The Professional Make-Up Artist Works Efficiently To Save Time And Prevent Stress

As explained in our piece on the importance of maintaining a professional attitude in the make-up room, keeping yourself well organised and your work space clean and tidy makes it easy to keep calm and present a calm and purposeful demeanour.

One of the keys to efficiency is routine. If you have a system of working that becomes second nature and which you can rely on to see you through even the most stressful occasions, you'll always be prepared and have your make-up room ready for the actor or model when they arrive. This will create a more pleasant working environment - and save you time, as well.

Storing Materials

Storage

Make sure you store your make-up materials so that they won't get spilt or crushed or damaged in any way. Any potentially messy materials - such as glycerine, artificial blood, or dirt - are best stored separately from your other make-up.

Containers

Plastic bottle are lighter and usually less fragile than glass bottles for storing liquids. But make sure the material is safe to store in plastic! This is especially relevant for make-up materials such as isopropyl alcohol, surgical spirit, and cleaning solvents.

Kit Boxes

Separate your materials for different types of make-up into kit boxes - one for each. That way, you can keep straight make-up, casualty make-up, and hairdressing materials in separate boxes. Use something inexpenive intended for small tools or fishing tackle as your kit boxes.

Routine Checks

Stock

It may seem obvious but you don't want to run out of make-up at a crucial point in a shoot. So check your make-up stock regularly and refill bottles as necessary. When running low, make sure you tell the production office what you need - and when.

Cleaning

You always need plenty of cleaning fluids and sterlising fluids, especially when working on location. So, once again, regular checks are essential.

Labels

Over time you may use jars and bottles for different make-up materials. Make sure you label each bottle or jar correctly and that you never find yourself having to guess what its content are.

Ordering Materials

Avoiding Waste

Try to make sure you place orders for make-up material that are suitable in scale and economical in cost. And don't use expensive make-up for crowd scenes where faces are seen only at a distance.

Special Needs

Before you start working on an actor or model, you need to be sure that any skin care needs or allergies are taken into account. A director won't be too happy if the star comes out in blotches and spots!

Getting Quotes

There will be times you need to get supplies of prosthetics and facial hair or you need to hire or buy wigs. Alwyas try to get quotes from a number of different suppliers. And remember that the cheapest may be cheapest for a reason! Consider your options carefully and try to get recommendations from other make-up artists.

Keeping Records

When you buy make-up for a production, make sure you keepthe receipt and inform the office of any new material purchased as soon as possible. It also helps to make a record of how and when different make-up material is used.

Continuity

Working on set over a long period always raises the question of continuity. Obviously, a character may have to look identical in every scene and that means you need to keep a good record of the character's make-up. Use charts, notes. drawings and good quality digital photos to record your work. You can pin these to your work station when working on the make-up for the next day's shoot.

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