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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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So what the heck is a Half Birthday? An excuse to So what the heck is a Half Birthday? An excuse to eat cake, duh! My mom and I used to use this as a completely legitimate excuse to eat cake twice a year, and I stand by it fully. So today is the actual day and in that spirit, I’ve come to tell you about the Half Birthday sale 🎉.

Here's what we’ve got going: The Five Small Things Core Curriculum Action Guides are 50% off. Grab the full set or just the ones you need -portfolio strategy -getting hired -working with brand PR -affiliate marketing -launching your offerings These are the same guides that form the backbone of the membership, and they are chock full of the info artists need make a move and take action.

The Confirmation Agreements package is also 50% off (git yo 💰 right!). And if you've been on the fence about a Need to Talk 1:1 Strategy Session, those are $50 off right now too. And lastly this is the last call to join the Five Small Things Membership at Founder’s Pricing before we switch platforms this Summer. One last thing: this is most likely my last sale like this. I know, I know, the Birthday sales have been fun. BUT I’m going back to my roots, and my business model is changing along with it. So grab the goods while you can! Everything is linked in bio.
Are you available on... WAIT! don't answer that! Are you available on... WAIT! don't answer that! I mean ultimately do answer that but don't answer that in such a way where you get yourself stuck before you truly know what's going on. Why is this important? Because you want to answer in such a way where you can get yourself unstuck, and be able to gracefully exit stage left if necessary. Understand the Project - if you want to do a project for the love of the game and your artistry and all that then absolutely that's what you should do. However if a project doesn't align with your artistry doesn't align with your career goals and trajectory and just isn't a part of what you're trying to do, there may not be a point of doing it. EXAMPLE - I personally am never trying to do film so therefore there is no point in me doing a film. I don't love it AND I'm trying to do beauty campaigns, so doing a film won't help me get there. Understand the Scope of Work - particularly as budgets get tighter, the likelihood of folding additional tasks into your job increases. Sometimes it may require a re-negotiation and sometimes it may require stepping away. You need to know upfront so you can make an informed choice. Understand the Logistics - and let me tell you this becomes really important when you're dealing with clients from out of town, for example. I've had clients who did not know Los Angeles, we go through the whole thing and everything's sounding good and then it's "oh by the way we're shooting in Palm Springs". OK cool. I love Palm Springs but that's a different location that's not Los Angeles. So again, lil re-negotiation has to happen 😉 Not everything will happen in the initial conversation but things should be discussed in advanced. The point being the more you know before you walk on set the more confident you can be when you do so. 👍🏾 We talk about this and more inside the Five Small Things Membership. Join us and get your makeup biz life all the way right. Link in bio or DM FIVE and I'll send the deets 👍🏾
I've literally seen websites without contact infor I've literally seen websites without contact information. Not to mention without location information. Fam, private clients might be willing to go through the form and then the Calendly and then the discovery call and this that. OR some private clients may prefer to just go straight to a booking form like acuity or something. That's not how it's going to be with media clients. Someone hiring for makeup (hair/nails/wardrobe/whatever) for a music video commercial editorial or the like just needs to know where you are and they need a yes or no answer on your availability. And they need to get those answers in the quickest way possible. So even having a form on your website is risky because a lot of decision makers aren't trying to do that. Just make it easy on them – hence making it easier on yourself – and have an email address and phone number. If you don't want to put your real cell number out there on the Interwebs which I get I don't either, you can get a number like Google Voice that will forward to your phone number. But don't get disqualified at the starting line before the race even begins. Make it easy for folks to book you. 👍🏾 Pt 2 building a portfolio that books is the actual portfolio website. If you need guidance, hit the link in bio.
Your booked gigs alone is not your portfolio strat Your booked gigs alone is not your portfolio strategy. I’ve observed in the social media era many artists wondering why their Instagram or before and afters won’t get them certain kinds of bookings. The short answer is that isn’t the type of work decision makers in the media/creative spaces want to see, but it’s even more granular than that. What do YOU want to see? Who are YOU as an artist? And how do you articulate that to other creatives? Aye, there’s the rub! Yes, over time much of your portfolio will naturally be work you've been hired to do, and that’s important information for decision makers. But depending on where you are and what you're going after, booked work alone may not tell your full artistic story. A creative collaboration gives you the space to show range, execute a vision the way you want to execute it, and work with people who can potentially be in your corner long-term. Three reasons I keep prioritizing it: - Meet and build relationships with great teams - Define and solidify your artistic style (without a client brief over your head) - Diversify the work available to show, which can open up further opportunities Hence, even though I am 2000 years old and have been at this makeup thing for 1657-lebbin years, I still LOVE creative shoots and I prioritize getting at least a few good ones done every year. (SIDE NOTE - This strategy has also kept me from becoming “Old Makeup Artist” and being put out to career pasture…) I made a free guide breaking down how to build a Portfolio that translates not just to bookings, but the bookings you want to get. Comment PORTFOLIO26 and I'll send it to you, or grab it via the link in bio. (And don't clown me on this filter please lol. My regular wasn't available, I wasn't wearing make up, and I couldn't see that this filter added shall we say certain details until after I'd already recorded lol)
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
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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