Meet Michelle Madonna | Makeup Artist & Hair Stylist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michelle Madonna and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michelle, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Those that truly know me, know just how reserved I am. I’ve never been the type to brag, flaunt or overshare any of my talents or accomplishments. I always thought this made me humble when in reality, I was just insecure. You can walk confidently yet still remain humble, and by not sharing my talents, I was only doing a disservice to myself and others. I don’t hustle to impress or compete with anyone, I’m just trying to change my own narrative.

For years, I worked multiple jobs at once in order to make ends meet. In today’s economy, chances are, a side hustle is necessary, so why not make it something you love? Make an income out of that hobby of yours. Become your own boss and create your own schedule, flexibility, and never have to depend on anyone else.

I would receive compliments on my makeup from family and friends and even assist them in doing theirs. I always played my talents down and did makeup as favors or for practice. I decided to change things up this year and actually go through with my resolutions for once. I’m currently taking courses to perfect my skills, and adding hairstyling to the resume as well, to hopefully be open for business this year and begin building a clientele of my own.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
The beauty industry is an overly saturated market, yet an ever changing one. In order to break through, your focus should be on customer service. Clients may go to select makeup artists based off the products they use, their techniques and looks, their competitive prices, but an enjoyable interaction and one’s professionalism is what I believe keeps them coming back. It’s more than just applying products – you want to make your clients feel good about themselves and leave your chair with a couple tips and tricks they can practice on their own.

Was the road to makeup artistry easy? I mean, does anything worth having come easy? The biggest challenge was stepping out of my comfort zone, trusting my own talents and transferring my visions onto human canvases. For years, I thought I was being modest and humble about my work when I was only holding back on the talents I could be sharing with others. I was exhausting myself working multiple jobs and side hustles just to make ends meet. I needed to communicate more – in person and on social media. Market myself, my skills and personality and really grow my audience and build clientele.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Before proceeding, I’d like to share the disclaimer that I am THE definition of a homebody, meaning I’m not the ideal tour guide. Being a homebody is definitely a choice because there’s never a dull moment in this city – tons of places to see, variety of foods to feast on, and plenty of activities to keep busy. I’d recommend Wynwood as a one-stop shop as they’re constantly expanding with museums, art, bars & lounges, and restaurants. And of course, the beach! Isn’t that our #1 tourist attraction? With year-long summer weather, I’d also recommend staying at the beach to go back home with a natural tan and having also experienced Miami’s multiple cultures.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Aside from the constant love and support I receive from my encouraging family & friends, I’ll dedicate this shoutout to my friend and mentor, Laura Gomez. Laura complimented my makeup once and offered to join her makeup team and I never let it go. I held onto that compliment like the overlooked highschooler that I was who was finally noticed by the popular kids. A compliment on my makeup artist from an experienced makeup artist herself was a pretty big deal for me and I loved the idea of making income out of something I loved doing just for fun. Laura recently began offering her own makeup courses and I dove right in. She’s perfecting my makeup skills and teaching me how to style hair, which is a whole new ball game for me. I never thought of doing hair but it just makes sense. With both of these skills under my sleeve, I’ll now be a one-stop shop for future clients.

Instagram: Personal – @michelle_madonna, Business page – @michellemadonnaartistry

Image Credits
Laura Gomez