Covid19 & Makeup Sanitation- What's New?

Covid19 has brought on many unknowns to the wedding and event world. As a makeup artist, I quickly had to adapt and restructure to ensure my clients (and myself) were all safe. The funny part was, we (makeup artists), were already doing most of the sanitation practices anyway! Here's a list of precautions I am taking & that are required (as of 9/20/20 by the ACCD and Department of Health):

1) Masking Up: This has been the biggest change for me- masking up for every client! It's also probably the most obvious change. I will work with either a surgical mask or N95 mask to help protect us both. Even if I'm not working directly on your face, I will still wear it anytime I'm around or in the room with clients. 

2) Non-porous Containers: A big change I made to my kit was transferring products into non-porous containers to make sanitizing and cleanliness super easy. These containers stay sealed unless I'm opening them to get a product out. They are very easy to spray and sanitize after a job either with a bleach solution or 70% Isopropyl Alcohol. 

3) Disposables: This was NOT a big change! And if you get a makeup artist who says it's a change...RUN. Disposable mascara wands, sponges, and lip wands have always been used. This is to prevent cross-contamination and was a practice prior to Covid19; but now more than ever, is  just as important. 

4) 70% Isopropyl Alcohol: Again, not a big change! I use this level of alcohol to spray powder products, stainless steel trays, and the outside of product packaging. This percentage level ensures bacteria is killed on the surface. Any percentage higher or lower is not as effective. * See CDC quote at the end of the blog!

5) Surface Wipe Downs: Bringing a table and chair with me on-location means those also get deep cleaned. Paper towels are put down for easy clean-up on the table, and a bleach solution is used on all surfaces. 

6) Set-up Area: While most wedding mornings have all the bridesmaids and moms gathered round', I prefer to setup in an area either in a separate room or area that is distanced from others. This makes it easy to keep my area sanitized and myself socially distanced from those not receiving services. 

Please note that NH and other states have very different guidelines for makeup artists, so this is per Vermont regulations. Some artists may be wearing shields, smocks, gloves, hair nets, etc. I always bring a face shield with me as well, if it makes the client more comfortable. Questions? Feel free to reach out! 

*From the CDC: ​ The benefits of using 70% alcohol are: 1) coagulation of surface proteins proceeds at a slower pace, thereby allowing the alcohol to enter into the cell; 2) 70% alcohol, being a dilution of absolute alcohol, contains water which is essential in the denaturing process of proteins; and 3) because of concentration difference of water and alcohol on either side of the cell wall, 70% alcohol enters the cell to denature both enzymatic and structural proteins. This increases the potency of its antimicrobial properties."