{"id":4821,"date":"2016-01-18T19:00:20","date_gmt":"2016-01-18T19:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/haute-beauty\/?p=4821"},"modified":"2025-04-10T02:44:43","modified_gmt":"2025-04-10T06:44:43","slug":"q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/","title":{"rendered":"Q &#038; A With Celebrity Makeup Artist Melissa Formica\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Renowned Celebrity Makeup Artist, Melissa Formica talks to Haute Living about her passion for makeup, her must-have beauty products of the moment and her journey\u00a0towards success.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/12338795_454854781382301_2067412354_n.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-598880\"><br \/>\n<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/anatasiabts.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-598883\" src=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/anatasiabts.jpg\" alt=\"anatasiabts\" width=\"752\" height=\"1135\" \/><\/a><strong>How did you find your passion for makeup?<br \/>\n<\/strong>I have always been fascinated by transformation. Makeup is an art, an expression. When you do a person\u2019s makeup, the final effect on the subject is not only an outer beauty, it also travels inward. I grew up watching old black and white movies from the 20s and 40s in which a woman could hold an entire room\u2019s attention with an arch of a brow like Marlene Dietrich; she was powerful and strong and her makeup reflected that. During the 80s and 90s I was obsessed with watching music videos \u2013 it was an incredible and visionary time for that and I so badly wanted to recreate the looks I saw on icons like Madonna, David Bowie and The Smashing Pumpkins. I would sit in front of my mirror for hours experimenting with different looks, amazed by the changes one could make with just the touch of a brush. With each look, my mood and attitude would change dramatically and that was the biggest thrill.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tell us about your journey to becoming a makeup artist, did you go to school for it?<br \/>\n<\/strong>I was always an artistic person. I grew up drawing, painting and writing. My hands always needed to be creatively busy. In college I took photography classes and I believe that is where it all began. I staged amateur shoots wherever I could and ended up doing makeup for the models that I casted. I fell in love with doing this and decided to enroll in The Makeup Designory in Soho. As soon as I started, I knew in my gut this was what I needed to do. After graduating in 2008, I hit the ground running and landed one of my first gigs doing a runway show for NYFW. After that, I flew to Sicily for a cooking\/travel TV show. I was committed to making it in my industry.<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/LOOK2_1510.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-598882\" src=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/LOOK2_1510-533x800.jpg\" alt=\"LOOK2_1510\" width=\"752\" height=\"1128\" \/><\/a>Favorite makeup brands?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Make Up For Ever has always been near and dear to my heart. They continue to inspire me with their products and artistry. I owe a lot of my technique to working with them for many years.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What are your favorite looks that you\u2019ve created and on who?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Many of my clients walk the red carpet. One evening I had to weave a $10,000 Bulgari necklace into DJ\/\u201cIt-Girl\u201d Harley Viera Newton\u2019s hair for a Bulgari and Rome event. No pressure!<strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-598879\" src=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/12142458_426811814180104_1231792402_n.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"752\" height=\"752\" \/>Who have been your top customers?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Alessandra Ambrosio, Toni Garrn, Hailey Baldwin, Courtney Love, St. Vincent, Peter Frampton, Paris Hilton, Oscar De La Renta, Marc Jacobs,\u00a0 Alice and Olivia.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is a day in the life of a makeup artist look like?<br \/>\n<\/strong>No day is the same for a freelance makeup artist. One day I could be setting up my kit at 6:00 am for a commercial shoot in a production house downtown, while another day I might be hopping floor to floor in the Cond\u00e9 Nast building to work with CEOs and VPs of <i>Glamour, W Magazine, Brides <\/i>or<i> Self<\/i>. No matter where my makeup brushes are taking me, I make sure to leave all my clients feeling confident and beautiful.<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/12142458_426811814180104_1231792402_n.jpg\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-598880\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/strong><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Screen-Shot-2016-01-15-at-10.48.57-AM.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-598884\" src=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Screen-Shot-2016-01-15-at-10.48.57-AM.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2016-01-15 at 10.48.57 AM\" width=\"752\" height=\"1139\" \/><\/a>What 5 items do you always carry in your makeup bag?<br \/>\n<\/strong>My Temptu Airbrush, Make Up For Ever Artisan Brushes, Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip and Cheek Color Sticks, Marc Jacobs Beauty Light Filtering Contour Palette and Embryolisse Lait-Creme.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How do you like doing your own makeup?<br \/>\n<\/strong>For my everyday look I like to promote a fresh face: radiant skin with a defined brow and lip, eyes soft with lots of mascara. On the weekend, any look is game.<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Screen-Shot-2016-01-15-at-10.48.42-AM.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-598885 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Screen-Shot-2016-01-15-at-10.48.42-AM-800x521.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2016-01-15 at 10.48.42 AM\" width=\"752\" height=\"490\" \/><\/a>Favorite makeup trends of the moment?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Right now I love moody deep lips with a naked luminescent eye. For that special Valentine\u2019s date, I would create a soft, buffed-out, smokey gray winged liner and pale pink glossy lip.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Any makeup tips for starters?<br \/>\n<\/strong>Have patience. Sometimes making a mistake can lead you into another inspiration. Good lighting is key, especially natural light. When curling your lashes, I like to curl them in three places: the very base of your lash, the middle and then the tip. This will create a perfect curve rather then a bent lash.\u00a0 Your eyes will look wide awake and bright as Miss Cara Delevingne\u2019s. Don\u2019t be afraid to try out a new lip color or eyeliner outside of your usual palette once in awhile, it may end up being your favorite go-to. Remember makeup was made to be played with so get your hands dirty!<\/p>\n<p>To view more of Melissa's work or book her for your next event, make sure to visit\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.melissaformica.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">melissaformica.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this exclusive Q&#038;A, celebrity makeup artist Melissa Formica opens up about her path to success, must-have beauty products, and expert tips for flawless makeup. Get an inside look at the industry through the eyes of a seasoned pro known for her stunning red carpet looks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":130,"featured_media":4826,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[943],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wellness"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Q&amp;A with Celebrity Makeup Artist Melissa Formica<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discover beauty tips and insights from celebrity makeup artist Melissa Formica as she shares her career journey, favorite products, and makeup secrets.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Q&amp;A with Celebrity Makeup Artist Melissa Formica\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Discover beauty tips and insights from celebrity makeup artist Melissa Formica as she shares her career journey, favorite products, and makeup secrets.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Haute Beauty by Haute Living\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-01-18T19:00:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-10T06:44:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/LOOK2_1510.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1365\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Rosa Sanchez\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rosa Sanchez\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/\",\"name\":\"Q&A with Celebrity Makeup Artist Melissa Formica\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/LOOK2_1510.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-01-18T19:00:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-10T06:44:43+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/#\/schema\/person\/3782db712c27b42ee4f08edae92adc62\"},\"description\":\"Discover beauty tips and insights from celebrity makeup artist Melissa Formica as she shares her career journey, favorite products, and makeup secrets.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/LOOK2_1510.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/LOOK2_1510.jpg\",\"width\":1365,\"height\":2048},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/4821\/q-a-with-celebrity-makeup-artist-melissa-formica\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/hauteliving.com\/hautebeauty\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Q &#038; 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