Today we’d like to introduce you to Bryanna Nevius.
Bryanna, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
For as long as I can remember, I have had a love of all things beauty. I remember being a child and begging my mom to let me do her hair constantly and going through all of her “grown up” makeup and just feeling so excited about all of the colors and the shimmers of everything that I was looking at. As I grew, my love for all things beauty never wavered, if anything it became more intense. I remember going through high school and college and just having this constant love for makeup and looking at images from fashion magazines and just being totally in love with the way the hair and makeup was paired with the designers the models were wearing.
Once I graduated from school and had more time and freedom in my schedule, I decided that I really wanted to start working in the beauty industry and learning more about different products and applying makeup on others, so I got a job working for Bare Minerals. This job was really the starting point for me where I developed more than just a passion for putting makeup on myself and close friends or family. I’ll always credit my position with the company as the thing that helped me develop a skill set that allowed me to take my passions and turn them into a career as a freelance makeup artist. I was able to take my love for makeup and makeup products and really learn how use that to appropriately apply makeup on all different types of people, with different skin types, skin tones, facial shapes, etc.
While I was still with the company, I slowly started building up a client base on the side. It started out as doing different friends’ makeup for their family member’s wedding or senior photos and then gradually progressed to clients whom I had mutual friends with and then it continued to grow to the point that I’m at today. It’s been a very consistent process, but the thing that I love about it is that as I continue to grow and educate myself, my client base has continued to grow with me. Everything is proportionate, and it makes it really easy to track success within my career and also to set goals for myself as a makeup artist and creative.
Has it been a smooth road?
I think that with any career path you choose, or even just in life in general, it’s never a completely smooth road, there are going to be ups and downs and I think that the struggles are just as valuable, if not more so than the times when everything is going smoothly. There were so many days where I would second guess what I was doing, second guess my skill set, etc. I think it’s natural to question yourself sometimes, especially when you are first starting out and you don’t fully understand the nature of the business. It took me a really long time to learn how to work with clients on figuring out exactly what they want and understand that if a client didn’t book me, it didn’t mean there was anything wrong with me, it just meant that it wasn’t a good fit. I think the best advice that I can give is to just focus on yourself and on honing in your skill set. Don’t worry too much about the number of clients you book or how to get more clients, just focus on you and continuing to learn and improve as an artist and as you grow, so will your client base.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I’m a freelance makeup artist and I specialize in makeup application for bridal, special event, and photo shoots. I work both directly with clients as well as other creatives, such as photographers and different brands to create looks that are in alignment with their needs. I think one of the things I’m the proudest of is my ability to adapt. It’s so important in my career to be able to take your skills and your knowledge and be able to apply them to all different types of clients and jobs. Not every bride wants the same look and not every photo shoot is the same type of work. I’ve had requests of everything from natural and minimal makeup to rainbow glitter tears, so you really never know what you’re going to get!
Another thing that I’m really proud of and that I think sets me apart as an artist is my ability to connect with clients on a deeper level. It’s important to always keep the relationship with your clients professional, but I think it’s equally important to make them feel really comfortable and like they can be themselves around you. As a makeup artist, you’re working really closely with your clients and usually for some kind of an extended period of time and/or during a really important time in their life, so I think it’s really important to connect with your clients and make them feel totally at ease.
Finding a mentor and building a network are often cited in studies as a major factor impacting one’s success. Do you have any advice or lessons to share regarding finding a mentor or networking in general?
I think the thing that I’ve found most helpful is to surround yourself with like-minded individuals and people that are going to help you grow and support you and your goals. Whether that’s with a mentor or with colleagues that have the same type of mindset, the most important thing is to find people that lift you up. I’ve made it a practice in my life to really only surround myself with people that are supportive and that help me grow because whether you realize it or not, the people you surround yourself with have such an influence on your energy levels and your overall vibe. So I guess my advice would be to figure out what you want for your life and link up with others who want the same or similar things. The more you do that, the more you find the right people for you personally, whether that’s other professionals in the industry or other people that support you in general.
Contact Info:
- Email: makeupbybryannalyn@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makeupbybryannalyn/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/makeupbybryannalyn/
Image Credit:
Bryanna Nevius
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