Follow Cassandra on Twitter to keep up with her work and her travels.
1. How did you first become interested in a career as a makeup artist?
Watching my mom apply blue eyeliner, mascara and a little powder was enough to get me interested in makeup at a young age! I remember going to the grocery store when I was 5 or 6 and running to the makeup isle to try different products! I have loved makeup for as long as I remember and it has translated beautifully into my life today!
2. What helped you to learn your craft as an artist and to develop your own unique style?
Back when I was young, YouTube and facebook didn't exist so I turned to reading beauty magazines. My older cousin, Crystal also impacted me. She was a beautiful cheerleader a few years ahead of me and eventually worked at Sephora where, in my teens brought me and my friends samples of product to try. My mom always supported my love for makeup and fashion and surprised me by buying me beauty and celebrity styling.. I still have them to this day! Her and I also used to make beaded bracelets and necklaces and sold them for .50 or $1 so we could buy new beads each week!
3. How does your experience as a print model inform your work as a makeup artist?
My work as a model came as second nature as I was really into photography and being in front of the camera. One of my earliest memories of this was with a friend named Kim, she came over and we did our hair, makeup and tried on different clothes.. We even created backdrops and used props for our "photoshoot" then took photos of each other posing.. Back then we used disposable cameras so we weren't even sure how the photos would look until a week later.. But it was a true passion of mine that has grown into several business ventures and I'm glad my mom bought me all of those cameras back then!
4. Would you tell us about some of the work you do overseas and how it compares to the work you do in the Seattle area?
My work overseas is more commercial, working for bigger companies like Bvlgari with the help of my agents based in Dubai. In Seattle my work tends to be very personal and creative, for instance I do maternity, newborn, senior and family portrait photography and styling a few weddings each summer as well. I think this is because I grew up in Washington and people feel comfortable with me on that level, plus my prices drop dramatically when I'm home because I like to give back to my community. In the past we have done charity shoots; for example last time I was home we held a day for single parents with newborns/young children so their parents could have professional photos of their little ones!
5. What are some of your favorite projects that you've worked on so far?
I think my all time favorite gig was working with Rym Ghazali overseas in Algeria and Dubai. As head stylist to the production I got to choose my own assistant makeup artist, BTS photographer and hairstylist, which were all came together from my contacts in Dubai. I really loved the fast pace styling of working on a reality TV show because it kept me on my toes and I got to work with a 20 man crew 12 hours a day! Also, I really love weddings..again, it is a very hectic environment which I tend to handle very well as I work very well under pressure! I think that anything involving a little adrenaline gets me creating some of my best work! The last big gig I organized in Seattle was a 30 person crew of my own makeup artist & hair team, 10 models, a airbrush artist and fashion designer for RAW, which led to my Makeup Artist of the year 2014 nomination!
Thanks, Cassandra!
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