Meet One Of My Favourite Kiwi Beauty Gurus Giovanna Belling

My new girl crush is drop dead gorgeous, uber-talented Kiwi makeup artist Giovanna Belling or Gio as she’s known to her more than 85,000 YouTube fans. Twenty-eight-year-old, Taupo-based Gio created her YouTube channel Makeup by Gio a little over two years ago and in a short space of time has amassed a huge following of loyal fans. It’s not surprising when you see Gio’s fab videos featuring breathtakingly beautiful makeup looks. But it’s a far cry from the world of commercial real estate where Gio spent a number of years working alongside her husband before launching herself online. I’ve been a huge fan of Gio’s for months now and decided to find out a little bit more about what makes this Brazilian/Kiwi beauty and soon to be first-time mum (her baby is due in November) tick.

Did you grow up in New Zealand?
I grew up partly in Venezuela (South America) and partly in New Zealand. My mother is Brazilian, which is why I can also speak Portuguese and Spanish.

Why did you start your YouTube channel?
I have always been obsessed with makeup and beauty from a young age and then discovered YouTube! I loved watching tutorials so much I realised I would have just as much fun if I filmed tutorials myself. Then of course I soon realised WOW there is a lot of work that goes into making videos, the editing and so on was challenging at times, but I have always found the YouTube community so friendly and helpful, so with my channel I kind of took the plunge and started and haven’t looked back since.

Do you come from a makeup background?
Yes I am a makeup artist – I used to do a bit of freelancing as well which was lots of fun.

Why do you think your channel is so successful?
I am still trying to figure that one out ha ha but really I think it’s the style of videos I do – they are achievable for anyone I try to make them easy to follow and inspiring!

What’s the best thing about being on YouTube?
The friendships you make with fellow YouTubers and beauty gurus. Also the feedback, kindness and support from my subscribers keeps me going. It sounds silly but I appreciate every single subscriber and viewer (even the mean ones who take the time to watch and comment

Do you get any “haters” and if so how do you deal with them?
Yes I do unfortunately, some people feel it really necessary to say something nasty and hurtful, and since they’re anonymous they do not hold back. I have learnt over time to not take it to heart, they don’t know me personally, and I always think to myself they could be going through something themselves and have an insecurity they don’t know how to channel in the right way. I have always loved the saying ‘It’s impossible to dislike a person when you know their story’ because it’s so true, if we could all remember that the world would be a better place.

Why did you also start a Brazilian channel?
I had quite a few viewers from Brazil so I decided to start making a few videos in Portuguese and the response has been amazing so I’m going to try to post at least once a week on that channel.

Any advice for an aspiring beauty YouTuber?
Not to worry about the numbers and film what you love!

Where do you see yourself in five years?
Well at the moment I am four-and-a-half months pregnant so we are extremely excited about becoming parents. We have also just bought a business, a fashion retail store here in Taupo called Evolution which we are in the process of re-branding and of course we have my husband’s business and I also have my channel so we have a lot going on at the moment. In the next five years I hope to be an amazing mum and continuing to grow. Very excited for the future

How do you think being a mum will effect your YouTube career?
I think I will have to invest in better lighting so I will be able to film at night as opposed to the day time, I am predicting I will be up late a lot with feeding and so on so will make the most of that and film if I can, so better lighting will allow me to do that. I always want to be an inspiration to our children to go for whatever it is that makes you happy despite what people think.

Who are your favourite beauty YouTubers and why?
I have loads of faves MakeupByCamila was the first YouTuber I started watching purely because she is Brazilian and I loved her makeup style. Others I recommend are Shaaanxo, Monika Blunder, Pixiwoo, NikkieTutorials I could go on forever!

What’s next for you and your channel?
Continue to put videos out and create content that inspires viewers to be creative and have fun with makeup.

What are your favourite must-have beauty products?

• Evening Primrose Oil supplements, amazing for your skin!
• At the moment I have been obsessed with Neutrogena Foaming Face wash, it gets ALL makeup off in one step in the shower, even waterproof mascara. I can’t live without it.
• Red lipstick! Where would a girl be without red lipstick? It lifts any look. My faves are MAC Ruby Woo and NARS Dragon Girl.

What’s on your beauty shopping list?
YSL Ink Foundation. I still haven’t picked one up and apparently they’re amazing. I need a new hair straightener so I’m on the look out for a good one and more Tom Ford cream eye shadows. I picked one up in Sydney recently and they are out of this world amazing! They blend like a dream and allow you to create the quickest smokey eyes ever.

Can you tell us something we don’t know about you?
I am pretty funny and often the loudest laugh in the room. I love to make people laugh even if it is at my expense!

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