Top Beauty Vlogging Tips from YouTube Sensation, Fumi Desalu-Vold
Lets get one thing clear, Fumi is so much more than a vlogger but I had to keep the title short. The strings to her fabulous bow include: reigned supreme as West Africa’s first supermodel, handpicked by Puff Daddy himself to feature in his Public Enemy video, worked as a model for top brands like Versace, Michael Korrs and Yohji Yamamoto, starred in Ugly Betty, acted alongside Eddie Murphy in Norbit,Trilingual (English, Afrikanns and Norwegian) and in addition to all this her YouTube channel with over 15,000 active subscribers keeps growing by the minute.
Luckily for me, although Fumi was especially busy as she’s planning a work trip, she took some time out to meet me in Colbert cafe on the Kings Road, London and over some scrumptious lemon cheesecake, I got to ask her some burning questions. Continue Reading to discover top tips for beauty vloggers on YouTube.
MFSL: I absolutely love your vlogs and that’s how I got to know your channel features red carpet critiques, beauty & hair tutorials, trends, Sister 2 Sister which gives great life & relationship advice: when did you start vlogging?
FDV: I started vlogging on my YouTube channel in July 2014.
MFSL: That’s very impressive, because you have over 15,000 active subscribers on your channel, I imagined you started much earlier than that. What made you start vlogging?
FDV: I was getting a lot of compliments on my make-up and style. Also a lot of women- especially dark-skinned women-were asking me various beauty and make-up related ‘How To’s’. So I started my channel as a way to answer a lot of their popular questions and inspire. And I specifically chose YouTube as a medium, as I prefer making videos to writing. It’s the actor in me!
MFSL: What main challenge did you face in getting started in terms of getting the necessary equipment, as well as teaching yourself the filming ropes?
FDV: Without a doubt, editing. With good editing, not only do you give the viewer what he/she wants but you also build your brand. I’ve had to throw away so many videos I made: simply because the material did not meet up to the standard that I’ve set for my brand.
FDV: I released a video once a week and then as my subscribers increased, I moved to two videos a week.
MFSL: You are a citizen of the world, having lived in Nigeria, LA, NYC, London, Denmark etc: how has this shaped your Personal Style?
FDV: Growing up half Nigerian and Gambian in a very open household, as well as working in the fashion and entertainment industry which took me all over the world opened me to various cultures and styles of dress and I’ve been inspired by them all.
MFSL: Which women in the media (both alive or deceased) get your style stamp of approval?
FDV: Diana Ross, Ava Gardner, Audrey Hepburn, my mother, Dorothy Dandridge, Elizabeth Taylor, Kim Kardashian…
MFSL: Erm, I have to stop you there, why Kim K?
FDV: I’ll tell you why, I don’t look up to her but I admire her because although her style is limited (in my opinion), I’m amazed that I can enter a store and see that most of the pieces are Kim Kardashian-esque…
MFSL: Well, lord help us! What words best describe your Personal Style?
FDV: I love that 20s, 50s and 70s glam, I was such a fan of the Dynasty ‘more is more’ era as well, so I’ll say: glamour, glitz and class
MFSL:You mentioned earlier that a lot of dark-skinned women would approach you for make-up tips. What main beauty tip would you give to dark-skinned women?
FDV: Your undertone is the secret to you wearing beautiful make-up. You can wear any colour, but you just have to find which shade of that colour compliments your undertone. And by the way that goes for caucasians, redheads etc.
MFSL: Any exciting projects you are working on that you can tell MFSL about?
FDV: In the future, I plan to collaborate with make-up brands, as well as design a kaftan collection. I will also be doing short health and fitness videos. FDV is going to be a lifestyle brand, I want to build an empire!
MFSL: I can’t round up this interview without mentioning your amazing partner in marriage, work and so much more-Oola-I love the way he supports you with your projects and really a lot more men should take a leaf out of his book!
FDV: I am very lucky to have a partner who works in Information Technology. He films and edits of all my videos and he takes all of my pictures. We work very well together!
MFSL: Lastly, I have to say you are such an inspiration to me: the blogging and vlogging world is over saturated with late teens, 20 and 30-somethings. And the ugly truth is there is racism and ageism to be found in fashion, but here you are at 46 and your vlog and its popularity goes to show that the industry is open to mature and talented African women. It gives me hope as I’m no spring chicken and I have strong goals I want to achieve in the industry and you give me hope that my time has not run out…that it’s possible. So really, thank you for the inspiration.
FDV: I love that you’ve said that. I don’t want any woman to ever feel limited by age, I’ve learnt that more than ever through my experiences. I consider myself a late bloomer; I started modelling in my 20s, acting in my 30s, I got married at 40. Everything happened late for me, and now I think it did to show others that the important thing is not to look at where you are, but to make sure you grow as a person.
MFSL: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with MFSL, I had so much fun chatting with you and I have to say this- you are even more fabulous in person!
Watch Fumi’s fab channel here.
All pictures courtesy of Fumi Desalu-Vold.
Interview with YouTube Beauty Sensation: Fumi Desalu-Vold
