Daily Inspiration: Meet Rutuja Gadkari

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rutuja Gadkari.

Hi Rutuja, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I began my career as an independent makeup & hairstyle artist in Austin in 2019; However, I have been living in the Austin for more than a decade now. Since childhood, I have always been interested in different artistic endeavors. Makeup has consistently been a source of passion and fascination for me. Creative activities like sketching, painting, fashion design, henna art, and boutique work were all part of my initial artistic exploration. I did a course in hairdressing and got a diploma in fashion design. Over the time, I honed my skills and self-taught various aspects of makeup and hairstyling with the help of resources like fashion blogs, social media, YouTube videos and by following the work of various well-known makeup artists on publicly available avenues.

In late 2019, I got a chance to do makeups & hairstyles for multiple fashion models taking part in Fashion shows organized as part of the celebration of the Indian festival of Diwali at two events – Diwali at The Domain, hosted by South Asian Austin Moms Nonprofit and Round Rock City Diwali Fest 2019 – https://www.rrdiwalifest.com. I truly enjoyed this experience and also received an overwhelmingly positive response along with lots of praise of my work from everyone. Since then, I have been offering my services professionally in and around the Austin suburban area. With the arrival of Covid and universal lockdowns, I decided to pause my business in 2020. Once the situation started improving in and around Austin and after getting vaccinated with the COVID vaccine in early 2021, I resumed pursuing my passion with renewed commitment. I am always very particular about sanitizing all of my tools, brushes, etc. before every appointment and taking all health and safety precautions like wearing face masks and following personal hygiene recommendations.

My makeup style is mostly self-grown. It is a culmination of carefully curated techniques along with regular self-trials and exploration of creative ideas collected from various sources over the years. I also compare before and after makeup photographs of my clients. This self-evaluation helps me in sharpening my skills and being a self-critique and objective judge of my work. I believe in continuous learning and am always curious about new formats, makeup materials, & cultural influences. I deeply enjoy working with all of my clients and helping them in creating stunning impressions. Satisfied and smiling clients are the true source of my inspiration.

A large portion of my new business leads come from the recommendations of existing clients with satisfactory experience of my work and word-of-mouth publicity. It is also worth mentioning that I have 100% positive feedback and all 5-star reviews.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My journey has been full of surprises both personally as well as professionally. Being a first-generation immigrant took some time to get accustomed to everything after moving here from India.

Taking care of my young family, dealing with Covid uncertainties, and at times demanding client schedules are some of the most significant challenges for me. Juggling many personal and professional priorities is sometimes a delicate task. But I have been fortunate to be able to handle this successfully with the constant help and support from my loving & helpful family as well as friends.

I am blessed to have a solid social network and grateful to my family, friends and clients for supporting as well as guiding me in this challenging yet wonderful journey. I am sometimes amazed by the amount of success I have been able to achieve in such a short duration and am utterly grateful to all my clients for believing in me and helping me get to where I am today. I love my profession and appreciate every opportunity offered by my customers. It allows me to fulfill my passion that I cherish very much and is the primary motivation behind starting this business.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am primarily a makeup & hairstyle artist, but also do saree & dupatta draping and Henna art. One of the highlights of my makeup work is usually eye makeup as evident from many of the reviews on my Facebook business page. I can do all types of eye makeup including Smoky, Shimmery, Cut crease, Gradient, etc., or natural look.

Different makeup styles I specialize in include HD makeup, Matte look, Natural look, Shimmer look, Smoky makeup, etc. I can also match any custom look per client expectations using some reference of the same like an image or a video clip.

For hairstyles, I can handle everything from simple curls, temporary straightening & French braids to various updos, intricate bridal hairstyles, and Indian hairstyles. I am always happy to incorporate additional accessories that clients may want to use in their hairstyle like temporary hair extensions, ornamental hair clips, fresh flowers, etc. Personal satisfaction of my clients is my utmost priority and I extend my offering to the best of my capacity to meet their expectations.

I am also well versed and experienced in beautifully draping sarees – one of the most common, traditional garments worn by females across India. Saree is worn in various styles based on regions, type of saree, and fabric used. I can drape saree in various traditional as well as modern patterns as per client expectations. I also specialize in dupatta draping and can help with other Indian female ethnic wear.

Variety of events I have handled for makeups & hairstyles include:
– Bridal – for both western/Christian weddings as well as Indian weddings
– Bridesmaids, family, and guests
– Groom and groomsmen
– Fashion shows, TV interviews, and live shows
– Maternity photoshoot, baby shower, housewarming, and other events
– Graduation photoshoot and parties
– Casual parties, holidays & birthday makeups

I take pride in providing the highest quality of work and use products I have personally tested from reputed brands like Bobby Brown, Makeup Forever, Nars Cosmetics, Mac, etc. This ensures excellent and consistent quality output for all of my clients.

My unique makeup style sets me apart and I continually strive to enhance and extend it via constant learning and self-experimentation. I am proud of all the positive ratings and reviews from my happily satisfied clients. All reviews highlight my accommodating nature, ease of communication and professional yet friendly attitude. Excellent customer service is my brand equity and identity.

My motto is to make everyone look gorgeous and feel fabulous.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I like the most about Austin is extremely friendly, helpful people and diverse community. What I don’t like about Austin is the seemingly never ending traffic and increasingly unpredictable weather specially in last few years.

Contact Info:

• Email: fabmakeupnmore@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fabmakeupnmore
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fabmakeupnmore
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/fab-makeup-n-more-austin