From the super common skull faces and zombie looks right down to the exquisite and enchanted mermaid looks, there are little to no looks that have not been explored by these beauty talents.
However, our very own homegrown makeup artist, Saraswati Suharto, has been smashing all the boundaries of makeup cosplaying by coming up with outstanding makeup looks that would put everyone to shame - by stunningly blending her hijab into her looks!
In fact, the makeup artist who proudly showcases her skills and talents to the world through her Instagram account called ‘Queen of Luna’, uses the hijab for all of her transformations (yes, even one of Kylie Jenner!), proving that one can still be modest while jumping on the bandwagon of makeup and fashion.
If you don’t already know her, Saraswati went viral globally last year, thanks to her Disney-inspired transformations.
Rojak Daily recently caught up with the busy mother of two to find out how she effortlessly pulls off her amazing works.
Why So Serious
Saraswati said she started experimenting and ‘playing’ with makeup nine years ago, and developed a deep interest and passion for the art as she learned new tricks along the way.
“I started getting into makeup transformation in 2008. I remember very well the first character that I decided to try transforming myself into. It was ‘The Joker’ from the movie ‘The Dark Knight’.
“I was so inspired to do transform myself into ‘The Joker’ after watching the movie. I thought the Joker was cunning, outgoing, and entertaining,” said the self-taught makeup artist who is based in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
Saraswati said the looks that she created and the characters that she portrayed through her makeup have developed tremendously ever since that first transformation.
A virtual walk through her Instagram page proves that Saraswati is capable of transforming herself into anything and anyone she wants.From the demure Alice from Alice in Wonderland to the mystical Neytiri from Avatar, and from the pretty Ariel (The Little Mermaid) to the vigorous Wonder Woman and the awkward Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride, you can pretty much say Saraswati has done it all.
And to top it all off, she also creates cosplay characters with her skills and anime makeup. You can see Starfire, Raven, Kaneki and Mavis Drac peppered all over her timeline.
There's literally nothing Saraswati can't become, so to speak.
The Hijab Factor
There is a catch to all this, though! She incorporates her hijab in all of her transformation. Yes, even Iron man, Spiderman and Batman! Talk about talent!When asked why, Saraswati said wearing a hijab should never be seen as a hindrance in pursuing one’s passion.
“I am both a Muslim woman and a geek. I think of innovative ways of incorporating my hijab into the makeup looks that I create as well as the costume ideas that enhances and completes the look.“It just goes to show that hijab-clad Muslim women can also be artists. I just hope that they do not think wearing a hijab is limitation. It really doesn't change anything,” said the 35-year-old.
Saraswati often watches videos for inspiration, especially those from Promise Thang, a YouTuber who labels herself as the Transformation Queen, whom she counts as one of her major drive.
“I used to watch her videos daily on YouTube and oftentimes, wished I could be half as good as her someday,” she shared.
However, Saraswati said there are days that she feels down and uninspired. On days like these, she turns to her almost half a million Instagram followers for ideas and support.“I have always been a huge fan of comic book characters, so I love transforming myself into my favorite cosplay characters and looks.
“But when I'm feeling uninspired, I'll just ask my friends and followers for makeup suggestions. They usually give me numerous suggestions and when I try them out, I credit them on the post for proposing the idea,” she explained.
Saraswati said when Halloween crept near, she couldn't contain her nerves and excitement thinking of the endless possibilities she could 'dress' up as.
“Looking at all the scary and creepy looks created by fellow makeup artistes on Instagram and watching horror movies at home definitely motivated me come up with as many Halloween looks as possible for everyone’s eyes to feast upon,” she exclaimed.
For this year’s Halloween, Saraswati freaked her followers out with a teaser video of her upcoming look, the ever-popular haunted doll Annabelle.
In the video, ‘Annabelle’ is seen smiling eerily while moving her head in slow motion. Her next post was a photo of her Annabelle look with the caption: ‘I’ve got my eyes on you’.
Apart from Annabelle, among the other characters and looks Saraswati transformed herself into include ’The Countess’, ‘Jason’, a half-werewolf, Pennywise’s stepmum, Sally from The Night Before Christmas, Ryuk from Death Note, a slit-mouthed woman and an Astrophile vampire.
“I only managed to do ten looks when I really wanted to do more than that. However, for us special effects (SFX) artistes or face painters, everyday is Halloween because we do them all the time, So, I'll just do it whenever I want,” said Saraswati, who told us that she owns over 30 brushes, 10 eyeshadow palettes and more than 30 lipsticks which she uses to create her looks.
Saraswati added that special contact lenses and a bit of fake blood also play a major role in pulling off the freaky looks.
Hard Work Finally Pays Off
The single mum said most of the looks that she created are ‘easy’ because she has limited ‘me-time’.“My ‘me-time’ is limited, so, it is difficult for me to do complicated looks. I usually have time for my makeup sessions when both of my kids are at school. Most of the time I do it alone but sometimes my mum helps me to sew parts of the costumes. Usually it takes between one and a half to two and a half hours to get the looks done,” she said.
Despite being Insta-famous now, Saraswati admitted that the road had not always been smooth sailing for her.“The beginning was awful. My mum and brothers used to call me crazy and delusional for doing something they thought wouldn't benefit me in the long run.
"But I continued doing my thing simply because it makes me happy and transforming myself into my favourite characters has always been like an adventure for me,” she said.
Never giving up on her dreams somehow paid off for Saraswati as currently she is being approached by many companies to be their ambassador.
“Some of them are from makeup companies, contact lenses brands and telecommunication companies. Some of the products I use are sponsored,” she added.
Good on you, Saraswati. We honestly think you truly deserve all the recognition you're receiving.