A Mayaro make-up artist was among four people who won a Caribbean-based competition for their skills in cosmetology.
Tia Dinanath was the only Trinidad national to reach the finals of the Caribbean Rising Stars In Beauty Competition hosted by the Career Development Institute (CDI), a teaching and training centre in Barbados.
“I was not expecting this outcome. That was my first time entering a competition. The feedback from the public has been excellent. Only last year, I began doing make-up as a full-time job. I also do a lot of special effects make-up on myself,” Dinanath said.
This year marked the eighth edition of the competition. Contestants competed in the four categories – hair, nails, make-up and barbering. They were given tasks to demonstrate their respective abilities.
The competition ran online from May 6-10. On May 13, CDI’s Facebook page congratulated the four winners saying each would receive a scholarship valued Bds $5,000 (TT$16,800) to study cosmetology in its institute in Bridgetown.
Dinanath, of Mafeking Village, won the make-up category and Tataum Grenville, who represented Guyana, won the nails technician category.
Lornette Stephen won the hair category and Kelvin Thompson for barbering. Both represented Grenada.
Dinanath recalled her category started with about 15 contestants from the Caribbean, including three other Trinidadians.
The self-taught artist is the daughter of Ashton Dinanath, a well-known south-based attorney. She owns and runs Tia’s Beauty Academy in Mayaro.
She remembered a client telling her about the competition the day before the deadline and was encouraging her to enter.
Dinanath said she was sceptical, thinking it might have been a hoax. But she entered.
“The feedback was good from the people of TT. They shared my work.
"I started doing make-up when I was 18. I like to make people look nice. I love dressing them up. One day one of my cousins could not afford to pay someone to do her make-up for her prom.
“I took it upon myself and did her make-up, and my aunt styled her hair. I posted her pictures on social media, and people commented that they did not know I do make-up. People couldn't believe the difference when they saw her.”
Dinanath said her clientele has increased since the competition.
