Kristin Huffman first made her name as Miss Ohio and Runner-up Miss America. She promptly paid off her student loans from her Master’s of Music at Northwestern University with the scholarship money. Kristin has trod the boards at Paper Mill Playhouse, Columbus and Alabama Symphonies, Ford’s Theatre, the Civic Light Opera of Pittsburgh, and the European tour of Phantom. Favorite roles include anything comedic. She was also a reporter/broadcaster for NBC in Columbus.

She’s proud to be one of the many over-achievers in the original revival of Tony Award-winning COMPANY on Broadway, named ‘Doylies’ by Mr. Sondheim. She is a freelance writer and she facilitates amazing SlamGlam seminars and parties. SlamGlam teaches you how to present yourself to the world: hair, makeup, look. Sorry gentlemen, for ladies only!

You were Miss Ohio, runner up to Miss America and a professional actress in the Tony Award winning revival of Company. Obviously, you know a lot about how to look when you walk into any audition. What do you think is most important?

Men get off easy. Women have to look great every time, no exceptions: clothes, hair, skincare, makeup. You should look like a real person AND look like your pictures! Given that, it’s important to feel good about how you look because your attitude when you audition is so much different. More professional.

Did you get interested in makeup and beauty doing pageants or theatre?

Truthfully, more in theatre. I was such a tomboy! The pageant folks did work with me on hair and makeup which I sort of got right away, but working in theatre forces you to take it seriously. The women I compete with for jobs and work with at the Broadway level know that a complete “look” influences everything including auditions and personal appearances.

Is there a difference between street makeup, audition makeup and show makeup?

I am not one of those girls that goes out without makeup. I just can’t do it. What if I met a casting director at the store or a director on the street? It happens all the time so I wear makeup every day. When I have auditions, I bump it up a tad. More lips, more eyes. My foundation is a custom blend and I use it the same for every day, auditions and the stage. I wear false eyelashes for the stage because it brings out all of my features with more definition. You have to take into account the size of the theatre and adjust accordingly. A 99 seat Off Broadway house would require a subtler makeup design.

Does it really matter how I look if I’m talented?

Everyone is talented at a certain level. So yes! If you look like you rolled out of bed and then came to the audition, I don’t care how talented you are, there are a gazillion other talented men and women who took time to put together a look (hair, clothes, makeup) and the casting folks notice. A lot.

It says to them that you will take time for your preparation for the audition process and then for the show. It shows that you know this is a profession. It is great that you are an artist with talent. So is everyone else. It doesn’t take long to look as professional on the outside as you are on the inside.

For instance, did you know there are some high profile directors that won’t pay attention to you if you don’t wear makeup? I know one casting director has a “shoe chart”, too! Some casting directors may only subtly be aware of whether you have makeup on and this should be the goal… to find high quality products that don’t look like cheap drugstore makeup.

Why is it important for professional actors and actresses to understand skincare and makeup?

Your skin reflects your diet, your wellness routine, and tells us so much about how you live your life. Professionals take care of themselves and that is one reason why they work. When it comes to clothing, hair and makeup, you need to know your best features and how to play them up. If you don’t, hire professional stylists, designers and consultants to work with you or wrangle some of your friends who have that particular skill.

It’s worth every penny, and once you have the knowledge of what works for you and what doesn’t, you can duplicate it on your own in the future. Trade one acting class for a create-your-own-look workshop and see how much response you get from that effort. Your personal life might benefit, too. Never underestimate great looking eyes and lips!

Makeup design is intimidating. How can I learn?

Play. Keep it simple and have fun. Every gal out there should read Kevin Aucoin’s books: Making Faces and Face Forward. Be sure to ask questions from the professionals and try new lines of makeup. Be sure to learn about colors and stick to a range of colors that suit your skin undertone and allow for flexibility.

Be cautious with color palettes that are over-the-top or too dramatic. Save those for your nighttime endeavors. Always ask your friends what they think and remember your audience, since a look that is overtly conservative or extremely edgy may not be the best for what we do.

Do men need to wear makeup?

Yes! Particularly for corrective issues like dark circles under the eyes, rosacea, freckles, and hyper pigmentation. Every guy in professional theatre should have some type of concealer on hand. Particularly for acne issues that might flair up on that big audition day. Trust me, everyone notices. Everyone.

Also, guys who have washed out eyebrows and lashes (fair haired folks) should consider a very, very light application of eyebrow pencil, eye liner or mascara.

What is the difference between professional quality makeup/skincare and the stuff at any drugstore? Is it worth the difference?

I used to have adult acne and it was traumatizing to me. I had been using drug store makeup and my doctor told me to look into higher quality products as well as getting me onto a better diet. It worked! What I have learned is that most of what you find outside of the department stores is poor quality and actually not a deal. You will use more product for lackluster results.

If I have great skin why should I worry about skincare products?

So you can keep your great skin! Also to help navigate influences from your diet, daily stress, support anti-aging, and provide sun protection. Don’t forget about seasonal changes.

Once again, adult acne can strike due to stress or diet. It’s not fun! And it can be so embarrassing. You can manage your stress with lifestyle changes, diet and supplements. Be sure to invest in and use the best makeup because it will help you avoid the problems I’ve discussed. I also have a great anti-blemish lotion that I use whenever I have a flair up. This stuff gets rid of it in a day! Amazing. Especially for those of us who have suffered from very bad acne.

How long does it take you to do your makeup each day?

Ten minutes. I just don’t have more time than that and I also don’t have touch up time throughout my day!

Can’t I just use soap?

Not if you really want great looking skin. Studies have shown that we are most attracted to and notice people with healthy looking skin before any other feature. It’s the largest organ of your body and absorbs everything it encounters! Why do you think some medicines are ingested through patches and creams right into the blood stream?

Now think about all the toxic waste we encounter on a daily basis living in New York City. Yuck. While any soap will provide cleansing and some basic exfoliation, it’s not providing nutrients to the lower layer of the skin. Additionally, it can be drying so that your skin will lose elasticity and actually age faster. Not good for women in show biz.

Everyone should be on a three step program: cleanse, tone, moisturize. If you are adding treatments or serums, be sure to use them after cleansing and toning, but before your moisturizer so they can actually have the most absorption. Never apply anything to your skin without cleansing and toning so that you can remove the dead skin cells and return your skin to the proper Ph level before you apply additional products or your moisturizer.

Sun protection is important, right?

Want to look great in twenty years? Stay out of the sun. Those few days on the beach will come back to haunt you. It’s that black and white.

Sun protection is everything. And with the state of our environment and the ozone layer, it’s getting worse. Skin cancer rates are skyrocketing and we are doing more damage in a fraction of the time to our skin compared to any generation before us. There are a lot of misconceptions about SPF protection and product labeling, so be sure to do some research on the topic. It’s more than I can cover, but everyone should have some sort of sun protection in their skincare products.

What makeup is the best and what should I be looking for?

This is a highly personal issue based on your budget, ingredient preferences, sources of pigmentation (colors) and more.

I think some non-negotiable standards in any cosmetic or skincare product should include: noncomedogenic (won’t block pores), never tested on animals, high quality ingredients, include sunscreen protection, be micropulverized (form of crushing so that the texture/blend is professional), and include colors that are right for your skin undertone (warm, cool). Your skin with makeup should look like great skin, not skin covered with makeup!

What do you use?

I use Motives Cosmetics [click here to purchase Kristin's favorite products] with a custom blend foundation that was created specifically for me. They have all the colors I could ever want and I can’t screw them up since they are all compatible with each other. I was using Motives Cosmetics during the run of Company on Broadway and our makeup designer, Angellina Avallone (The Color Purple, Young Frankenstein, Little Mermaid) saw the line and loved it. She now uses it, too, and really promotes the professional brush set, which is so affordable for the quality…they would cost four times as much at any fancy department store. They make all the difference (and are tax deductible) so I use them on stage and off.

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