Lessons Learned

Since moving home to work I have been busy! Most of what I did when working at the salon was waxing but since I came home it has been mostly facials. 6 in 2 weeks! I think I did 3 in the whole 3 months I worked at the salon. I love facials because it is so relaxing and even I feel like curling up and going to sleep when I'm done. It's therapeutic for me and equally so for my clients (I hope!).

I also did my first makeup job! My friends were getting married last weekend and as their wedding gift I did her makeup. She was an amazingly beautiful bride and their wedding was very precious! Many blessings to the Steele's! So how did this job go down I started with having the bride come for a "consultation". I asked her all about her regular skin care regimen and grilled her about her makeup practices. She brought along her own makeup so I could use what she was already used to.

I think this has to be the hardest part for a bride who gets their makeup done, using products they aren't used to and not liking the results because of it. Or maybe it was my inexperience as a makeup artist that i was more comfortable using her stuff because I knew she was used to the way it looked. Either way it really helped a lot because she knew what to expect as far as foundation etc. But I used my own eye shadows and gave her a look she wasn't used to but grew to love! When she came for the consultation we talked about skin care and agreed she needed a series of facials to get her skin in tip top wedding condition. Then we played with makeup! Felt just like high school days having a sleep over with friends! We actually ended up doing her eye makeup 4 times. Her poor little eyes were so tired of being played with by the time we were done, but she decided on a fun green look that enhanced her green eyes.

Over the next 3 weeks we did a facial a week; two Ultra-Purifying Facials and then a Pumice Peel to smooth things out for the big day! On the morning of the wedding we began at 10:00 with the wedding 5 hours away. I started off with a thorough cleansing and a Gel Therapy hydrating mask. I wanted to prevent the flakes that are inevitable when your skin is dehydrated. We followed up with a good moisturizer but I skipped the sunscreen because we were using Bare Minerals makeup so I knew she was well protected.

Then the application began. I used extra concealer around the eyes to combat some darkness that I fought with during the consultation but other than that excess everything else was straight forward. Concealer first, then eyes, then foundation, blush and lipstick. I used Nyx Cosmetics and Revlon 12 hour eye shadows, Kryolan concealer, Bare Minerals foundation, blush and mineral veil, and a Cover Girl all day lipstick of which the actual name is escaping me. I also used Kryolan Concealer and Translucent powder to conceal a couple of trouble spots that the bride was worried about on her chest and arm.

For the remainder of the day I was at the brides beck and call. I ran errands around the church, helped her into her dress, and touched up her makeup at important intervals, right before the wedding, right before pictures etc... All in all a wonderful day!

The look I did for this beautiful bride I call "The Chandra" after the amazingly talented Chandra V., she is an Esthetician and Makeup Artist in Charlotte, N.C. I went to beauty school with Chandra and she did this amazing look on me one day in class. It has become my anytime, all the time, all around favorite look. Thanks Chandra! Visit her on Twitter: http://twitter.com/idoface

If you'd like to see a pic of the bride and the beautiful wedding, as well as some amazing work from a very talented photographer, visit Meagan Conley at: http://capturedimagesbymeg.blogspot.com/2010/03/first-wedding-of-season.html

I'd like to give a shout out to an amazing makeup artist, Debi DeMarco. When I first told this bride I would do her makeup i kind of panicked out of sheer newbie nervousness, then I hit up miss DeMarco for some advice. I needed advice because I had never had the joy of working with a redhead and I had no clue where to begin. Debi blessed me with some links to visit to check out some great shots of makeup for redheads. You can visit Debi on Facebook, and see some of her amazing makeup skills: http://www.facebook.com/#!/MUAinTheMaking?ref=nf

I also want to say thanks to all my amazing friends who are supporting me through this struggle with my health and all the changes coming with it. I love you guys!