We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Alicia D’angelo. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Alicia below.
Alicia, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
The beauty about being an artist is once you are making a full-time living, you no longer have to work full time. In the beginning, it’s more work than any 40 hour schedule. You have to take a side job to pay your bills… in my case, I was bartending. In your off time, you must learn the skill, practice and take on free work constantly to build your portfolio, resume and network. I warn you though, turning your art into commerce does risk ruining your love for it, more on how to avoid that later.
My first step was finding a mentor. I put together a very small, bare bones makeup kit and kept going on jobs with her. I didn’t touch a single face until a few gigs in because I was terrified and had no idea what I was doing but I read books, researched online and watched countless videos. Every friend became a model for me while I practiced and I started doing more avant garde looks on myself for social media.
A couple months in, someone asked me to do their makeup for Halloween, paid. I couldn’t believe it and when I look back at that photo. I laugh at how novice I was but it only took one person to pay to know I was onto something. Not long after that, my mentor couldn’t make it for a gig and sent me on her behalf to a modeling agency that needed test shots of their new models. In one day, I secured a full professional portfolio of looks for my website. From there, I collaborated with every photographer and model I could get my hands on. While this was and still is critical to my success, I needed jobs that actually paid and paid well.
Six months in, I auditioned for a bridal beauty team, not knowing it was one of the most critical turning points in my career. The sheer volume of faces I came in contact with had such a variety of features that it became bootcamp for my skill level. By two years in, I was able to quit bartending and move to New York to pursue bigger goals. My catalyst of getting there started on a lie. There was an Instagram post from a well known indie beauty brand looking for artists to work a beauty convention in Manhattan. I had to shoot my shot so I said I lived there, got the gig and bought a plane ticket.
After that trip, I came home, quit my job and booked a one way ticket back to the city. When I got here, I had zero connections and had to start from scratch. I got a job in beauty retail on 5th avenue and hustled to make connections there with both clientele as well the brand ambassadors. This was the second most important step in my career, even though it was the least lucrative. I had a masterclass level of experience with an entire store full of products from different brands to gain product knowledge and build my kit.
In one year I was able to move into working for a luxury beauty brand. The pay was still too low to survive so I did have to maintain a service industry job those first couple years but I was able to find a bridal company similar to the one I came from and worked my way up the totem pole until I could quit the beauty brand and do solely artistry, no sales.
It took about 5 years to get to a comfortable place and now at 10 years, I’ve dabbled in every type of artistry I could get myself in to before circling back to bridal and event makeup. My heart is on fire doing makeup for photoshoots and getting creative but as mentioned before, when you spend all of your time doing something for money, you tend to lose the love for the art. I think of bridal now as my day job that affords me to be able to continue collaborating with photographers, models and stylists that feed my soul. A decade in, I am beyond fortunate to not have to work full time and now get to start exploring my other creative outlets like painting and writing.
I could have sped up the process if I would have been practical about having a constant stream of income doing my art, even if it felt less fulfilling. I spent a lot of time chasing my ego for the big name brands, agencies and magazine covers only to find out it was just sparkly corporate and the antithesis of everything my heart desires. Don’t be fooled by the accolades, your quality of life is greatly improved when you find your community of artists to work with that get you and regular clientele that keep your peace. Bigger isn’t always better… consistency and immediate payment is far more important.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Alicia (uh-lee-see-uh), originally from New Orleans and a cat loving Gemini. Although my bread and butter is bridal and event makeup, I also do a ton of freelance work with various photographers, TV appearances and commercial work.
Getting into this industry is really just putting yourself out there over and over again. Cold emails, networking in person and on social media as well as consistently creating new work and posting it to remind people you exist. Once you get the ball rolling, everyone starts recommending you to others. As far as your skills go, you need experience with a lot of products and people. The amount of time you invest in those two things will have a direct impact on how much you can charge later.
There are plenty of things that set me apart. For one, you will get booked more if you have range. You need to be able to do simple, clean faces VERY well… it pays the most. However, having the ability to do full glam, execute creative looks while still looking high end and even some special effects knowledge will cast your net to a wider potential client pool. Secondly, being able to do hair as well makes booking easier for people, so I have noticed that I get chosen over others for that simple fact alone. Lastly, making yourself desirable. I made myself conveniently located to the clientele I wanted, had plenty of reviews to back my work that are also geotagged to the location and built connections with anyone I worked with that I wanted to see again. People have to like you to call you back. Be likable… even to other artists on the job. Everyone talks and you have to blend well with the energy. My biggest tip here is to just ask questions. I feel like I’m on a first date with every client. People love to talk about themselves and you can just latch on to what lights them up. They won’t forget how you made them feel.
I am most proud of the body of work I have and the network I’ve built. Every month I try to schedule a photoshoot to add to my portfolio with new faces and styles. You would be surprised how quickly your work gets outdated and if I wouldn’t have been so adamant about always producing better work, I wouldn’t be able to look back with pride at how far I’ve come. My network is also ever evolving and strengthening. If you are early in your career, don’t wait to move to where you want to be and I don’t even mean just by state. If you live in Brooklyn but eventually want to move to Manhattan, just start building clientele in Manhattan. There are clients I have that are 4 degrees of separation from the original person who recommended me. For example, I will do their wedding, then their bridesmaid’s wedding, then the bridesmaid’s boss’s headshots then that photographer’s birthday makeup. Once you’re planted in a spot, stay put and let it grow. You won’t even need to market yourself because they are doing the work for you. This also goes for artists you work with. Branch out of your bubble and connect with other people so it can open you up to everyone in their world too.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
FREEDOM! If you’re an artist, I’m sure you feel absolutely incapable of doing things conventionally, long term at least. With this career I’ve been able to afford myself the power to say no when I don’t want to do something. I don’t know how many jobs allow you to just not work with people you don’t want to or say no to a project that doesn’t resonate with you. My schedule is flexible and I’m able to set changing hours based on what’s going on in my life. I wear what I want and answer to no one. Every day is different and I’m able to see so many cool places including swanky penthouses, hotels and venues. Majority of the time, I work with predominantly women which has changed my entire world. Some days just feel like I’m back in college getting ready with my friends before a night out. #girlhood
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
Engage! Every time you like, share and comment on someone’s work, think of it like your charity for the day. That double tap just ushered the artist’s work back into the algorithm to be seen by more eyes and potential opportunities. Recommend the artist to your network. Leave reviews. Other artists, say names of your creative pod in rooms they aren’t in and pass along your excess work to others to keep the gig in the family. I believe in karma. Support your community.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aliciadangelo.com
- Instagram: @aliciadangelo
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/alicia-d-angelo-artistry-new-york-2
