Vendor: Meet Lindsey R. Smith, Bridal Makeup Expert!

For the month of October, I would like to feature a talented local makeup artist that I met through the wonderful world of online networking....Lindsey R. Smith. I absolutely loved having my makeup done professionally for my wedding. It's nice to look yourself, but a little more glamorous. I knew I wanted my skin to look really natural, but my eyes to be a little darker to pop in the photos. My advice? Trust the pros and give Lindsey a shot! Doing a "preview" makeup application is worth it. You can let Lindsey know what you're thinking and get to see what it will look like, and then decide if you want to change anything for the big day. I asked Lindsey a few questions, so read on to learn a bit about her background and love for bridal makeup.

1. How many years have you been doing makeup professionally, and who have you worked for before doing this independently? I have been professionally doing makeup for over seven years. I started In Design 1 Salon and Day Spa, stayed there for a couple of years, attended Esthetics school for skincare and makeup, Went on to working at Leigh's in East Grand Rapids Selling (and training with each company) Trish Mcevoy, Natura bisse, Darphin, and Classified Cosmetics. I was then offered a job at MAC cosmetics. I stayed with mac for about 1.5 years before being offered a job by Bobbi Brown Cosmetics. I've chosen to jump around between cosmetic lines, because they all have such different Concepts and Techniques, I wanted to dip knowledge from every line. Mac could be a very eccentric line, while Bobbi brown was a very conservative line. I feel like My training includes the best of every world. Throughout my time as a makeup artist, I've worked as a freelance artist, picking up a few weddings a year.

In 2008 I had a daughter, Aliyah Rene, she is so special to me. I had decided to leave the mall hours and return to Design 1 Salon and Day Spa. I stayed there, for a little over a year, running their newest location's makeup counter, which included paperwork, numbers, and sales. The long hours and the pressure of the sale started to get to me and I'd realized that I wasn't enjoying my career as much as I'd used to. Plus, I'd drop my daughter off in the morning, and get home after she was asleep, I missed her so much. I decided I needed to make some changes. I quit my job at Design 1 and started to form my own freelance makeup business. It took off very quickly, and I was just delighted with the amount of time I got to spend with my daughter. I regularly attend makeup workshops to keep up with the trends, and I added airbrush makeup to my menu of services after having a private workshop with Mario Ceja. Today, nine months into opporation, my business is thriving, along with my relationship with my daughter. Sometimes you just have to have faith and take the next step.


2. What kind of bridal makeup packages do you offer? At the moment, I am offering a Group discount. If the bridal party has 4 or more clients (including the bride) who want their makeup done, 15% is taken off the the entire package. I also offer a referral discount. For every booking I make from a client's referral they will receive an extra 20% off their wedding package. The name of the "referer" must be mentioned in the first contact with the client being referred. A full menu of services including pricing is available on my website (link at bottom of post).

3. What is your favorite thing about doing bridal makeup? Doing bridal makeup is very special to me, I get to be a part of the biggest day of the bride's life. They'll look back at their photos in 20 years and see just how amazingly beautiful they looked on their wedding day. I don't change the bride's appearance, I feel that the bride should look like an enhanced version of herself on her wedding day. Photography makeup and everyday makeup are two completely different things, in order for a bride to ensure the best results with her photos, proper photography makeup is needed.

4. Will you travel to the ceremony site, or other location, to do makeup for the bride, bride's family, and wedding party? If so, is there an additional charge for travel? All of my prices have travel built in up to thirty miles from my zip code. If a bride would like me to travel further than thirty miles, I charge by the mile after the intial thirty. The price for mileage depends on the gas prices at the time of the wedding/ booking. If the wedding party is larger, I will usually lower the travel fee.

For more information & to contact Lindsey, check out her website:
http://www.lindseysmithmakeup.com/