Anyone who's ever looked up a beauty tutorial on the internet knows the name Lisa Eldridge. The makeup artist, author and businesswoman is one of the most successful MUAs in the world, having started her career over 20 years ago.
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As she turns her hands to TV presenting for a new BBC docuseries titled Makeup: A Glamorous History, why not get to know Lisa a little better?
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Lisa was born on October 26, 1974, making her 46 years old. As a young girl, her family left the UK and moved to New Zealand but later returned and settled in Liverpool. She has stated several times that her life-long interest in and passion for makeup began at the age of six when she discovered a box of vintage makeup from the 1960s in her grandmother's house.
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Even as a teenager growing up in the late eighties, Lisa knew she wanted to pursue a career as a makeup artist. "When I was 13, I got a book about theatrical makeup for my birthday. I thought, 'Wow, you can do this as a career!'
"I actually told my careers teacher at school that I didn't need to study maths because I was going to become a makeup artist," she told Grazia magazine. "Now it's a known career, but back then it was an unusual thing to want to do."
© Photo: BBCAre you watching Makeup: A Glamorous History?
After she left school, she moved to London and began an evening course in makeup artistry while getting hands-on experience working the Lancôme counter at Harrods. After a short stint in the fashion capital of Milan, she got her big break when she was booked by Elle magazine to do supermodel Cindy Crawford's makeup for a shoot.
More A-list names followed, establishing Lisa as one of the hottest makeup artists. Noticing a gap in the market, she launched a YouTube channel in 2010 to teach everyday women how to achieve the glamorous makeup looks seen on Hollywood stars.
© Photo: RexLisa is friends with many of her celebrity clients
These days, Lisa can count everyone from Dua Lipa and Kate Winslet to Keira Knightley and Nicole Kidman among her clients and celebrity friends. She is also regularly called on by the likes of Lorraine and The Today Show to talk about beauty trends.
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In October 2015, she published her first book, Face Paint: The Story of Makeup and the same year, she returned to her roots at Lancôme when she was appointed the beauty brand's global creative director.
Away from her life as a makeup artist, Lisa is married to the photographer Robin Derrick, with whom she shares two sons.
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