Nam Vo

Well, my career has really taken a turn in the last year or two. I tell everybody that I used to just be a makeup artist, but what’s funny is that I look at my schedule for the next three weeks, and fifty percent of the time, it’s me as the model or me in front of the camera. I’m very flattered—and it’s a lot of work, especially when I’m working with brands. I try to come up with creative conceptual looks, and each brand voice is different. It’s challenging, but I enjoy it.

You need the glow job? The glow job is not fast, honey!

It depends, though, because a lot of my looks are a little bit more editorial. Most people are not going to wear blinding highlighters that are going to burn out your corneas. At the end of the day, beautiful, radiant skin is timeless and everybody wants it. Glowing, healthy skin is universally beautiful and that’s not a trend. So when it comes to dumpling makeup, it really comes down to your comfort level. I always tell people that when it comes to glowing skin, it’s less about the makeup and more about the skin. The more you invest in skin care, the less makeup you’re going to have to wear. It’s actually counterintuitive. People always ask me for makeup product suggestions, but I think that instead of using makeup first, work on creating that healthy, beautiful skin. Then your makeup is going to perform better, look better, and you can wear less.

It depends. If I’m doing one of those wet editorials, and I want the skin to look like glass, I’ll do layers and layers of oil and roll it with a gua sha or another tool. But for a red carpet, I’m going to pull back on oils because under the hot lights, the skin will look greasy. Whatever I do, I do it in layers. Or if you have texture to your skin and you’re oily, I’ll use a fuller-coverage foundation like the new BeautyBlender foundation, and target the glow. I’ll put some [highlighter] in the corner of the eye, the tip of the nose, the high of the cheekbones.

When you’re 20, you could glow all over, versus when you’re 50 years old. At 50, you might have crows’ feet or texture around the mouth, and I wouldn’t want to highlight those areas. For example, if someone has very porous skin, I might go in with some Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Primer, where there’s no shimmer.  If I want the skin to just look wet, I might do a Nudies All Over by NudeStix where it looks wet and reflective. If I want it really shimmery, then I might do Marc Jacobs Dew Drops.

I actually have a product coming out. Everybody thinks that I’m going to do a highlighter or makeup, but I think that’s so predictable.

It’s a clothing line. I’m doing a collaboration with my friend Yumi Kim. One piece has little dumplings on your nipples.

It’s been a really rewarding year. And the growth is kind of funny because my advice to other makeup artists is always “Do you.” I mean, I didn’t buy into the over-the-top makeup trends that happened. I just stuck to my own aesthetic. I’m glad that I never sold out because it’s who I am. Instagram is a bit of a weird thing. I don’t see myself as famous by any means. But earlier today, I was at Fred Segal and somebody was like, “I’m a dumpling!” It’s tremendously rewarding. But I’m not gonna lie, it’s a little bit weird, and social media is the Wild West.

The other night, I had dinner with my friend, who’s an agent. We were talking about all these huge makeup artists in the ‘90s and now they’re not working anymore. So I’m realistic about it. I don’t take anything for granted. I also know that this business is very fast-moving. People might achieve a certain level of fame, but maintaining your reputation is a lot of work. My golden rule is that I don’t just cash checks. In the beginning, maybe two years ago, I got excited because all these brand deals started coming along. And I was like, “Yes, I’ll take this check, and that check, and that one.” But now that I’ve done some deals, I’m selective. If it doesn’t make sense for my aesthetic, I don’t want to water down my brand. I’ve had to step back and become more mindful about it.

I’m extremely grateful for social media. Before it came about, I had my portfolio, but I don’t actually think that that work is a representation of who I am. I think that my social media is so much more interesting and indicative of who I am. But even for me, I work in the business and as soon as I wake up the morning and start scrolling Instagram, it’s all so exaggerated and filtered. It doesn’t make women feel good. I’m extremely grateful for social media. Before it came about, I had my portfolio, but I don’t actually think that that work is a representation of who I am. I think that my social media is so much more interesting and indicative of who I am. But even for me, I work in the business and as soon as I wake up the morning and start scrolling Instagram, it’s all so exaggerated and filtered. It doesn’t make women feel good.

One thing that I can teach women is that trends come and go. Obviously, healthy skin is forever, but I think social media kills people’s idea of what beauty is, because it’s not realistic. Women have to keep in mind that when I’m doing these over-the-top editorial glows. Most women are not going to put on four highlighters, and I’m realistic about that. I mean, I love beauty and I love glamour and I love aspirational things. But at the end of the day, I think that it really comes back to self-love.