Trust your Makeup Artist - We know what we are doing.....

I am Cathryn Kerwin-Rawlinson and after 18 years of painting faces, prepping countless brides, calming nervous mums, and transforming bridesmaids into glowing goddesses, I can confidently say: I've seen every face, every eye shape, every skin tone, every age group, and every concern you can imagine.

That's the beauty of experience. It gives you a trained eye—not just for colour matching or blending a smokey eye, but for truly enhancing someone's natural features in a way that's going to photograph beautifully, last all day, and make you feel like the very best version of yourself.

But here's where trust comes in......

When you come to me for your bridal trial, you might say, "I always wear my makeup this way," or "I like to do this with my eyeshadow." And that's totally okay—we'll chat about what you love and feel comfortable in. But what I won't do is simply replicate what you've always done if I know it won't work on your wedding day or that it technically does not suit your features.

Let's say you have a hooded eye. You might ask me to apply a spotlight sparkle to the centre of your lid because you've seen it on Pinterest. But the reality? That sparkle will disappear the moment you look forward. Hooded eyes naturally fold over the lid, meaning all that shimmer vanishes—and you'll be disappointed when you don't see it in your photos.

Or maybe you have smaller, deep-set eyes and love a heavy black kohl liner. If I follow that request, your eyes might end up looking even smaller in photos. I'm not here to take away your style—I'm here to elevate it, and that sometimes means gently telling you, "That's not the best option for your features."

That's what my job is. That's why you've hired me.......

I'm not just here to put makeup on your face. I'm here to guide you, to give you honest advice, and to make sure the final look works in real life and on camera. And that means trusting my knowledge, my skill, and my years of experience. You wouldn't argue with your wedding photographer on lighting techniques or ask your florist to glue-gun your bouquet together—so please, trust your makeup artist too.

It's also important to understand the limitations of makeup. I'm a makeup artist, not a magician. If there's a spot or textured area on your skin, I can colour-correct, and enhance—but I can't flatten a lump or erase texture completely. That's where we work together to find the right solutions, whether it's lash lifts, skincare prep, or professional recommendations I can give you before the big day.

My job is to bring out the best in you—not to change you, not to make you unrecognisable, but to enhance all the beautiful things that already exist.

So when I make a suggestion, it's not because I'm ignoring what you like—it's because I know what will work. I know what will last through happy tears, hugs, heat, and hours of dancing. And I know how to create a look that you'll love, not just on the day, but when you look back at your wedding photos in 10, 20, 30 years' time.

So my message to you..... Trust your makeup artist. Trust the experience. Trust the skill. Trust the years and the hundreds (if not thousands) of faces that came before yours.

Because this is what I do—and I know what I'm talking about.