New “Project SHINE” makeovers aim to make breast cancer survivors feel beautiful again

It can take a lot to make a girl feel beautiful. However, when that woman has lost her hair, her breasts, been burned by chemotherapy and radiation, making her feel feminine can take a village.

Enter Project SHINE.

Started by Mount Pleasant photographer Dana Klein, Project SHINE” aims to help cancer survivors feel like Vogue cover girls. Klein’s lens is normally focused on “making ordinary women feel extraordinary,” says the mother of four.

She came up with the idea after noticing how often women put themselves last on the list.

“Women want their children to be photographed, then hide themselves away. My business is to let women take down their ponytails and see how lovely they are, inside and out.”

Project SHINE was launched this October in honor of breast cancer awareness month. The project involves a professional makeover and photo shoot tailored for each survivor.

For each Project SHINE session, Klein calls on a team of volunteers, professional hairstylists and makeup artists who donate their services to coif each model-in-the-making.

Charleston’s Whispers on Wentworth salon sends a hairstylist to Klein’s studio. Moore Makeup artists Margaret Gierhart and Leslie Moore, a breast cancer survivor and founder of the Warriors 4 Warriors foundation, partnered with Klein to select the survivors and do their makeup.

Moore says she jumped at the chance to take part in something that makes a positive impact and a powerful statement.

Adds Gierhart, “These warriors have been through hell. It’s a privilege to see them shine again.”

Visit www.photographyby dana.com.