Meet Rebecca Kirkwood

Photo by BlueSpark Photography

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rebecca Kirkwood. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rebecca, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I never anticipated being a makeup artist, but after a 10-year career in corporate human resources, I needed a change. My work was getting more stressful and it no longer gave me joy. I knew I wanted to do something creative while still helping people.

Enrolling in beauty school was quite a shift, but I found I loved getting back to my artistic roots. I grew up seeing the world “in technicolor” and always saw beauty in everything around me. I studied art abroad in Florence during college but never considered that art could be a “real” profession for me.

I had found a purpose within the artistic space that allowed me to deeply support others. I didn’t just want to make the world more beautiful, I wanted to truly help women gain confidence and see themselves in a new way. I believe makeup is a tool, like your hair and clothing style, that can help tell your story while also transforming the way you feel about yourself inside. I can enhance your favorite features or address any concerns you might have, but it’s not about making everyone look the same, as we often see on Instagram. That kind of perfection isn’t realistic. It’s okay to embrace the unique features that make you who you are—that’s what makes you special and the world more beautiful.

Through makeup lessons, I teach women, ranging from busy moms to C-suite executives, how to find the right products and how to apply them to meet their unique goals. I love that “aha” moment when my clients look in the mirror and think “Yes, there I am. I deserve this self-care and it’s okay to pamper myself and feel good.”

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

I’m a clean makeup artist – so this means I use only clean, non-toxic products. Women’s health is another passion of mine, after going through my own fertility and health challenges, and learning to understand how important using safe, healthy products can be. Now I get to educate my clients and women around the country about the importance of clean beauty too!

With that, I also love a clean aesthetic. There are so many incredible artists that can glam up their clients and make them look like a superstar. There is a time and place for that but I like to work with REAL women to make them look and feel like the best version of themselves. This might be correcting discoloration, redness, or acne, or it could be teaching them how to brighten their tired eyes. I want my clients to see themselves first, and the makeup second – or perhaps not see the makeup at all!!

Although I absolutely love to collaborate with professional photographers on photoshoots and support brides, my true passion is color matching and teaching lessons one-on-one or in groups. I offer a “Makeover Your Makeup Bag” virtual service, and a “Clean Beauty Makeover” in-studio service, where I’ll review my client’s current makeup and help them determine what products are working for them and what new products to try. They receive a fully customized shopping list with brands and shade matches so they can shop with confidence! Then once their products arrive, we can meet for a virtual or in-studio makeup lesson where they’ll learn how to apply the products themselves. It’s one thing to have a professional makeup application done by me, and a whole other thing to hold the brushes yourself and gain confidence in the skill.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Resilience
Listening
Always learning

From a business perspective, it’s not easy to jump into the creative field or become an artist. I had to learn business building skills on my own. And from an artistic perspective, I was always training and learning from others. I rely on others for support and to throw ideas off of. I’m now the Lead Artist for the NY/NJ area for Clean Beauty Artists, and I don’t know what I’d do without that group of amazing women, friends, and artists. And within any creative industry, things are always evolving. I’m watching others, taking color trainings, joining industry groups, finding the best mentors I can find. Don’t be afraid to collaborate with others! You never know how you can help someone else and how they can support you. I made some incredible relationships and friendships throughout the years and they have undoubtedly helped me get to where I am today. I credit a lot of my success to having an amazing support network.

Also I’m always listening to my clients. I have adapted my business over the years to focusing on color matching and lessons because this is where my clients struggle the most. I would do someone’s makeup and afterwards they’d say “what products did you use? How did you do that?” and I realized there was a real need for professional help.

You need to be resilient and not be afraid to pivot. During the pandemic, when all of my weddings were cancelled and no one needed event makeup anymore, I decided to go virtual. I started offering virtual personal shopping and makeup lessons to women across the country. I collaborated with companies whose staff were stuck at home by teaching them how to do their makeup for Zoom. I really had a lot of fun with it and tried to make lemonade out of lemons! And now several years later, it turns out that my virtual work is a huge part of my business and something I get a lot of joy from.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I absolutely love supporting everyday people like you and me. I have lead virtual makeup and skincare workshops over Zoom for hundreds of people around the country and would love to collaborate with more companies. If you work at a business that offers any sort of culture or health and wellness programs, let’s connect! I teach small groups, work 1:1 with C-level or corporate professionals, as well as large groups! Workshops range from an hour to multiple hours or across several days depending on your needs. Topics include Makeup 101, Makeup for Zoom, Special Event Makeup, and Safer Skincare Rituals. And depending on your location, I offer in-person corporate workshops too!

You can connect with me via email at [email protected], Instagram (@rebeccakirkwoodbeauty), or on my website: rebeccakirkwoodbeauty.com.

At the end of the day, much of what I teach goes beyond the surface. I share how to bring out your inner confidence and how makeup can be a powerful tool to express who we truly are to the world. I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to do what I love, and I look forward to making new connections and helping others on their journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rebeccakirkwoodbeauty.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccakirkwoodbeauty/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccakirkwood/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg8KqEDRJbFQUH6mjAhUxTQ