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Feb 25
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Makeup Influencers vs Your Makeup Artistry Creativity

By From the Experts 2 Comments

In this digital age, many makeup artists are starting to find their inspiration (and education!) on social media. Unfortunately, this increased pressure of following trends online has created unrealistic expectations about what a professional makeup artist actually does.

Online influencers are often untrained and have no education on classic makeup techniques. Instead, they rely on copying others who’ve paved the road before them. Here are three unexpected reasons to not get caught in the influencer trap.

How To Become A Professional Makeup Artist - Creativity - Makeup Artist On Camera

1. It Makes You into a Copy Artist.

Because social media does not often teach proper techniques, those claiming to be experts usually only know what they have learned from other influencers. Almost everyone ends up doing minor variations of exactly the same, and often overly dramatic, look. This turns learning makeup into a paint-by-numbers game, which makes learning makeup easy but destroys artistic creativity. Makeup artists who fall into this trap can easily be turned into knock-off artists who only recreate versions of the makeup they have memorized.

2. It Is Not Reflective of What Is Happening in the Real World of Makeup.

Current social trends encourage makeup artists to create overly dramatic eyebrows, aggressive foundation, wide crease shades, and overly dramatic cat eyes. And as trends go, these will eventually fade away and be replaced with new ones.

As much as influencers might lead you to believe it, the makeup they demonstrate is not reflective of current trends in the makeup industry. Their style of makeup is not done regularly in the real world. The end result of learning from influencers is that you’ll have a set of specific techniques that may not help you book real clients.

How To Become A Professional Makeup Artist - Creativity - Makeup Influencer

3. The trends are usually overly dramatic and exaggerated.

And it makes sense. Influencers are paid-per-view, so they need to create content that pops and attracts attention. Because social media is a visual medium, real makeup techniques will not attract the same viewership as those that are more vivid and outrageous. But, again, these exaggerated looks are seldom done in the real world.

There is a surprisingly simple solution to escaping the influencer trap. Instead of immersing yourself in the unreal and unrealistic world of makeup, follow the people and events that influencers themselves are copying. This will not only put you ahead of the curve, but it will teach you how techniques and trends are actually being done in the real world.

Don’t spend hours trying to mimic influencers as you copy their color-by-numbers videos. Instead, use your catalog of techniques and learn how to reverse engineer the looks of the original trendsetting artists. This will inspire your creativity and arm you to work at a higher level.

How To Become A Professional Makeup Artist - Creativity - Makeup Artist Career

Some great artists to follow are Kevin James Bennett, Quinn Murphy, Chris Milone, James Vincent, Janell Geason, Stephen Moleski, Pat McGrath, Kristofer Buckle, Orlando Santiago, Billy B., Beau Nelson, and Bobbi Brown.

You can also research makeup agencies and follow their represented artists (not their influencers). This will open you up to a whole other side of the makeup industry—and it’s the side where you can earn a spectacular living.

I’m not suggesting social media is all bad, but as a professional makeup artist, it is important you see it for what it is—entertainment and not education.

So keep challenging yourself to create and work at a higher level. Be the trendsetter, not the follower.

Speaking of trendsetters… find out how Rihanna revolutionized the beauty industry!

Feb 22
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7 Men’s Styling Mistakes That’ll Make You Cringe

By From the Experts, Style No Comments

Mallory Sills is a Chicago-based personal stylist and Fashion Styling tutor at QC Makeup Academy. Today, Mallory talks holiday styling for the office professional!

Style isn’t just for women. Men need and want great style, too! While some may argue that men don’t care as much about style, it is an area that can affect their life. Whether they need to elevate their wardrobe for their career or personal life, or they just want to feel more confident, it’s important not to forget about them.

To get you started, I’m going to go through a few of the most common styling mistakes I see men making. Read on!

mixing patterns and colors men's fashion

Why Should You Work With Male Fashion Styling Clients?

As a personal fashion stylist, working with men can be a great way to grow your business. Gone are the days of it being taboo for a male to genuinely care about his appearance, particularly his wardrobe. In many cases, when a man is seeking the assistance of a personal stylist, it is because he genuinely wants the help of an expert like you. Since you are the expert, he will take your advice wholeheartedly. This is where working with men differs (more often than not) from women. They trust your expertise on style more readily. Men aren’t (typically) as hard on themselves as women, often adding to their trust in experts.

Some argue there aren’t as many options in men’s fashion as there are in women’s. But that’s started to change significantly, giving men more and more brand and retail options to choose from. Just like working with a female client, it’s essential that you spend some time getting to know your male client. Find out what his style goals are, what he struggles with, etc. In other words, communication is key, whether you’re working with a male or female. If a male is seeking the help of an expert, he wants you to fully communicate where he’s going wrong in his style choices and what needs to happen to improve.

men's fashion mixing too many patterns

1. Too Many Patterns or Statement Pieces in One Outfit

Patterns and statement pieces are a great way to style a unique outfit. However, wearing too many in one outfit is a common mistake a see men making. Whether it’s wearing too many bold accessories, mixing too many prints, or even wearing too many layers – it can be overpowering. More isn’t always better. I recommend choosing 1-2 focal points of an outfit and working around those to prevent overstyling.

2. Trousers That Are Too Long

Trousers that are too long can ruin an otherwise great look. You will know trousers are too long when they bunch up at the ankle. Not only do too-long trousers make an outfit look less polished, but it isn’t the most flattering to a figure.

3. Baggy Shirts and Jackets

Similar to trousers that are too long, baggy shirts and jackets can completely alter a male’s overall look. Baggy shirts, in particular, are one of the most common style mistakes men make. In essence, proper fit is crucial to menswear for style and figure-flattering purposes.

4. Misplacing Tie Bars

Tie bars have grown to become a big accessory option for men. Not only are they a fun way to accessorize, but they are also functional and help keep ties in place. The mistake many men make with tie bars is misplacing them. First of all, tie bars should not take up the entire width of a tie. Second of all, the tie bar should generally be placed between the 2nd and 3rd button on the shirt. Any lower or higher and it tends to look awkward.

men's tie bars fashion styling

5. Square-Toe Dress Shoes

Let me preface this by saying that not all square-toe shoes are mistakes for men’s style. What I’m talking about here is a square-toe dress shoe worn with a suit. This shoe style instantly dates a male and his wardrobe. Round- or slightly pointed-toe dress shoes are much more classic and offer a modern aesthetic to the look. Shoes can be an area where men go wrong rather often, but they’re important to completing his look!

6. Ties That Don’t Flatter

As you have probably gathered, fit is incredibly important in men’s fashion. Fit also applies to ties. Not all ties are created equal, and not all flatter every male. Ties that are too long or too short can create an awkward look to the overall outfit. Typically, the ideal placement for the end of a tie is where the belt is (or would be). This offers a flattering, sophisticated appearance. The width of the tie can also have an effect on how a tie complements (or doesn’t complement) an outfit. Ties that are too wide tend to look outdated, primarily because they are. The ideal width of a tie is 2.25” or 3.25”.

7. Wearing the Wrong Socks

Socks have become a way for men to accessorize their outfits. While you don’t always see a lot of a man’s sock, wearing the wrong socks is a common style mistake. The most common sock mistake I see is men wearing athletic socks when they aren’t at the gym or wearing athletic shoes. Even if a man isn’t into all the colorful sock options, athletic socks are a no-no with dress shoes.

mens fashion fun socks pattern

How to Gain Experience and Knowledge on Men’s Fashion

If you don’t have a lot of experience in men’s fashion now, I suggest going shopping with any male friends or family members in your life. Research brands and fits. Immerse yourself in learning as much as possible about men’s fashion. And just like with anything, as you gain more experience and knowledge, you will become just as confident working with men as you do women.

Any other cringe-worthy men’s fashion mistakes we missed? Leave us a comment!

Ready to take your passion for fashion to the next level? Check out the fashion styling course!

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