By Jonathan Mbiriyamveka
She has done make- up and pimped up some of Hollywood’s top celebrities and now she has returned home to launch her range of make-up products. Some of the famous Hollywood celebrities she has made up include Ne-Yo, Snoop Lion formerly Snoop Dogg, Denzel Washington, Sylvester Stallone, Wiz Khalifa, Gayle King, John Legend and LL Cool J.
Our own Jackie Mgido has decided to come out of her shell and unleash some of her beauty products that made her a household name in the United States where she is based. She will be launching the Vault Cosmetics, a new range of beauty products, on September 14 at the Borrowdale Brooke Golf Club.
“I am excited that the Vault is starting in Zimbabwe and will be sold in country,” she said. Although she works from behind the scenes, the 39-year-old make-up artist continues to raise the Zimbabwean flag high in Hollywood where she is doing big things, bringing out the best in celebrities.
“I am proud to be Zimbabwean and I say it with pride especially to my clients who are mostly celebrities. I remember doing make-up for Rambo (Stallone) and one of the questions he asked was if Zimbabweans knew him . . . well I told him he was well known in Zimbabwe and he was amazed,” she said with a chuckle.
“One of the important things that people need to understand is the purpose of make-up. I would say make-up is meant to enhance your features.
“And in the US one thing they are good at is marketing. This is why everything is artificial and whenever they market a product or something they make use of stylists and make up artists so that it looks and captures the attention of their audiences”.
According to Jackie, looking good from the outside is as important as looking good from the inside.
“At times I feel like pulling women on the roadside to just tell them how they can boost their confidence whether it’s a hairdo or just make-up. While I see a lot of beautiful women in Zimbabwe I feel that a lot of them do not know how to apply make up or what sort of make-up that suits them,” she said.
Jackie, who has been a make-up artist for the last 15 years, is expected to demonstrate some of her beauty products at H20 Club at Sam Levy’s Village where she will do make-up on a number of girls.
Her father’s disdain for make-up could have impeded her budding artistry from flourishing but the odds were in her favour and now she is a proud creator owner and owner of Vault Cosmetics. She began her journey to achieve her goal with a move to St Louis.
Unfortunately, the options there did not provide any means to pursue her dream.
As a result she did several odd jobs including being a nanny, a maid and a restaurant host. After a move to the East Coast, Jackie enrolled in a cosmetology school and worked for several make-up lines. This reinforced her desire to pursue her dream.
After living for several years in Washington DC and working as an instructrice de beaute for Clarins, she enrolled at a prestigious make-up school in Hollywood, California.
She then studied masters programme in beauty and special effects. After graduating, she continued to hone her skills as a make-up and hairstylist, which earned her some of Hollywood’s elite as her clients.
Jackie credits Louis Vuitton Campaign, Elle Magazine, MTV Awards, Emmy Awards, Oscar Awards, Billboard Awards, The Next Iron Chef and the Bachelor for her success.
