LOLA MILLINGTON is a make-up artist who is going places.
Her intention is to have her brand and business – Lola Pop – known throughout the region and the world one face at a time.
“I was always into making myself look pretty and it just started to blossom from there. I think that about 2006, when MAC had first opened, that was when the world of make-up was really made available to me. I started off buying products for myself from there and experimenting on myself. Eventually, I started to work at MAC. I was trained there and that is where the passion for enhancing people’s features really came,” she said.
Her decision to turn her love for make-up into a business came when she was working and requests from people to do make-up for weddings or other functions increased to the point where weekends got busier. She determined it was time “to stop making money for other people and start to make money for myself”.
“To be honest I’m not really the kind of person who would advertise. I try to keep a very low profile; I don’t publicise as much as I really should. I guess God has just blessed me and He has put things in place for me to be on the road to being successful,” Millington said.
It was during slow periods that she got the idea to travel to do her craft.
“I make money for myself, so I tend not to be lazy. I always find ways to make money. That’s why I started being a travelling make-up artist because when there’s a dead month or season in Barbados, nothing is being done, there’s no money.
“I’m not going to be the kind of person who would just be there twiddling my thumbs and waiting until money comes in. So I would always do some research to find out what’s going on, what’s next and to be quite honest, there’s always somebody’s carnival going on every month, or some show, some fete.
“The busiest time of the year is normally between February and August which would be between Trinidad Carnival and Crop Over. I honestly try to stay very busy throughout the year so I keep making money.
“I have actually started travelling to other carnivals doing faces and make-up and it has really benefited me a lot because I’ve been to a lot of amazing places, I’ve met and made friends and my clients are now like my family,” Millington said.
“I really enjoy travelling. I honestly love to get on a plane. Sometimes travelling helps you get away from all of the stress you might have at home,” said the businesswoman.
The demand for carnival make-up is definitely high, she noted, and she is actually fully booked for Crop Over already and from last November she was fully booked for Carnival this year.
“I tend to have the same clients every year and it had gotten so bad that I actually had to give clients to some other make-up artist friends because the demand was just so hot.
“I had another girlfriend go down with me to Trinidad to do make-up,” Millington said.
Although she loves “doing Carnival make-up”, if she had to choose a favourite look it would probably be bridal “because that’s when most brides like to look naturally pretty”. She likes people to look “naturally pretty and not transformed”.
“My love is skin and making sure that the skin is flawless, nice and glowing. I just love what I do,” she added.
She ensures she takes good care of her products, particularly the brushes, ever mindful that not to do so could result in customers’ skin breaking out.
Before applying anything, she talks to clients about their skin, often suggesting a simple regimen of cleansing, toning, moisturising.
“I always encourage good skin care because you cannot just cover up bad skin and expect to have that flawless look you would see in a magazine or on social media. You need to have a very good foundation,” Millington said.
“In a couple of years, I would like to be a regionally known name and I want to [develop] my own brand of accessories like lashes, lipstick or a skin care line.” (GBM)
