Week One

It is the end of my first week at make-up school and so far the verdict is two massive, highly enthusiastic thumbs up!  I absolutely love it!  I haven’t felt so much in my element in a long time.  All my worries (see last post) were completely unfounded. 

There were only two of us in the class this week: myself and another girl, which meant that we had a lot of time to learn and practise our skills on each other, with the constant attention of our tutor.  It has also meant that, in one week, more make-up has been applied, removed and applied again to my face than ever before and that my semi-permanent lashes that I had professionally applied as a pre-birthday treat have taken a battering from all the mascara that has been coated onto them.  But I am not complaining – I have learnt so much in the last week and I am already feeling confident about the feasibility of making this my career.  So much so that when watching the demonstrations at some of the make-up counters in Selfridges last night at Fashion’s Night Out last night, I was thinking “A smoky eye...I can do that, no problem!”.

I am in absolute awe of our tutor, Branka Vorkapic.  For her young age she has achieved so much and worked in many different areas of the industry including fashion/editorial, TV and body painting.  She is a very personable tutor and keen to share her knowledge and tricks of the trade.

So...the moment you’ve all been waiting for!  Here are some photos of the make-up I’ve done this week:



A daytime look with smoky eye





A dramatic yellow and purple eye with glitter





60's inspired look





20's inspired look















Back-to-School Dilemmas

It is the night before my first day at make-up school and I am feeling nervous and excited in equal measure.  Actually, scratch that - nervous is definitely the predominant emotion.  The main worries that are swilling around my head like dirty dishwater are (in no particular order):

-          Have I made the right choice?  Can I really start again?

-          Have I picked the right course for me?

-          What shall I wear?

-          Will the other students like me?

-          Will the tutors like me?

-          Will I be the oldest one there?

-          What if I’m not actually very good at doing other people’s make-up?

Like all good school girls, I am packing my bag the night before.  So far, I have packed all the necessities such as a notebook, make-up wipes (as we will probably be working on each other and I don’t want to leave class looking like a clown at the end of the day), hand sanitizer and MAC Brush Cleaner.  We will be given a starter kit, including a set of brushes, but I’m not sure what else comes in the kit and I don’t want to turn up empty-handed and look like a make-up novice!  I am not very good at packing light and I find myself in a bit of a Goldilocks-esque dilemma: which of my three make-up bags shall I take?

• Case no. 1:  The same size as a carry-on suitcase and made of heavy duty steel and aluminium, it can just about fit all of the make-up and brushes I own, minus the stuff I use on a regular basis.  Whist it would be comforting to have all my stuff with me, I have a feeling it won’t be required on the first day and will make me look like a bit of a ‘try-hard’, which I don’t believe is considered to be a positive attribute in a school-like situation!
• Case no. 2: A sexy, black beauty case by Beauty Boxes, given to me by my lovely friends for my birthday.  It can carry all the kit you would need if you know what style of make-up you would be doing and who you were working on.  But I have no idea what will be happening tomorrow and want to be prepared.
• Case no 3: Not actually a case but my make-up bag with all the make-up I use on a daily basis, plus a few more items just in case I feel like mixing it up. The trouble with only taking this bag is that the shades of eyeshadow, foundation and lip colours that I use on my own face won’t necessarily suit anyone else in the class. Also, shouldn’t I keep the make-up I use on myself separate from that which I use on other people?



Which one is 'just right'?

The truth is that I know I don’t really need to take anything with me: they will have plenty of cosmetics there- it’s a make-up school for heaven’s sake!  But the perfectionist in me just wants to make a great first impression and show everyone that I’m serious about making this my career...And of course, be the best in class!

Another exciting occasion happening this week is Fashion’s Night Out on Thursday.  A night of after-hours shopping, fashion shows, pop-up restaurants and of course, make-up demos!  I’m hoping to head down to MAC on Oxford Street and the make-up counters at Selfridges, where I am sure they’ll be lots to see and purchase.  Could get messy - wish me luck!



Making Myself Over

Make-up has always been in my life.  Some of my fondest memories are centred around makeup: watching my mum put on her make-up at her dressing table; the smell of her Fashion Fair ’Rum Raisin’ coloured lipstick.  As soon as I was able to reach that dressing table I was soon pinching that lipstick and smearing it across my face along with other pretty, sticky concoctions in their beautiful pots and packaging.  Like most little girls, I used to love to play dress up and my older sister would do my make-up and dress me in her clothes, and I would strut around the house in my sister’s or my mum’s high-heels, pretending to be a supermodel!

The signs were there from an early age!

I always knew how to stike a pose!

Little did I know that those early days would have an influence on my future career.  After university, I spent four crazy years as a professional dancer and commercial model, until chronic injury, an inability to maintain a size 6-8 figure and the need for something a bit more stable and ‘normal’ put an end to that career.  During that time, I put my face in the hands of many a make-up artist and was always amazed that with the stroke of a few brushes, I could be transformed from a very plain girl with bad skin into someone that some might consider beautiful.  I would always watch carefully to see what products, techniques and brushes they were using on me and then go out and buy them to try and recreate the look at home.  Doing my make-up is the best part of getting ready for a night out as far as I’m concerned; as important as the shoes and outfit and far more important than the hair! I have amassed a great deal of products over the years and anyone that knows me well, will tell you that that my makeup bag is the size of most people’s overnight bag.  When I’m having a bad day, I like nothing better to treat myself with a new lip-gloss or eyeshadow, or to buy fashion magazines just to look at the models in the ad campaigns and figure out what make-up artist has done.

When the dancing and modelling career ended, and after much deliberation and soul-searching, the ‘stable’ career that I chose was Events Management.  I wanted to make beautifully styled events that people would remember and be inspired by.  Essentially, I just wanted to make things pretty. Unfortunately, no one told me that in a period of economic recession  a) a career in Events Management is not a ‘stable’ career and b) beauty is the last thing anyone thinks about when holding an event!  Consequently, I found myself working on a lot of very corporate, very uncreative  projects, and although I have risen very quickly from entry-level to managerial level in the industry, I can’t say that it has really satisfied my need for creativity. 

So, I find myself once again, at a career crossroads.  I’m turning 29 in a few days and I don’t want to stay on a career path that continues to make me miserable.  I don’t think I am cut out to have a normal, stable 9-5 and I still just want to make things pretty.  So I have decided to go to enrol on a make-up course to become a professional make-up artist.  This blog will document my journey to becoming a MUA and I will be sharing some of the tips and techniques that I learn along the way, as well as some of my must have products for make-up perfection.

I hope you enjoy it...