Life and Work with Lillian Fogel

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lillian Fogel.

Lillian, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
From a young age, I was obsessed with makeup – the colors and the textures. I loved touching the different colors and seeing the color and feeling the textures – much to my mother’s chagrin. I got my little fingers into her eyeshadow compacts more times than I can remember! I never knew that someone could have a career as a makeup artist – even in the 90’s it was something you didn’t really hear about, so I pursued an undergraduate degree at Arizona State University. A lightbulb finally went off that I could work at a makeup counter, combining my love of customer service and working with people and my passion for makeup and color. It was a match made in heaven! I worked behind the counter for several top beauty brands for over a decade and finally decided to take a chance and quit retail to focus on working as a freelance makeup artist full time. I have been freelancing for 5 years now and every day is different. Sometimes, I am on set working with models for a lookbook or commercial; other times it might be a personal client that has me get them ready for headshots, an event or their wedding. I’m so grateful I can make a living doing what I love!

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
A career really is a journey and a series of milestones – it’s rarely pointing A to point B. When you reach one milestone, look ahead and continue learning, setting goals and growing. Every person on their journey faces challenges, and looking back on my career it was those challenges and struggles that taught me the greatest lessons and allowed me to grow, personally and professionally. I would encourage all people in this field to keep focused, be humble and work hard. It’s age-old advice and I have to remind myself to follow this advice from time to time. If I could give advice to a young person entering this field, I would give the same advice I would go back and give to myself early on: don’t get distracted from your ultimate goal and if your situation isn’t aligning with your goal it is up to you to change it.

Please tell us about your business.
I’ve been working with makeup for 18 years. For me, flexibility is key; I can do a very clean makeup that looks like the person is wearing no makeup, and I can have fun with color, glitter and even paint the body. I work with everyone from personal clients I’ve known for years to corporate brands creating marketing content and everywhere in between. I like to get to the heart of what that client or creative team is looking for, and I’m flexible to get the best outcome for everyone.

What advice would you give to someone at the start of her career?
Be prepared to work hard, don’t fall for the hype and stay humble. If you are seeking a mentor, reverse the thought process of ‘What can they do for me?’ and ask yourself, ‘What can I offer them?’. You will stand out to the people that can teach you and help you gain experience if you approach them from this mindset – and trust me, they can change your life.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lillianfogel.com
• Email: info@lillianfogel.com
• Instagram: @thelillierose
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/LillianFogelBeauty/

Image Credit:
Photographer Sandy Goldstein, Photographer Hilary Rodgers, Photographer Logan Cole

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