How to get your name out there..

So a friend I went to school with announced she is engaged on FB. Her and I still keep in touch quite a few times a year. I wanted to let her know that I am open to do her and/or her bridal party's makeup and her and I could get together to test it out! My questions are, what is a normal price for someone starting to charge to do just a bride, just a bridal party and a bridal party and the bride? I'm sure this would take all day so her and I will have to talk about it but let's say its her and 4 other people? Also I don't charge her obviously for the first trial run to see if she likes the makeup and we enjoy the time ad all right? Maybe assuming she will tip me? Any ideas on colors or looks to be going for? Thanks for your time! /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I moved your thread over to Insider Talk where you can get better information on what you are looking for. There is also a bride section you can peek into for ideas, etc. https://www.makeuptalk.com/f/22765/everything-bridal

I will suggest you to practice several times before you decide to do her makeup. Remember this is a special time for her and the pictures are forever.

Definatly look up some tips on bridal makeup. And practice on her a few times until you got

down the complete look. Bridal makeup needs to be pretty clean and flawless.

Airbrushing is a usual way to do those looks, but I'm not sure how expensive it is

to buy your own.

The price depends on a few things: 

- Your qualifications (professional or self taught) 

- Your skills 

- Your experiences 

- How many years have you worked with brides/ wedding makeup

So the price is the least of your worries.  

The #1 concern is that your makeup is VERY good since brides are very nervous on their wedding day and if the makeup is bad you will have one really pissed off bride. 

*one really pissed off bride = bad word of mouth recommendations 

The number of people you can do for a wedding depends on how fast you are. 

I agree that your price depends on your experience! Anyone who decides they want to be a professional makeup artist and start charging for their work needs to have done the research and put in the time to perfect their skills- hone your craft! Practice, practice, practice! When you're ready, work with a good photographer to take pictures so that you'll have examples of your work (a portfolio) to show to potential clients. Bridal makeup is an industry in itself and the market is huge- but if you want to work steadily and build a name for yourself, you have to work hard. That's just my two cents-- hope it helps.

Originally Posted by Spatzel75 /img/forum/go_quote.gif

I agree that your price depends on your experience! Anyone who decides they want to be a professional makeup artist and start charging for their work needs to have done the research and put in the time to perfect their skills- hone your craft! Practice, practice, practice! When you're ready, work with a good photographer to take pictures so that you'll have examples of your work (a portfolio) to show to potential clients. Bridal makeup is an industry in itself and the market is huge- but if you want to work steadily and build a name for yourself, you have to work hard. That's just my two cents-- hope it helps.

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I agree. Very well said.

I second what the others have already posted, some great advice there. As far as pricing, I would look around salons in your area and see what the general rate is for Bridal parties and price yourself according to your level of skill.

As far as how many you could do, it depends entirely on how fast you are. Consider bringing an assistant, or concentrating on the bride and getting bridesmaids to come in their own foundation and powder, and have you do their eyes and lips. 

Yes I believe your cost should depend on your experience. Remember, taking on clients and doing a good job while being affordable will get you more jobs. All while gaining you more experience. Remember to take pictures of before and after if theyre ok with it so you can use them for your portfolio. /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Hey, For bridal if you are starting you may have in mind that you will wake up early and drive and spend gasoline. It does not matter if its a friend you should always have the same price for everyone. If you are a makeup artist we always start or end up working with family and friends. Also in my experience if you charge really cheap you might get a bad reputation of being cheap. I charge $100-$150 for brides. Remember that you will need very good products maybe mac or makeup forever foundations for example and waterproof mascara and eyeliner etc. $50-$60 for bridesmaids and trials. And have at least 30-40 minutes available for each person just in case you have to start all over again. Hope this helps xoxo!

Just make sure  you take a stack of cards too to pass out! The going rate in Florida starts around $60 and up. Charge full price. You can always go down in price but it is much harder to go up.  Set your rate with what is comfortable for you. As the previous post take before and after photos.

Not sure if she'll get this, it looks like she's only had one post since last Sept and that was it, but my two cents...

I own an artist agency, and it seems like every other Tuesday there's a new "makeup artist" who wants to do weddings. And at least a few times a month, I get a call from a hysterical bride who had some kind of major issue- artist was terrible, didn't show, had no professionalism... so on and so forth. I'm not trying to be rude, I'm trying to point out the reality of the situation. Before you start worrying about how much your going to charge, you need to develop a system, both as a makeup artist and as a business owner. To us, weddings happen every day, but to the bride, it's HER big day. That photo she'll hang on a wall for 50 or more years. It's the photo her grandkids are going to see. It will be in her family albums, and the albums of all her friends and family that she invites. It will go on the internet, in wallets, on iPhone screens and in scrapbooks. You better be damn sure you know what your doing, both as a professional and as a makeup artist, because it' is a BIG deal to be invited to create the look a woman will have of herself hanging on a wall for years and years to come. 

Originally Posted by Katiethatdiva /img/forum/go_quote.gif
So a friend I went to school with announced she is engaged on FB. Her and I still keep in touch quite a few times a year. I wanted to let her know that I am open to do her and/or her bridal party's makeup and her and I could get together to test it out!

My questions are, what is a normal price for someone starting to charge to do just a bride, just a bridal party and a bridal party and the bride? I'm sure this would take all day so her and I will have to talk about it but let's say its her and 4 other people? Also I don't charge her obviously for the first trial run to see if she likes the makeup and we enjoy the time ad all right? Maybe assuming she will tip me?

Any ideas on colors or looks to be going for? Thanks for your time!

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You shouldn't charge. You don't have the right. That's something you have to earn, and you can get there, but you're not there right now. 

You've never done a wedding before, so you don't even know if you can do a wedding. The normal asking price for that would be zero. Offer a trial. I'm not going to make assumptions about what you're capable of. You could be very skilled and immensely creative and do very tight work. If the trial works out, offer to do her and her bridesmaids in exchange for photos to add to your portfolio. If it works out well, you now have some experience under your belt. Do its with a few more brides.

You said "all day" - when you're doing makeup for a wedding or a similar event, you. do. not. have. all. day. There's a lot going on. People have a lot to do on a tight schedule. You need to be able to do excellent work as fast as humanly possible. For a bride and a handful or bridesmaids, you really should have two hours MAXIMUM in most circumstances, and you need to coordinate your time with the hair stylist so you're both working together.

Ordinarily, a makeup artist WOULD charge for a trial (I charge anywhere between $25 and $50 for trial runs, depending on what it's for, as a non refundable deposit that the client can then deduct off of the total for the event) 

If you don't know about colors or looks for brides, that's something you REALLY need to research on your own and develop your own grasp of. Brides can and will change their minds at the drop of a hat, and may have a very vividly specific look in mind that they expect you to create or duplicate. You won't have time to go online and ask around. You have to have a strong grasp of that going in.

I see a lot of money talk in this ["How much should I charge?" "Maybe she'll tip me"] and that's raising a red flag for me. It seems like you're more concerned with being opportunistic and getting her money than you are concerned about offering what you have to make her wedding day great. If you're only trying to get money out of her, that's twisted. A wedding is a big deal and to be hired for a wedding is something that should make you feel special.