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Makeup artist and educator Tania D. Russell working on set

Tania D. Russell...

Tania D. Russell is a career media makeup artist of over 25 years, and a makeup educator of over 15 years (and counting!) with a career that has run the gamut from early hip hop videos to print advertising. Her work has appeared in magazines such as Elle Sweden and Runners’ World, on TV shows for clients such as BET, MTV, and HGTV, and for more commercial fashion and beauty clients than she can remember.

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Shopping is the least important thing you'll do at Shopping is the least important thing you'll do at The Makeup Show this weekend. The Makeup Show NYC is this weekend May 3rd and 4th — and while I’ll be holding it down here in LA, I want to talk to those of you who are going about how to actually work a trade show. Because most of y’all aren’t doing it. Because The Makeup Show is pros only and you aren’t competing with fans lined up for influencer brand drops, there is more opportunity to connect with your fellow artists and brand vendors. Here's what I would do... Pre Show: Plan both the education and which vendor booths want to hit in advance. These should be your priorities and you don’t want time overlap. ��With the education, yes, go see the product demos because Product Knowledge (PK) is important - but pretty please prioritize any business-focused education on the schedule because this is prime career time not just a shopping trip like going to Ulta. On the floor: Shop, yes - especially if you're coming from outside LA or NYC and don't have regular access to pro stores and pro discounts. But don't just grab and go. Introduce yourself to the people at those booths. This is why you want to map out your priority booths in advance because you want to start getting to know your brand vendors and having them know you. And you don't have to buy everything to learn about a product - ask for educational materials. 👍🏾 The mixers: Metropolitan Events (the organizers) sometimes partner with groups like The Powder Group for cocktail-style mixers before or during the show. Go to those. Meeting fellow artists is just as valuable as meeting vendors, and I know artists who’ve met agents at these get togethers. You can be shy later at home, go mingle! 🤗 Bear in mind I've made relationships that have lasted years from Trade Shows. I've loaded *jobs* from connecting at Trade Shows. The networking may not pay off today, but having in-person conversations with your artist community is a precious opportunity that cannot be missed. Are you going to The Makeup Show NYC this weekend? What are you most looking forward to? Tell me in the comments 👇🏾 #makeuptogoblog #promakeupartists
How consistent is your marketing, really? Not whe How consistent is your marketing, really? Not when you feel like it or when work is slow and you panic. I'm talking consistent consistent. This is where many emerging makeup artists struggle, and Fam, I know the struggle all too well. Here are Five Small Ways to up your marketing game early in Q2 so you can ball a little bit harder in 2026… 1. Be Consistent in your Outreach - Outreach is just the name of the game, my friend. Consistency is how we build our name brand so decision makers know who we are. If it feels awkward to you, fear not: the more you do it, the easier it becomes to do. 2. Be Consistent in your Focus - If you don't know what you want to do and your focus is scattered, your marketing will reflect that fact. Pick a direction and commit to it. Other opportunities will come, but you need a home base to work from. 3. Be Consistent in your Presentation - Your portfolio, your social, your website should all tell the same story. If a decision maker can't figure out who you are or what you offer within a few seconds of looking, they're out. 4. Be Consistent in your Positioning - “Know your worth" may be the mantra of social media, but your presentation has to back it up. If you're positioning yourself as a luxury artist, a client should primarily see beautiful makeup, beautifully photographed, in beautiful settings, not just before and afters in questionable lighting. 5. Be Consistent in your Follow-Through - PLEASE. Reaching out is only half the job. If someone responds and you don't follow up, or you go quiet after one exchange, any opportunity that may have existed has left the building. This is an area of weakness for me, and I can tell you that my success rate increases *dramatically* when I get it together and do my follow ups. Once your name and reputation are solidified you’ll likely not need to grind as hard (or you’ll have an agent to do it for you). But to get to that point, your consistency will always be your key. And if you want help getting any of this sorted, the Five Small Things Membership and Need to Talk 1-on-1 Strategy Sessions are both great places to start. Links are in the bio.
Let’s talk about being uncomfortable for a minute. Let’s talk about being uncomfortable for a minute. For the past several months I have been contributing to a large-scale online education program in our industry. And unlike the courses and content I create on my own, this work was subject to full academic review. And the reviewers were analysts, college professors, longtime classroom teachers: serious education experts, not just other artists saying "yeah that looks good.” Y’all every time I pressed send on an assignment to be reviewed I was *nervous* nervous. But every single one of my lessons were accepted. I am not sharing that to brag. I am sharing it because going through that process taught me something important: I had been operating at a higher level than I was giving myself credit for. And I would not have known that if I had let the fear of being judged keep me on the sidelines. This is the thing about staying in your comfort zone. It feels safe, but it also keeps you from finding out what you are actually capable of. If there is something you have been hesitating on because you are afraid of how your work will be measured, I want you to think about that today. If you want support in figuring out your next move, I have two ways to work with me. The Five Small Things Membership is where I share actionable business guidance on a consistent basis. And if you need to think something through one on one, the Need to Talk Strategy Sessions are available for that. Both are linked in my bio. #mediamakupartist #mtgfivsmallthings #promakeupeducation
When I am reviewing the portfolio of an emerging a When I am reviewing the portfolio of an emerging artist who wants to work in media makeup one of two things will often emerge: either the makeup is too heavy handed and too glam for the type of work they're telling me they wanna do. Or it's not enough and it doesn't look finished on camera. As an artist who's made a career out of natural makeup for commercial photography let me tell you, you probably need more makeup than you're doing when you're trying to do "natural". BUT ALSO be careful that you aren't doing a *neutral* soft glam because that's different. Natural makeup for commercial photography - generally speaking - isn't the same type of "let me just throw on some tinted moisturizer and go to the grocery store". It is in no way actually no makeup. It's just is supposed to have the *appearance* of being no makeup. Particularly if you're largely doing beauty makeup for commercial photography which is historically what I've done. In that realm, our makeup still needs to have the finesse and the refinement of beauty makeup. So how do we do this? A lot of practice and re-training your eye. Instead of focusing online where AI images are becoming super dominant, look at agency websites and fashion magazines. That'll help develop your eye for edgier makeups as well 👍🏾 because it's not about liking or not liking – I love all makeup. Well... I don't love horror even though I respect it lol. But it's about being well rounded as an artist. Because let me tell you I've been working 30 years and counting doing clean beauty makeup. 👍🏾 And if you want to study with me and learn this technique I promise you it's coming I promise. I'm working on some local classes here in LA to start so watch this space. 👍🏾
Here's the secret... Here's the secret...
All images copyright of respective photographers | Many thanks to Sonya Bowman Photography, Saryn Christina Photography, and Together in Wellness RN for BTS and Portrait Images
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