Feature Interview
What did you want to be growing up as a child? “As a young girl, all I ever wanted to do was play with makeup. When I was growing up my mom was so beautiful and glamorous. My early memories of watching my mother apply her make up in her blue gilded bathroom are still with me.”
Who or what inspired you to pursue a career in the cosmetic industry? “My love affair with makeup started at an early age when I first discovered my mother’s collection of makeup. My mom always intrigued and inspired me with her glamour and beauty rituals. I then went on to learn the art of theatrical makeup at Emerson College in Boston.”
What was your biggest break as a professional make up artist? “My first Vogue cover shoot. I teamed up with renowned photographer Patrick Demachelier and Naomi Campbell in 1987.”
How was the concept for Bobbi Brown Cosmetics born? “After years working as a makeup artist, I had an idea to create a lipstick that was different from everything I bought. I realized that most makeup I bought I had to fix blending it with other shades to change the tone. I met a chemist and told him I had an idea to create a special lipstick that was a bit toned down, yet a beautiful colour. This colour became my Brown #4. I then had an idea - a collection of ten lipsticks that looked great alone or could be mixed and blended to create any perfect shade.”
When did you know you’d “made it” and the business was successful? “Originally, I was selling the makeup out of my house. It was mail order and it was written about in Glamour magazine by the beauty editor at the time, Lesley Seymour. and then one day, I was at a party, and I was talking to someone, and this is where I always tell young kids, it’s really important to be nice, no matter what, you just have to be nice. And I was talking to this girl at the party, and I said, “What do you do?” And she said, “I’m the cosmetics buyer at Bergdorf.” “I told her about these lipsticks, and she said, “Wow, that sounds really interesting. Let me go in and tell people about it.” And she called me up and said, “We’re going to take them.” The goal was to sell one hundred lipsticks at Bergdorf’s in one month. Instead, the first one hundred were gone in a day!”
What is your philosophy about Beauty? “My philosophy and my vision of beauty is that I believe that makeup is a way to help women look and feel like themselves, only prettier and more confident. Rather than trying to change or distort a woman’s features, I use makeup to enhance the
features that make her unique. I believe that with the right knowledge and products any woman can look and feel her best.”
Can you tell us some more about the charities you are involved in and your role as a ‘Social Entrepreneur’? “It is nice to give something back, and I think it is important
to help women realize their fullest potential, so I support organizations like Dress for Success and the Jane Addams Vocational High School.”
“Every year, Dress for Success New York provides approximately 2,000 underprivileged women with interview suits and career development advice. I teach women how to create a makeup look that complements their outfit.”
“Dress for Success is an amazing organization because it gives women the tools and knowledge they need to look like and eventually become the person they hope to be. The makeup lesson teaches the women how to apply her makeup and gives her the beauty essentials she needs to recreate the look on her own.”
To what do you attribute to your successful transition from a makeup artist to multi-faceted business women? “Be passionate, work hard and never give up. I think we have to be true to ourselves, to follow our instincts and to persevere. We must not stop at the first hurdle that we meet. We must keep our goal in mind and move forward...”
What have been some of your most memorable celebrity collaborations? “I’ve done First Lady Michelle Obama’s makeup and would love to work with her again.”
What’s the best piece of advice you were ever given...? “That a woman’s real beauty is reflected in how she feels about herself. If you feel confident, you’ll project that and, as a result, you’ll always look beautiful.”
And finally, what is your number one beauty secret? “Concealer is one of my all time favourite products. I never leave home without it, and it is the secret of the beauty universe. Even the darkest under eye circles can be covered up - it’s a matter of using the right shades of concealer. To cover extra-dark circles, start with a corrector concealer that has pink tones to it. After applying and blending the corrector, follow with a layer of your regular skin-tone-correct concealer shade.”
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