Beauty UK Show - N.E.C Birmingham
On the 23rd of May I entered a Makeup competition with my fellow students from my college, I decided to write about the process of the day to inform people of what to expect from these type of events. This was my first competition I had entered which was a great experience but allowed me to do things very differently if I was to enter a Makeup competition again.
Morning
To start the day off I was up at 5am in order to have time to travel to my college and then to Birmingham, when we arrived we had to do the boring stuff like signing in and getting our ID badges. I entered the LansLondon fashion category which was inspired by Lan Nguyen- Grealis' book 'Art and Makeup' and wasn't taking place until the afternoon. The other four categories were Bridal Makeup, Special effects Train Wreck and Body painting Star Wars inspired. This gave me chance to observe the Bridal and Special Effects competition, have a look around the beauty UK show and give me time to prepare for my look.
Afternoon
I started by making sure everything was in place e.g. products, applicators, bed roll and so on. Hygiene is very important in these competitions so I needed to have hand gel, brush cleaner, disposable applicators, wipes, a small bin, a spatula, a palette, towels and more. I began to apply a product called 'Fullers earth' which gave a cracking and dry effect to the hair, I then added paint splatters and pigments to create more texture. Next I started to complete the Makeup, I already had a good idea of the process I needed to complete as I had practiced many times before the competition. I finished the look by adding more pigments and paint splatters over the face and body to create colour and texture. During the competition judges would observe your work and ask about the products you was using and why you was using them, this is nothing to worry about as long as you are honest and believe in your process you will be fine! Below are some images of the look I created on the day.
Evening
After waiting for an hour, we finally received the results for each category, competitors were awarded 1st, 2nd and 3rd place for makeup and then for hair too. Unfortunately I did not win an award but everybody was given a certificate for taking place. After the awards took place, I got to meet amazing makeup artist Lan Nguyen- Grealis and gain feedback from her, Lan told me she liked my look but thought my makeup needed to be stronger in order to stand out against my models hair. I completely agree with her advice and think her feedback will help me with my work in the future. We then left the N.E.C and got home for about 8pm.
Overall
The day was very long and tiring but most definitely worth it, I gained a lot of experience and advice which will really help me with my career in the future. For the next Makeup competition I enter, I will do things a lot differently as I know what is expected and what kind of looks need to be achieved. If you are a aspiring makeup artist, I would recommend entering a similar competition, purely for the experience.
Thanks for reading,
Jae x
