Ever wonder how celebs always have flawless, glowing skin and perfectly defined smoky eyes? To find out the truth about the glamorous women we see in the mags, Savvy Miss spoke with Carol Shaw, premier celebrity makeup artist and red carpet authority. You’ve seen Carol’s works of art strutting down the red carpet and gracing the covers of magazines like Vogue and Vanity Fair. Celebrity clients include Nicole Kidman, Debra Messing and Cindy Crawford—to name a few. Not only is Carol the secret behind these beautiful faces, but she’s taken her talent even further, developing and marketing her own premiere makeup line, LORAC. Sound like an exciting job? Wait until you hear how she got where she is today.

Getting started: A license and experience.
Carol was literally born into the beauty biz—her father was a hairdresser and her mother was a manicurist. But it wasn’t until she received her high school graduation gift, a makeover at a chic Beverly Hills salon, that she began to realize her passion. Soon after, she enrolled in Cosmetology training at Kay Brown’s beauty school in Hollywood. At the end of the six-month program, Carol received her license and ended up landing a job at the same salon where she had her first makeover.

In a freelance-based industry like makeup artistry, everyone needs one big break to get into the flashy part of the business. Carol, amazingly, had two! Her first break came when she landed an exclusive in-salon makeup job with master hairstylist Jose Eber in Beverly Hills. Eber worked on some of the most prolific stars of the time including Cher, Farrah Fawcett and Elizabeth Taylor. Here at Eber’s salon, Carol shined, and many clients began asking for her services outside of the salon-launching her editorial fashion and celebrity photo shoot career. This transition helped her gain independence, and she soon was offered representation by the exclusive Cloutier Talent Agency in Santa Monica, California.