When learning to do makeup, new artists tend to take their time to experiment and create. Even if this is artistically fulfilling, it doesn’t reflect the real-world working environment. In most cases, you will have an hour or less to apply makeup to each of your clients. Learning to budget your time is essential! This also means knowing the key areas that drain your time during an appointment.
Keep reading to discover 5 areas where new makeup artists often lose precious time!
1.   Welcoming your makeup clients
Being pleasant and welcoming will set the mood for the entire appointment. But it’s best to keep the welcome short and sweet. I’m not suggesting you rush clients into the chair, tape their mouths shut, and start slapping on the color. But I am suggesting you to not open the door to an epic retelling of their life stories. Multi-tasking your greeting is the best way to go.
Immediately after welcoming them, ask clients if they need to use the restroom. Stopping in the middle of the application takes up a great deal of time—they will absolutely study your progress in the bathroom mirror! After they’ve used the restroom, gesture them to the chair as you finish up the warm welcome. Within five minutes, they should be settled and ready-to-go.
2.   Feeding your client food and drink
Many new makeup artists think the best way to make a positive impression is to feed the client. I warn you against it. If someone is eating and drinking during a client consultation, you’ll have to stop for every bite, sip, and swallow. It may not seem like a hassle, but you’ll find yourself waiting on them a lot. And I’ll tell you, having to retouch the lips several times because of coffee cups and crumbs is enough to make anyone scream.
On professional sets, food and drink will often be provided. But experienced models and talent do not bring food to the chair. A bottle of water is fine but muffins, tea cakes, and coffee/tea can result in a lot of lost time.
3.   Spending too long searching through your makeup kit
Whether you have a small kit or a suitcase full of makeup, organization is key to time-saving. If you pack your makeup products in order of use, you’ll know just where to look for each product, every time.
4.   Brush-cleaning during the makeup job
Cleaning your makeup brushes between colors and waiting for them to dry is very time-consuming. Keep two or three extras of your most-used brushes on hand. This way, you can simply switch between them and keep working. Otherwise, you’ll lose time cleaning all of the color out of a brush and then waiting for the cleanser to dry. If you can afford it, buy extras.
5.   Let your makeup clients lead the conversation
Often, clients will relax and just enjoy the soothing process of having makeup done. If you keep talking, they will feel obliged to answer. First, conversation will disrupt the amazing pampering aspect of the makeup process. Second, while they speak, their faces will move and you’ll have to stop working. If they want to chat, of course, be pleasant. But remember, the less you encourage ongoing chat, the more time you will have to work. And don’t forget, you can always have a brief chat at the end, leaving your clients with really positive impressions.
Time can vanish in hundreds of ways during an appointment but those are a few of the major ones. Remember, you can’t control everything. Your clients might start texting, taking calls, talking to someone else in the room……you get the idea. However, the more you practice time-saving techniques, the less likely you are to fall behind.
What did I miss? Let me know in a comment!
Love ,
Nathan Johnson
