The Ultimate Guide to Becoming a Fashion Makeup Artist

Book excerpt: How to succeed in the difficult to break into and highly competitive world of fashion and editorial makeup, by an international makeup artist with 20 years of experience in that field. This is a book about the business of becoming a fashion editorial makeup artist. Once you know how to apply makeup, that's just the beginning – but figuring out the process to building a career as a successful makeup artist in fashion, especially how to earn money doing makeup, is very difficult. Few people already in the industry will talk about it and even interviews with successful makeup artist aren't much help. This book breaks down the repeatable process of how you launch yourself in the fashion industry in a practical, hands-on way with plenty of tips and tricks by someone who has done it. After over 20 years as a fashion makeup artist working internationally, and after assisting top makeup artists working at the highest level for many years, Christabel Draffin has had the experience to guide you to the career that you want, and to answer questions like: -How do I build my editorial portfolio? -How will I earn money as a makeup artist? -How do I get my first client? -How do I know if and when I should work for free? -How do I support myself whilst building my portfolio and networking? -How do I network within the fashion industry, especially if I don't have any industry contacts? -How do I get assisting work? -How do I build relationships with beauty brands? -How do I use social media to leverage my career? -How do I get an agent to represent me? It also covers how to manage different life circumstances such as having children, living in a smaller city, moving to a new country and how to get back on track when work is quiet for a period of time. About the Author Christabel Draffin is an international fashion makeup artist and author who has over 20 years' experience working in Paris, Sydney, the US and London. Her work has appeared regularly in magazines like Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, ELLE, Glamour, Marie Claire and L'Uomo Vogue amongst many others, as well as working for clients like Dior, Lanvin, Illamasqua and L'Oreal. She is agency represented in London and works on a mixture of celebrity red carpet, fashion shows and editorial and advertising shoots.