The Makeup Session

This review is for the professionalism of Michelle, the owner, not the quality of Malia, who was my artist for my wedding. I wish I could write two different reviews, since I had two completely different experiences with the two women.
I saw The Makeup Session’s reviews on Unilocal and thought I would do a trial for my bridal hair and makeup, since they were so reasonably priced. Michelle was already booked for that day, but we set up a meeting with Malia, who was available on my wedding day, to talk about what I was looking for. Malia was awesome! She asked that I brought pictures of what I was thinking and talked through all my ideas, asking questions and offering suggestions. We set up a trial that was great! Malia was extremely talented, easy to talk to and work with and very, very professional. I loved her.
My issue is with Michelle’s inability to maintain contact and follow through. I told her that I wanted to officially book Malia’s services for my wedding day and she said that she would send along a contract shortly. A MONTH later, I hadn’t seen a contract and had no other contact from her. I reached out again, asking for a contract, or at least a guarantee that Malia would be able to do my hair and makeup. A week after that, she finally responded with a contract, blaming a hectic move on the lag time. The contract was incorrect — it had makeup services listed for my Maid of Honor and Flower Girl, despite the fact that I had already told her that I would only need hair for them. I informed her of the mistake and asked that she amend the contract before I signed it. It took her two weeks to change the contract and get it back to me.
I was underwhelmed by Michelle’s ability to maintain professional contact with her clients. I understand that life sometimes gets in the way, but if you can’t focus your energy on running your company and meeting the needs of your clients, maybe owning your own business isn’t the right path for you.

VERY unprofessional. She was a «no show» for doing make up for the entire bridal party, INCLUDING THE BRIDE! No call, no apology. I couldn’t believe she didn’t show up for such an important day as a wedding.

I am reviewing based on Michelle’s service, not her skills in makeup/​hair styling.
I researched around for a hair and makeup stylist last year for my wedding festivities and based on the sample photos, reviews, and price, I wanted to use Michelle. We set up an engagement shoot date a few months prior and all seemed well. Then less than a week prior, she told me she had to cancel for another bigger client, which was rude. But since she found someone to cover that day, offered a free trial, and it wasn’t my wedding day, I let it slide. I said I would still book with her if she wouldn’t cancel on me unless it was an emergency. She confirmed this. I put down a deposit and rescheduled dates for a trial, another photo shoot, and the wedding date never changed so she knew it for almost a year.
Fast forward a couple months. She told me she had to cancel two of the the dates, which included my wedding date! She said she found another person within her group to do all her services. She made it sound like it was ok to just cancel without an explanation so I confronted her. She then told me it was personal emergency, but since my wedding was still a few months away and she wasn’t transparent until I told her my frustration, it seemed less believable.
I would give 1 star but since 0 is not the worst, I gave her 2 since she at least gave my deposit back quickly and didn’t cancel a week prior. And to her credit, at least she «tried» to find a replacement, but that’s not what I was looking for. I didn’t research all my time to find anyone. Not saying anything against the person she tried to refer me to. She might have been great. I still asked for a refund. I ended up finding another stylist that cost more but it was worth the frustration.
Maybe I’m an unlucky but seeing a recent review posted here two months ago, I wonder if it’s not just me. If you book and she doesn’t cancel on you, she may be great. I want to say she’s great but I wasn’t even able to book with her even with lots of advanced notice. Also, be cautious that even if you put down a deposit, it doesn’t guarantee anything.

Cancelled on me twice, the first time I contacted her 8 days before our appt and she told me she couldn’t make it the day we had scheduled 3 months prior. The second time she cancelled she contacted me the day of our appt, about 30 minutes before the appt, and said she had not anticipated traffic even though we had been talking throughout the day confirming her availability. She than tried to reschedule to a time that was moe convenient for HER instead of with my schedule. Unprofessional, did not value my time and it is now less than two months until the wedding and I am now trying to find alternative makeup artist options. Very frustrating, would not recommend.

This is a late review.
I needed someone to do both hair and makeup with a reasonable price for my wedding reception, and I happen to stubble upon this place through Unilocal.With all the good reviews I decided to contact Michelle and see if she could do my makeup and hair. Unfortunately, she was booked. Michelle was really prompt at returning my emails and she was so nice and easy to work with.
After learning that Michelle was booked, I decided to go with Tara. She was experienced and has her own beauty shop in Mukilteo. I went with the Full Makeup and Hair Package and makeup for my mom.
Mine came with a Makeup Trial and I love that I got to meet Tara ahead and see her work before the day of. She was well prepared. The trial makeup and hair were okay. I wouldn’t say I like the makeup and hair at first because the makeup was too plain and the hair was clipped up and not pinned down. I was worried that it wouldn’t stay and hold up on the day of the reception. However, it all turned out pretty good at the end. Tara made sure that my hair stays up for the whole day and the makeup turn out better then the trial session. As for my mom’s makeup, she likes it natural and she looks beautiful. It was almost like she was getting married. I was very happy about that.
Thank you Michelle and Tara for making my wedding reception day a less stressful one.
I would recommend the makeup session to my friends.

I wrote my first email to Michelle just a week before my summer photo shoot with my husband, and she quickly responded, told me not to worry, she’ll most likely be able to find an artist for me. Arianna turned out to be my makeup artist. I chose the package with a trial which I would definitely recommend! Arianna spent almost 2 hours during my trial session trying to find the perfect look for me. Arianna is a very sweet, understanding and beautiful person. On our event day it got even better. I absolutely loved it and so did my husband.

Michelle and her team were excellent! Myself, my bridesmaids, mother, step mother, and mother in law all looked amazing on my wedding day. Michelle and her team were punctual, fully prepared, and took their time in making sure all the ladies looked their best. She and her team stayed calm admits all the craziness and finished right on time as I asked. Pricing was very fair for all the great work they do, I highly recommend The Makeup Session!

I can’t say enough good things about Michelle!
My hair and makeup were absolutely perfect on my wedding day! I received a ton of compliments about how flawless the makeup looked all day and that it looked fresh even at the end of a long night of dancing. To be honest it still looked amazing the next morning so I wore it to Top Pot. :)
I purchased the package with the trial which I would recommend. When we did the trial I was happy with it but when I got home I thought it might be a bit heavy for my style. Michelle was SUPER understanding about it, even purchasing a new product to fit my wishes and giving me a quick second trial for free. We were able to find the perfect makeup and something I knew my soon to be husband would love.
Beyond being amazing at hair and makeup Michelle is just an awesome person to have around you on your wedding day. She is calm, kind and reassuring. She never made me feel like I was freaking out (even when I was).
I was so happy to not have to run to two different places for hair and makeup. I was able to stay in our hotel room and get ready in one spot. Seriously, an awesome experience overall!

Michelle is really sweet and excelled at preparing me for my wedding! She arrived on time and when she was finished, my hair was just as we had gone over in the trial and it was a beautiful bun! My hair looked flawless and classic.
I had given her a picture for my bridesmaids hair earlier in the week (short notice) and she was able executed it perfectly on each one of my bridesmaids. Lots of compliments on their hairstyle as well during my wedding! :)
She had brought Andrea for helping with the many curls we had to do for the bridesmaids and Michelle did a fantastic job in leading and managing.
She was so helpful during the day-​of. She made sure we got extra spray and touch-​ups before she left!
She also did my mother’s makeup! Being an older and Asian, I was concerned my mother hadn’t adjusted to applying makeup to her own aging skin and eyes. After Michelle’s makeup application, my mother looked so beautiful and happy, I almost cried!
She also offered to help with my eyeliner. Asian eyes, mono-​lid, she did a great wing tip! She just goes above and beyond. I feel so blessed she was there to prepare for my wedding.

I had the most amazing experience with Michelle from the makeuo session. She does exactly what you ask for. I couldn’t imagine looking and feeling more beautiful than I did on our wedding day.

Michelle & team were fantastic to work with! Michelle was quick to respond to my emails & was really flexible when I had a bridesmaid who opted to get her hair done the week before the wedding.
All of the gals looked beautiful & everything held up flawlessly despite the sweltering summer heat. Even my photographers & day-​of coordinator commented at the end of the night on how my makeup looked like it had just been applied.
Michelle is a gem & you should get her booked for your big day before someone else does!