by Nina Medeiros

Created on: March 12, 2009

Aspiring makeup artists, hear this: No matter what instruction you receive, the determining factor in opening doors in the makeup industry has always been and will always be your level of skill. Makeup artistry is 10% talent and 100% practice and that adds up to 110% which is EXACTLY what you'll have to give to break into professional makeup of any kind, so get your mother, grab a friend, show up at the local woman's shelter, make an afternoon visit to the old folks home and start practicing because skill can only be learned by the diligent practice of applying makeup to every skin type, age and gender.

Having said that, there are some excellent ways to begin studying technique. Before signing up for a program of any kind, consider what area of makeup artistry you are most interested in pursuing because there are significant differences in the training required for each. You may be interested in professional stage makeup, special effects makeup, studio and runway makeup or fashion makeup. Whatever your interests, giving some serious thought to them in advance will save you both time and money.

The goal of any makeup artist is to MAKE GREAT FACE! so it's imperative to start with a basic BEAUTY makeup class in which you begin to understand the fundamentals of skin type, ethnicity and technique. After you have mastered the basics you can move on to learning CHARACTER makeup where you take an actor and create a character through the use of various materials and techniques. You can learn SPECIAL EFFECTS makeup (think Lord of the Rings) which is an art entirely unto itself or lean towards High FASHION. The most rewarding part of a career in makeup is that it can be as unique as you are. Timeless reflections of beauty, style, image and art have all had great presence in the world of makeup.

While makeup school is certainly one option you will want to consider (check out MUDD and CINEMA for examples) there are other less expensive ways to get an education. I can personally guarantee that a certificate of completion alone will not land you a job. Check out your local MAC counter. Though you may not want to hear this, there is no better beginning for a makeup artist. While you will certainly have to put up with a resident diva or two (don't give them a hard time, they earned their diva status!) you will get priceless on-the-job experience as well as some solid basic training. It's like boot camp, but for makeup artists! MAC artists are world reknowned. They are heavy

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