Meet Tabetha Santana of tabethaashly in Queens, NY

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tabetha Santana.

Tabetha, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
It started off the normal using my mom & aunts makeup dictating exactly what they would do cause I was infatuated with how beautiful makeup made them feel. At four years old, I was diagnosed with leukemia. Going through chemo, radiation, tons of medicine, in & out the hospitals my body was going through it, yet being really young, you don’t know what’s happening. Growing up, beating cancer getting into my teenage years one struggle for me was understanding my body. I loved how makeup made me feel but what I didn’t like was how my skin would react to it.

The more I got into doing makeup on myself, the more I was trying to understand my skin. I started to do my research on my skin and even get help but battling cancer and wanting to become a normal young adult wasn’t easy. It got to a point where I ended up just figuring everything out myself about my skin and letting my skin go through its fazes yet still enjoying educating myself about how to do makeup by watching YouTube tutorials. I took my story & my journey to social media, so others out there that were acne prone, cancer survivors or anyone that felt left out due to health problems weren’t left alone. I ended up getting so many responses from showcasing my story that I started to incorporate that into being a makeup artist.

Me as a makeup artist, I had to step outside myself to fully understand what I went through, how it made me feel, how I got through it, how can I deliver this to others to understand and maybe one day for them that would like to become makeup artist by being self taught but understanding the concept behind of what a makeup artist really is. Today, I incorporate so much into being a independent self-taught makeup artist by showcasing budget-friendly products for future freelancers or anyone wanting to do makeup on themselves, tricks & tips, teaching 1-on-1 lessons, as well as uploading motivational talks to help others that are going through it that need that boost or even to make their day into understanding how important we are in this world. At this moment, I am in the process of trying to work side by side with the cancer society showcasing what I do and the reason behind who I am as a makeup artist to give my platform a meaning that is meant for EVERYONE.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing of my journey was smooth. It was the bumpiest road that opened my mind to so much more that is out there in this world. Throughout my six years of being a makeup artist. I dealt with not having a job, interview hopping, people taking me as a joke knowing my work was good, going broke, having a mental breakdown due to how rough it got, second-guessing myself into thinking if this is the right career, stressing myself out mentally & physically cause sometimes, I didn’t even have enough money to take the bus/train to get to work. My life at a point felt like it was just a cycle going downhill over and over. Yet, one thing that got me through all my struggles was the faith I still had.

tabethaashly – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I created my company TabethaAshly almost three years ago. I specialize in almost anything it can go from glam to special effects to, body painting, to editorial, to 1-on-1 workshops, BTS on photoshoots, self-help motivational talks. Most importantly, educating others into becoming their own boss. This journey is just the beginning for me despite me getting the most amazing opportunities with brands & big companies out there. As my own boss, I am proud to create an environment for others to feel good in their own skin, become self-taught… in ANYTHING. I don’t want to give women “women empowerment“ I want to showcase to women how to make it, how to succeed, cause women empowerment doesn’t coincide with opportunity nowadays cause people to take Instagram as a check, views, and followers. Back then, it was all about education and putting one another onto it as well. That’s what I bring to the table and that’s what people see me as.

What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
This is just the beginning for me that’s personally how I feel. Being able to work with celebrities, artist, makeup brands. I’m more of myself just of how far I’ve come and the fact this is still the beginning to something that’s gonna be big to change the world.

Contact Info:

• Email: bookme.tabethaashly@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabethaashly/?hl=en

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