Sara Oteri - Masterchef Finalist, Executive Creative Director & Foodie

What happens next after a 'life-changing' reality TV show? Hello and welcome to Beauty Island, the award-nominated beauty podcast that celebrates life and lipstick. I'm your host, beauty journalist, Brittany Stewart. Each episode, I sit down with a guest and ask them about the 8 beauty products that have a special memory or meaning for them. The ones they'd take to a desert island, or Beauty Island, that I am sending them off too. Maybe it's the first beauty product they ever bought, the one that gives them their signature look, or the perfume that instantly sparks a memory of a special place or person. Along the way we find out more about their life, career and the people and events that have shaped them into who they are today. A reminder that this interview was recorded before Corona hit so it is a virus-free zone, which hopefully you'll enjoy! Today my guest is Sara Oteri, Masterchef Australia finalist, foodie and Executive Creative Director. If you're a fan of the show, you'll definitely remember her from the 2015 season where she ended up coming 5th - young, driven, talented, determined and with brilliant curly hair. Obviously Beauty Island is a beauty-focussed podcast and I've had many beauty centred guests on the show, but I love how it can be a starting point for wider conversation, as well as an interest that is obviously not limited to people who actually work in beauty. Sara talks about the career rut that led her to Masterchef, how her love of travel has shaped and changed her food preferences, and the un-smudgeable lipstick that will withstand eating, talking and multiple coffees that she wishes she knew about during filming. One real standout from our conversation which Sara was so open about was the answer to 'what happens next'. For all the incredible opportunities and experiences that eventually came her way, she says the year immediately after Masterchef was one of the hardest of her life. It's, for want of a better phrase, an important reality check that I certainly identified with. I also have to acknowledge the completely incidental but perfect timing; the latest season of the show started this week! If it's a favourite, I hope you'll enjoy hearing about Sara's story even more. Follow host Brittany Stewart: Instagram: @brittanybeautybts @beautyislandpodcast Email: [email protected] Subscribe to It's A Beauty! Newsletter for no BS beauty reviews, tips and tricks. (It's free!) Follow Sara Oteri: Instagram: @sara.oteri Products: Lipstick Glitter Impulse deodorant Maybelline SuperStay Matte Ink Longwear Lipstick Napoleon Perdis China Doll Pot Eyeliner (from Masterchef days) Maybelline New York Lash Stiletto Mascara Issey Miyake For Women Gucci Bloom Salt water Toni&Guy Sea Salt Texturising Spray Beauty ASMR videos Black Chicken Remedies Nocturnalist Night Serum Sound effects obtained from Zapsplat Music: Dexter Britain