HOW TO BECOME A MAKEUP ARTIST IN INDIA

When it comes to the beauty industry, it’s not easy for people to navigate their way through it. Either there is hesitation to enter the field because of doubts about the success rate or simply because people don’t know how and where to start their journey from. 

It’s not easy to reach the top of any field, you need knowledge, experience, and skill. For better insights, we have gathered information from the most well-known celebrity makeup artists and drawn from their experiences to learn a few things about how they got to where they are today.
This blog will help you get answers to all the possible questions you might have about this field and will guide you to understand what it takes to become a successful ‘Makeup Artist in India’.

WHAT IS A PROFESSIONAL MAKEUP ARTIST?

A makeup artist is a person who applies cosmetics to people’s skin in an artistic manner which makes their appearance appalling and removes blemishes from the skin. They make people picture perfect for any occasion as per the demand of their client.

WHERE TO START?

If you are someone who has only recently started looking into becoming a makeup artist for a living and has no prior experience, then you should start out by gaining some knowledge about the career path through courses or joining a makeup course. 

These courses can be anywhere from 1 month, 6 months, or even a year-long depending on how detailed you are willing and able to go. Apart from knowledge, they also help you to get more clients and have a network to start your advertising career. It builds your portfolio and also helps to get experience. It is also a good idea to do a retail job in some makeup stores to know a little more about what goes on behind the scenes and also learn more about makeup products and the proper way to use them. 

The good thing about having attended a cosmetology school is that you get to work with other makeup artists, try your hand in different fields and have a network to start with. It is a big investment, no doubt, but if you are serious about your decision, it’s easily recoverable as you start earning and get more job opportunities.  

The top schools for a career as a makeup artist include:

SOME BASICS TO KEEP IN MIND

The course will teach you everything you need to know about makeup and what goes into it but there are a few things that you need to keep in mind that go hand in hand with becoming an MUA. These include:

#1 Hygiene is key:

This is especially important for all makeup artists to keep in mind as you are dealing with products and multiple people. It is easy to spread an infection if proper cleanliness of the products and tools isn’t maintained and of course, that’s a big no-no. Apart from the threat of an infection, the way you maintain your products will also give your customers an insight into what kind of an artist you are. If they feel uncomfortable with the hygiene, you might get away with that appointment but you are less likely to gain anything as the customer will not be willing to appreciate you and recommend you to others or even re-hire you.

#2 Interpersonal skills need to be great:

As a makeup artist, you are going to spend a lot of time in people’s personal spaces. Be it bridal makeup or even make-up for a shoot, the behind-the-scenes of an event have a lot going on. Emotions are high and you never know what kind of a client you might be getting. That’s why, as an MUA, you need to make sure that you aren’t rude or unhelpful. Considering how heavily this career path depends on word of mouth as a form of promotion, you cannot afford to leave a bad impression.

#3 Passion to keep trying new products and techniques:

The beauty industry is an ever-evolving industry that has new products and techniques being introduced often. You need to be on top of all these new changes and know what can give you an early movers advantage. Banking on the right thing at the right time can help you accelerate your career manyfold.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF MAKEUP ARTISTS:

In makeup also there are different avenues and specializations that one can undertake according to their strengths. These include:

#1 Bridal Makeup Artist:

This is one of the most common routes taken by makeup artists. It has its advantages and disadvantages. A few positives can include that the bridal look remains somewhat constant with a few exceptions, the charge for bridal makeup runs high and is a very profitable avenue. But it has its flaws too. Bridal makeup artists need to always be on top of their game. There is a very slim margin for error as you are preparing a bride for the biggest celebration in her life. Apart from these high stakes, bridal makeup artists need to be really good at advertising themselves as a bride will not want to compromise when it comes to her wedding and she will only pick someone that comes highly recommended or if she personally likes the looks you create. This is a high-risk, high-reward kind of situation that can be very challenging.

#2 Theatre Makeup Artist:

Theatre makeup is all about deciding what look will suit each character keeping in mind the back story, the setting, time period and other factors. Once all these things are decided, the execution should be exactly what was envisioned and that it also comes through to the audience.

#3 Prosthetic Makeup Artist:

Prosthetic makeup artists are required mostly for shoots or movies. In-depth knowledge about how and where to use these prosthetics is required and so you need to take a separate course on this. The skillset is definitely much more advanced in this one and you need to be especially interested in this if you want to go far.

#4 Editorial Makeup Artist:

If you choose to make this your forte, you need to make sure creativity is your strength. Makeup should be your muse and thinking out of the box should be something you are comfortable with. Editorial shoots follow a predetermined theme and that is what the makeup artists are told to follow as well. You will be asked to come up with a look accordingly and mostly they are not looking for anything subtle.

Do you also wish to learn all such types of makeup courses online and that too at affordable pricing? Then, click on this link to learn more about the different types of Makeup Artist Courses available online and explore yourself. You will find in-depth details in this course and industry-based practical training.

WHAT IS THE SALARY OF A MAKEUP ARTIST?

It is important to keep in mind that makeup artists have seasonal jobs. During the season they are in demand, they could make double or triple of what they would usually earn on off-season days. The disparity isn’t just in the seasons but also in the level of experience an artist has. Top-level makeup artists have much higher rates as they are sought after and their demand is high, but a beginner will have to keep the charges realistic and first focus on growing their network. The pay scale for artists at different levels of experience can look like this:

Just completed your Makeup Artist course and don’t know where to start your career as an Artist from? Visit StyleLink.in and opt for the Makeup Artist Jobs available in PAN India at the guaranteed salary package. Now make your career tension-proof and grow all along the way.

HOW TO GROW AS A MAKEUP ARTIST?

#1 Word Of Mouth Promotion

The biggest source of growth for a makeup artist is always word-of-mouth promotion. People will always hire an artist they are comfortable with or someone they have worked with before and that’s why as a beginner it is difficult to gain the trust of clients. And this is where having done a proper course acts as an advantage. You work as an assistant and gain experience as well as connections. But that’s not the only way. You need to make sure that any clients you do book, you leave the best impression possible and make them feel comfortable. This ensures long-run success.

#2 Portfolio

This is where the advantage of a more detailed course comes in handy. You get to create a portfolio with looks you were assigned to do and that gives you the advantage of not having to find clients so as to add things to the portfolio. However, it isn’t the worst thing if you didn’t attend a detailed course. You can always keep adding to your portfolio as you work on new clients or you can even create the looks on your loved ones and add that to your portfolio. You should make sure that you are ready to share this with anyone and at any time they ask for it.

#3 Social media

Social media is a great way to advertise your work as a makeup artist. It’s an easy way to reach out to the masses and it is also a very common way for artists to get more clients. It almost works as a portfolio that is visible to everyone. However, you need to post regularly and stay up to date on the trends so that your page reaches as many people as possible.

#4 Focus On Specialization

As the saying goes, jack of all trades master of none, you should take time to perfect a skill, be it bridal makeup, prosthetics, or even theatre makeup. This way you have a niche and clients looking for a makeup artist in a specific category will always opt for a specialist, not a generalist. This is why honing your skills in a particular category takes you a long way.

Looking forward to improving your current Makeup Artist skills and don’t know where to start from? Don’t worry visit at StyleLink.in and discover all the training available over there which will help you in becoming better and more proficient in your area of expertise.

FAQ:

Q. How to become a successful freelance makeup artist?

Ans. To be successful as a makeup artist you obviously need to be good at what you do and have great interpersonal skills. You need to know how to market yourself and create long-lasting relations with your clients so they think of you anytime they need a makeup artist.

Q. How to start as a freelance makeup artist?

Ans. First and foremost, you need to have some kind of knowledge about what you are getting yourself into. A course or a diploma in cosmetology is what you should aim for at least in the beginning.

Q. Which is the best makeup artist course in Delhi?

Ans. Pearl academy and Lakme academy are the top-rated academies in Delhi for all cosmetology-related courses.

Q. How do I improve marketing as a freelancing makeup artist?

A. Word of mouth and social media are two of the most common routes taken by makeup artists to promote their businesses. A great personality and friendly behaviour can help with word-of-mouth promotion and being regular in posting on your social media and staying on trend will help increase your reach as well.