Wedding Hair & Makeup by Michelle  Lacey

Thank you letter from Amy

I had to share this letter with you, as it’s completely from the heart & made me a bit teary reading it. I never knew that Amy felt this way & the fact that I could help her by simply doing my job is a great feeling.

Thank you!

I have always received compliments about my skin. The difference now is that when people compliment me they are talking about my natural skin, and not a layer of foundation.

I always knew the tricks of the trade – concealer a shade lighter under your eyes, highlighter to give you that fresh-look glow, powder to soften any shiny areas. I would spend an hour every morning applying my make-up, layer after layer until I achieved the flawless skin I wanted. Especially as a teenager I wore thick foundations that suffocated my skin, in turn causing more spots to cover up with more foundation in a never ending cycle. I used to have these weird ‘bobbles’ that would appear on either of side of my chin and on my forehead. No matter what I tried I could not get rid of them. I scrubbed my face with everything from abrasive exfoliates, exfoliating gloves and even raw salt. As a result my skin only became more agitated and the bobbles still remained.

When Michelle became a beautician for Mary Kay she gave me a skin consultation and recommended a range of products, including my favourite – the microdermabrasion kit. Within days I could see improvement in my skin tone, and within two weeks the ‘bobbles’ had finally disappeared. I now don’t even wear foundation unless it’s a special occasion when I want to look that bit different. It is a luxury now, not a necessity.

It has made such a difference to my daily routine and lifestyle. I currently live in hall residents at university. The fire alarm, a regular activity for a student, was my worst nightmare. I would go to bed every night with concealer on my face just in case it went off and we had to evacuate the house because I was so conscious of my skin. When people knocked on my door after a regular ‘attack’ to my face I wouldn’t answer. I even wore makeup to Rugby training in my first year to keep up appearances because we trained with the male team! I missed 9 o’clock lectures because I would have to wake up so early to put all of my make-up on, and I would wear it to aerobics and swimming praying it would stay on to the end.

Thanks to Mary Kay everything has changed. I take ten minutes to put my make-up on in the morning, and sometimes I don’t even bother! It also means less time doing my hair as I feel confident enough about my skin to just put it back, whereas before I wanted to wear it down feeling I needed to make up for my skin. I go to swimming, aerobics and even on to campus when time is short completely make-up free and I don’t think anything of it. It’s such a lifting feeling. It’s like being taken back to your school days when you used to brush your teeth, wash your face, brush your hair, down a bowl of cereal and walk out the door feeling completely yourself. I now feel myself again.

My boyfriend always told me I looked beautiful without make-up. Now I believe him.

Amy Whitehouse
Final Year BA History Student, Lancaster University