How to prep for a professional makeup application

Prepping for your makeup session is something that almost nobody does and every single person going to their appointment should do!

Before I jump into my tips, I want to start off by stating (for those of you who don't know) that I am a professional makeup artist and have been doing professional makeup applications for about seven years now.

Between local homecomings, proms, and travel wedding makeup, I have touched a lot of faces in my time!

This may be a stretch, but if I had to throw out a percentage I would say that probably only 5 percent or less of women sit down for their makeup application with well prepped skin.

We all at some point or another need a professional makeup application so here's where I am going to give you the low-down on what you should do for the best outcome!

FIRST AND FOREMOST: Clean skin!

I cannot tell you how many, over the years, have sat down ready for me to put makeup on them with makeup from the night before still smeared on their skin. If there were ever a time for me to insert the face slap emoji, it would be here! Lol

The bad thing is that most of them tell me that they have washed their face. This means that they never really get their skin clean which is an entirely different topic.

I can promise you that makeup on top of old makeup will never look fantastic. So ALWAYS have clean, clean skin.

Second, EXFOLIATE!

Please, never underestimate the power of a good exfoliation. Our skin is constantly shedding dead skin cells. If those dead cells are not removed, then our skin will have a rough texture and dull appearance.

Makeup does not and will not EVER cover texture. That's what photoshop is for. However, we can't walk around with a filter on our face. So the next best thing would be to have as little texture to your skin as possible.

Speaking of texture, I am also going to add that makeup can actually make the texture of the skin look worse due to the products settling in fine lines and wrinkles.

So how do you exfoliate?

In short, there are products for this. Different products will each come with their own set of instructions. Some exfoliate by friction, some by granules in the product, some by acids, etc.

I personally have all three types of these in my skincare drawer because I am obsessed with not having dead skin on my face. Once you get a routine to exfoliate you will be too and will never go back to not doing it!

You can over exfoliate and irritate the skin, but chances are you won't unless you get crazy or use a product you're sensitive to.

Next up would be to moisturize.

Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! IMMEDIATLY after you finish exfoliating.

Exfoliating dries the skin out. You always want to make sure your face is moisturized, but you need it to be done exceptionally well after exfoliating because of this. So I recommend using a facial oil after exfoliating. I have another post explaining why I believe in facial oils.

I would rather a client come to me with way too much moisture on their skin than dry skin. Too much moisture is an easy fix, however trying to combat dryness is not.

My ladies with dry skin... have you ever applied foundation and it looked cracked? It's because your skin was too dry for the makeup.

These are the three steps I recommend doing at home before your appointment! If you can do these steps several hours before to give your skin time to soak in the facial oil, even better!

IF you want to take this a step further, then I would recommend setting up a facial with your licensed skincare girl to really get it glowing! The steps taken during a facial along with the amount of exfoliation will really perk your skin up.

A dermaplaning facial is the best to get before a makeup application. Dermaplaning removes about 2-3 weeks of dead skin build up as well as your peach fuzz. So your makeup will sit incredibly after receiving that! You also won't be mad at how smooth your skin feels afterwards.

Follow these steps and your makeup application will be much smoother and your artist will be able to deliver the best possible results!