We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Christine Merryman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Christine below.

Christine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with a fun one – what’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?

“You need to find what you are good at and stay in your lane”, “you can only have one main focus”, “you should only do one thing, doing too many things doesn’t look good on your resume”- this is the worst advice I have ever received and unfortunately I hear it all the time. I think that social media has influenced the way we think and made men/women/young girls/young boys believe that they can only be good at one thing because that’s aesthetically pleasing to their “followers” or individuals reading their resumes. In my unpopular opinion, this is the worst advice we could ever give to the younger generation. I own and operate two companies- Christine Marie Makeup Artistry providing wedding, film and publication makeup services and MD Construction Services building log homes and commercial construction work. Monday through Friday I am in the field onsite wearing dirty jeans, a tee shirt, no makeup and a pony tail. On the weekend I am wearing heels, makeup, a dress and doing wedding makeup. For many years growing up I was very confused as to what I wanted to do or what I “should” do because I would go from playing in the mud with the boys to playing dress up and putting makeup on my sister and younger brother (sorry Matt). Both trades are a form of art in my opinion that are much more related than you may think – I read plans and build what I see, I see photos of makeup looks and recreate that on my clients. Both are hands on trades making a vision come to life. Having to fit yourself into one box and do one thing is not utilizing the ability and talent of each individual out there.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Growing up my father built custom homes so I have been around construction sites since I was a toddler. I quickly fell in love with large machinery, loud noises and the aspect of building something out of wood that turns into something so spectacular. I graduated college with a bachelors degree in business management and got a job in commercial construction which is where I worked for 10 years. During those first few years, I needed a way to make money on the weekend because as we all know, construction jobs out of college are not paying you much. I always enjoyed wearing makeup, buying makeup and applying makeup to other people so I found a weekend job as a makeup artist. After a few years of working for someone else I branched out on my own and have been working for myself for the past 6 years as a side hustle makeup artist. When COVID hit, I was laid off from my construction job in March of 2020. I was able to quickly find another job where I worked from March 2020 to October 2020- this was the worst job I have every had in my life. I was the only female Project Manager and was forced to sit in a room of individuals who would openly disrespect women, make crude comments and have generally no respect for me as a human whatsoever. I sat in a cinderblock office with no windows for 8 months where they barely gave me any projects to work on so I would sit and read plans for other projects all day everyday to try and keep learning. I was laid off in October 2020 and decided that was the last time that I would ever give someone else the power of whether I do or do not get a pay check every week. I had actually “started” my construction company, MD Construction Services, in November of 2018 and applied for certifications to operate as a Minority, Disadvantage and Small business in Maryland. I always knew that I wanted to work for myself and that I was capable of doing so however I was scared to take that leap. Being laid off for the second time was the final push that I needed to truly believe in myself and get started. I knew that I would not be able to get too much going in construction over the winter so I bought a few tools and made a woodworking shop at my house. I spent Winter 2020 building and selling wood furniture to pay my mortgage until the spring came around and I could launch my business. My husband and I had built our own log home in 2020 so I also spent the winter acquiring all of the licenses I needed to be a builder. By May 2021 I had two contracts signed for custom log homes and am happy to say that as of now we have 8 more under contract for 2022/2023.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Being a female in the construction industry is getting better but it is far from perfect. During my 10 years I have had more than one sexual harassment incident as well as verbal abuse. Unfortunately, the construction industry was male dominated for so long that it is difficult for some individuals to accept the fact that women can perform equally without boundaries. There were several instances that I thought it might be easier to transition to a desk job in an industry that was more female dominated but I am proud of myself that the 22 year old who was harrased by an older and very well established individual did not sit quietly but rather stood up for herself and made noise. Luckily, at that time I worked for a company that did not tolerate that kind of behavior and this individual was let go but it wasn’t always like that. I have also been on the opposite side where speaking up led to me being reprimanded which is unfortunately a more common situation.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

The biggest thing that helped me build my reputation is the quality of work that we do. I believe that letting your work speak for itself is the most powerful portfolio. People can have plenty of followers, be well liked and have good reviews but with both custom home building and makeup artistry you can’t hide behind anything- your finished product is tangible. People can touch and see every flaw and every aspect to it.

I believe that the other way I have built a good reputation is simply by being a good contractor to work for, it doesn’t matter if I am a male or a female, it’s just how you should act. I treat all of my subcontractors and anyone who steps foot on my job sites with the most respect. I make sure to listen to their concerns, pay them in a timely manner and treat them fairly. I know that I am just a very tiny tiny piece of a massive industry but I feel that maybe the way I treat people will be adopted by those that witness it and they carry it out too making it a larger trend in an industry that does not see that too often.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mdcsllc.com and www.christinemariemua.com
• Instagram: @mdconstructionservices and @christinemariemua

Image Credits
@oncelikeaspark Chesapeake Charm Photography