Samer Khouzami, a name that resonates with perfection, hard work and ambition.
The king of contour is known for his ability to sculpt, shape and define your features to the best version of themselves. His Master Classes are sold out within minutes and his students travel from far and wide to learn his techniques and tricks. Did he spend years studying makeup? Does he come from an industry background or is he one of those internet successes? Here is the truth to his career and how he made it to someone with over 2 Million followers on Instagram.
From graphic designer to makeup artist, what triggered the change in career?
I had never dreamt of becoming a makeup artist. I was more oriented towards Drawing and Art in general, I went to the Lebanese University where I majored in Graphic Design. I found myself becoming a makeup artist through my years of experience. My mother was the first person who was touched by my brush and she was the one who made me discover my passion for makeup. I realized how close makeup and graphic design are, and I started working on myself reaching where I am today.
Your mother is your muse? Define what your mother means to you?
I admire my mother. She always gets my fairly high respect as she is someone who doesn’t know how to give up. My whole family -including my mother- had no link to Art but inspired my will to never give up.
When you embark on a journey to teach makeup in a masterclass, what is your main objective?
Teaching makeup in a Master Class is very effective because it offers extensive experience in the field to the highly interested audience.
For me, limits are beyond simply teaching and learning, it is also about enhancing attendees for another quality of imagination and giving them the motivation to achieve what they seek to become.
In a world with many amazing makeup Maestros, what makes you unique?
It’s a long journey of hard work, will and motivation given by all my beloved ones. What I am today is a result of failures, success and a lot of obstacles that I had to overcome.
You’re a self-taught makeup artist. What advice do you have for those makeup artists who go through the rigmarole of going through college and studying the field of makeup artistry?
It’s all about passion. If someone is passionate about makeup either a man or a woman, they will find themselves becoming makeup artists. I would tell them “Never Stop Learning!”
Everyone should be determined to achieve what he/she seeks. They can work on learning how to see the technical details and be aware of the difference between each face and recognize its beautiful details.
Everyone who meets you finds it a humbling experience. What makes you so grounded while you have 2 million followers?
I have worked very hard, for many years, to become what I am now. Through these years, I have faced many difficulties, many hard situations, many decisions to make. All these kept me grounded.
The fatigue of every day makes me someone realistic and humble. I am at all times thankful for the graces I have and I am always working to elaborate them. Plus, I believe by being humble, we are able to learn from every single chance. For me, that’s quite important in order to succeed more and more.
What do you find off-putting about the makeup industry?
Makeup is Art and Art is the expression of emotion and imagination. Unfortunately, a big part of the industry is not focusing on this part, but skewing into a more commercial direction. Especially when it comes to ‘Contouring and Highlighting’ we note that it is now commonly put on hands and legs. Although it is the art of sculpting the face.
Your Inspiration?
Since I was young, I was always inspired by Nature, I love to see trees swaying because of the wind, the homogenous colours … I believe there is a secret hidden behind its perfection. All this make me calmer and enhances my imagination.
In addition to this, Women played a major role, especially the ones who hold a lot of love, tenderness as well as strength. Strong women, like Queen Elizabeth, who had an impact on her family, and society. I love it when a woman believes that she will love herself and outshine, despite every other thing. I am thrilled every time I think that I am being a part of and influencing women’s personalities.
You create the most beautiful transformations. How do you visualize what look you are going to go with when you see a model?
For me every girl is good-looking, this means that my transformation holds the steps of highlighting the hidden beauty of the face. It is about reading every women’s character, to extract her charm and attractiveness. So for me, transformation combines my talent and the face’s allure.
How challenging was it to create your own makeup line?
It was very challenging to create my own makeup line, especially when I decided on some specific and unique solutions to provide to the customers. It was very difficult to follow up with the industry and the formulas, in order to reach the perfect products I was aiming for.
Why did you feel like you needed to launch a makeup line of your own? Were the products available on the market not good enough or was it just something you wanted to do to fill in gaps in the market?
My passion for my work, plus my huge experience as a makeup artist, and my wide knowledge of products lead me to grow bigger and bigger and pushed me to take a step forward. Hence, my encouragement and motivation for every woman is figured in this way: when every day she challenges everything to prepare herself in order to outshine.
For me, it is more than just offering her my products, but also enhancing the lifestyle she craves.
What is your strongest point?
I am patient, and this makes me strong and brings me peace. I accept fighting fatigue and hard moments for many days. Plus, I am never afraid of failure, because I consider them chances to learn something that helps me move forward.
How should a woman change the way she applies makeup past her 40s for everyday wear?
When a woman passes 40, wrinkles start to appear and her skin starts to age. I recommend she use a soft foundation and a powder without talc. Plus, try minimal eye makeup in order to look younger.
What is the best experience you had when giving a tutorial, a response from your students or a transformation you weren’t expecting would go so well?
When I see people very excited to watch me putting on makeup, and they recreate looks they have already learnt, it fires me up and keeps me going, especially when I see looks accomplished in a great way. They inject their enthusiasm and prompt me to make my best efforts too. For me when I feel that I touched someone with a bit of advice, by any comment, any suggestion, for me, it can be called success!
Samer Khouzami has recently opened up about his fight with mental illness. He has brought up the conversation at his Masterclasses and encourages people not to be ashamed but to face the challenges and get help!
You can follow Samer on Instagram here and discover why 2 Million people like to have him on their feed!
