Life & Work with Ava Jensen of Kansas City

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ava Jensen

Hi Ava, 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’ve been dabbling in makeup starting at a young age. I realized there were places I could go to peruse that. I graduated esthetician school in 2023 and started reaching out to freelance makeup artist and business owners who may need an assistant or where hiring. Kelsey with mindnmuse got back to me, hiring me a couple months later. She specializes in bridal glams which has been fun however, I’m constantly seeking out creative opportunities in KC such as fashion shows, editorial shoots, and meet and greats for creatives in the KC area!

Alright, 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?
No. It has been a long bumpy road full of self doubt and imposter syndrome. I continue to push myself, whether that is contacting people I’ve never spoken to or passing out business cards. The makeup industry, especially in KC has very little demand for creative MUA’s. Getting recognized has been a struggle, along with finding photographers who don’t already have a Makeup artist they are working with. Social media has been an incredible platform to build my business but that invites some doubtful thoughts for myself. Constantly comparing my work to the others I see online and putting myself down instead of using others as inspiration is something I’m really working towards as an artist this year.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a licensed esthetician specializing in alternative glam! I would say I’m most known for my creative looks and alternative glams that are different from the over saturated market of bridal makeup in KC. My favorite thing about what I do is sketching out looks I created on my iPad and then reworking them on my face. It amazing seeing an original idea come to life. I’m currently learning to work with prosthetics because that has always been a big interest of mine, it’s not easy, at all. I’m very much struggling, but it’s a lot of fun. The last year I am extremely proud of everything I have accomplished. Graduating school, getting an assistant job, moving out of my parents house, working on social media. All these things seemed so beyond me a couple years ago. I wanted it so bad though. I worked so so hard for everything that has come my way and I am honored to say that it all worked out. I am constantly inspired by the people in KC I have met, they are some of my biggest support systems.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success for me is a feeling. Others could tell me that what I’m doing right now would not pay the bills, it’s not going to work in the long run, or eventually the market could dry up. True or not I’m climbing up the right mountain slowly and I’m fortunate enough to know where I want to be at a young age so I can continue to build rapport with the people in my community. To me success is having goals for your future self, small or large, and being able to push through difficulties to accomplish those goals and move onto the next.

Pricing:

• Full face glam single individual 75$
• Glam for group hourly 50$
• Makeup for shoot ( price varies )

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mindandmuse.co/
• Instagram: Avasfaceart