I came across this cute posting about makeup storage... it led me to write about my experience as a professional makeup artist and what worked for me.

I came across this cute blog posting,

http://bewitchery.wordpress.com/2012/03/03/my-new-make-up-storage-drawers/

which had the little tiny Phrase “What do you think?”.  This is regarding makeup storage.  Clearly i felt i had more to say than even I realized and so…

This was my response…  

I find that you will thank yourself for having everything consolidated so you know what you have to work with. I did makeup in San Francisco for over a decade until i took a turn to fine art. I learned a lot about makeup, how to handle it (all those little different shaped pots and compacts), what was needed and what just cluttered my kits and threw me off my vision etc. I learned the hard but probably most natural way. I adore makeup and can not resist buying new things that would catch my eye or were seasonal. I would spend a lot of money on makeup. And would end up with tons of it everywhere.

I found that there were certain staples in my kit that i needed every job. I needed tints to be able to custom match any foundation or powder. I needed a good spectrum of shadows and colors to chose from. In the end, what i found is that less is usually more.

It was a really smart thing for me to make all my (say for instant eye shadows or lipsticks) together in one or two pallets. In the begining i could not afford to purchase an entire kit of say MAC Makeup which after you get established as a makeup artist and apply, (If you get approved you receive 40% off (when i started it was free, now there is a $40 anual fee) so you can really actually afford to stock your kit with their fantastic paints.) before this i took a piece of thin wood board and velcro dots and attached my individual pots onto one board so when you are working you can see and quickly and easily access your makeup. Taking a look at what your choices are always somewhat defined what i chose to use, along with my mood and of course the desired effect of the look we (the photographer and i) were trying to make.

I found there were things that it turned out that just never got used. It either didnt wear well or apply well or the color just didnt work,. I held on to these in the beginning fearing that i might just need this at some point. You dont. If you havent used or wanted to use it in a year, put it into the deeper storage drawer or like i usually did was give it to a friend.

Years and years later i still work like a makeup artist but just only on mostly myself and not even every day… But… my kit is maybe paired down to match only my own skin tone, but I would grab just that and maybe another bag for things like q-tips and lashes etc. that are not needed for home beautifying. I have 4 pallets of eyeshadow, 2 large (3″x6″ or so) that hold15 pots in each, 1 Nars and 1 Laura Mercier. All but one of them are nutralls and then a few individual compacts that have either a fantastic color (ie:Nars Santorini and Habanera) and another that has simply black and white. I have about 3 blushes, , concealers, powders, mascaras (about 3), 3 pencils (taupe, brown and white. these are used for all lips, eyes, and brows depending on the look.) If i want a specific colored liner i always use shadow and wet it if it is needed to be liquid. I find you have much more control over the color, intensity and placement if using powder. You also have the luxury of then picking the brush that will be able to accomplish what your desired effect is going for.

When i really got good, i started learning about color theory. It may seem to most a simple subject, but it is something i could probably study for a lifetime and still be learning it can really be complex.

After i got good with custom blends (which is what i would have to do almost every time when i had a hodge podge of misc. makeup to chose from, i decided to go and get pigments. Lip pigments i got were Red, Yellow, White, Pearl and Black. I did not end up getting the blue because i was doing pretty much editorial hi fashion or natural looks and blue was just not needed, but also because Mac’s lip pigment in black has a lot of blue in it. It is clearly a blue based black and was able to do all of the beautiful lilacs and lavenders with that. Then i got a lip balm, a chap stick and some Mac LipGlass and that would allow me to make every single color i ever could possibly think of needing. I got rid of every tube of lipstick shortly after.

I found that with three colors, white and black and texture, you can make everything (except for maybe mascara) to just what you want.

I became more time efficient and felt much more focused. I no longer had to stress over not having anything that is gonna work for this person and this look. Yet at the same time, i could actually cary in one decent sized bag my entire workstation including hair styling and towels and drapes etc (tip: next time you are at a public bathroom, grab a couple seat covers and fold them up and stick them in your kit. They make great impromptu drapes to keep your models clothes clean. I know it looks a little silly but it works!)

I wish you luck with your future ventures if you continue to chose makeup art as a career. Just make sure you always still enjoy doing it! When it is no longer fun, change before you hate it. Or at least that is maybe just what i did. But i didnt ever want there to be anything negative associated with beloved MAKEUP!

I hope i am able to share some of the fond memories of my years of makeup and hopefully pass on some of the tricks that took a lot of trial and error to figure out, but enjoyed every minute (mostly!) of it!

Thanks for asking Bewitchery.wordpress.com!

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