If you’ve ever searched for a makeup tutorial video then chances are you’ve come across twenty-six-year-old Chloe Morello. The beauty vlogger has a cult following of over two million subscribers on her YouTube channel and over 900,000 followers on Instagram, with her audience growing by the day. I sat down with Chloe to chat about her latest beauty venture, Face Halo, her upcoming wedding and of course, the beauty products she can’t live without.
Did you always want to get into the beauty industry?
No. Well, I mean I’m from Batemans Bay, I just assumed that I would end up working at the motel that we own.
What’s been your biggest pinch me moment in your career?
Well I’ve been on TV a few times now, and that is always exciting. It’s still very exciting knowing that my mum is down there [in Batemans Bay], watching me from the same living room that I grew up in.
What has been your most viewed tutorial?
An eyeliner tutorial that’s got eight million views now.
Where is the strangest place you’ve been recognised?
I was in Chile and someone recognised me there. YouTube is everywhere. Actually South America’s extremely popular for YouTube.
What would be your advice to up-and-coming young bloggers and vloggers?
You have to do it regularly. You can’t just sporadically upload. People want regular uploads. Also all these social media sites work with an algorithm now which is hard. To stay on top of it, you really have to be uploading regularly. And also it’s best if you have a good quality camera. You don’t need the most expensive camera, but you need to have access to some lighting. I bought my first lighting on eBay for $120 and I still have it. So just to be able to invest maybe a couple hundred dollars into some lighting really helps with beauty videos. Otherwise you can sit in front of a big window and use natural light.
What is your number one beauty tip?
Well obviously looking after your skin. Making sure you’ve got a clean base to work with, removing your makeup. But also when it comes to applying makeup, it’s not applying a lot straight away. I think building up and layering your makeup so that you don’t suddenly make a huge mistake and have to take it off. It’s much better to apply in smaller layers. So if you need more you can add it. If you put too much on, it’s hard to take off.
What is your number one must-have beauty item?
Makeup-wise it would be a brow pencil. [I use] Benefit Precisely My Brow, it’s the really thin one. And then when it comes to skincare, Face Halo.
Tell me about Face Halo.
It’s a microfiber makeup remover pad. So it’s a reusable makeup pad and you just add water. It basically does what makeup wipes set out to do which was to eliminate the chore of taking your makeup off with a one-step process. But this takes it even one step further because there are no chemicals. So it doesn’t irritate your skin, people don’t get inflammation, and again we’re talking less waste and less landfill too. Even people with eczema and things like that can use this without irritation.
Chloe is the brand ambassador for makeup remover wipe Face Halo
How did you become involved with Face Halo?
I wasn’t asked to be involved in Face Halo. I went to them [the founders]. [I was at their place and needed to take off my makeup]… “You want to take your makeup off here, try this new product we’re developing.” And I was like, “Okay.” And everyone was watching me, because this is their baby, and I was like, “Wow.” And I looked at it and I was like, “Oh my gosh, my makeup is off!” I couldn’t believe it, so I asked if I could keep it and I still have it. It’s an old prototype. I’ve only used Face Halo to remove my makeup ever since. A couple of months later when I organised to see them again, I actually asked them if I could become a part of the company.
What else do you do as part of your beauty regimen?
I still like to use skincare because anti-ageing is important to me. But I no longer have to cleanse as much. So I like to tone, and then I use a moisturiser. It’s called Dr. Spiller. [I use] the blue cream and the collagen cream. I love that one. Obviously SPF. And then makeup I use every brand imaginable.
Do you have a favourite makeup brand?
Well I definitely go through phases, but I think my favourite brand right now is Charlotte Tilbury.
What makeup would we find in your handbag?
I carry NARS creamy matte concealer, usually a brow pencil, I love the Precisely My Brow. I keep Face Halo with me, it’s really handy. And whatever lipstick I’m wearing. Today I’m wearing MAC [in the colour] Yash.
Do you prefer natural makeup or a glam look for everyday wear?
It really depends, but I would say it’s glam, but I try to make it look natural. I’m actually wearing 20 products [right now].
What celebrities do you take inspiration from?
When it comes to beauty, I really love Rihanna. Jennifer Aniston always looks effortless and I love Shakira, which is a random one I think, but she actually does all her own makeup.
Do you always do your own makeup, including magazine shoots and TV appearances?
I always do it. I don’t like how [other] people do my makeup. I am a makeup vlogger so it actually blows my mind when people suggest that I have a makeup artist. Because that’s what I do and usually if they interview me, it’s because they’re interested in my makeup vlog and it’s just funny that they think that I need a makeup artist.
What are your biggest beauty tips for summer?
You might think that during the summer I reduce the amount of makeup I wear. No I don’t. It’s the same amount of makeup. There’s such a focus on getting a tan for me. I love that summery look, so I love to use fake tan, and that involves a lot of exfoliation. I exfoliate every week. I have one of those gloves, and I do my face and my body. And then I fake tan. I even fake tan my face.
What are your most requested tutorials?
I’m getting married in January and I’m getting a lot of requests about doing a wedding look. So I will probably do some trial runs.
Will you do your own makeup for your wedding?
Absolutely. Oh yeah.
What makeup look are you planning for your wedding?
It’s going to be in January which is really hot here in Sydney, probably like 30 something degrees. So I will be trialling what are the best products that last and [work] against flash and everything, but it will probably be something similar to what I’m wearing today. I’ll have lash extensions because I love big lashes but don’t want to cry them off. So I’ll probably get lash extensions. I like glow, I love highlighter, and a nice tan.
Can you give us any other details about your wedding?
Yes, it is in Sydney Harbour, so we’ll be able to see the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. Three hundred people are invited and Steven Khalil’s making my dress.
Any honeymoon plans?
We’re going to Mexico.
Where is your favourite travel destination?
We went to Bora Bora last year and that was amazing. So beautiful. We just went to Europe together for the first time. I loved south of Italy. It’s so beautiful. And actually camping with my family in 2015 around Australia.
What’s next for you?
I’ve just come on board with Face Halo, so that’s a big priority to me. I’m a part of the company so it’s not just like a regular collaboration I guess. So I’m really putting my heart and soul into that, because I want it to be as successful as possible and it is such a great product and it really has changed my beauty routine. So that’s really important to me, and I’m getting married which is very big. I want to buy a house soon. I’m just focusing on that and I think the production value of my own videos. So my fiancée’s coming on board to help me film those.
BITESIZE
WE WENT TO: District Brasserie,
WE ATE: Steak tartare with smoked onion crumble, horseradish, egg yolk and tapioca cracker; coal grilled Bannockburn chicken with barrel aged feta, gem lettuce, preserved lemon and provençale dressing; heirloom tomato with burrata and olive sourdough cracker.
WE DRANK: Champagne and sparking mineral water.
Photography: Ashleigh Larden