is the part where you bring your idea/ideas to life!   What is your favourite part of the process?   Research and conceptualisation! One of my mentors shared something that stuck with me: “You are a product of what you look at”. Although I feel like this can be applied to so many aspects of life, it’s really taken me places in terms of design. Pinterest is my second home; I have a gazillion Pinterest boards filled with inspiration that I can refer to whenever needed.   Have you ever experienced a creative block? If so, how do you overcome it?   More often than I’d like to admit, haha! But I think it’s completely normal. I’d usually go do something completely unrelated, or take the day off completely. It really allows my mind to not stress too much over not being able to think creatively. Usually when I’m back, my mind’s clear and I have a fresher approach to my work.   What do you enjoy doing in your free time?   I don’t have a lot of free time in my schedule but I cannot stress enough how much I love doing nothing! I’ve always been in this constant cycle of not feeling productive when I didn’t have anything to do. Resting felt like a punishment and there was this weight that was dragging me down – I suppose the fear of not being able to make something for myself. But right now, I’m really focusing on being present and sometimes just doing absolutely nothing!   If you could do a shoot or work with anyone anywhere in the world, who/where would it be?   Ah, this is so hard to answer! There’s just so many people I look up to in different ways, so I’m going to break this down to beauty and fashion. Makeup: Patrick Ta! I’m in awe of his work and he’s definitely someone I look up to in terms of product, technique, and application. Fashion: Jacquemus, Bottega Veneta, and Versace. I can’t pick one! Jacquemus’s aim is to create his own universe, and he likes to say “I don’t do clothes; I do stories” Bottega Veneta embraces a core philosophy of style, innovation, and luxury known for their leather goods and accessories. They make a very bold statement, but also, they are extremely subtle Versace, iconic as ever – LIVES to make a statement All three brands combined play a massive role in how I approach my personal work as well. I’d be on cloud nine if I were able to get an opportunity to work alongside them!   PHOTOS © KRISHENI NANAYAKKARA, AYSCHARYA PINTO