Pro Kit Tips | #1 Consider Your Clientele

Starting your own professional makeup kit can seem like a hugely daunting task, especially when you see those currently established in the industry with their kit of the latest luxury makeup worth a few grand. Whilst I am still finding my own feet and I am far from an expert; I have picked up a handful of tips to help make establishing yourself a little easier. As I build my business, I want to share the experience and any tips I discover along the way; so here is the first instalment of the new series Pro Kit Tips. 

Tip #1 | Consider Your Clientele 

When starting out, you don't need to buy foundation and lipstick in every shade available; but rather base what you buy around the clients your initial clientele. For example, knowing my own immediate connections, starting out I am most likely to be working on lighter complexions and so I base my initial purchases on shades to suit this specific skin tone.

When choosing foundation for your kit, rather than buy every shade variation, buy 2-4 options in the colour range that you are most likely to be working on. Then, as you are asked to work on different skin tones, either buy a new shade when it is needed or you can even ask the model if she would be happy bringing her own foundation with her for a shoot. Don't be afraid to ask, as when starting out everyone is in the same position. As an up and coming artist in this industry, you need to keep your costs down as low as possible. If there is a chance of using a model's foundation rather than buying a new shade for £10-£20 that you are unlikely to use again, take it!

The same principle applies to lipstick; buy a nude and a dark lipstick to suit the skin tone you know you are most likely to be working with. As work comes in, buy lipstick shades when needed to suit the brief you have been given for that job. 

When choosing an eyeshadow palette for you kit, consider the type of work you are most likely to be doing. If you know you will probably start out exclusively doing bridal and beauty work then you don’t need to add a palette of dark or bright colours to your kit. Buy one good neutral, brown-toned palette that can allow you to create the variations you need and then buy more extravagant palettes as the work comes in and you are asked for these looks.

I hope you enjoyed this quick Pro Kit Tip and it helps anyone baffled by how to start out as a professional makeup artist. I am going to keep this series going, with a new post every week. I have a few tips I know I want to share but I would love to hear any specific questions you want answering! Comment down below or tweet me @DevonMartinMUA.

Devon

xoxo

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Kit Essential | The Pro Hygiene Collection

As a makeup artist, brush cleaner is an unquestionable essential. Whilst I always deep clean my brushes in-between jobs, when I’m on the job or working on myself, brush cleaner is my third hand. My favourite brand for this is The Pro Hygiene Collection, from which I love both their Makeup Brush Cleaner and Antibacterial Makeup Spray.

1. Makeup Brush Cleaner 

Starting with their Brush Cleaner, this is my favourite dry spray for sanitising and cleaning by brushes on the go or in a rush. I spray it onto either a cotton wool pad or the brush itself depending on the product I have been working with, and then swirl the brush around on a cotton pad to clean it. The makeup instantly disintegrates and is dissolved by the spay. After a couple of goes, my brush is clean and within a few minutes will be ready to be used again either in a different product or on another client.

The spray is £10 for a 240ml bottle and as only a couple sprays is needed at a time to remove all product, this one bottle definitely goes a long way.

2. Antibacterial Makeup Spray

The second product from the line that I also rely on regularly is the Antibacterial Makeup Spray; a product that is hard to come by. This sanitises your kit after you have finished a client’s makeup, making it ready to be used for your next job. 

When I have finished working, I spray this over my eyeshadow palettes, blushes and any other powder products I have used. I leave them to dry for a couple minutes before packing them away back into my kit. This sterilises your powders in between uses, meaning that each time you can use your brushes directly into your products and then onto your client.

At £15 for the 240ml bottle, this is a little pricier, but for anyone who is looking at building up their own kit it really is an essential! A high standard of hygiene and cleanliness is really what will distinguish you as a professional artist.

I hope you enjoyed this little Kit Essential post and I would love to know your thoughts as well your favourite antibacterial sprays for your makeup! Leave comments down below or message me on Twitter and Instagram.

Devon

xoxo

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Hello . . . Anyone Out There?

Hello? 

Anyone listening? 

Remember me?

*hides behind computer screen anxiously awaiting reply*

I am hoping that these words don’t simply bounce of the walls of cyber space and back to my own ears, but that maybe a few of you are still following this little place on the internet called Candid Devon. If you are, I thank you greatly and feel I owe everyone as well as myself an explanation for why this blog has been deafly quiet for the last month (or more). 

I am happy to share that I have finally full-filled my childhood dream of becoming a Makeup-Artist. I have spent the last month studying at the Central School of Makeup in Birmingham (UK) to become a professional, IMA qualified makeup artist and couldn’t be happier. For anyone in the UK living in or near the Midlands wishing to become a professional artist without having to relocate to London, I would 100 per cent recommend this school. My expectations were exceeded and I truly had the best experience of my life. I now feel ready to head out into the world and attempt to carve my own path as an artist. I won’t go into anymore detail now about the specifics of my course, but if this is something you’d be interested in for a separate post let me know in the comments below. 

Now finished, I am in the process of establishing myself as a freelance MUA. I have a logo, business cards, leaflets and a website soon to go live; it still doesn’t quite feel real that this is all happening. I have a portfolio, am a member of Model’s Mayhem, Purple Port and have been booked for my first shoot this saturday (what?!). I can honestly say that my confidence to do this is entirely thanks to the teaching, advice and on-going support I received by the Central School of Makeup.

I am also excited to get back into the swing of things over here on my blog. I have truly missed the freedom and excitement of having a space to create my own content. I already have a bundle of posts planned and can’t wait to share the recent makeup looks I am loving and reviews of newly released products.

If you have any questions or ideas for posts that you’d like me to write, I would love to hear your suggestions in the comments below! Here are the links to my Instagram and Facebook pages as a Makeup Artist and I’d love for you to go check them out, like, follow and share.

Thank you for reading and I promise the wait for my next post won’t be quite as long!

Devon

xoxo

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