Meet Our First Ever Global Makeup Artist

In case you missed it, Nikki DeRoest recently joined us as Global Makeup Artist. The favorite of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Hailey Baldwin has also worked with the likes of Jerry Hall and her daughters, and she’ll be sharing her super approachable expertise and signature natural, glowing look with all of us in the coming months. We caught up with the Los Angeles-based makeup artist at Soho Farmhouse outside London where she dished on how to speed up any makeup routine, the products she uses for a 5-minute look and her go-to cheesy workout song. 

What drew you to the beauty field? 

I don’t think there was something that drew me in; I think I was just born with it. I’m really curious about people and I really love making people feel good, so I think it naturally was where I wanted to be. 

Mornings are rough! What’s the best way to speed up your beauty routine? 

Having a plan: really going through one day and creating your look and knowing what that is. Because when you do that you have a system and you can get through your makeup super, super fast. I feel like for myself, even though I have a lot of products that I use, I know how to put them on and what I want to use, so it’s quick. 

What is your 5-minute running late routine for a natural beauty look? 

SKINLONGEVITY Serum, COMPLEXION RESCUE Tinted, the BARESKIN Serum Concealer, a little bit of an eyebrow brushed up, curl my lashes — if I have time mascara, but if I don’t then at least just curl the lashes — a bit of the GEN NUDE Blush and then the new BAREPRO Lipstick in Cinnamon to give my lips a little bit of color. 

How do you decompress after a bad day? 

I am a really, really big believer in working out and sweating. I’ve always felt better, even if I don’t feel like working out. Once I get there and I do it, I’m always happy, and for me it’s more of a release, a sweat, so it’s about finding what you love in order to achieve that. 

That, or going for a walk. A walk really is meditative for me as well. That’s usually the best cure cause anything else — you don’t feel better after you eat a cake! You don’t feel better after you have a bottle of wine! So trying to do things that you know are a mood lifter and a body release. 

What’s a beauty trend that you never let go of, and a beauty trend that you’re so relieved is over? 

I feel like I’m not one who really has ever followed major trends, like when baking or strobing or all those things came along. My style of makeup is to always just make someone look really great and like the best version of themselves. 

But something that I’m glad has been happening is that everyone is growing out their eyebrows. I think it’s just such a better look, not worrying about having them groomed perfectly. And I’m glad that people are calming down on all the Instagram trendy makeup looks that are not realistic for real life. 

What’s your go-to workout song when you need to get the energy up? 

It’s so funny because it’s such a cheesy song but “Work” by Britney Spears. If you just listen to the lyrics it pumps you up because I’ve always been such a hard worker and I take my career and identify with the work I do really seriously. And you do, you just need to work hard and put in the work. And it’s not because I want to have a Maserati [laughs], I just get pumped when I hear the song. 

We’re all about celebrating the power of good and passing on good vibes from woman to woman. What’s some amazing advice that you’ve been told that you live by? 

My Power of Good “Free of, Full of” is I’m full of curiosity and free of judgment and I feel like that’s advice that I’ve learned in life and also want to pass on to other people. Obviously staying curious opens you up to a lot of experiences and situations and being free of judgment just means that you are more welcoming to people. You never really know something until you’ve experienced the same thing. 

What advice would you have for someone who wants to be a makeup artist? 

I would say just play. Put makeup on whoever will give you their face! Practice on yourself, but more importantly practice on other people. Also, go get a job working in makeup because it’s the best training and you’re making money while you’re being trained and you get to experience it on a lot of different faces. 

Shop Nikki’s picks, and stay tuned for tutorials and more.  

• Share this article
• Tweet this article