Beaming with Jo Leversuch

While some makeup artists enter the industry at tenderly young ages, Jo was twenty-three, living in Edinburgh, and working reluctantly in commercial finance when she had what she calls her “first epiphany” of her life. She walked into a nearby department store and headed straight for the makeup section. With no sales or retail experience, her attempts to gain employment were initially unsuccessful, but after much persistence “they eventually said yes,” and Jo began working for Lancôme, which satisfied her love for all things French; the language, the culture, and the makeup.

Jo worked there for ten years until she made another surprising move, she left the makeup industry to become a buyer for a fashion brand and thereafter trained to become a pharmacist, as she thought a “normal job” was what “society expected everybody to do.” This is when the second epiphany [there will be three in Jo’s life] happened. In India, for her fortieth birthday, faced with the country’s vibrant colours and the realisation that life around her was so short, she decided to go back into makeup as a freelance artist. She reached out to leading makeup artist Ariane Poole, who became her mentor for several years and in full creative style, simply “winged it!”

A mix of private clients, weddings and session work filled her days, but a breakthrough soon came through working with celebrity hairdresser Sam McKnight on a video shoot, where Jo’s work was selected due to her “no makeup makeup look,” something she is best known for today. Sitting down with Sam over a cup of tea, he put her forward to work with his best friend and top makeup artist Val Garland, for a show season. Her advice to other freelance makeup artists new to the scene? Put yourself out there and talk to people, as one job can lead to another.

Just when you thought Jo was content with being an in-demand session makeup artist, her third epiphany came, this time during lockdown. She decided to start a makeup brush brand and saw a gap in the consumer market where large brushes dominate. Her brushes, in contrast, are mostly compact and focus on smaller makeup applications in certain areas, which is how makeup artists tend to work backstage. “I love to pass my experience onto people,” she beams. In this way, Jo believes her brushes bring that professional edge to a consumer market that needs it. “I loved working with models,” she admits, “but I also love working with real people and making them feel confident about themselves.” Jo’s brushes can be used in many different ways “including for skincare and makeup applications.” She doesn’t believe that customers need to buy an entire set of brushes and prefers they use a few to do a variety of things. One example is Jo’s Detailed Brush which can be used to apply a face primer for a glowy effect, rather than using fingers which in her view can cause too much absorption. A real all-rounder, this brush can also be used to apply liquid blusher, foundation, concealer, a wash of colour on the eyes, and even a lip mask.

Most of us today probably only have five minutes to do our makeup, but Jo believes it can still be done mindfully by tweaking makeup applications to fit in with emotional and hormonal states, which change daily. “If I saw you once a week your face would be different each time,” she explains. “We change our clothes if we’re feeling a bit bloated, yet we expect our eyeliner, blusher or foundation to look the same each day!?”

For those feeling the ravages of winter, Jo offers a skin tweak tip for dull eyes that she uses herself. If you have green eyes, like Jo, and look a little washed out, use colour theory and apply red eyeliner, which acts as an instant brightener. “Colour theory shows 
that the opposite of red is green, so if you have green eyes use anything with a red, burnished tone to brighten things up.” Famed for her “no makeup makeup” aesthetic, Jo’s prescription for perfect skin starts with skin preparation that suits your skin and the one essential is an SPF 50. A primer, she adds, sparkles up tired skin, particularly in winter. She believes that well-prepped skin means makeup will last longer rather than using a setting spray afterwards.

As we transition into shorter, darker days, dark circles will be an issue for many. But Jo is here with a few makeup solutions. Firstly, “allow that dark circle to come out,” by putting “blusher on first as you might only need minimal concealer in the right shade based on what colour your dark circle is.” Just don't get stuck in the trap of using a heavy foundation all over the face, she explains. If you like a heavier coverage, use it in the areas required, allowing your natural features to be enhanced. As a shade of concealer that works for you in the summer won’t deliver the same effect in winter, Jo advises buying two or three of the same product in different shades. “If you have a blue or grey tinge to your dark circles, you will want your concealer to have a peachy tone which brightens up the under eye area.” Or if under-eye puffiness is your problem, opt for a concealer that “light reflects” as this will counteract the puffiness, she adds.

“It’s all an illusion to create a younger look,” Jo concludes about using makeup to counteract tired-looking skin. “You can have a little bit of a dark circle coming through, as that’s real; social media tends to only show full coverage, which is simply not reality.”

Jo – the folks at Beam agree with you! Let’s work with our inner beauty and enjoy the mindful magic of the makeup process…