Life and Work with Leeda Rassekh

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leeda Rassekh.

Leeda, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started my journey in the beauty industry back in 2001 when I lived in Australia. I used to work at a law firm at the time and didn’t like my job at all, over worked and under paid, getting sick constantly! I felt so out of place and knew I had to quit but just didn’t know what my next step was going to be. I had a great passion in applying makeup so I started searching for a makeup school that offered a program that would really prepare and polish my skills to be a successful Makeup Artist.

In Australia, they offer very high-end education for those who wish to pursue a career in the beauty and Arts industry so I signed up for a Makeup Academy that took one year to complete and taught a very in-depth curriculum about all different styles of Makeup such as learning how to apply Makeup for High fashion/editorial shoots, Runway, Photography, TV/Film, Stage, Drag and many more! The opportunities were endless. It was so much fun going to that Academy and still to this day, I refer back to the skills I learned from that school! After finishing, I decided to pursue a career in Beauty Makeup style. I started working for a few different cosmetics counters/stores to gain more experience and working with clients until I landed my dream job at the time which was to work for MAC!

I am so thankful I did as I gained so much more knowledge and experience, working at MAC in Australia is a completely different experience than working for them in the USA, they train all their Artists every three months so keep them up to date with the trends and keep them polished. I had the opportunity to work on numerous backstage events such as Australian fashion week, Chinese dress Body painting, Kanye West concert and various other events. Most of the knowledge I have today about applying Makeup is a result of working for MAC as it has really allowed me to hone my Artistic skills and ability to be the Artist I am today!

When I moved to the US ten years ago to be with my husband, I wanted to add more credentials to my portfolio and pursued to go to a Cosmetology School to learn to do hair. After landing my dream salon job at Mathew Morris Salon, I thought I was where I needed to be and soon learned that I was wrong. The salon vibe and hours were not right for me at the time. I wasn’t happy working there and I had started getting some wedding makeup gigs which I really enjoyed doing. I also wanted to start a family and needed more flexibility. I didn’t know how I was going to fit that in my life at the time, so I quit the salon and pursued to work in the wedding industry doing hair & makeup for brides, I launched my business LeedaBeauty Hairstyling and Makeup Artistry in 2015 and have been going strong ever since! I have won Couple’s Choice Awards for four consecutive years from Weddingwire and The Knot, the largest Wedding networks in USA. I love making brides look and feel amazing for their big day, that excited look I get from them at the end is so priceless to me. I have two beautiful children now and that’s thanks to the flexibility this career has given me. For once in my life I feel like I am exactly where I am supposed to be in my career, all the hard work, ups and downs and all the choices I have made has to lead me here and I wouldn’t change not one thing!

Has it been a smooth road?
It definitely hasn’t been an easy journey. I don’t think it ever is! Some of the challenges I have faced starting out is that you really have to earn your position no matter what path you choose in this industry, it is very competitive, so you have to stand out above the rest and go above and beyond. You don’t earn a lot in the beginning and you may have to do some free work to get your name out there, you will come across people who will take advantage of you so you have to be very investigative and ask a lot of questions to make sure it’s a fair deal for everyone.

This job requires a lot of offsite work and you will have to work crazy hours sometimes like really early in the morning or travel long distances. Don’t say yes to everything. If it doesn’t feel right or you feel like it’s not worth your time or that you might put yourself in an unsafe environment DON”T TAKE THE JOB! There will be plenty of other opportunities and no amount of money is worth risking your health and safety! Also, don’t sell yourself short by marking down your prices or undercutting other professionals in your market, this will attract the wrong type of clients. If you have the passion and work hard attitude success will come naturally!

Please tell us about LeedaBeauty.
I am a Makeup Artist and Hairstylist specializing in wedding makeup and hair. I also do makeup and hair for other occasions and events as well as photoshoots, editorial and film.

I am most proud of launching my own business and doing what I love. If my clients are happy with me, there is no greater reward! Some of the things that sets me apart from my competitors is the diverse experience I have in the industry, my passion which really shows through my work and the transparency that I have with my clients, I tell it like it is and very honest with my clients whether it has to do with achieving a certain look, giving my opinion on what suits them or about my skills I make sure I communicate that with them in the beginning so that we are all on the same page and there are no surprises.

There’s a wealth of academic research that suggests that lack of mentors and networking opportunities for women has materially affected the number of women in leadership roles. Smart organizations and industry leaders are working to change this, but in the meantime, do you have any advice for finding a mentor and building a network?
A very important advice I can give to anyone is when you are starting out find a brand that you love and work in sales or as a counter girl for a cosmetics brand where you are dealing with customers face to face. This is one of the best ways to learn in this industry as it allows you to learn people skills and also working with different types of people from all different backgrounds makes you a much more seasoned Artist!

Find an experienced or well-known Makeup Artist or hairstylist and offer to assist them on jobs so you learn from them, there’s also a number of Facebook groups you can join related to your industry where local jobs are posted by other Artists needing help or other referrals, it’s also a great learning source!

Contact Info:

• Website: leedabeauty.com
• Phone: 7202777677
• Email: leedabeauty@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/leedabeauty
• Facebook: facebook.com/leedabeauty

Image Credit:
Carrie King Photography, Kathleen Peachy Photography

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