Hair and Media Makeup students learning camouflage techniques

Nescot’s Hair and Media Makeup students are working on a range of skills and techniques as they prepare to join the industry.

Level 3 students are learning how to camouflage marks such as tattoos, and how to style and fit postiche, which is fake hair on the hair or face.

Level 2 students, who joined Nescot last month, are currently working on projects including drawing freehand on a plan, scaling up their work, and accurately reproducing their plan in body makeup.

Students are taught by tutors including Frankie Perren, who still works in the industry as a hair and makeup artists and uses her own experience to help prepare young people for the profession.

“We work hard on teaching our students a wide range of skills and techniques, and on helping them continually improve their standard of work,” said Frankie, who is also the team manager.

“We know from our own experience that broadening our students’ range gives them more opportunities to find work, and helps them to understand which area would suit their skills best.

“We also work hard to give them extra opportunities in the ‘real world’, to support them with broader skills they will need as professionals from client care to time management.”

Recent projects for Hair and Media Makeup students have ranged from doing theatrical makeup for actors in Shrek the Musical to special effect makeup as part of a major emergency services exercise.

Level 3 student Paige Kemp, who is aiming to study prosthetics and special effects makeup at university next year, said she is enjoying learning new camouflage techniques.

“The course has definitely stepped up from Level 2 in terms of complexity and the standard of work the teachers are expecting,” she said.

“The teaching is great and we have a lot of support, so I’m just enjoying the challenging and trying to do the best work I can.”

Nescot offers qualifications for school-leavers in Hair and Media Makeup and Level 2 and Level 3. You can read more on our website.