I am always thinking about how to better my business, and make every experience the absolute best it can be for my clients. I had this idea awhile ago, but never had the perfect hair stylist/makeup artist, until I met Kayla. I met her last spring when I photographed her niece Elliot, got to know her better when I started going to her for eyelash extensions at
Tru Salon, and then photographed her adorable family this fall. This girl is SUPER talented, and I'm so happy she has joined me in making the newborn session experience even better for new moms.
I asked Kayla to share a little bit about herself, how she got into doing makeup professionally and what she feels is the biggest benefit to having hair and makeup done prior to the session. This is what she said...
"I have always enjoyed art and was an art major in college. I decided studio art wasn't what I wanted to do for a career, so I explored other options within the art world. I found makeup and discovered it was a perfect mix of art and fashion. Fell in love and never looked back :) I've been doing makeup professionally for about 4 years now. My favorite part of makeup is obviously the art of it, but also the perfection. I'm a huge perfectionist and makeup allows for this! I love making women feel good about themselves, and showing them simple tricks to enhance what they already have.
The biggest benefit to having hair and makeup done prior to a session is the assurance that your best features will be captured in your photos. Too often it happens that beautiful eyes are lost in pictures! Makeup is ultimately creating an illusion. It can work for you or against you. This is precisely why it is so important to have your makeup applied correctly in order to enhance your natural beauty. A blowout will give you a soft natural style that will last through the day with no worries of styling your own hair!"
This service has been added onto my newborn packages, and is also a part of the engagement experience for brides to be! :) I adore Kayla, of course, but here's some thoughts from Rachel, who was the first client to benefit from this additional service!
"I'll be honest, after the last few weeks of pregnancy and giving birth to our new daughter, Lillian, the only thing on my mind was sleep. I was exhausted and felt as far from camera-ready as can be. It's an emotional rollercoaster with those crazy post-baby hormones, so not having to think about my hair or makeup for the newborn session with Jen definitely took my stress level down a few notches. I'm also a makeup application idiot (you're supposed to use more than 1 color eye shadow??) and on more than one occasion, I have actually gotten a round brush stuck in my hair while trying to get fancy with the blow dryer.
I can't say enough about how awesome and professional Kayla was. It was SO nice to have her come to my house, and all I had to do was shower and relax in my kitchen chair. I'm sure everyone has had a bad experience getting their makeup or hair done for a wedding or special event. You know the one where you look in the mirror afterward to see a glamour shots gone wrong "makeover" with blue eye shadow, fushia lipstick and poofy bangs, which makes you regret not doing everything yourself. I was relieved when right away, Kayla asked how I usually do my hair and make-up to ensure I would look natural in the pictures and feel like myself. While she worked, she talked about her experiences with her 1 year old little girl, Jae, so it was great to get some baby tips as well! I was very pleased with how it all turned out and even had a friend comment on how great my hair looked in the first few pictures that Jen posted on her blog.
I would recommend this service to any new mom who needs a reminder that they are beautiful and deserve to be pampered. Between Kayla and Jen, I couldn't be happier with how our session turned out. I will cherish the experience and pictures forever!"
