Saturday, January 29, 2011

How to Become a Makeup Artist

Fashion, make up and the whole glamor business reminds me of the movie Devil Wears Prada. I mean if it was just all about inner beauty, perhaps these things might not have come into existence. Oh and of course the chutzpah and chic sense which comes with these, just as one of the characters in Devil Wears Prada says. But I am going to keep aside fashion and talk about makeup. I sometimes envy celebrity makeup artists! They are always around the tinsel town stars! Wow! Imagine being with Pierce Brosnan or Meryl Streep or Angelina Jolie or Jennifer Lopez for most part of the day! I would pay for this, but make up artists get paid for being with them! Whoa! In fact once I was even contemplating trying to dabble in this field but I gave up! I shirked the thought of my tryst with the show business after I researched about how to become a makeup artist! In case you want to, I will be happy to share that stuff with you this instant!


Becoming a Makeup Artist

Let me tell you before hand that it is not a breeze to be a good makeup artist. Anyone wishing to work as that will have to go through a lot of trials and tribulations.

Get Started as a Makeup Artist

For starters, these days what you can do is join a beautician's course in a school where they have such courses. Or another thing you can do is to get some hands on training and experience, by working in a salon or parlor. Quite a few times, these salons are in need of people and by working in such places and actually seeing those already working there, you can get to know a lot of things. Research thoroughly about this profession and all the things about makeup and makeup artists, it is the core of your profession. You can also learn more about makeup in scene makeup ideas.

Makeup Retail

Well, if it is not possible to do either of the first two, what you can do is join as a counter manager or a makeup artist in a makeup line department store. Yes, retail industry can be really thankless and tiring, but it can tell you loads of things about how to be a makeup artist. Basically you get to know how to deal with people, team up with others and get the hang of how the cosmetic industry works. A good makeup artist also needs to be acquainted well with the good brands and products, hence working in a store dealing with cosmetics and stuff, will be a great help. Also make sure you check makeup artist resume samples in all this madness!

Going Up the Cosmetic Ladder

Once you have carved your niche as a good and valued employee, pave your way towards becoming a regional makeup artist. This entails that you will be a part of group of featured artists who travel in a couple or so states, working in department stores or even boutique events. At this juncture, the sales goals you will have to meet will be really high, which will have to be done in a frenzied pace. There will be huge deadline pressure too. However, if you are seriously looking at how to become a makeup artist, this experience will be worth more than a thousand bucks, in fact priceless. It will tell you everything from what is an exotic eye makeup to the best mineral makeup.

Taking Stock

No I am not talking about stocking cosmetics when I am talking about taking stock. What I want to say is that once you get a slight hang of make up and how the cosmetic industry works, you will need to give a thought as to what do you see yourself as doing make up for? Is it going to be films or fashion magazines and shows, advertisements, salons or theater or runway shows? Because according to that, the technique of makeup will vary slightly oh and yes, the kind of people you meet, there will be a whole spectrum of it!

A Few Other Pointers

These are the basic things, when you want to know how to become a makeup artist. An extremely crucial thing here is to develop contacts. This can be done while you are interning or you are working at a cosmetic store. Slowly and surely through these contacts you can pave your way through in the industry. Though, it is difficult to say how long does it take to become a makeup artist, as it completely depends on your age and determination, the opportunities you get and the like, and in which field amongst the ones mentioned above do you want to be in. If you consider just a certificate through a course, then it depends on the duration of the course as to how much time will it take you to be a makeup artist. Otherwise, it may take months, or years of toil and perhaps frustration and disappointments, but you will have to rise and shine and make others shine! Slowly you will get to know about a makeup artist salary range too!

In case you want to know about the things required to be a celebrity makeup artist, well, it is a tough call. You have to be very very well prepared, with all the intricacies and nuances of makeup. You should be always equipped with things like tissues, q-tips, spray bottles of water, brush cleaner, bobby pins, double stick tape, safety pins, lip balm, eye drops and anything else required. This is more so when you are involved in a project as the mainstay of makeup artists. Oh and be ready to deal with anything that comes your way with a smiling face and a jovial attitude! That is what makes people on the sets flock around you! That's it! Now I will end this marathon article about how to become a makeup artist! Adios till next time!