From Dallas To Day Jobs To Doing It My Way To Dreams Coming True
Date posted: March 2, 2015 | By: Dawn *This post was originally written by Dawn McCoy and published on the Beauty Collection blog on Sunday, March 1st, 2015.
Hey there, Beauty Collection beauties!
I am BEYOND honored to be the inaugural Beauty Collection Celebrity Beauty Curator this March! What is a Celebrity Beauty Curator, exactly? Well, each month, Beauty Collection will choose a Celebrity Beauty Curator who will then choose their favorite beauty products at Beauty Collection to be featured online and in stores. What does this mean to you? You get to find out what us beauty influencers are really loving at the moment. And what does the honor of being selected as the first #CelebBeautyCurator mean to me? So, SO much. And for you to understand just how much, I need you to go with me on a little time traveling expedition.
I loved makeup from an early age. A very early age.
At age 3
Picture it: Dallas, 1981. I asked Santa for a vanity. Yes, that’s right. A lighted vanity, so I could apply my makeup like my mommy did. And guess what? Santa delivered.
Santa delivered a box of vanity. Kidding.
Picture it: Dallas, 1989. My mom took me to the Clinique counter and I learned their classic, 3-step skincare regimen. My skincare regimen was born. While, I don’t use Clinique exclusively anymore, this simple forward thinking on my mom’s part set me up with a lifelong skincare regimen, where I wash my face every night and always apply moisturizer before my head hits the pillow. Thanks, Mom.
Oh, my hair hurts just looking a this. And, why yes, that is a Coca-Cola shirt!
Picture it: Dallas, 1991. I was 13 years old, I was insecure, and I wished I was anyone but myself. Someone prettier. Someone thinner. Someone cooler. Someone quieter. Someone with straight hair. All of this led me to becoming obsessed with Allure Magazine and the transformative work of the amazing makeup artist, Kevyn Aucoin on its pages. Makeup can transform you? Sign me up. When I should have been riding my bike or studying, I was perfecting the perfect cat eye liner, by studying Kevyn’s work on the pages of Allure. Later, I would realize that the things that made me different would be the very things that made me who I am today.
About to turn 13. I might have looked confident in my black velvet and lace Jessica McClintock dress, but I was anything but.
Picture it: Dallas, 2001. I had been obsessed with makeup since those fateful days back in 1991, and had become a regular in the makeup department of Neiman Marcus Northpark, getting my makeup done for high school events and learning about the hundreds of lines. In 1995, I was introduced to Trish McEvoy cosmetics. For the next 6 years, they were my favorite. And then in the fall of 2001, at a beauty event, Trish herself asked me (ME!!) to be her youngest makeup artist to date. My life – and love of makeup – would never be the same.
Picture it: Nashville, 2006: I found myself in Nashville, pursuing a singing and songwriting career, singing at The Grand Ole Opry, making a record, and making lifelong friends. I also found myself in need of a day job, like stat. In 2002, I had begun working for Barbra Streisand in Malibu. You may have heard of her. There in Nashville, I had foolishly expected it to be easier to get a job than in L.A. I was wrong. I found my happy home of a dayjob at Woo Skincare and Cosmetics, a place that reminded me of my beloved Beauty Collection, where I would shop for Barbra back in Malibu. I spent two years learning about some of my now-favorite products, such as Darphin,Caudalie, Natura Bissé, Fusion Beauty, Creed, Voluspa, and more, while I was a counter manager/makeup artist for Bobbi Brown and Giorgio Armani. I had no idea how important this little day job – and all that I learned there – would be in my life in the coming years. The most important lesson I learned? I loved helping others not only look, but feel their best. Makeup can do a lot, but heart matters more.
Picture it: Los Angeles, 2009. My job from 2002-2005 was shopping and running errands for Barbra. When I left Nashville and returned to Los Angeles, with my renewed love of beauty in tow, I brought that back to Barbra, when I went back to work for her, from 2009-2011. She would simply ask me to find her the perfect pinky-nude lipstick, and there I was at Beauty Collection, creating complex custom color face charts with her, placing glossy scotch tape on top to preserve the colors for her eye. To say I went above and beyond the call of duty would be an understatement. But I’m so thankful for the license I had to be creative and get that experience under my belt.
Picture it: My house in LA, March 2011. I hosted a Cupcakes and Cocktails launch party of my new blog, BeautyFrosting. Though I had never read a blog myself, I just knew I had something to share out there with the world. Thus, BeautyFrosting was born from my love of beauty, baking, lifestyle and all things pastel. What started out as a blog about makeup, cupcakes and life moments has remained that. It’s just gotten a little bigger. I love sharing it with you, and I’m still utterly humbled that you guys want to read it and hear about all of my goings-on on social media!
Being primped and not taking this precious moment for granted for a second.
Picture it: February 18, 2015. I sat in the hairstylist’s chair at Beauty Collection in West Hollywood, getting my hair coiffed into a Brigitte Bardot-style for the Celebrity Beauty Curator launch party I would be hosting that night, with all of my blogger, entertainer and tastemaker friends in attendance. I had been running around all day, between voiceover sessions for Marshall’s, getting my dress for the evening and picking up jewels to wear for the U4G Awards red carpet, that I would be hosting the following night. In the midst of the hustle-and-bustle, with a salad in my lap and the Beauty Collection skilled hairstylist’s hands in my hair, I took a moment. I realized that so many of my dreams had come true. I was a host, a voiceover actor, and a beauty and lifestyle tastemaker that gets to share my passion with – and inspire – others. As I looked in the mirror, I saw that same young 13-year-old girl in Dallas, who just wanted to be someone different and used her babysitting money to buy her first Allure magazine subscription to find the magic of makeup to help her do just that. I sat in silence and gratitude, as I just took it all in and appreciated the sheer beauty of that moment. I’m so glad I did, and decided that I will always take that moment in each “pinch-me” moment that comes my way.
Plumb giddy at the #CelebBeautyCurator Cupcakes & Cocktails Launch Party at Beauty Collection West Hollywood
Picture this: Beauty Collection, TODAY, March 1st, 2015: Needless to say, my story has led me right here to this moment. And now, I get to use all of those years of experience – and memories – with you. I am so incredibly proud to be Beauty Collection’s first Celebrity Beauty Curator, and am thrilled for the month we have ahead together! I’ll be back next week with my all-time favorite classic beauty picks, available at Beauty Collection…and you’re not gonna wanna miss ‘em! And be sure to head over to the WeHo location to see my product picks in the front window display all this March. The 14-year-old me is plumb giddy, y’all. Plumb giddy.
Xoxo,
Dawn
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So happy for you and PROUD to call you my friend. I know you’ll achieve SO MUCH more than this. This is just the beginning! Love love and hugs, A
What a fantastic story Dawn! I love you asking for a vanity at such a young age!