Alumni Success Stories
Student Reviews
What They have to say...
Below you will find a collection of entries written by our former students about both their experience during the program and how its impacted their life now! The Glam Academy is targeted to a very specific audience, those that are not only interested in being makeup artists but being their own boss. Each of our graduates has used the program as a springboard for their own unique journey. We have students who have launched their very own cosmetic line, we have students within one month of graduating represented by world famous makeup artist agency's apprenticing for both Vogue US and UK. We have students who have turned vintage campers into a mobile makeup bus, making a service available to an area of the country that has never experienced it.
Our students come from not only the tri-state area, but the entire country. This alone is a testament to the true transformative power of The Glam Academy.
I know my teaching styling is different, I know I'm a little quirky, but I also know that every eye in that room is on me, soaking in every morsel of information. Many think I am nuts for giving people everything, but I think it's nuts not to. In any other trade, you can learn as much as you want to, but in makeup artistry, people are oddly secretive with "those few extra steps". Most people come to the Academy expecting many more people behind it-- multiple teachers, helpers, etc. But for the most part its all me. I do everything. Why? Because they need to see that. They need to see that they can drill something into the wall, they can climb a ladder, they can learn all the things that they would typically outsource. Once that mindset is established, they enter their business with no bad habits, and a level of protocol and operation that most do not have after years of trial and error. -- Alexa Prisco
Angelica Alberti
An Absolutely Dazzling Dream Brought to Life
My name is Angelica Alberti & this is my story on how I became a Makeup Artist.
Starting out in cosmetology school in 2012 I learned that my true passion was makeup. Problem was that in the state of New Jersey, they only touch on about 3 days of makeup and you are pretty much just reading out of a book! Educating yourself by reading is great but I knew that if I really wanted to find out if I had what it took to be in the Industry of Beauty as a Makeup Artist I had to grab a brush and do some hands on work with a pro! That is when I signed up to be a student at the Glam Academy with Alexa Prisco. Making that first big step was super intimidating and I was so nervous because I had NO IDEA how to do makeup or what to expect. I am here to tell you that the Glam Academy and Alexa Prisco have given me the best experience of my life!
Alexa really challenges you and brings out the best artist in you. She shows you that if you really work hard in her academy, you can go beyond a makeup counter. When I was going into Makeup I didn’t really know what I would do going out of it. I wasn’t sure if I was going to end up at a counter or a salon. Alexa and the Academy really shows you that the sky is the limit! You can customize your services and brand to whatever it is that would set you apart from other artists in the industry.
That leads me to, life after Glam Academy and Absolutely Dazzling (My Brand).. Of course its scary when you are officially out there on your own with plenty of competition. For me, I did not waste any time! I was trying to book clients immediately! I had my first Bridal Expo while I was I was finishing up the Academy and I still get calls to this day from brides from that expo. I learned on my own that patience was very important and to not give up if you are not getting calls right away!
Where am I now in my career? I can tell you that right now as I am typing this I am preparing to do Miss New Jersey USA Emily Shahs makeup for her send off tonight as she prepares to take the crown of Miss USA 2014! I have done work with CW’s PIX11 News and also Mercedes Benz Fashion Week at Lincoln Center in Manhattan, which I made it to CNNs home page for! I am also doing special events.. Anything that needs a little glam and I feel that it would benefit my name & resume, I’m there!
See some of my work here at www.absolutelydazzlingmakeup.com
Everyday I am working to get more exposure and a positive name for my brand! I look forward to blogging on here & sharing my journey with all of you! Make sure you check back for more entries from other me and other GA Graduates!
Stay Dazzling! xx
Angelica Alberti
Beauty By Christina Isabella
Hi Everyone!
My name is Christina and I am recent graduate of Glam Academy. I just wanted to share with you a little bit about how Alexa absolutely changed my life.
I always had a love for make up and being glam but I didn’t know how to make it part of my life in a way that I could gain income. I actually went to college and graduated with a degree in Liberal Arts. When I graduated I started working a full time job. I was making good money but I was miserable. I knew that I couldn’t spend the rest of my life doing work that made me unhappy. I really looked inside myself and looked at what options I had in terms of doing something that made me happy but also gave me financial stability.
When I decided make up artistry was what I wanted to focus on, I researched all of the make up schools in my area and Glam Academy immediately stood out. I loved that it focused specifically on make up artistry and that it didn’t include hours of useless and boring information like a lot of the other schools I saw. What stood out to me the most was that it focused on me as my own brand and that it would give me the tools to create my own business and not work for some one else. When I decided to pursue make up as my career I thought that I would have to work at make up counter at a department store or a salon for years before I could ever branch out on my own. So when I saw that at Glam Academy, Alexa teaches you how to skip those steps and basically rocket launches you into independent success, I was amazed and knew that this was the school for me.
The transformation that I saw in myself throughout Glam Academy was amazing. I went from shaking trying to put winged eyeliner on to being able to put fake lashes on in a flash. Alexa taught me the fundamentals of make up so that I can now dissect and attack any look with confidence and ease. Not only did she teach me fundamentals but she took the time to go above and beyond and teach me how to create flawless make up so that when I work with photographers they see me as an asset because they have to do less editing in the end. This is something that definitely sets me apart from other make up artists in the industry. I also went from just having an idea of what to do for my success to fully having my own brand and business plan. She gave me the tools and steps that I needed to be completely independent and successful as a make up artist.
They say if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. That couldn’t be more true in my case. I absolutely love what I do and I never feel like I’m working but instead just living my dream. The hardest part about making your dream a reality is the first step and I am so happy and grateful that I took my first step with Alexa and her Glam Academy.
Erin Hendley of f.a.c.e. Makeup Artistry, LLC
Hello! My name is Erin Hendley, and I was a student in the very first Glam Academy course. If there is one thing I am addicted to, it is Makeup Education. Having previously attended Cosmetology School in Kentucky, Makeup school in Chicago, and another weeklong course in New York, I can confidently say there is one aspect about the Glam Academy that stood out from the rest of my institutes: Business Inspiration & Aspiration. I was already a working artist in NYC before attending Alexa’s Classes. Throughout the duration of enrollment at the Glam Academy, I focused on business branding, my signature style, how to be my own PR team, protecting myself legally, and how to handle difficult clients. These are the fundamentals that have taken me from an occasionally booked artist, to a fully booked artist at professional rates.Three years out from graduating the Glam Academy, I now own my own business, custom compacts, & brick and mortar studio in Kentucky. I owe Alexa’s motivational speeches for igniting a fire in me to nurse my business and constantly push my boundaries. She reminded me that I have to possess a certain amount of humility and establish a tough skin not only to be a successful business woman, but an ENTREPRENEUR! Feel free to keep up with me at f.a.c.e. Makeup Artistry, LLC! I’m constantly up to something new! -
Lauren Patricia Makeup Artistry
My first three days at the Glam Academy
I wanted to spend some time to highlight my experience so far at the Glam Academy with Alexa Prisco. Let me first start by saying that Alexa is the type of mentor any aspiring makeup artist could dream of. She wants you to succeed and will do everything in her power to make sure that happens. She is blunt and to the point and makes you work! She’s not going to sugarcoat anything. If you do a classic bridal look on a model that is not up to standards she will tell you that and then make you fix it. When I arrived the first morning, all 16 students were asked to hang out in a separate room from the factory. While there we introduced ourselves, talked about our dreams, and everyone seemed very nice. One of the things I catch myself doing as a makeup artist is checking out other people’s makeup. I can be watching a TV show and realize I have no idea what’s going on because I was looking at the makeup the characters were wearing. So naturally on this first day, I admired all of the beautiful work everyone had done on their own faces. I find myself questioning how did she get her eyeshadow to fan out like that? Or I wonder if that lipstick is MAC or a drugstore doop?
After about a half hour, Alexa finally came in and introduced herself and had us all come into the factory. Set up in front of each chair was a Glam Fairy Bible (chock full of amazing information) and a small makeup kit courtesy of NYX. The first half of the day we spent doing icebreakers and after lunch we broke into the bible for some much anticipated glamology. Glamology is the oral aspect of the academy where Alexa goes through the bible and explains all things makeup, technique and business. The second day was much like the first. Lots and lots of glamology. Not that I mind. I’m as much interested in learning about contouring as I am actually contouring someone’s face.
Day three was where the fun and the stress began!! Good stress though not bad if that makes any sense whatsoever. It was our first lab day. Alexa did a demo look on her wonderful assistant Brenna. The look of the day was classic bridal makeup. The demo was so interesting because it opened my eyes to things I wasn’t doing quite right, or made me happy that was doing a lot of it right already.
After the demo we went to go pick out our models. My model was a sweetheart of a 16-year old from Pennsylvania. Her and her mom drove from the Poconos to help out! I explained to her through smiles that the only person I have ever put makeup on before other than myself is my mom. So I got down to work and did my best to re-create what Alexa had taught us in the demo. I was one of the first ones done which made me nervous because automatically I think I’m doing something wrong. However, when I handed my model a mirror her face lit up. She loved what I had done. That gave me such a huge sense of satisfaction. After some time, I was finally called to go with my model into the other room where Alexa was doing final checks before the photoshoot. Alexa looked at my model and told me she looked great! No touch ups, nothing to be fixed, I had done a good job. That was when I realized that maybe this really is my talent. My model did a great job glamming it up for the photoshoot. I’m very excited to get the pictures so I can share them.
Now onto this upcoming weekend. Two labs which means two looks and two photoshoots. Nerve-wracking yet exciting. I just hope I can keep up the good work.
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