Exclusive Interview with Adam Burrell (Succesful Celebrity Make Up Artist)

Hi Everyone!

So massive apologies for the long delay in my posts, I have had a lot on my plate these past few days along with finalising some blogger related things, but I'm back with a massive boom if I say so myself. Recently I contacted Little Mix's make up artist Adam Burell to ask if he would be willing to let me interview him for a post. Now as a blogger, I was ready for rejection or no reply since that's what you sometimes get when you try and contact a very busy person high up in the industry, but I was very happy when Adam replied to my email saying he was happy being interviewed. So would you all like to meet him?

Photo courtesy of the lovely man himself.

Adam currently lives in London working full time as a makeup artist, and as part of the job he gets to travel all over the world for photoshoots (whilst I was emailing him, he was about to get a plane from New York back to London.) Adam was born in Sunderland, England, in 1985, and graduated from the London college of fashion in 2008. So far his celeb portfolio consists of working with Cher Lloyd, The Saturdays, Rebecca Ferguson, Marina and the Diamonds, and my personal favorites (of course) One Direction and Little Mix. Adam also works with brands such as Topshop, Alexander Mcqueen, and Asos. I seriously look up to Adam us a person, and after reading this interview, I hope you do too.

1.) Who/What inspired you to become a make-up artist?  

I grew up always painting and drawing, drawing over faces in magazines and face painting, so it was always there. Then I moved to London to study makeup and it got serious. I took in as much as I could from books, the internet, magazines and by reaching out to artists that I admired who were out there doing it. The more I took in the more I was inspired to really make a go at being a makeup artist.

2.) Do you believe in plastic surgery for cosmetic reasons?

Done well and in moderation, yes. Chances are though with age you will learn to love your "imperfections" and with maturity things that bothered you when you were younger just won't be an issue anymore, but that's all part of growing up.

3.) Also, what is your opinion on airbrushing in magazines, and in teen magazines? Do you think it is right that images like that are somewhat 'forced' onto young girls thinking that's what perfection should look like?

You just have to know and understand that all images you see of your favourite celebrities are retouched a lot, in reality they look just like anyone else with pimples, imperfections and wobbly bits. Sometimes even the celebrities themselves don't even recognise themselves!

4.) what is it like to work in that sort of industry?

I think it's the most fun, rewarding and exiting job but it's very hard to make a good living from and a continuous effort to keep the work and money rolling in but if you love it and if you're good at it and give it 100% then you'll do just fine. 

5.) As a teenager with horrible acne prone skin, how do I cover my blemishes up without damaging too much?

I'd say start with a good skin care routine, drink lots of water and eat well, those things will really show in your skin. If it's just a few spots you need to cover go easy on the coverage on the rest of your face using a light tinted moisturiser then just use a good concealer on a small brush and apply it straight onto the spot.

6.) What is your favourite product that you like to use on all skin types?

A good under eye concealer really gives a flawless professional finish no matter what age or skin type.

7.) Who has been your favourite celebrity/celebrities to work with so far?

Being a part of someone's journey from the beginning is very exciting and that's how it feels working with Little Mix and Cher Lloyd.

8.) How did you use make-up to reflect all of Little Mix's different personalities?

Each girl knows what they like and what works for them, like Perrie isn't a fan of wearing pink lipstick and Jesy wouldn't be without a smokey and defined eye, where jade is happy with just a slick of eyeliner and Leigh Anne loves a pink lip so they're all very different and that naturally comes out when we are deciding their makeup looks each day.

9.) (for the mixers) what are the girls like? 

They are all very funny, just like how they are on camera. And all genuinely lovely girls who are enjoying every minute of living their dream.

10.) What would you say has been your proudest moment as a make up artist so far?

Working with Little Mix since they won the X Factor and watching them grow as young popstars and experiencing so many exciting things with them.

Some of you also asked questions on twitter a while back, so here are some that I thought Adam would have most fun answering...

Twitter Questions:

1.) How can I get my eye liner flicks even?

Practice is the best eyeliner advice I could give, that goes for anything. Start off small and then you can add a little more until they are even. Always have some small cotton buds and eye makeup remover on hand to tidy up any mistakes. Muji sell great tiny cotton buds that I'd be lost without.

2.) What's the best way to stop your make-up from creasing?

Work and buff creamy products into the skin so they don't just sit on top. Don't apply too much and make sure you set it well with a translucent powder, especially the undereye area. Applying powder over creamy products over powder over creamy products makes it look cakey and creasy.

3.)How do you make bronzer look glowy but natural?

Apply your bronzer to the areas of your face that the sun would naturally hit first - forehead, cheek bones, nose and jawline. Try not to load your brush up with too much product at once, build it up so you have more control. If you feel like you've applied a little too much just take a clean brush and buff it away.

4.) How did you make it to where you are now?

I just worked hard, stayed focused and loved every working day, with that comes natural progression.

Thankyou so much to Adam for taking the time to answer these questions, it really means a lot to me that someone that high up acknowledged me and my little blog, and it gives me hope that someday I might be working in the same industry. If you all want to see more of Adam's work or just learn a bit more about him, click here for his site. 

Thanks for reading, and let me know if you like these kind of posts.

P.S how weird is it that all of my favourite Little Mix makeup looks have mostly been created by Adam? WEIRD.