What Are The Career Paths For People Considering Becoming Make Up Artists

career paths for aspiring make up artists

There are several different career paths for people considering becoming make up artists, each with their own set of skills, experience and qualifications. Here's a brief guide to the most common types:

1. Pro Makeup Artist:

A pro makeup artist is someone with a lot of experience and knowledge in the art of make-up, and typically holds a professional qualification in make-up or a related field. They are usually responsible for creating models' looks on set, and can often be hired to do commercial photo shoots, fashion shows and campaigns.

Not all makeup artists have formal training, some makeup artists have a natural creative flair that they have nurtured over a number of years and learnt by themselves , or other makeup artists have come from a professional arts background and used transferable skills to develop a career within the make up industry.

2. Social Media Beauty Influencer:

In recent years some makeup artists have entered the industry by primarily applying makeup to themselves and showcasing their creativity via social media platforms. These artists may not work on others and generally work with brands by promoting their products online.

3. Special Effects Make up Artist:

You may see the word abbreviated as SFX Makeup Artist. This particular artist has had professional education and possess a number of specialist skills that allow them to create realistic effects to a chosen subject. The role may include using Prosthetics to change and alter a persons features. It involves creativity and precise technical knowledge to create anything from traumas and wounds to the skin and body to aging or building a prosthetic piece from scratch.

4. Retail Make up Artists:

Retail Make up artists typically work in salons or department stores, and have a great amount of knowledge about the company they work for and may freelance on occasion for events like Weddings. Working in retail is a great avenue to pursue a way into the industry as it gives you a multitude of experience and a great training ground to learn about how products work. 

5. Make Up Artist Assistant:

A make up artist assistant is someone who has been trained to help a make up artist with their job. They may have worked in a salon before, or learned the basics of makeup from online courses or college. An assistant helps the make up artist with everything from preparing a clients skin for makeup or cleaning the makeup artists kit to helping with creative ideas. This is a great way to get a real  understanding of the industry, network with professionals and to prepare yourself for being a professional make up artist. 

Are there any courses that can help become a make up artist?

If you're interested in becoming a professional makeup artist, it's important to research all of your options and find the right course or program for you.

Here are some of the popular courses in the UK which may help you on your journey. Courses For Aspiring Make Up Artists

Are there any tools professionals use to help my progress?

Many professional make up artists use the contemporary edit make up artists journal to help them showcase and store designs with specially designed paper which soaks up make up on contact, with 30 different sections to help you manage your career including kit lists, call sheets and much more, at just £40 it can help you get started in the world of professional make-up design. 

You can order this invaluable tool here: The Contemporary Edit Journal