Working at Paris Fashion Week with Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen’s design houses has been the highlight of Australian makeup artist Nicola Burford’s career so far. She shares her journey to date with Professional Beauty and explains what inspires her work and the skills you need to acquire in order to make a name for yourself in the highly competitive makeup industry.
PB: What upcoming makeup trends do you predict?
NB: Trends for summer include a bright lip look. A pop of lip colour – tomato red remains popular as does bright magenta pink or acid orange. Desert eye shadow colours are also on-trend and include amber and sand shades in shapes that form a halo around the eyes. The style is all about soft shadows and the eye shape so you almost don’t notice it’s there. A trend for skin is to play with textures; using a semi-matt foundation with high-sheen gloss for example.
PB: What common makeup mistakes do you see clients making?
NB: Nothing is wrong in makeup; it’s about expressing who you are. What we can do is give people the tools and education on how to bring out their best features. I will say however that choosing the wrong foundation colour is a very common mistake.
PB: What are some of your favourite runway looks?
NB: There are too many to count. My favourite runway looks can be simple as seen at Balenciaga’s minimalistic show, but I also loved the Vivienne Westwood show where she asked children to design the makeup. She went to a school, gave children a face chart and they all scribbled and drew out their designs. The makeup artists were given the face charts and we then had to create a look from that. Surprisingly it translated really well on the models faces – the challenge however was not making it look perfect – not finishing lines perfectly etc. It was so original and it really stood out.
PB: Whats been your career highlight to date?
NB: It has to be Paris fashion week where I worked on shows including Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen. Ever since I was a teenager it was my dream and I managed to get there, so it was a truly special moment. I also did makeup for Jessica Watson recently which was so inspiring – she just blew me away and she was so inspiring. The people you meet make the job incredible.
PB: What’s it like working with celebrities?
NB: Working on megastars – you see them at their most vulnerable when they have no makeup on so you make sure you make them feel secure and respected. You use your knowledge and skills to make them look and feel amazing.
PB: What’s the main difference between working on fashion shows and then doing your own work?
NB: A brief is essential when working on a fashion show as you need to make sure the look works for the designer, their vision and concept. Makeup artists working on fashion shows are wheels in a big cog – it’s only when you’re doing your own work for a submission where you get free reign and can let your creativity and imagination run wild.
PB: What’s your current career focus?
NB: In addition to runway a huge focus for me in the industry is teaching therapists how to take looks from the runway and make it reality. Beauty therapists say it’s all well and good seeing the catwalk trends but when they go back to their salons, their clients can’t wear it. It’s about taking the look and making it work for a normal person – translating it to suit the individual. You need to know elements to look for when viewing certain trends.
PB: What are your top tips for budding makeup artists?
NB: It’s a hard slog and I’m not going to lie. It’s up and down, high one day, low the next. You have to persevere and it doesn’t happen overnight. You must assist for a few years before photographers and stylists will trust you. Working for a cosmetic brand or beauty salons is a great lesson as you learn a lot about creating looks for the everyday person. Also it’s essential to keep abreast of trends, who are the movers and shakers. Don’t give up, it does take years but you’ll get there if you persevere.
Catch Nicola Burford in her Runway to Reality session on the main stage at Salon Melbourne 2012 on Saturday 31st March at 12.30pm. See first hand the latest tips, tricks and trends direct from the international catwalks by one of the hottest makeup artists in the industry. Main stage events are free with registration – head to www.salonmelbourne.com.au for more information. Registration opens in January 2012.
Contact: www.nicolaburfordmakeup.com.au