Get "Glammed" with Fay Alzie

I asked Indiana University student Fay Alzahrani for her best beauty advice after I saw how talented she was at makeup thanks to her TikTok account (@fay_alzie).

Her response surprised me.

Fay confidently told me the following words, which will probably stick with me for a long time: “External embellishments will do nothing for you if you don’t start from within.”

Fay is a sophomore who is studying finance. She grew up in Saudi Arabia and lived there for six years before she moved to the United States, where she has been living on a student visa for the past twelve years. Although Fay is very school-oriented, she has creative dreams and hobbies beyond becoming an investment banker one day. One of those dreams is to open a cake shop with her mom, who she credits as being incredibly talented at cake decorating. Fay also credits her mom for introducing her to makeup.

The world of makeup artistry can be daunting. There are so many techniques to learn, but luckily, the industry has many talented artists to look to as a guide.

“I really look up to makeup artists that have been able to build their own careers,” Fay explained. “Trixie Mattel has faced adversity in the makeup industry, yet Trixie is now in very successful positions after years of hard work."

If you look at Fay's TikTok account, you will find this admiration for Trixie Mattel to be true through a look she created inspired by Trixie's work. “Trixie is very admirable,” said Fay.

Entirely self-taught, Fay has learned a lot about makeup since she started playing around with it in middle school. Her best makeup tip? Blend. “Even when you think you are finished blending, blend some more,” Fay laughed, “Blend everything!”

Fay told me that blending is the biggest indicator for whether a person is a beginner or a professional at makeup. Since I heard this tip, I’ve certainly used my makeup sponges more.

I asked Fay a few more rapid-fire questions just to learn more about her everyday product use. Here are Fay’s favorites (take notes!):

1. She prefers a nude lip over a red lip.

2. She prefers power highlight over cream highlight.

3. She thinks that false eyelashes are the key to a memorable look.

4. Mascara is the product that is most important to her.

Fay credits Rihanna’s red carpet look at the 2016 BET “Black Girls Rock!” Award Show as her favorite. “The bold eye made her green eyes pop more than they already do,” she said as she pulled up a picture to show me. “Her face was so bronzed and it made her complexion look amazing, and she looked absolutely stunning that night.”

Lastly, Fay’s appreciation for her mother is noteworthy. Aside from her true dream to be to work alongside her mother at the future cake shop, she tells me about her mother’s beauty and how she always admired her.

“Ever since I was a little girl, I loved the amount of time that my mother invested into herself,” she said through a smile. “She was very into fashion, and she always looked so beautiful.”

Learning about beauty from your mother creates a strong relationship and allows a bond to form. Fay explains how her mother introduced her to makeup and bought her makeup kits at a young age. Every child loved playing with makeup, so how lucky is she to start learning at the age of five? Can her mother adopt all of us?

I thanked Fay for letting me interview her about her passion as she walked out. There is so much to learn from someone in a short period of time. But, I quickly learned that Fay’s tricks to life are working hard to bring success, loving and caring for yourself, and being creative all at the same time.

Check out her viral TikTok video: Link