# Where to start?



## aleksandra.sonja (Apr 5, 2016)

As someone who comes from a law background its quite difficult to figure out where one should start in order to pursue a part-time career as a make-up artist. It was always a hobby of mine but I would love to finish an accredited course for beginners and hopefully find employment as a freelancer.

Can anyone recommend courses for beginners (hopefully in Ireland)? 

Has anyone worked for a company such as Benefit, Smashbox, Este Lauder etc? What do they look for in their make up artists? I would love to start working at a counter after finding and completing a course in order to gain as much experience as possible. 

Thanks guys!!


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## handmedownstars (Apr 11, 2016)

There are Facebook groups for people looking for Cosmetics positions, Craigslist, and I'm pretty sure I got my first cosmetic job off a Yahoo ad. Honestly, a strong selling background will be looked at more than taking a course but you never know! I've seen people who have had no experience (sales or makeup) be offered positions for Smashbox. In my experience, if you are applying for ULTA, Macy's, Dillard's, stand alone stores,etc they are more likely to hire someone without experience.. but when you get into high end retailers (Nordstrom, Neimans, Saks) they're going to look at your artistry and selling background.


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