Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrea Elise Velez
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My name is Andrea Elise Velez.
I am a San Diego native who grew up in Ramona CA.
I have been in the beauty industry for 10 years starting at MAC cosmetics.
Originally I found the beauty industry by volunteering todo makeup for women in Hospice. At the time I was a psychology major pursuing my Bachelors Degree thinking that I wanted to be a therapist.
Volunteering, I saw the women in Hospice were happier when they had their makeup done and they wanted it done. I also learned that having a safe environment to learn in was the key connection to my unknown makeup abilities. It wasn’t long after I applied at MAC cosmetics and I got the job.
In 2016 I decided to go to beauty school because I wanted to focus my artistry into the wedding industry and I wanted to learn how todo hair styling. I also knew that I wanted to learn how todo lash extensions which I knew required a license. In the first month of starting beauty school at Paul Mitchell I took a class on lash extensions and was trained to do classic extensions. After that class, I turned my garage into a last studio and I did lashes out of my garage until I got my license.
2017 I did my first makeup showcase at The House of Blues in downtown San Diego where I did fantasy makeup for 4 models.
In 2018, I earned my Cosmetology License from Paul Mitchell the School San Diego, specializing in Bridal styling and special occasion hair styles. It was also at Paul Mitchell that I received further lash training in, Hybrid and Volume Lash Extensions.
2018 right after getting my cosmetology license I got hired at a lash studio in San Diego and I did lash extensions there for four years.
2019 I started Bloom Glam Squad. Bloom Glam Squad is a traveling wedding hair and makeup team which specializes in Bridal Makeup & Hair along with LOOK GOOD FEEL GOOD (LGFG) volunteer/ mentor program. LGFG is a group of aspiring makeup artist’ and hair stylist’ that give back to the community by doing makeup and hair for under seen communities. We have volunteered at the Foster Youth Teen Center for 3 years for the their prom.
January 2, 2023, I opened my salon Bloom Beauty & Lash Bar in Bay Park, San Diego. We are a salon that specializes in Lash Extensions, Makeup, Hair styling and Hair Extensions.
Over the years I have learned how powerful making people feel better about their appearance is. Every year my gratitude continues to grow for how I found my passion, Makeup, and my mission is to continue helping others feel better about themselves by doing what I love.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I can’t say its been easy other than the fact that I love what I do so it does make it easier but my journey as a professional makeup artist has definitely had some bumps in the road. Before I started beauty school I was laid off at MAC Cosmetics after being hired as a permanent artist. I was absolutely devastated. I also never saw it coming. Turns out there was an artist at every counter in San Diego laid off and I happened to be the artist let go at the small counter I was working at.
One of the lessons I’ve learned over the years is that everything happens for a reason. In this case I didn’t know it at the time but being laid off was the best thing that could have happened to me. That day I took out a piece of paper and I wrote down exactly what I wanted and I realized I wanted todo Bridal Hair & Makeup along with Lash Extensions. After that I knew I needed to go to beauty school. This was definitely humbling because I was about to start beauty school at age 31. But I did it and because I was so clear on my goals, I would say that was the smoother part of my journey but showing up everyday and being consistent is also apart of the struggle because working and going to school is a grind but when you love what you do it definitely makes it easier.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Bloom Beauty and Lash Bar?
This year, I accepted the fact that I needed to rebrand my business. It’s been something that has been on my mind for a couple years now and rebranding is not only a lot of work requiring lots of time and energy but also it is very expensive. However, I felt like I needed to take this risk because it’s something that I could not stop thinking about and I’ve learned to follow that as a sign that it was something that I needed to complete. Two years ago, I opened my Salon, Bloom Beauty and Lash Bar and six years ago I started my wedding business Bloom Glam Squad. When I started the business, I was in a completely different place in my artistry and my idea of what I wanted to be known for in the wedding and beauty industry. As I come to the end of 2024 I am excited to introduce my new business name, combining Bloom Beauty and Lash Bar and Bloom Glam Squad into one name. Makeup + Style San Diego is the new name of my salon and wedding business. This year we also celebrated being rated number one in San Diego for makeup artist salons, and with that I realize that the name of my salon needed to reflect what we are being celebrated as in San Diego. I am beyond excited to be completed with this rebranding because now I know that this name will be my forever business name, and it encompasses everything that I want be known for in the beauty industry. In addition with Makeup and Style San Diego, we are going to be launching our Makeup + Style Academy, which will be a certification school teaching, up-and-coming make up artist and hairstylist to learn everything they need to know to become professionals in the industry of styling for hair & makeup. I have developed a curriculum based from the six years I worked at MAC Cosmetics and the two years I went to school at Paul Mitchell and the hundreds of weddings that I have been hired for over the last 10 years to teach aspiring artists to become professionals. This has been a dream of mine for a long time and 2025 is finally the year that it’s going to become a reality.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
One of my favorite sayings is ” You do what you have todo until you can do what you want todo”,
As a new makeup artist I was always looking for any opportunity I could to learn or help someone I admired in the industry so that I could learn from them. I still will do work for free if I see that it is in alignment with my goals and or it will help me grow as an artist. So often I see new artist comparing their chapter 1 to someones chapter 10+ which to anyone that would be discouraging. Everyday there are opportunities to grow and learn and if a new artist is feeling stuck my best advise is to ask someone further advanced if they need an assistant or get a part time job related to the beauty industry so they can still be connected as they grow their career.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Bloombeautyandlashbar.com
- Instagram: makeupandstylesd
