Good Molecules: See a difference in your skin
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Sisley-Paris Phyto-Sourcils Design 3-in-1 Architect Pencil 5 Taupe
$75
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Sisley-Paris Phyto-Sourcils Design 3-in-1 Architect Pencil 6 Espresso
$75
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Nudestix Nude Beach 6-Piece Eye Pencil Palette
$69
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Danessa Myricks Beauty ColorFix 24-Hour Cream Color Matte Sundaze
$20
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Danessa Myricks Beauty ColorFix 24-Hour Cream Color Matte Oasis
$20
Oct 4, 2012
Stephanie C.
When starting out how much should I charge for my clients? I know it depends on how much I invest in my products, and I plan on investing 500-1000! Also any tips for me far as where I can go purchase some good quality makeup kits? One more thing :) ......... When it comes to applying makeup on my clients, im confused far as what looks to create for certain events! example, I have a client doing a praise dance for church I have an Idea for what I want to do, but I dont want to make myself look bad! So how do you know what makeup looks are suitable for each client? How do you deal with people with diff skin types, matching the right foundations, countouring ect! I need help please! I have the talent I know I do, I just want it to reflect through my work! Failure is not an option!
Oct 5, 2012
Kimberly F.
Well you seem very unsure so i would first go to Ulta or Sephora and see if they have any demo trainings available. As far as the right look for each client, ask then what their normal makeup is and what they want from you. Also you can kind of guess by venue type and the personality of the client. If you have a prim and proper wedding your most likely going to do a subtle romantic l
Oct 5, 2012
Kimberly F.
Look to tie into the wedding colors.
Oct 5, 2012
Julia S.
becoming and starting out as a free-lance makeup artist is hard. i am one myself, and not only is it about the talent and knowing a lot about makeup, but being a free-lance makeup artist is a business. you need to know how to market and get yourself out there as well as the steps to building your business up from the bottom to the top. here are some of my tips for a lot of things with becoming and being a free-lance makeup artist (they're right off the top of my head, so they're going to be very jumbled!!)
-marketing your business: think of a name for yourself and keep it simple, but inviting. mine is Lascivious Makeup/Beauty by Julia. So since it's the 21st century and basically everyone is all about social networking, create all of them! Have a twitter, an instagram, a facebook, anything you want, the more the better. When you have all of these social networks, you can connect with people/market by showing them your work and skills. (Beautylish is a big example!) Also, a good thing to have is business cards so that whenever you mention yourself as a free-lance makeup artist to someone, you can hand them one of your business cards in case they want to contact you because not everyone has social networking and your not going to meet everyone online!
-Investing in the right products: take some time out of your day to look at what you have already. do you have a variety of natural eyeshadows? (natural looks are what most people want) do you have a lot of colorful eyeshadows? how about different color foundations and concealers? When it comes to eyeshadow, or makeup in general, everything can be expensive especially if youre looking for good quality. youre just starting out and youre not sure if business is going to be busy or slow and you definately shouldnt start out buying MAC products or truly expensive ones in the beginning.. though of course its good to have some. here is what i suggest for each type of product:
-Eyeshadow: its key to have natural eyeshadows and colors as well. you never know what look your clients are looking for until the tell you.. and you dont want to be running around last minute trying to find a lot of things. the best way to save money when it comes to buying eyeshadow is buy the shadows in palettes. two absolutely great eyeshadow palettes for natural eyes are the Urban Decay Naked Palettes I & II. they are a little on the expensive side, but are completely worth it. the shadows are pigmented and come with a variety of colors. if youre looking for more of the cheaper side, go with NYX. NYX has great quality eyeshadows for much less money then other companies. As for color eyeshadows, my favorite is always to get pigments. when it comes to colors, you always want to the color to be bright and bold and come out exactly the way it looks in its container. i have pigments from all over the place including MAC, Too Faced, and Online Companies. Again, pigments are sometimes expensive, so a palette of colors would fit best, especially when traveling. i have a bh cosmetics 120 color palette (2nd edition). its definitely a good buy for the price, although some of the colors are more pigmented then others. (here's a secret though! .. when an eyeshadow isnt as pigmented as you want it to be, take a white base (like nyx jumbo eye pencil in milk) and use that base under the color, it will brighten it up a lot!). Also for eyeshadow as an extra (when youre doing wedding or prom looks) purchase different color glitters or pigments with glitter in them. hobbylobby.com and micheal's arts and crafts store can help you find craft glitter that is cheap and can easily work as good as makeup glitter.
-Mascara: Of course you know what your favorite mascara is, well if it works well for you it must for others as well. when it comes to my clients, i use my favorite which is maybelline's falses mascara. many are going to want fake eyelashes too. so invest in some natural fake eyelashes. there are cheap ones on ebay and other online sites as well.
-Eyebrows: find a eyebrow palette that has almost every eyebrow color out there. there is one at target for about $10 by Sonja Kashuk. it has 4 colors including red, blonde, dark brown, and brown. another trick is to use natural matte eyeshadows as fillers too!
-Concealer&Foundation&Powder: Now there are SO many different skin tones out there. i am still slowly growing my kit. i usually buy foundations and concealers and powders when they're on sale. i started using maybelline's FIT ME collection for my clients and it works out perfectly. Ulta usually has a sale once in a while where its buy 2 get one free for maybelline.. i take advantage of that and buy some here and there when there are some good sales. now of course you want to have every color and every shade, but i suggest in the beginning to buy the inbetweens. start your collection with the lightest shade, darkest shade, middle shade, and the middle shade inbetween darkest and middle and lightest and middle. if your client is in between any of those 5 shades, then mix. as time goes by, fill in all the middle shades and buy the whole collection. same goes for powder and concealer too!
-Primers&Finishers: its hard to find these products for cheap, but usually when it comes to these products, you do want the more high-end ones. smashbox has some really great primers. also urban decays primer potion and spray finishers are very good as well.
-Contour&Highlight: i have actually never invested in either, shimery eyeshadows and dark powders or eyeshadows work best for me when it comes to these. i do know that if you do want the real deal, then benefit has a lot of great products for this.
-Blush: honestly, i am good with 3 different color blushes. a red, a pink, and redish pink. my eyeshadows make up for the blushes i need when i dont have them. but my favorite blushes are of course macs. when it comes to blush you want a product that is very pigmented so that you can basically tap your brush into them and voala! so mac in my opinion is the way to go!
-Lipstick&Lipgloss&Liner: i truly think all companies have good lipsticks, my favorite are L'oreal's. make sure that in your makeup kit you have the basic colors of red, coral, purple, pink, brown, and natural. you never know what color lipstick is going to look good on other people, but its a trial. its not a big deal if you have to apply a lipstick and then take it off and change it to a different one.
-Eyeliner: again, have the basics, white, brown, and black. of course invest in some colors to if you'd like too! liquid liner is an essential too, make sure you pick up a few though, they run out fast! any liquid liner with a steady and small tip is my favorite (bh cosmetics eyeliner or maybelline master precise)
-Brushes: again, have the basic brushes. usually a kit of brushes is best to buy in the beginning. sonja kashuk has some brush sets as well as a company called sigma (sigma.com). once you've really gotten the hang of doing others makeup and even your own, you'll find other brushes you might need too, and you can purchase those whereever and whenever.
-ALSO: keep in your kit at all times, makeup remover, makeup remover wipes, q-tips, tissues, etc.
so for pricing, it depends on the event, how much you have to travel, how much makeup you are using, and how much extra makeup you are buying. oh and also the makeup artists youre up against! (like MAC, Sephora, etc.) now there definitely is a way to exactly figure that out, but its a lot of math and a lot of brain work.. so just think about it in your head and give an about. for a prom, i would start off charging less then where a girl would usually go to get her makeup done. i believe MAC charges $50, so you want to go less then that. you also dont want to go too high because its just a prom, not a wedding. i charged somewhere between 25-35 depending on what the client wanted done. for a wedding, the bride would usually want not only her own makeup done, but her bridemaids as well. so the best way to charge is depending on how many womens makeup youll be doing. say about $60 a head, but the bride is free. it is her special days anyways! for all other occasions, take eveything into consideration and figure out a unique price for your client.
when it comes to figuring out what makeup to put on a client, the best thing you can do for yourself and your client is to have a free trial run. you wont be on a time limit, and itll be a good experimentation for you. it will also help your client to trust you more with their makeup and they'll keep coming back to you!
the last piece advice i'm going to give you is to be confident in yourself. you will do great, follow your heart & your passion and put hard work into it and you will go anywhere you want babygirl. goodluck & i hope this helps you on your journey, ;* xo
here is my youtube if you ever need any ideas!: http://www.youtube.com/user/LasciviousMakeup?feature=mhee
attached is a picture of a clients makeup i had done for a prom.
Oct 5, 2012
Stephanie C.
Thanks so much.ladies for your time you definantly took your time to inform me and I appreciate that a whole.lot ;)
Oct 5, 2012
Stephanie C.
Julia GOD bless you you are amazing for taking your time to tell.me all that! Heaven sent!
Oct 5, 2012
Julia S.
haha, you're very very welcome! i really hope it helps! if you ever need any advice or have any questions, i would love to answer them or give you as much advice as i can! ;*
Oct 5, 2012
Wafi A.
Charging clients is very subjective. There are a lot of factors that play into charging. First, I'd say look into what competitor prices are in your neighborhood/city. This really varies from city to city, I've noticed. Prices should be able to compete with salons and/or other artists while still being reasonable. You have to remember you are charging for a service, and you need to provide to the fullest extent. Charge what is appropriate according to the products you're using and investing in as well. If it costs more to maintain your kit, you may have to bump prices a little (while still being reasonable). Ask friends what they would be willing to pay if you really need to in order to get a rough idea of what others are willing to pay.
As for matching skin types and what makeup to do, you need to practice. Be a personal assistant for another artist. Ask friends to be your model and practice on other people.
Oct 5, 2012
Sydneydale A.
I only have one thing to add, because Julia was soo thorough! DO NOT use glitter from Hobby Lobby or Michael's on your face!! It is made out of metal, & if it gets into an eye it can be very dangerous! Even if your application is precise and you don't get any then. Who knows if it could fall during the day or when you wash it out! Always go for a cosmetic glitter!! It may be more expensive, but less expensive than what could happen to your eye!!
Oct 5, 2012
Julia S.
i agree that cosmetic glitter is worth the price and it is a lot finer and better made, but i did research on the glitters (hobbylobby) before i had bought them! them seemed fine to me after research, and i use them so much. i haven't ever had a problem with the glitters, i've actually gotten them in my eye, doesn't hurt at all. although i do see where you're coming from!
Oct 6, 2012
Sydneydale A.
Thats good to hear! :) What brand do you use?
Oct 6, 2012
Shelley W.
Someone mentioned craft glitter for a kit. If I was an artist I wouldn't risk using that. It is highly irritating to the eye and if it comes in contact with a clients contact lenses it can cause damage.....it can cause even damage to the eye itself. I had a team member who used it on her lids for a show and her cornea was scratched.
Oct 7, 2012
Julia S.
like i said again, i understand what you ladies are saying but i used the hobbylobby craft glitter. i wear contacts and i get them in my eyes all the time.. my eyes are fine and they're not scratched. if the glitter was bad for your eyes then i wouldnt have suggested it, but i used it all the time.
these are the glitters i use:
http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/green-gold-and-red-glitter-stack-pack-346882/
http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/blue-black-and-purple-glitter-stack-pack-346932/
also if you look at my youtube or beautylish pictures, most of the glitter used in them are these glitters.
http://www.youtube.com/user/LasciviousMakeup?feature=mhee
Oct 8, 2012
mallory w.
it's just better to use cosmetic grade glitters etc one client one bad reaction is not good press besides there are a lot of inexpensive cosmetic grade glitters out there.