After seeing great reviews and lots of pretty photos of her work, I thought I'd found my wedding makeup artist. I got in touch and then signed the contract and paid the deposit. BAD MOVE! Everything after that went downhill.
In October, on v...ery short notice (my out-of-state photographer was able to fly in for engagement pictures at the last minute), I reached out to Molly to ask about a make trial run in just over a week. She wrote back to say she couldn't because she was on maternity leave through the end of the year -- so she was unavailable for medical reasons, not unavailable because she was already booked, which I understood... so imagine my confusion when she continued posting pictures of clients she was personally working on throughout the rest of 2016, including immediately before and after the date I asked if she was available.
I wish I'd have known she worked with other artists who might have been free to do my trial/engagement makeup, but she neglected to offer this information. Still, I liked her work and was interesting in using her, even without a trial, for my wedding in late February.
Then, 3 weeks before my wedding, she emails to say she had something come up with her family but would reach out to me in 1-2 weeks to let me know if it would impact her ability to do my wedding. The week before your wedding is crunch time and already super stressful and now the makeup artist might not be able to make it?! I remained calm, told her I hoped everything would be okay with her family and to update me when she could.
Two weeks before the wedding, she reaches out to me as though nothing had happened and confirms that the timeline the Coordinator proposed was good. I'm feeling better since now things are confirmed and the balance has been fully paid, but then...
THE NIGHT BEFORE MY WEDDING, she emails me to say she's got "a debilitating medical condition" and can't make it but she'll send her senior artist Sharon Marie instead and will follow up afterwards to make sure I was happy - which she never did.
To other brides: her work looks nice online but why risk contracting with someone so unprofessional? Pregnant, Family Issues, Known Personal Health Issues: which excuse will she give you when you've already paid her and then she doesn't actually show up to do the work? They're all decent excuses, but with so many known personal issues and obligations - which you only learn about after you paid her - are you willing to risk it?
The only saving grace is that her makeup artist, Sharon Marie is PHENOMENAL! She was on time (arriving and keeping on a tight timeline Day-of), super kind and really personable. My photographer, videographer and guests all raved on how flawless the makeup was for me and my bridal party. I wish I'd known about her own personal bridal makeup business and booked directly with her (which is also less expensive than Molly).
The last unbelievable interaction with Molly was just par for the course: I wanted to credit Sharon Marie for her beautiful work since the photos were being published. Molly refused to provide her contact or social media information I'm so glad I was able to google Sharon Marie's name to find her website so she could get the credit she deserved.
Do yourself a favor: book directly with Sharon Marie and save yourself the stress and potential flake out (and some cash!) on your big day. She's fantastic and professional...too bad she sometimes covers for someone who isn't.