At what point would you consider yourself a subject matter expert? What does being an expert really mean? One humbling point to always remind yourself is that you will never know everything about any given topic; there is always room to grow and evolve. As Dr. Seuss said, “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” The beauty about makeup artistry is there are very few absolutes and the possibilities are endless. Given this monumental world of opportunity, professionals need to know when, how, and where to learn new techniques to up their makeup game.

WHEN?

Commit to be the best artist you can be and always find time to invest in yourself and your art. If the daily hustle does not leave much time, then commit to something less frequent on a monthly or quarterly basis. There is never a perfect time to consider yourself a student, so you have to make the time. If you find yourself doing cookie cutter makeup on most clients, you are probably in a rut and feeling uninspired. That means it is time to look for inspiration and learn something new.

HOW?

In such a saturated market, how do professionals know where to turn when they need help learning new techniques? Leverage your relationships, community, and network. Make calls, send e-mails and messages on social media, ask questions – reach out to anyone you know in the industry. Join an online beauty community to interact with other artists. Dedicate some time and energy to watching highly engaging beauty vloggers to see what techniques they use that may be new to you. Listen to the artist as they provide tips and tricks, watch closely as they demonstrate their individual techniques, then, go home and practice, practice, practice. Even if you do not develop the skills exactly as you learned them, you can put your own spin on them and create something brand new.

WHERE?

Professionals should attend seminars, conferences, tradeshows, special meet-in-greet events, and other in-person settings to meet other makeup artists. Lookup local beauty schools in the area that may need a model for a particular lesson and sign up as a volunteer. Ask around in the film industry to shadow another artist during a gig. Order a new book that describes techniques and products in a series of step-by-step tutorials. Use this as an opportunity to travel, if funds allow. Look up makeup events in other states and just get away. Digitally, research on YouTube and other platforms to watch how other artists achieve their looks. Alternatively, simply type in a description of a look into a search engine and scroll through the images that pull up. Use those images as inspiration and work tirelessly until you recreate the look using several different products.

It can be intimidating to take on new endeavors. Learning anything new requires commitment and a personal investment of both time and money. Set goals to learn a new technique, meet a new artist, or simply go to the department store and play with all of the new release products. Continuously challenge yourself to create new looks, work with new products, and use new methods. The bottom line is you should never settle for just good enough. Always strive to be the best version of yourself and an artist that sets themselves apart from the competition. It is never too late to learn something new.

Amanda Azar, LME is a published makeup artist, medical aesthetician, and body wrapper based in south Florida. She is the founder and executive artist of Azar Beauty, makeup artistry instructor at Cortiva Institute, and lead artist for NewsmaxTV, Pelican Grand’s Pure Spa, and St. Andrews Country Club. Azar has a degree in business management from Florida Atlantic University and diplomas in fashion makeup from Cosmix School of Makeup Artistry and paramedical aesthetics from Southeastern College and is dual-licensed and holds over 40 certifications. Azar is a member of the National Association of Professional Businesswomen, National Aesthetic Spa Network, Look Good Feel Better, and a RAW Artist alumni.