In 1991 I graduated from the University of Manitoba with a BA in Political Science and applied for a job with a new cosmetic company called Mac Cosmetics. I was 21 years old and I didn’t know anything about make-up. I wore a red lipstick, a ‘cool’ black blazer and black stirrup leggings to my interview and the representatives from Mac commented that I had an ‘eye for style’. I was hired as the Retail Manager to open up the first Winnipeg Mac store. I never thought of myself as an artist, and was shocked that these strangers said they could train me to be one. And so I began my career as a make-up artist.
I was sent to Toronto for two weeks of training. The first day I met the big shots at the head office on Bloor St. The next day I was on a school bus with eight other newly hired aspiring artists to the Mac warehouse/lab in Markham, Ontario. I learned about ingredients ie; color pigments, formulations, packaging and R&D. I worked on the assembly line and made lipsticks, eye shadows and foundations. I didn’t know it then, but that training was invaluable. I saw what no other make-up artist I know has ever seen before-the other side of the cosmetic industry.
I did well in retail I loved it. You either do or you don’t. I soon developed my own style of applying make-up. It was ‘natural’ and customers loved this ‘make-up- no make-up look’. I was asked to share my tips and tricks and I realized I loved to teach and share my knowledge, and I honored and respected those that had taught and shared with me. I learned that make-up applied well could make someone feel great. I called it make-up therapy, so I began to think of myself as a make-up therapist. I wanted to help people feel good about themselves through make-up and also to teach them not to be afraid of it.
I was, however, frustrated because my knowledge of skin was minimal and clients who trusted me with make-up advice would also ask me to recommend skincare products. I wasn’t an esthetician or a dermatologist so I didn’t have the answers. I began to research more about skincare ingredients. I tried as many conventional skincare products as I could. At that time I did not know about holistic nutrition.
After working for Mac for 3 years I moved to Vancouver to become the retail manager for another new cosmetic company called Bobbi Brown. Strangely enough I could not see much of a difference between this new make-up and Mac. Except for the price. Bobbi Brown was double, at the Chanel counter beside me it was triple. I met the other cosmetic girls-the Chanel girl, the Estee Lauder girl, the new Stila girl. They had a lot to brag about. “Our mascara is the best”, “no our lipstick is the best”. I was confused. Same ingredients. Did more expensive make-up mean better? So I checked them all out. On the slow days I touched everything I could at the cosmetic counters. I tried the grey eye shadow from Bobbi Brown, the grey eye shadow from Chanel, the grey eye shadow from Stila. I also tested lipstick. Perhaps one was a little shinier, or lighter or brighter. In the Mac lab I learned lipstick could only be made one way-there’s pigment, beeswax, and emollients. So I continued to ask myself these questions: “Is there a difference in high end make-up? What about drugstore make-up? Is it all made the same way? Are consumers and even other make-up artists fools or am I a really bad make-up artist”? I believed in myself too much to believe the latter.
For the first time I thought about creating my own make-up line. My twin brother is a business developer and offered to help. He researched a generic cosmetics company and suggested I put my name on it. I couldn’t do it. I didn’t know what the ingredients would be, and if I did, I knew that I didn’t know enough to talk about them. As a make-up artist and a consumer of make-up I wanted to know about the ingredients I was putting on my skin and others, and I felt it was my responsibility, like a doctor prescribing medicine to a patient. My quest to find the answers and the truth about cosmetics and skincare continued.
In 1998, the film industry was booming in Vancouver. Big money could be made- I heard, so I left retail knowing one day I might be back. I took special effects make-up classes, worked on student films, independent films and was accepted into IATSE and ACFC- the prestigious film unions. Film and television make-up is often different than beauty make-up. I was eager to do well at prosthetic make-up because it paid more. I worked on shows where I was required to apply glue all over an actors face in order to make them look like a monster. I applied these chemicals and removed these chemicals with other chemicals. In some studios I wore a mask because my nose would bleed and in other studios the fake smoke would irritate my eyes. I became aware that the film industry was full of toxic chemicals. Both film unions offer safety courses to educate and increase awareness of hazardous conditions and materials but only those employees that recognize these dangers and want to see changes are demanding safer conditions. I have become one of those employees.
Over the last few years the film industry had been slow and sporadic. Two years ago, while not working, I had a lot of time to think about the choices I was making in my life professionally and personally. I felt fortunate because I knew that I had the ability to make choices and so I committed to becoming more conscious of the food I ate and the skincare and cosmetics I was applying on my skin and my clients. I replenished my kits with new products from the health food stores and reinvented my self as an eco-friendly make-up artist. The support from my clients and my peers was overwhelming. I knew that this was the path I wanted to be on, it felt right for me.
One day as I stood in the aisle of the health and beauty department of Whole Foods I was inspired. I read a label of one of the products I was interested in, and for the first time I knew what the ingredients were in it! This encouraged me to consider developing my own make-up line again, but this time I knew that my products would be organic/natural and safe. Unfortunately, I was not in a financial position to invest a lot of money, nor did I know of others who did. So I decided that perhaps formal education on the subject of organic cosmetics would be necessary. At that time I could not find courses related to organic cosmetics. However, I did find an introductory course at UCLA on Cosmetic Chemistry, enrolled and completed it in May 2010. This course did cover a small section on organic cosmetics, which was wonderful. After taking the course, I felt I had some closure with conventional cosmetics. I learned about many of the chemical ingredients I had known of for years and was certain that I didn’t want to use them any longer if I didn’t have to. I had considered taking the course again this year because it was so informative, until I discovered The Institute of Holistic Nutrition.
In the future I hope to develop great products that will look good, feel good and be good for the skin. I believe, and I am convinced that food and overall great health can do this, and I am looking forward to learning how and why in the courses I will be taking.