Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jazmin Jaramillo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jazmin, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I’m going to go back to when I attended Community College in IL back in 2004. I started taking classes for Design & Illustration. As a young girl, I loved art and even though it was my favorite subject in Highschool, I felt like there was no career as an artist. As a lost teenager not knowing my next move, I took the year off from school and worked at any job I could get. I then decided to take community college art classes which led me to fall in love with creating all over again. From drawing & painting to digital work with Photoshop & Illustrator. I even took coding classes and built my first website from code. Come 2007 I got into a serious relationship that lead to marriage, I still wasn’t making any money with my creativity so I got another job to help support our life together. Long story short here, I found myself working as an office coordinator for a finance company. To stay creative, I found a love for makeup. That’s when I started taking makeup classes downtown Chicago while still hanging on to my full-time basic boring office job. Because of those classes, I started doing bridal makeup on the side. When 2013 came around my marriage ended and the company I worked for offered me an opportunity to relocate to St Thomas which is in the Caribbean. I jumped on the opportunity for a change. Now after working another 8 years with the finance company, I finally woke up! Although grateful, I realized my time with them should have ended back in Chicago when I started my side hustle as a makeup artist.But now, Im living on a goldmine where I can use all of my creative skills. St Thomas US Virgin Islands is filled with destination weddings & growing businesses. I enjoy being part of someone’s special day by doing their makeup and helping them get ready for what is the most memorable day of anyone’s life…their wedding! I also do some design work for local businesses. Such as logos, and large-scale murals, and even took on the challenge of refurbishing a taxidermy Marlin!! So to describe the story behind my mission, it is to be a creative woman by bringing joy into other people’s lives through art. I would say, it was well spent taking chances I never knew would land me living an island life as an entrepreneur creative.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a pretty simple person when it comes to who I am. Very calm and aware. I live on St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands with my boyfriend of 8 years and have a timid brindle mix-pit named Brewer that I also found 8years ago. Growing up I never really played with mom’s makeup because I was more of a tomboy.. or should I say, I liked to play in the street, ride my bike, jump in lakes and get dirty. It was until my teenage years that my parents moved my 4 sisters and me from the City of Chicago to the suburbs. Around this time I thought changing my appearance would be nice. I started experimenting with makeup and fell in love with it. All sorts of brands. From drug stores to countertops at the mall like MAC Cosmetics. Today I work with beauty products that work. It doesn’t matter how much they cost, as long as they last and is cruelty-free (Which MAC still isn’t) then it’s in my makeup artist kit.  After 13 years, I left my corporate job in accounts payables to pursue my dream of being a “Travel makeup & design artist full time. Currently, I’m booking destination weddings as the bridal party’s makeup artist where I travel to their hotel’s suites, and villas, and even take a car barge to the surrounding islands if need be. I also have a few design jobs on the side. My current project is an 11 ft long taxidermy marlin that needs to be refurbished. As a travel makeup artist, I find that I have a lot of freedom to work when I want. Because I live in the Caribbean where I’m surrounded by beauty, I love to express and share my passion for beauty & design by blogging about it and any travels that I explore. I’m very proud that I changed my mindset and believed in myself by taking the leap to pursue my passion for art. You can explore my website www.jazminisabel.com. I’ve been more consistent in sharing beauty blogs to help anyone with their makeup needs as well as travel blogs around the Caribbean. Any bridal clients can see my work there and book me with my online booking process with Honeybook. Lately, I’ve been highly referred to as there aren’t many makeup artists on the island. And since I no longer sit at a desk in a cold office, I gladly love to travel to my clients.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is seeing the end results and putting smiles and emotions on people. I’ve always been a people pleaser so if there is anything that is missing to make the client happy, I’m always willing to work with them and not get offended. Unless of course, it’s to restart from the beginning. 😁 The process it takes is pretty amazing too. Being creative is taking an idea straight from your mind or inspiration and making it into something visual for others to enjoy.

Is there a mission driving your creative journey?

From when I can remember, I’ve always been a creative person. Loving street art when living in Chicago to drawing and enjoying art classes in school. When I daydreamed at my office job about being a professional artist one day, I would get sad and not know exactly how to pursue it. I tried many times and my family so never really found the confidence to go out and pursue it. Until I started to change my mindset and believe in myself more. My drive comes from knowing that I let so many years pass me by while focusing on work I had no desire in doing, to now making up for a lost time! My goal is to travel the world to explore different beauty cultures and adapt them to my own style one day.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jazminisabel.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jazminisabel_mua/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JazminIsabelmua
• Linkedin: https://vi.linkedin.com/in/jazmin-jaramillo-6a334829
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/JazminIsabelmua
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuJZR3LgH8Uy9GcwZFtrnlg