Omaha Fashion Week’s new series The Front Row offers an up-close look at the creators and cultivators that are reshaping Omaha’s fashion and arts community. Rose Petty is a local professional makeup artist with eight years of experience and a passion for all things beauty! We caught up with her as she gears up for her seventh season working in Omaha Fashion Week’s Beauty Alliance!
What inspired you to become a professional makeup artist?
Every single holiday I always asked for makeup kits, and so my mom would go and get me the cheapest, craziest, but hugest makeup kit, and I think that’s where it really started. It came from my soul.
“What brings me back to base, my home, my center, is nature. If I’m feeling funky and nothing is speaking to me, I’ll go out into nature and center myself.”
Makeup by Rose Petty. Hair by Ashley Mullins. Model Isabella Escamilla from Develop Models. Photo by Christopher Tierney.
What is the biggest challenge being a professional makeup artist?
I am self-employed so I manage everything and market myself. It is a lot of work.
What is your favorite industry to do makeup for?
Fashion and film. There’s a whole different energy. When you get on set or when you get behind the scenes the energy is amazing. It’s contagious and it overwhelms you. There aren’t even words! I get such a buzz off of being behind the scenes.
Rose Petty’s favorite collection, created by Crystal Brakhage Designs, featuring her “Leo” look. Makeup by Rose Petty. Photo by Jim O’Keefe.
The Beauty Alliance facilitates professional mentors for students who are new to the beauty industry. How has your experience as a mentor been?
Omaha Fashion Week was like a dream come true the first time that I ever did it. It was really awesome that I was able to do one-on-ones, teach, and kind of inspire.
What is it like behind the scenes at Omaha Fashion Week?
It’s very intense and you have to be able to keep up with quick changes. Sometimes you’ll have a model change, sometimes you’ll have the wardrobe change, sometimes last minutes something isn’t working out and it doesn’t look right so you have to make adjustments and be able to be flexible.
What are your main goals for the future?
I am very, very supported from loved ones and my son. He’s only 11 months old and he gives me so much motivation to create a better future and a better life for him. That’s my main goal.
If you could give advice to others pursuing a similar career, what would you tell them?
Don’t give up. Keep going. Keep pushing forward to learn and to grow. Don’t let others discourage you, no matter what they say, what they do. If it’s in your heart, just keep going, because that’s the most important thing. Go. Get off your couch and go.
Rose Petty does the makeup of Develop Model Aleah Welton for August 2019’s winning collection by Crystal Brakhage Designs. Photo by Kathy Rae Photography.
Don’t miss out on your chance to see more stories like this unfold on the Omaha Fashion Week Runway during our upcoming Spring 2020 show. The Beauty Alliance and its many talented members are supported when you attend the show! Tickets are on sale now.
To see more from Rose Petty, click the links below.
Keep up with the Omaha creatives making waves in the community! Follow Omaha Fashion Week on Instagram for updates on The Front Row.
