[ HAWAII AT WORK ]
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
At the Ala Moana Center Sephora store, E'Jay Maldonado puts the finishing touches on Lesley Hironaka's makeup.
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The art of bringing out
one’s inner beauty and
confidence
I am the director of beauty and international trainer for Body & Soul Cosmetics. My main focus is to develop and create new products to grow the brand and business. The other hat I wear takes me to the mainland and all over the globe to impart knowledge and motivate the sales staff and makeup artists of our accounts and distributors.
E'Jay Maldonado
Titles: Director of beauty and international trainer
Company: Body & Soul Cosmetics
Personal philosophy: "There are two stages in life, we are either 'young,' or 'interesting.' Cheese, wine and furniture get 'old'; we get 'interesting.'"
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Body & Soul is a cosmetics company founded in 1998 with worldwide distribution. Unlike most other international big-name cosmetics companies, we are based in Hawaii instead of Los Angeles, New York or Paris.
I have been in the beauty industry for more than 25 years. I started doing commercials and Spanish soap operas as a teen actor in Puerto Rico. Then one year, on a dare from the set's makeup artist, I was challenged to do makeup, and by the new season I was offered her job.
Still not convinced that the beauty industry would be my life career, I started to attend both cosmetology school and medical school. During the year and a half working in the Medical Service Emergency Treatment Center, I would find myself sharing beauty secrets with the patients to calm them down while waiting to be seen by the attending physician. It was then that I realized my true calling. I would rather give someone a lipstick than an injection any day!
I continued to be trained both in New York and in Paris for makeup artistry. Then one fateful day, I was lured to Hawaii as a consultant for a pageant. I fell in love with the beautiful people of Hawaii and stayed. Hawaii is such a special place, I literally service the beauty needs of generations here. First I service the grandmother, later the daughters and then the granddaughter.
Proper skin care and makeup are my true interests. Because I spend so much of my time at work, I feel really blessed that my work, play and hobby are one and the same. When I am not traveling to conduct trainings and events, I can be found at Sephora on most weekends, doing what I love most -- in the service of clients, helping them learn how to make colors work for them, and bringing out their self confidence and inner beauty.
What I hate most to hear are things like "I can't do that" or "I'm too old for this."