Mary
Erickson has been doing make-up and hair for brides, in addition to her commercial make-up
work, for about 20 years. She has worked with many celebrities, and her work has appeared
in Rolling Stone, Self Magazine, and many other publications. She is based in San Diego,
California where the wedding business is booming! She has compiled a list of questions
that she recommends asking when in search for a make-up artist and/or hair stylist for
your wedding.
When in search for a make-up artist you will need to ask some questions. Don’t be
shy, as the professional you hire will be working for you, and must meet your
qualifications.
Here are some
questions you may want to ask:
Do I come
to your shop or do you travel to me on my wedding day?
Consider what
travel will be like on that day, how far will you have to go etc., and make sure you are
up to it if the make-up artist can’t come to you.
How far
do you travel and what are the travel charges?
Most make-up artists will travel but if you give them a distance too far from where they
are located they may tack on a travel fee. Find that out up front.
What size
of party can you accommodate?
Many artists will try to do too much in order to make more money, your party may suffer if
the artist is going too fast or if she makes people sit around all morning waiting. A good
artist will want the party fresh and will never keep a party sitting around waiting for
more then a few hours.
How do I
keep my make-up fresh during the day?
Will you be given touch up make-up to go, or will you be expected to buy it? If
you are being airbrushed regardless of what the “experts” tell you, you will
need to powder during the day and touch up a little. Remember that you will be hot and
probably perspire a lot on this day regardless of the temperature outside, you will be
hugging people, kissing etc. It is not realistic to think you will go all day without a
touch up.
What
products do you use?
Products that the artist’s use can vary and most artists will use many brands
depending on what she feels appropriate for the person. If an artist mentions one brand
and uses it exclusively, find out if she sells it, if she does chances are you have a
sales person and not just an artist.
Do you
sell make-up? Will you be trying to sell my friends and relatives products on my wedding
day?
This is my pet peeve! A Make-up Artist is an Artist not a sales person. They are charging
you for their talents, and if they need to make money by selling product as well perhaps
they just aren’t charging enough for their talents. No bride wants to be sold
products on her wedding day, and she does not want her party sold to on her special day
either. This is awkward and unprofessional in my opinion.
Do you do
Airbrush make-up?
A few make-up artists do airbrush make-up, it is beautiful and has a few benefits that
traditional make-up doesn’t have. I do both and in all honesty can get the same clean
flawless look with both methods, I do believe the airbrush lasts a bit longer but it will
look very bad if the bride cries or smudges it. Retouching a tear streak is almost
impossible without the airbrush on hand. Do not discount an artist because she
doesn’t airbrush. I have seen poor make-up application with both methods and
beautiful application with both methods. It really is in the talent of the artist, not in
the method of application.
How much
do you charge for a practice session?
A practice session is VERY important. Never let your wedding day be the first day you have
an artist apply your make-up. Most artists charge a minimal fee for this. I suggest you
have your make-up done for a special event, party, or date, that way you can wear it out
in public and get a feel for it, and how you will feel in it that day. Getting feedback
from others is also good, your friends are more objective about the way you look then you
are.
Is there
a chance that someone else will do my make-up on my wedding day if you can’t make it?
Another pet peeve of mine! Imagine going through a practice run and loving what someone
does for you. You get to know them and they know your face and what you like and
don’t like, then on the most important day of your life a stranger shows up to do
your make-up!!!! This happens, and it can be very frightening for the bride. Make sure
that this make-up artist has never done this to anyone and never will.
Is the
practice session a full make-up just as on my wedding day or is a quick version?
Of course, you want the full version, go ahead and pay for the full version. The artist
may offer only a partial for free, this will not be sufficient, pay the money for a full
version.
How much experience do you have with weddings?ind out how long the artist has been doing
weddings. Of course, she can stretch the truth and many do but you will be able to catch
that at the practice run. Experience is something very hard to fake. Experience does not
necessarily mean that you will like better what the artist does, it does mean that the
artist is probably professional and will not stand you up or be late, it also means that
she has had success in the business and must be liked by most brides.
Where did
you learn to apply make-up?
Did the artist go to school, learn from a friend, or is she self-taught? If an artist is
good it really does not matter how she learned to do make-up but it may matter in the
photos. How the make-up looks to the naked eye and how it looks in photos will be
different, make sure the artist knows enough about photography to know what to do
different for the photos.
Do you
also do wedding hair?
You may want a make-up artist that can come out and do both. Keep in mind that there are
very few make-up artists that are good at up-dos and very few hairdressers good at up-dos
and good at make-up. You will find out at the practice run if the person is good at both,
you may find you love what she does with make-up but don’t care for the hair or vise
versa, so you may want to hire her to do just the make-up and look further for someone to
do your hair. I will repeat, to find one person that you like for both will be a real
trick so keep your options open.
May I see
your portfolio?
I think it’s a good idea to look at the artist’s portfolio to get an idea of
their style and what beauty is to them. A word of warning here, you never know whose work
you are looking at! Unless the work is published on the Internet, or has the artists name
on the work published you will never know for sure that they are showing you work they
have done! You should know after your practice run.
May I
call a few references?
If you have any doubts about the artist then call a few references but do not let this be
a substitute for a practice run. Make sure you get at least 6 references and then choose
one or two at random to call. If the artist only gives you one or two you may have a
problem, every artist should have a lot of happy brides to refer you to.
What at
do you charge?
Keep in mind that prices will vary with experience and demand, just like any vendor. You
can waste a lot of money going to practice sessions so make sure that you check the person
out before you spend the money. If the practice is free and you have time on your hands
then go to as many as you can. It can’t hurt and you may have fun trying on the
different looks for size.
Keep in mind
there are many good make-up artists and many that really do not know what they are doing,
you must do some shopping and start early. Good make-up artists are busy and you need to
book your artist well in advance just like you would any other vendor. If you find the
artist you have in mind is booked on your wedding day, get a referral from this person.
Usually a make-up artist is the best source of finding another good makeup artist.
Mary Erickson can
be reached at 858-675-0007 or by email at mary@TheMakeupArtist.com
.
To hire any of the San Diego artists that Mary personally recommends from any bride on a
budget to the “money is no object” bride visit www.SanDiegoBrides.com
Mary has a question and answer forum on her website where you can ask any questions of
your own:
www.TheMakeupArtist.com
coming up....Terry Tomlinson, Richardson, Texas |
Resident Beauty Expert Presents Guest Beauty Specialists: