Heidi Kraak
Newborough makeup artist Alarna Bell is convinced that, with a bit of hard work, you can achieve just about anything and the fact that she is headed to the United States to work at New York Fashion Week in September is testament to that belief.
Ms Bell previously owned popular Moe salon Kolorz and Klawz, however, became so in demand for on-location services she closed the salon to focus on freelancing, which led to her selection on the New York Fashion Week team.
“[Working at New York Fashion Week] is my ultimate goal. Had you asked me 10 years ago, it would have just seemed like the most impossible thing to me,” she said.
“And then slowly, with the things that started to happen in my career, I was like ‘it could be possible’ and then when you network with people, you meet people.
“As a makeup artist, it is top. What could you do after that? So I actually can’t believe it.”
Accomplished in her field, the Miss Universe director of makeup and national judge was working in Bali where she met the sponsors that would go on to select her to work at Fashion Week.
“With runway makeup, it is very different to what I normally do. With Miss Universe it is about the girl, it is about bringing out her best features and her style, and it is definitely an individual job,” she said.
“With runway makeup it is the complete opposite … the models are coat hangers. The designers don’t want the focus to be their face. So it is almost like you’re blanking them out to a degree. It is very plain.
“So in terms of how hard the work is, it is probably the easiest gig in the world, but it is pressure, it is time, and that is why they get the best that they can get to go and do it.”
Ms Bell also teaches at Federation Training in Traralgon and is keen to bring back her experiences to share with her students.
“To be able to bring back to those students my experiences and to show them that I am a Valley girl, I am a country Gippsland girl and I can do it,” she said.
