Makeup Artists' Assistant

 

On the 01/02/14 I headed off to London to assist a Makeup Artist who was building her portfolio of work. We met through the same place we both trained. Despite being there at different times are paths had crossed several times. Freya Bolton had seen my work and asked me to come on this shoot with her as she felt it would be a great experience for me, she wasn't wrong!

 

The shoot took part in Brixton at the Shooting Beauty studio where models, photographers and stylists come together to help each other build their portfolios and find work. It was a culture shock for sure - being a country girl - everyone wore fashionable clothing (not just the models) and personalities were big and bright. We were taken straight through to the back room which was decked out with mirrors and lights so hot I was melting - without them it would be impossible to work though. I help set up and spent most of my time taking photos and video. I cleaned brushes in between models and even had some input on looks.

 

We were a bit rushed because we couldn't find the place initially so had to work quickly as some models had to leave at certain times. We were also limited on choices of fashions as models had already worn most of the clothes for other shoots throughout the morning. I loved sifting through all the accessories. If it had been my own shoot I would have asked for the artwork on the wall though! It was these amazing pair of wings fashioned from metal. I found that more inspiring than anything on the rail. I love unusual props.

 

By 5pm we started to realise there was no way we were making our 6pm train home. We hadn't eaten all day and were starting to get tired. There was still a couple of meetings to sit through and 3 tubes to get back. Unfortunately Freya had to buy us more tickets to get home in the end. Lesson learnt - leave more time for shooting, you never know what may happen and best to have too much time than too little.

 

Overall I really enjoyed the experience and a huge thank you to Freya for paying for me to accompany her. I made a 2 minute video of the day and included a couple of the unedited images from the day. If you are looking for experience as a makeup artist I highly recommend assisting.

 

oX Wendy Xo