036: “Makeup is another tool that can help us express ourselves.” From military officer to international makeup artist with Natalie Setareh

Artwork for podcast Holding Down the Fort by US VetWealth

Episode 13 • 27th April 2020 • Holding Down the Fort by US VetWealth • Jen Amos

Jen Amos 0:00

Welcome to holding down the fort, a podcast show dedicated to curating knowledge, resources and relevant stories. So military spouses can continue to make confident and informed decisions for their families. Because let's face it, we know who's really holding down the fort. I'm Jen amis, a Goldstar, daughter of veterans spouse, and your host for today's show. Let's get started.

letter starting in mid May of: 2020

Hi, everyone, welcome back to another episode of holding down the fort. I'm Jen amo, your host and I'm really excited because every time I get to do another show, it means I get to interview another incredible person in our military community. So I want to introduce you all to Natalie set Toray Natalie sets her a is an award winning author, international makeup artist and educator based in V spot in Germany. She believes that makeup is for everyone and she teaches people how to shop for the right products and how to apply those products in a way that works with their skin type, skin tone and their preferences. Her work focuses on teaching people to be smart consumers and eliminating all the white noise that can lead to confusion and frustration. She specializes in UNsponsored, unbiased makeup advice that is 100% intentional and inclusive. Natalie uses her unique experience as a military officer in the work she does as a thought leader in the makeup world. She sees the bigger picture and is motivated to disrupt the stale, outdated ideas that exist in the industry. She is also passionate about helping aspiring makeup artists find their own voice and purpose through her mentoring and coaching services. Natalie, welcome to the show.

Unknown Speaker 3:55

Thank you so much for having me. Yes, it's my

Jen Amos 3:57

absolute pleasure. And I have to give a shout out to Jamie Chapman who was interviewed on holding down the floor in season one, episode eight for connecting us. I thought I'd asked how do you and Jamie know each other?

Speaker 1 4:08

Actually, Jamie was a client of mine. Yeah, she booked me for a private lesson. And we were talking and I loved her because she was such a straight shooter. And she knew exactly what she wanted. She knew she wanted to learn. And then after the lesson, we went a little bit longer. And I learned about her background. And then we realize we were both I mean, she knew I already was an entrepreneur, but I realized she was really big into her space and she's really grown and become a dear friend of mine. So it's been a relationship that has just been such a blessing in my life. So I'm so glad

Jen Amos 4:49

that's so awesome. Yeah, yeah, it's that's incredible. I think she's incredible as well. I forgot how I connected with her was probably through my husband on LinkedIn somewhere and I Just love the work that she's doing with helping military spouses with career preparedness. And helping them like find their, you know, ideal career with begin within. And it was really cool. I had met her for the first time at the military influencer conference sometime last year. Where was it? It was like in DC. And I was like, I was like, Oh, my gosh, I thought you were in Germany. She's like, Yeah, she's like, but I flew over here. This conference, like, Oh, that's so cool to like, actually see you in person. So it was great to meet her and put a face to you know, the voice and to the work that she does. And I'm just so glad that she has been able to connect me with you.

Speaker 1 5:34

Oh, she's awesome. I love her. And she's really got a great platform. And I can't wait to see what she's up to neck. She's always up to something even bigger and better.

Jen Amos 5:44

Yes. So shout out to you, Jamie. We have to tag you when this episode is ready. We said a lot of nice things about you in the first couple of minutes of the show. She's awesome, though. She deserves it. Yeah. Well, Natalie, for people that are getting to know you for the first time. And given, I guess the shift of things with this interesting pandemic, these interesting times, why don't you share what a typical day looks like for you nowadays? What keeps you busy and excited for life nowadays?

Speaker 1 6:10

Well, I think anyone who is a parent can probably relate to the fact that we have turned into whatever we were in the normal day, and now doing it with kids at home. So I guess, homeschooling I'm really just passing on assignments. I'm trying to keep my kids entertained without screens, which is hard, but they get way more screen time than I ever, ever could imagine. Like, I'm so glad for Netflix. Yeah. And yeah, so I'm really busy moving everything in my business online. So I'm really working on online makeup classes and developing a Be your own makeup artists online course that would accompany my book, and really figuring out ways I can serve my audience during this time and the clients during this time. And so right now, a lot of people have time. So this is the perfect time for everyone to like, actually learn how to wear makeup and practice.

Jen Amos 7:16

Yes, yeah, I'm

Speaker 1 7:17

just my classes kind of started small and mighty, you know, maybe seven people. And now I'm getting like 10 people from around the world coming to my makeup classes. And every week, it's more people and more people. And they're messaging me saying, oh my gosh, I never knew this, or I didn't know you can. I thought I had to put on eyeliner this way. But I did it this way. And it looks so much better. It's just, it's so crazy how something so little can have such a big impact. So that's what I look forward to every week are my makeup classes?

Jen Amos 7:54

Yeah, absolutely. Well, your background is a military officer. And so you went from a military officer to being in the makeup industry. And I'm just curious, how did you get into the makeup industry?

Speaker 1 8:06

It's such an interesting transition, right?

Jen Amos 8:10

I can imagine.

Speaker 1 8:12

So I mean that all my closest friends already knew deep down inside. I've always been an artist. And I've always makeup has always been my passion and doing makeup on other people has always been my passion. But I did ROTC and went to Whole Airforce route, and commissioned and I did that because my dad said if I got a scholarship, he'd get me a car. So when you're 17 years old, you're gonna like do whatever you need to do to get the car. So when I graduated college, I was like, Dad pay up. But then I wound up in the military. So I was already a really unlikely candidate to be in the military, but I stepped it up for the car. And then I found myself in the military. Wow. And, and, you know, I'm so glad I did it because I learned a lot of discipline and thick skin and just being confident and I mean things that I can never, they're invaluable life lessons that I've learned having had the leadership experience in the military. But I did eventually it just I paid my dues. I stayed in a little later. And then I decided I'm gonna go to grad school and use my post 911 GI Bill and then I'll leverage my career from the military with grad school and I'm gonna have this like, beautiful corporate job and it's gonna be awesome, right? And I come from, you know, a Persian German background. So art is not really something that you do for a career. It's always just a side hobby. And so I was getting like the side I from my family like what, Natalie you're going to be a makeup artist and as it was just going to be part time after grad school, my husband's active duty, and so I turned turned into an active duty spouse. When I left, after I left the military, I went to grad school. And then after grad school, followed my husband who went to grad school, so it was back to back grad school, which was kind of nice, because there were no uniforms. We weren't really in a military II community. And so it didn't, the realities of being a military spouse wasn't really obvious, right. And it was during that time, that I realized I couldn't actually get one of these dream careers that I thought I was gonna get, because nobody would hire me, because as soon as they found out in a roundabout way that I was in military spouse, and I was only going to be wherever I was, for a limited amount of time, the conversation would always kind of be like, oh, yeah, right. Yeah. And the only other jobs that I was getting more like out of the country, or places that we weren't going to ever be able to relocate to. And so it was then that my, you know, I'm having this crisis, I was, you know, I left the military active duty as a captain, I stayed in the reserves until the rank of Major and I was trying to hold on for dear life to something to some sort of identity. And my friends were like, Natalie, just, you're so gonna make it, you should just do that on the side. And everyone was getting married at this time, and I had done my friend's weddings and stuff. Like, you're just so good, you should do it. I'm like, no way that you cannot do that. job doing that. And I was like, whatever, what do I have to lose, I was in California. And I went to the business office and got my sole proprietor and did everything that I needed to do to get legal. And I just started it, thinking like, this is not gonna work. And it totally took me by surprise when people started booking me and inquiring for their weddings. And I was starting to come to the top of the Google rankings in Monterey, which is a huge just, it was just, yeah. Whoa, like, I was starting. And I was able to have a flexible schedule, right? So I was still I had at this point, my son, he was two years old, or three years old. And so I was able to, like be a mom and a wife and have a business. It was really cool. Yeah. And it just kind of went from there. Like, it just that's kind of how it started. And the whole makeup education bit was, you know, when I'm doing the makeup, everybody's asked me all the questions. And I think my way of working is, when I'm working on a client, I like to explain exactly what I'm doing because I'm six inches from their face. Right, right. Seems like in another world, like, like, no, that doesn't happen anymore. But you know, traditionally, I'm working very close in people's face. And I think the way that I make it a lot easier for them is just to be like, Okay, well, now I'm going to be doing this. And this is what I'm going to be doing, just to relax them. And I started just kind of educating them and answering their questions just to make my job easier. Because nothing is more uncomfortable than somebody painting your face and not knowing what they're doing.

Jen Amos: 13:26

Right or not even saying anything, like just painting a face. And it's just this utter silence, like I already get nervous enough, just go and get a haircut. And if the hairstylist is like not talking to me or not conversation, I'm just like, I guess I'm just going to be in my head. It just feels really awkward. Yeah,

: 13:43

exactly. To me. And then of course, you get to the point where you have like your regular hairstylist, and you just trust them with whatever you like, just do whatever, I trust you you. And so it was a year and a half after I started my business, we had to move to Augusta, Georgia. And my husband had like a nine month training course there. And I was just then like really becoming more of a figure in Monterrey makeup scene when we had to move and it was devastating. So I had to move my business. And that was kind of the first like, oh, wait, I'm really independent now. And I'm a military spouse. And I don't have the same luxuries as all my other friends. Yeah, who are starting businesses and get to cultivate that local community, whatever. Yeah. You know, and that's such a it's a reality that I don't think people ever talked so much about. So I moved to Augusta got plugged in, reestablish my business in nine months, and then we moved to Germany. And that was another big Well, I thought we were going to be there a little bit longer than nine months. But that's the military and I learned in the Air Force. I say it all Time Flexibility is the key to air power. Right? So yeah, so we moved to Germany, and I had my daughter at this time, she was four months old. And so we're really grateful here in Wiesbaden, that we can start our home based businesses and register with the German government. I know that in Italy, you can't do that, like if your spouse, you can't even have your own business. So I'm really, you know, I'm really glad that I could do that. So then I got plugged in here, it was definitely kind of a rough beginning, getting situated and starting your business abroad. But, you know, I think because I had my military experience, because I had that kind of ethos to never give up like that warrior ethos, like, I'm not gonna give this stuff, I didn't work this hard. I was able to just kind of approach it as Okay, what do I need to do? Like, what's the next step I need to take? Instead of saying, Oh, my gosh, this is so hard, I'm never going to be able to do it. I just kind of said, okay, so I need to do this memo. Okay. And then I have to do this memo. What do I need to do? And who do I you know, and so I think the military, in all senses in my business has been like, what's the next step I need to take?

Jen Amos: 16:18

No, wow, thank you so much for really elaborating on how you got into the makeup industry. Because I think that, at least for our listeners, it's very reassuring to know that your resiliency and your experience in the military community has really gotten you to maybe get quicker or more resilient or patient about establishing a new normal every time you had to move. And I think that in this life, it can be really debilitating, almost like to know, like, Oh, we got to move again. You know, and it just sounds like you found a way every single time. And I think that's very admirable.

: 16:56

Yeah, well, there's never a straight path. It's always what's the net, you know, you know, when you marry into the military, or whether you join the military, you know, you just really can't make any plans. And I feel like once you kind of realize that you're not in control of anything, and everything's gonna probably be a last minute full of unknown. Once you get through that, then you know, it's going to be fine. I feel like that's when you can actually grow the most and get the most clarity is in those moments.

Jen Amos: 17:30

Yeah, absolutely. And I think that, you know, when this whole stay at home order happened, and like everywhere in the world, there's a part of me that wasn't really worried about anyone that's been affiliated with the military community, because of the experience of having to start over so many times. We're having to adapt so many times. And so, you know, even for my husband and I, because he's a veteran, too. It's like, we haven't slowed down in our business, you know, it's kind like, oh, well, it's just kind of business as normal. Like, we work from home anyway. I mean, I know I am counting my blessings. Like, I know that, you know, situations could be a little more difficult for other people, especially if you have kids. And I feel fortunate that I just have this dog with separation anxiety, but I could train that. We literally have a dog trainer right now teaching us how to like make our dog comfortable being alone, even though we can't leave him alone right now. But we're still figuring out like, either way. But yeah, I definitely am counting my blessings in that sense. And also just the background that we have to just kind of make it business as normal, despite what's going on. And so yeah, I appreciate you sharing that. I feel like there's a question I feel like I need to ask, and I don't know how to ask it yet. But when you understand that you have to start a new normal, like, quite often, I think for like the average American, they do not do that, you know, like, the average American stays put in one place for a long time, or it stays in the career for a long time. And so, you know, this pandemic is really showing people like there's a lot of changes that's happening in a lot of people's lives. Like this is like, breakup season for a lot of people, for example. And you know, a lot of people are really looking inward and making drastic decisions or making decisions they didn't think they had to, because of everything that's going on. But despite that, I feel like that's normal for people in the military community. But I think my question is like, what do you tell yourself? What are some mantras you say to yourself, where it's like, Okay, I gotta start over. But maybe it's not necessarily saying I have to start over. Is there a way that you word it for yourself to be like, Okay, I gotta establish this new normal, like, everything's gonna be okay. Like, what have you told yourself in the last two, three times that you've moved to, you know, really establish this new normal again,

: 19:38

I am a Dinge learner, like, I love reading self help books and listening to self help podcast, and I love reading about ways that I can think about things differently and bigger than myself, I think. And one of the things that the example that comes to me is kind of for my business But this example, it's actually helped me in so many other ways. But when I was doing my makeup stuff, and teaching people how to do the makeup, or I was explaining them how to do it when I was doing it as a paying client, I didn't realize over the years, people were leaving me reviews and testimonials. And all of that had to do with education. Wow, I learned so much from our session. And people kept saying you need to go to Natalie, and she's going to teach you she doesn't just do it, she teaches you. But when I was doing that, I didn't realize that. And so I remember when I moved to Germany, I feel like I listened to a podcast or heard it somewhere where you need to go through all of your testimonials and all of the like, what is everybody saying about you? And so I feel like you can ask your best friends. Like, I don't know if you've ever heard that exercise to ask your best friends and describe me. Like, five words are saying. Yeah, and then see, like, what is the court? Like, what are those things? And for me, like in my business, I was reading education. Natalie is a teacher, she loves teaching. She's such a good teacher. And I remember I was fighting myself, I was like, I can't be a makeup teacher. I'm a makeup artist. I can't do this. And then I said, But no, I need to listen, I need to listen, I need to go back. I need to see what's working. And then I was able to say, Okay, well, obviously, people think I'm doing really good at this, this is something I'm good. So I'm going to try taking this step and moving in this direction. Maybe it doesn't work, right. But at least you're not just blindly, you know, throwing wet noodle at the, you know, window hoping that it's going to stick. And I feel like we can just learn and listen, if we learn to listen and look back and really intentionally reflect back on things that we do and things that make us feel good and things that feel right. I think it really helps us to make big changes and pivots. You know, like, for me, it's super easy for me to go into this online makeup classes, because I already love teaching, I've already kind of been doing it. And I was really, really scared. But actually this whole COVID thing has reminded me Hey, like, No, you can still do this. So I don't know if that's like a long winded example. But it's one that I like to talk about. Because I feel like after I did that whole reflection, I'm like, oh my god, I was not a believer until like, before, I was like, No, there's no way they're just gonna say the same things and all the things. But it was like, I think really intentionally looking back at things or experiences or, you know, asking your best friends. But what am I good at? You know, it was my best friends who told me about makeup. I didn't see it in myself.

Jen Amos: 22:59

Yes. I love that. I think that's so powerful. And I completely agree with you. I was just talking about this on Emily Reagan's like Facebook Live show like last week about like, sometimes, if you don't believe in yourself, or you don't know what to believe about yourself, you can start by, you know, believing and other people's belief in you like how do they see you? How do they perceive you? And what do they think you're good at. And I remember even for myself and my former business, like what carried me through, were my clients testimonials just being reminded, like what I'm good at, and really focusing on that. And even today just being open to what people have to say about me, like really paying attention to how I get complimented as opposed to like, you know, repelling it like, No, don't say that about me. Like, I don't believe you, you know, it's more like, Oh, thank you for telling me that this is who I am, or this is what I'm good at. Because I could really take that to heart and run with it and see where it takes me. So I think that's really awesome that you know, you became receptive, or you were receptive to what people had to say about you and come to find that it's something that you really enjoy doing and what you're doing today.

: 24:04

Yeah, it's a great exercise to do I think every few years, whether you're in the military or not, I think it's easy when we're in the military because we have those milestones always coming up like the next move or the next. The Yeah, it's one of my favorite things to do now is like, see what the patterns are? I guess.

Jen Amos: 24:25

Yeah, let's get more into makeup education. This is something that like no one has ever really, like done for me. And you have a quote on your website that goes I truly believe that makeup when applied well can transform us in so many ways. So let's talk a little bit more about like what makeup education means to you and what type of education do you really teach in regards to makeup?

: 24:51

I think you know when you learn how to dress yourself or you learn how to comb your hair or you learn how to cook expressing yourself outwardly, I think makeup is a big part of that. And I think that I took it for granted, right, I had a grandmother and a mother, who cared about me enough to not only teach me how to wear makeup, but to teach me why, and the reasons why I would want to do certain things or wear certain colors. And I thought that that was what was happening in everybody's house, like anybody wants to wear makeup, I thought that that's what was happening. And then I realized, I obviously am very interested in makeup, probably more so than like the average wearer. So I like studying the science and like kind of the optical illusions of it. But I think that when the word makeup, you can say somebody wears makeup, and immediately you think of something, you have an image

Jen Amos: 25:51

Yeah, like contour, for example.

Unknown Speaker: 25:54

Drag techniques,

Jen Amos: 25:55

drag, I was gonna say drag

: 25:57

like, are these are techniques that are used in theater and stage and drag performances. And then now they're popularized in, you know, mainstream makeup application, there's no right and wrong. It's all preference. It's all artistic expression. But I do think that we all have our own unique preferences, style, preferences, personality, we all have our own unique skin type, we all have a unique skin tone. I mean, like, seriously, that's why professionals have so many foundations, and they have to learn color theory and how to mix so that you can make the perfect shade. And when you're a consumer, you're just like, hoping that you're gonna get one as close to your shade as possible. And there's a lot of frustration in that. And then even the word Foundation. And so I just like to talk about makeup, take a step out and be like, you know, makeup is a tool that can kind of bridge how we feel, we look on the inside with how we want to present ourselves on the outside. And it's not about contouring, or baking or concealing or like overlining your lips. It's about the preference that works for you and your life and makes you super confident. Right. And the confidence is not just wearing the makeup, it's also confidently not wearing makeup. Like I think I see a lot of people hide under this, like it's an insecurity when they say I don't wear makeup. I don't like wearing makeup. Maybe they just never learned or maybe they have right. I feel like Alicia Keys was one of the few celebrities that stopped wearing makeup. And I really respected that because I know she knows how she looks when she would wear makeup. But she said no, I don't want to wear makeup. Like I want to keep it real and she owned it. But when you don't know how to do it, and you don't know how it can make you feel and transform you in a flattering way that matches how you feel on the inside. And you just don't do it then you're missing out. I have had clients that they still email me like you've changed my life. You changed your life you learn. It's I just don't know how to explain it. It's something that's so accessible makeup is so accessible and so superficial. Yeah, have such transformative effects on us when we wear it in a way that works for us that makes us feel like like our best self.

Jen Amos: 28:26

And I love that you brought up Alicia Keys because I was literally going to bring her up as an example. Like someone that I look up to because I think she mentioned this is one of her recent interviews that like yeah, she used to take on makeup all the time and she eventually got sick of it. And I just love how you know she is as natural as she can be. And you know, in talking to you about this I really have I guess like undervalued or really just misunderstood makeup education. Because I think for myself growing up I was never really a makeup person. I was a tomboy but I would always I told myself that I wasn't into makeup only because I saw like other girls doing it so much better. And I remember in I think it was in college like that's when I really started to attempt like wearing makeup and trying out foundation and I remember one of the first experiences of me going clubbing with my friends. And when we took this group photo I could just tell that I was wearing the wrong foundation like my face look like a ghost. And I think from then on I was just really insecure about you know the type of foundation I would wear and then on top of that like having like sensitive skin. I wasn't really sure what type of foundation to wear. And so for me like nowadays, I mean, I feel like this has been really most of my life since I've been acquainted with makeup. I'm really just as an eyeliner, mascara, kind of girl and that's if I choose to wear makeup, and that's kind of it and I just stick to that.

: 29:57

I feel like we could totally get you into some good foundation matching, but like, if that's the thing is, there's no rule. I mean, there's, you know, like even a foundation, what does that look like? It can be a tinted moisturizer, it can be a light balm, it can be a full, you know, coverage foundation could be a light coverage foundation. I mean, what does this even look like, you know, even understanding that there's not a one size fit all like there's so many different things and also this much health benefits. I mean, contrary to popular belief, there's so much good skincare and makeup these days. You know, if you are into good skincare, it's almost sometimes better to wear makeup than not because at least you're getting some good nutrients and vitamins. And these are things that people don't talk about. They just think makeup, oh, it's bad for your skin? Well, so is the environment, right? So is a lot of things that we just don't think of. And, again, it's not about makeup, right? It's about education and learning your options, instead of just looking at it as like this big thing, like a YouTuber makeup artist. Yeah, that's makeup for them. But that doesn't have to be the makeup for everyday. And I would say most of the people who end up working with me are people who are less as more people like Natalie, I just, I just want a little bit like, can you show me how to just kind of do a little bit, a few little things here and there. And, you know, that's what works for them. Sometimes I have people who are like, I want the wings teach me how to contour. Like all of this stuff. I'm like, well, contouring isn't not flattering for most people. If you're a woman and you can't wear you're probably going to look more like a man at the end. And then if you're male and your contract, you're gonna look more feminine but right, you can go on about that.

Jen Amos: 31:44

What I love is just understanding that makeup. It's not as intimidating as you know, as long as you, you know, understand the benefits of it. Like I've heard before, when someone was talking about Foundation, they said, Okay, what would you prefer to have on your face foundation or pollution was like a, I guess, foundation. But I think for me, it's just trying to find like the right foundation I just haven't like really gone out of my way. And then with my sensitive skin, I've just maybe I'm almost thinking that I've used that as an excuse to not even look into Foundation. And I touched my face so much. It's kind of like why I don't like to put on nail polish because I just I play with my nails so much. But maybe that's the excuse I'm telling myself, you know, to not like really dabble into it too much. But this is really getting me to rethink makeup and understand that it could be more beneficial for me than not. Well,

: 32:39

I think it's just another tool that can help express ourselves. I mean, that's really what it is. And so, and I hate to say this, because I am like super all about like not wearing makeup, and I don't wear makeup every day. People who know me see me you know running my errands and not wearing makeup always skincare always SPF, but like, not always wearing makeup. Like you don't wear makeup every day. And I'm like no, right? I work with makeup everyday. But I don't need to every single day. You don't. There's no rules. It's a tool for self expression. It's in there's no real rules. But it's the education. That's the thing that we are missing or missing that connection between, like, even consuming, right? I mean, you can't unlearn things, you can't unlearn that your clothing was made in a sweatshop, right. So you can make an active just choice as a consumer, whether you're not you're gonna support or where your money is gonna go as a consumer, and it's just, it's not as scary as people think. And it's, it's just one of those things that I've become really committed to,

Jen Amos: 33:47

my greatest takeaway so far is just understanding that makeup is a tool, you know, it doesn't have to be something so intimidating, it's actually a way to enhance whatever you want to enhance about yourself, whatever you want to highlight about yourself. And I think it's very similar to the clothes that we choose to wear. And we were you know, we choose certain clothes because it brings out the best in us or it makes us feel really confident that day or, you know, we just want to relax and so I really liked that you put it that way, it's more about how you feel as opposed to, let's say trying to like fit in or trying to impress other people and I feel like that's been a lot of your talk this whole time and I really appreciate that because I think that you know going back to when I would say that I don't wear makeup it's because I was envious of how my other friends would wear makeup that I was intimidated to put on makeup at all but to just know that you know now if I feel comfortable and just eyeliner and mascara then so be it like that's for me because it makes me feel good. And that's the biggest takeaway that I'm getting from our conversation.

: 34:53

Yeah, I think that we are in a digital age where we're, it's everything is hyper visual. We're all All on social media, we're on Snapchat, we're on Instagram stories or whatever, you know, like Twitch or whatever, like Tumblr, Tik Tok all of them. And it's hyper visual. And I do think though, that image is really important, especially if you, unfortunately, want to be taken seriously and certain career and I mean, once you get to a certain point, you're fine. You can like, do whatever you want, like Alicia Keys can do whatever she wants, because she has gotten to that point. But I guarantee you that there have been times where she needed to look the part, right. And I think that I would be remiss if I didn't mention that image is really important. And the image you're putting forward is really important and knowing, you know, if you are like, Kat Von D, right? She is. She's not my favorite example. But you when you think when you visualize Kat Von D, you know exactly like the kind of kind of brand She is right? That wouldn't fit with Lilly Pulitzer. Right? It just wouldn't work. And I think that not her brand is perfect for her right? Lilly Pulitzer is perfect for her. And we all have our own brand and our image. And so if it doesn't connect, especially as business owners, or if, you know if your Mary Kay consultant or whatever, and you're like Kat Von D makeup, and you're like selling Mary Kay, it doesn't really go together. And I think it's actually going to hurt you, if you can't learn how to make it work. And so there's no right or wrong, but I think being cognizant of how important images, especially when it comes to jobs, and interviews, and, you know, networking engagements, I mean, I think everybody's kind of always looking. And so I think that is a huge part of that. Not that there's rules, not that you have to wear it, and just saying that knowing like, Okay, how do I want to present myself for this, and knowing how to do that, and making sure that's in line with your personal brand. Whether or not you're an entrepreneur or not like I think that's really important. Even just changing your lipstick can make a huge difference. You know, just, I worked with this entrepreneur and her brand colors at the time were orange and blue. And she was wearing this red lipstick. And it was really pretty, but it clashed with peach orange. So I found a coral color for her that was still had that read that she kind of wanted, but was more on the orange side. She changed it and she messaged me that her video editor was like, What is different about this video? Wow. I mean, it was huge. And I was like we just changed the lipstick. We didn't change anything else about her look. And it completely made her entire visual image a lot more cohesive. So I think just counting makeup. It sometimes is not always the right decision. Like there is power in it.

Jen Amos: 38:14

Yeah, absolutely. Wow, Natalie, this was an incredible conversation today about makeup. I don't think I've talked this much about makeup in my life. So thank you for, for indulging me in this. And really opening out you're really helping me like reopen my eyes to the benefits of makeup. And even though people are at home right now, just like what you said earlier in this conversation, I think there's no better time to practice your makeup than now. Because because you can mess up and it's okay because you're not going anywhere. Or you can like practice it for the Zoom calls that you have with your family or with your friends or even with your colleagues because that's where a lot of us are, you know, operating nowadays. And that's like kind of the closest, you know, way we can be in contact with people is through these, you know, through video calls. So this was really incredible. Natalie, before we get into how people can get a hold of you. Do you have any more like any closing thoughts on makeup education overall,

: 39:14

if you want to learn how to wear makeup, you have to just commit and practice and it's makeup it washes off. This is not touching your face like it's not going to hurt you. Have fun and experiment with color. And don't worry, I mean, just don't take it too seriously. But I know that you can learn it and improve and over time you can find your signature look in do it in five minutes or less. I swear it's possible.

Jen Amos: 39:43

Beautiful. I mean it's not like a haircut that you can't undo. So I love that you said that's a good just wash it off if you don't like it,

: 39:49

right. It's like people are like I missed it the mile and I'm like washing off. The worst thing that you have to do is redo your makeup like it's not the end of the world. World.

Jen Amos: 40:00

I love it. Well, Natalie, thank you so much for your time for people that want to learn more about what you do and your makeup education and coaching services, how can they get ahold of you?

: 40:12

Well, I do have a book. It's called Be your own makeup artist. And you can find that on Amazon. Or you can find it at beer on makeup. artist.com. It's a full color book. It's 114 pages of custom diagrams. And before and after pictures, it's not sponsored by any cosmetic, I funded it. Beautiful, and it's gender neutral race and age neutral as well. So I swear my 88 year old grandfather read it and he was like, Maybe I should put on a little. They mean like, granted, he's my biggest fan, but I don't think he would have ever read the book. But he found it really interesting. And that's my book site. And you can just find me and Natalie set her a.com and Natalie saturate on all of the social medias.

Jen Amos: 40:59

plentiful. Beautiful. Awesome. And if you did not get that, don't worry, that'll be available for you in the show notes. So you're welcome. With that said, thank you all so much for listening. We hope that today's episode gave you one more piece of knowledge, resource or relevant story so you can continue to make confident and informed decisions for you and your family. Natalie, thank you again so much for your time and to our listeners. We look forward to speaking with you and the next episode. Tune in next time. Bye

Share Episode

Shownotes

Transcripts

Follow

Links

Chapters

Video

More from YouTube