Makeup Artist

I love to play with colors. I found this profession suitable for myself since it allows a lot of creativity and complements my inborn knack for fashion and glamour. My eye hand dexterity is also very good which supports me a lot in the role.

I get my inspiration from so many different things: fashion, travel, history, different cultures, plants and nature.

I also love to take walks with my husband Sam and dog Vincent. Sam and I love to travel and explore new places. I enjoy reading books and I’m also a lover of wine.

My career with fashion and celebrities began when photographer Steven Meisel saw my work and booked me for the cover of Italian Vogue. I was very lucky that he gave me such an amazing opportunity to prove myself. It was the first booking I had. He is the defining reason that I have a career. He changed my life.

Again, you don’t have to go overboard! Try those fun colored eyeliners, but keep the line skinny and close to the lash line. Try that fun, bright lip, but do it as a pretty sheer gloss. Balance is also so important, and something that a girl is never too young to learn about. What I mean by that is, if you do a smokier, or heavier eye, do a nude lip. If you’re doing a bold lip, go for a lighter eye.

As a celebrity makeup artist, I literally had every single line of cosmetics at my finger tips. Everything from the 99 cent drugstore brands, to the most prestigious luxury brands, and still there was nothing out there that I was 100% happy with! My assistant and I would spend hours playing “chemist,” mixing together several different products to create something that we could use on my clients. I thought to myself, there has to be a better way! I wanted something that my clients, my friends, my family, and I could all trust to make us look and feel as fierce as we deserve!

Whenever I work with a celebrity, it's always very special. I recently spent the day with Kendall Jenner on an Estée Lauder shoot and got to experience first-hand, the "Kendall Jenner Effect." It's great to be with a celebrity who is surrounded by so much positive light.

Women are always on the prowl for this. Choose cooler "true" red tones with a bit of blue if you have pink in your skin or are super fair-skinned. A warmer orange-red tone works best for olive-skinned women. —Lori Taylor-Davis, Smashbox Global Pro Artist

My fave makeup brush is actually an eyebrow brush. It’s a giant soft version of the tiny hard angled ones you usually see and it works great creating a full, luscious natural looking brow in one swipe.

I don’t know how to answer this as I have never taken my mind off being a makeup artist. My focus has been a constant for most of my life. This is what I was born to do.

The three tools I can never be with out are 1: a contour brush. I use them for everything from shadow to powder to concealor 2: a sharp pair of slanted tweezers from Tweezerman, and 3: my eye lash comb (because I like rock and roll but not clumpy lashes).

We have a lifetime of wearing makeup, so while it’s fun for girls to play, I think it’s better that we wait until we’re older to wear makeup!

It’s simple. We don’t do drama. We do not tolerate toxic, negative or catty behavior and these standards have attracted the right type of artisans to us. Like attracts like. The way we conduct business is always professional. We treat our artisans and clients with the utmost respect. We are responsive, consistent, talented and reliable.

Growing up I had a big costume box and I was always into dressing up. I went to art school for a little while in high school then studied theatre in college at Penn State. My favorite courses were the costuming and stage makeup classes, so after I graduated I moved to London and studied at a professional makeup school taught by ex BBC artists…, It wasn’t a career I really thought of when I was younger but more of a natural progression of something I fell into. I feel so lucky that I can have a career that is combined by my love of art, dressing up and dramatics.

My “Dream Job” would be Ellen Von Unwerth as the photographer, Grace Coddington styling, Sam McKnight on hair, Baz Lurman doing the art direction and Raquel Welch circa 1970 modeling (she is my muse) But any job with a sassy creative director and a decent pay rate is always an awesome second LOL.

I have to say, usually, I always wear a smoky eye and a pink lip. Always. But, lately, I have been branching out and doing a red lip! There’s something so classic, yet so modern about it! And with today’s amazing innovations, you don’t have to worry about it traveling all over your face!

A little concealer under the eyes is the easiest way to look more awake and bright-eyed. Or sunglasses and a bright lip always do the trick.

Invest in your mind, body and soul. Shoes come and go, but your skin needs more than a yearly check-up. Invest in a good regular facial and nurture yourself with massages and quiet rest from time to time.