Ever wonder when searching for a makeup artist "what the heck am I paying for anyways", or "is this worth it". Well no fear, a lot of people have thought this so you aren't the only one!
My goal is by the end of this read you will feel more informed and knowledgeable about what the value in hiring a makeup artist is, and why artist may express frustration when clients try to talk them down on their prices.
Value #1
Years of Experience
Depending on the artist a major factor in the cost is the time they have spent building their portfolio to show their work, learning new techniques and perfecting those techniques....and sometimes working for free to get their business started. A highly experienced artist has more than likely paid their dues and put in the sweat and hard work to get to where they are. Never underestimate the experience and hardwork.
Value #2
Products Ain't Cheap
The biggest thing to remember when it comes to products is once the product leaves the container and is applied to your face the makeup artist cannot take it back or reuse it. This obviously means that eventually they will have to go out and repurchase these products to replenish their kit. Let's do a breakdown of what you would have to pay in order to achieve the looks created by professionals using high quality product. These are based off of average prices, and depending on the artist and their preference these numbers can be even higher.
Moisturizer- $50
Eye Cream- $60
Lip Balm- $10
Primer- $35
Foundation- $40
Concealer- $25
Powder- $38
Bronzer- $35
Contour- $40
Blush- $20
Highlight- $30
Setting Spray- $30
Eye Primer- $25
Eyeshadow Palette- $50
Eye Liner- $20
Brow Filler- $20
Brow Gel- $15
Mascara- $15
Lip Liner- $15
Lipstick- $18
Lip Gloss- $15
Grand Total: $606
Value #3
Product Variety and Accommodations
Keeping Value #2 in mind now imagine having to get multiples of each of those products in order to be able to accommodate for different skin tones, skin types, hair colors, and eye colors. As a makeup artist you have to be ready for anything each time you have a gig, and you don't always know what your clientele will look like.
When you hire a professional you can rest assured that they will be prepared for most anything showing up to your occasion with a variety of glitters, colors, tones and more!
Value #4
Admin and Prep Time
Many forget that answering emails, sending contracts, sending invoices, and answering questions takes time. There is no doubt that administrative duties can be a pretty time consuming task. This overlooked task is another contributing factor to cost.
Lastly before each gig a great artist always takes the time to fully sanitize their kit, wash their brushes, and repack their kit based on the needs of the client.. this can take anywhere from 1-2 hours depending on the gig.
Now that you hopefully see the great value in a makeup artist, encourage them, hug them, promote them, and most importantly book them when you can. Makeup is their livelihood and for full time artists it is how they make a living.