Meet Rose Mondragon | Makeup Artist and Entrepreneur
We had the good fortune of connecting with Rose Mondragon and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Rose, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
Overall, I don’t think it was ever really a question for me to do so. As fortunate as it is, I’ve sort of always known what I’ve wanted to do. I say fortunate because I’ve been told time and time again how lucky I am to have a passion to pursue, I take that to heart as much as I can to follow it. I can remember as young as the 3rd-4th grade starting to notice and enjoy the art of makeup. I began by wearing either black eyeliner or blue eyeshadow to school, kind of a classic that seems like. YouTube was definitely what sparked it all. Michelle Phan was the first makeup guru who caught my eye and got me to start picking up the brush. Thinking about pursuing any other career seems very out of the question for my life, I’ve just simply never seen anything else for myself.
Makeup to me is outrageously fun. Even with having a horrible day or horrible month – doing a look and watching it come together really sparks something different in me. Some looks can be intimidating and very uncomfortable when wanting to impress a client as well too but in the end of completing it all and getting to see the art/the vision come to life plus a client feeling more confident and happier than ever gives me a true high.
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve always had makeup as a passion of mine but I can’t deny that going into cosmetology school blurred the end goal for quite a while, and I can’t blame cosmetology school directly but more of my accidental sparks of passion within the field (hair, nails, skincare, etc). I sort of wanted to do everything for a little while. I love beauty. I love the transformation and confidence that a little (or a lot) of TLC can give to make a beautiful art piece. I’m really happy that with time and patience continuing in the field, I’m falling into place for what I’m meant to be doing slowly but surely.
Working for a makeup company as an artist has really sharpened and broadened my artistry skills not only but has also finally made me understand why I love so much of the cosmetology field so much and how I can start applying it the way I want to.
Editorial work is starting to be the goal of my art. I love everything that has to go into getting the “perfect shot” for a photo shoot or all the complications of getting a model down the runway just for the “perfect walk”. I want to be that person doing that “everything” behind the scenes for that artistic “wow” moment when seeing something so beautiful.
Beauty will always be in the eye of the beholder and art will no matter what always be subjective, so when bringing the two together it can get a little tricky to nail but I think I bring another skill to the table being the nurturing and compassionate person I am. I’ve always been naturally drawn towards the care of others and I’m starting to see how I can utilize that within the field of makeup artistry. From doing makeup on friends in high school for homecoming and prom to service work in a salon, to full-time makeup application in a retail store I have heavily come to understand how scary and intimidating the beauty world is for a lot of people. I want to and LOVE to help others feel comfortable with themselves by providing the knowledge and care of beauty services but I’m also noticing the lack of wanting any creative type services within my current job and I’m realizing how much I adore and love creative colorful art…
I hope to shortly begin providing of makeup services to those seeking a creative artist boost to their event, photo shoot, performance, etc. To me, this would be a self-ran business (Mondragon Beauty LLC) where I can provide what’s needed for my subject to feel and be as beautiful and confident as the muse imagined for the final look.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’ll be honest that I don’t see myself living here forever but this is one of the best places ever to have grown up. (Period).
Starting with a great spot to eat in the area I grew up in (Littleton/Lakewood) I can never get tired of eating at Falafel House & Grill off of Wadsworth and Eastman providing some of the best local Lebanese food. It’s in the name but obviously, the falafels are a must-try if you’ve never had the chance to eat one before.
In that same local lot, I gotta tell you to go get a relaxing facial or massage at Immerse Spa and Salon where I learned all of my service skill experience.
Visiting Lakewood wouldn’t be complete without hitting up the Hangar 101 Billiards for a drink, pool tables, and the cutest bowling rink ever. Some of my friend and I favorite spot.
Let’s take you out of the boring suburbs though and bring you towards the Denver city life starting with South Broadway (probably my favorite area of Denver) where you can find the local franchise Bardo’s coffee for either a morning brew or a late-night latte. But as well as MANY other local hits such as Mutiny Information Cafe.
Don’t like coffee? Try out bars like Skylark, HQ, and HiDive where you get the local vibes and hella live local entertainment.
Love local entertainment?? Go deeper into Denver to Lost Lake or Larimer Lounge to get nightly entertainment from amazing artists like Cherokee Social, Yugs, Spitting Image, Critter, and many more.
Leading off that, Denver is so amazing to provide the events of “First Fridays” in the Santa Fe Art District, can’t miss it! Loads of entertainment, art to buy, yummy eats, and more.
Not feeling the city life anymore, cool well Colorado is bigger than Denver and the suburbs- did I mention my dad is president of the Bailey Sasquatch Fan Club? It’s quite neat to see the Sasquatch Outpost in Bailey Colorado providing all the history behind Big Foot and Colorado-based sightings.
I’m personally really big on camping in dispersed areas but I know that can be rough for some people so go enjoy some beautiful nature in a hot springs like Steamboats Strawberry Park Hot Springs.
I’m not much of a tour guide I feel like so I hope that’s enough to show that I do enjoy the state I live and was raised in.
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve always had the love and support of loved ones such as family and friends, which I’m dearly thankful for. To be never questioned by my loved ones about my makeup passion is an amazing thing to say.
In recent times, I’m beginning to gain a lot more of a community within the beauty and creative lifestyle I want to have. A lot of that base community is with me moving from a salon job (not doing makeup at all) to my Sephora “Licensed Beauty Advisor” job. Entering the job I was at a very low-volume store and after 6 months I was moved to the highest-volume store in the area where I began to get closer to fellow makeup artists pursuing similar dreams as me. At my original store, I definitely adored and appreciated my coworkers and higher-ups who saw what was in me to transfer to high volume for more service intake especially fellow makeup artist Lauryn (Sourlemonmakeup on Instagram).
At my new store I quickly got very close with Madz (Madz.does.makeup on Instagram) and Michelle (Meeshthemua on Instagram) who both guide and encourage me constantly. Michelle is an outstanding bridal artist with knowledge of so many products, brands, and techniques on top of spending so much time on their practice, I’m so grateful she’s willing to guide me and share what she can when she can. Madz is both a creative glam and bridal makeup artist creating killer looks in killer time with sharp symmetrical eyes every time and can also connect wonderfully with her teaching skill for the young clientele we take on at Sephora. Both of these gals I would be very lost at this time without having them in the beauty community with me.
Recently as well I began a relationship with my musician boyfriend, Alex Creighton, who is always sharing his entrepreneurial knowledge and is very much pushing and encouraging me as well into the right direction providing connections and projects within his field and creations. Not long ago Alex and his music partner Julian gave me the fun project for the set makeup of their new music video for the song Cinnamon Sugar (by Cherokee Social). Getting to work on a music video sparked a lot of excitement in me for what I can do with my skills and practices.
I would like to give thanks as well to my clients that I contain within my side hustle of being a house cleaner! It’s not as glamorous to talk about but I know deciding to take a self-employment route for income would really help my business skills and it’s shaped me into the entrepreneur I am now.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mondragonbeauty?igsh=cGxwNTJ1N2oxeTA2&utm_source=qr
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/5UtXMXJAbFau3Ect/?mibextid=LQQJ4d
Image Credits
Lyndroth (itslyndrothphotography)
Nominate Someone: ShoutoutColorado is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
