I wasnāt planning on writing a blog today, but after attending beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty (presented by The Powder Group, and sponsored by Malin + Goetz, Kevyn Aucoin, Temptu, and Skindinavia, I felt compelled to! Read on to learn why!
Ready? Weāre about to get a little personal!
My transition to LA so far has not been as smooth as I anticipated. Even though I was getting booked down here often and making a couple trips per month from NorCal to do jobs down here, and I have some friends/acquaintances in this huge city, it was tough.
After a bit, I started to question my entire purpose and career path. I even felt uninspired for the first day of The Makeup Show here in LA, which is unheard of! Usually I leave makeup tradeshows feeling on fire and inspired, even after an hour or so of being around amazing artists!
It took a chat with my best friend & maid of honor, Danielle (who happens to have her masterās in Psychology) to realize that I was projecting my circumstances onto my whole outlook on life, which wasnāt fair to my life trajectory. That conversation helped a ton, and I realized I was on the right track, and to continue to stay the course!
Cut to this past weekend, when I was contemplating whether or not to take beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty!
Actually, letās backtrack a little further… When I first decided to become a professional makeup artist, I joined The Powder Group, but did not take advantage of anything about my membership because I didnāt think I needed to learn anything more about makeup (which I now feel is insane and like I could learn more forever - and it wasnāt helped that a prolific makeup artist whoās the lead global artist of a MAJOR brand also told me I didnāt really need to take any more classes).
I pushed back both the fact that I felt like TPG wasnāt going to help me (wrong, I am already so grateful to have recently re-joined) and the fact that I now know I have TONS to learn, and I enrolled in beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty today, and am SO glad I did!
First of all, I learned a few amazing tips about makeup artistry, and that alone made it worth the cost of attendance! I also had a few things about makeup artistry that I was already doing re-affirmed, which is comforting!
ALSO, after my first experience with a client who wanted “instagram makeup,” it was really comforting to know that someone as successful as him who works with influencers still feels the value of skin looking like skin, and doesnāt feel the need to learn how to make clients look like that, AND that even he has days where he wants to quit - and soothes himself with a glass of wine, too! š š·
And this was the final outcome of the look. If I can ever make anything halfway this amazing, I will be beyond ecstatic!
Second, I had some “life reaffirming” moments during the beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty class as well! If youāre not familiar with Jordan Liberty, let me bring you up to speed. Heās multi-faceted… Like I am! He mentioned today that when heās asked who inspires him most as a makeup artist, he canāt name an artist specifically that inspires him most, because he doesnāt want to be the “next Kevyn Aucoin” or the next _____, because he wants to be the FIRST Jordan Liberty. He actually said that the person who inspires him most is J Lo, because sheās a singer, dancer, and actress - and while she may not be the best at any of those three skills, sheās certainly beyond proficient.
I found that SUPER inspiring, because I feel the same way, in many cases. No, I am not yet at the level of Jordan Liberty or J Lo in any of my given fields, but it is reassuring to know that I can still see various levels of success without following the advice of people who tell me I need to further niche down, or focus only on one discipline to avoid being a “Jack of All Trades and Master of None.” I think Iāll just try to be the Queen of a handful of trades (if weāre using a deck of cards as a hierarchy here). Itāll definitely help me to keep my sanity, as I donāt think doing the same thing every day fits with me.
I mean, remember my interview with Hemad, and his interview with me? Weāre everythingers! I had always thought of Richard Branson versus J Lo, but I gotta hand it to Jordanās choice - J Lo looks a lot sexier doing all three of her “things!” (Good observation, Michael Devellis)!
Also, regarding the above picture - if you notice that Jordan looks a lot different in the first picture compared to subsequent images, it is because he is just finishing up round two of his victorious battle against cancer. And I must say that from what I can see, he is handling it like a champion. Seeing that is also inspiring - and Jordan - I am holding you to your promise of a picture of when you feel better and feel better about your appearance!
As I mentioned, Jordan Liberty is another “everythinger,” and one of his “things” is that in addition to being a makeup artist, heās a successful photographer. That is a huge part of the reason I decided to take this course, as I have been shopping for a camera and thinking of picking it up again (I was a photographer before I was a model and a model before I was a makeup artist, so it may be time to come back full circle!) - at least to be able to take pictures better than those shown in this blog and on my instagram page! (I know that iPhones are VERY capable of taking amazing images, but I have a hard time taking my phone seriously for photography)!
This beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty class ALSO included some tips on photography, even if it is just to document your own work in a pinch, so I was grateful for that!
I also was able to snag Michael Devellis‘ book, Ten Words, which I am super pumped to read!
Michael is the creator of The Powder Group, and a very sweet, welcoming man with many talents and skills, so I am excited to read this and learn from him! Maybe Iāll even ask him to be a guest on my podcast someday… Maybe Jordan, too!
In addition to the beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty class itself, there was an evening event, which was for The Powder Group members at the Malin + Goetz boutique.
Malin + Goetz was a sponsor for Beauty for Photography by Jordan Liberty, and I was excited to learn more about them. Prior to today, I had only tried a few of their products which were the amenities in some of the hotels Iāve stayed in over the past few years, so I was really excited to see what they were all about!
(This room has the yellowest lighting ever!)
To put it in basic terms, itās a unisex line for hands, face, and body (plus some amazing candles and fragrances) that marries the best of natural ingredients with safe science to boost performance. It was made by a couple - one with very sensitive skin and rosacea, and the other who used a bar of soap for his face, body, AND hair (š³), and they have been around about 15 years!
As you can see in the pic above, I treated myself, and they treated me with some goodies, too (in addition to the wine and cheese they had out). Iām excited to try them & let you know what I think beyond the store experience! š
I wonāt tell you EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING that I got, but I will give you this knowledge of how I felt when I left the store:
Leaving the @malinandgoetz x @ThePowderGroup event…. and I smell like magic. š„š¾ļæ½?š
ā Mandie Brice (@Mandelicious) December 12, 2017
If you want to go investigate for yourself, great, but I am not sending you straight to what just might be my new signature scent!
The last amazing thing about tonightās event is a testament to the main goal of The Powder Group, which is to create a community of wonderful makeup artists who truly care about someoneās success. I was able to reconnect with the amazing Vanessa Blanche Lee, who I met up in Northern California & modeled for, re-meet Erika Lee - an artist I spoke to at length in the Rebels & Outlaws booth at The Makeup Show, and make a couple new friends as well, one of whom just won for nails at NAHA, and might be interested in having me be a nail model when Iām in the Bay Area again. Yes, please!
Credit: @chanicdawn on instagram
I canāt say enough about how happy I am that I attended beauty for photography by Jordan Liberty! I am definitely going to be a regular at future TPG events. I wish I was going to Business Evolution this week, too, but now I can look into that in the future!
What was the last time you invested in yourself? When was the last time you were on the fence about something and ended up being SO happy with your decision? Comment below!
xoxo,
Mandie
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