Makeup Artists Taking Virtual Appointments With Celebrity Clients — Interviews
Someone touching your face for an extended period of time, even someone you trust, while they wear a mask or protective face covering is not exactly ideal right now. As celebrities do press for their upcoming projects and star in virtual photoshoots, they’re keeping this in mind and skipping face-to-face appointments with their favorite makeup artists in favor of FaceTime sessions.
Makeup artists, like Gita Bass, Katey Denno, and Vincent Oquendo, have been lending their knowledge virtually to their celebrity clients instead of their skilled hands for the most hygienic experience possible. “I think it helps clients to have a professional set of eyes to observe their outfit and the lighting and to then suggest different looks and explain how to execute them,” Bass, who works with Laura Dern, Julianne Moore, and Olivia Wilde, tells MakeupJet. “I really miss my clients, so this is the next best thing.”
Getting his start at makeup counters and working quickly backstage with Pat McGrath at Fashion Week prepared Oquendo for this moment. “If I’m able to simplify these major looks [for models], then it’s easy for me to boil down these red carpet looks and be able to teach them to someone else,” he says.
Denno, on the other hand, has been helping her clients, like Naomi Watts, Beanie Feldstein, and Cristin Milioti, green their beauty routines over FaceTime for years, so guiding her clients virtually has long been part of her job.
Preparing for Appointments
Because many makeup artists have built long-standing relationships with their celebrity clients, Bass, Denno, and Oquendo, in particular, know exactly what their clients keep in their makeup bags, what their aesthetics are, and most importantly, what their skills are. Taking all of this into account, the makeup artists often pick out new, unused products and tools from their personal beauty closets to label, pack up, and send over to their clients ahead of their appointments to make sure they’re well prepared.
Usually, the products are as easy to use as possible. Oquendo also only picks products he knows he’s used on his clients, such as Jurnee Smollett and Jasmine Cephas Jones, before in tried-and-true shades. He names the Shiesedo Kajal Ink Artist as a common inclusion in the custom kits because the crayon is waterproof, easy to blend, comes with a built-in smudger, and has a fun shade range.
Setting Up Lighting
The hardest part of taking virtual appointments comes up right after it starts: setting up lighting, according to Denno. Trying to assess the situation in someone’s house through a screen isn’t exactly ideal for effective makeup application. She tries to help her clients set up the best lighting as possible, though.
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