Misty Carrillo

She brings out the beauty in others. Call it a talent. “I know the Lord Almighty did not give me this gift to just keep it to myself,” said Misty Carrillo. “It’s also to help inspire and encourage women, showing them that life can go on.” On the cusp of opening 101 Beauty MUA Academy and 101 Beauty Studio, an eyelash-extension suite, the Dallas-based makeup artist and lash instructor reflected on her path.

Makeup Maven

Blessed with an early passion for glam, Misty often asked to do her mom’s makeup as a child. Her mother would run errands in the looks, beaming with pride. “She had the biggest heart,” said Misty. Today, the MUA has real skill and she’s debuting her makeup academy this June, during her birthday month. Misty will also create a hub for eyelash extensions — which she instructs in — for budding artists and businesswomen.

Essential lessons at the academy will cover skin prep “to make sure the outcome is 100% gorgeous.” Spoiler: Exfoliating facials followed by an appropriate facial moisturizer are key. Students will learn to check for an oil or water base before mixing foundations, and that doing the same when coordinating foundation to primer avoids cakiness. But these are only the tip of the iceberg, and Misty is excited to share her wealth of knowledge.

Faithful

The eldest daughter born to a family in the Rio Grande Valley, Misty was taught to value a traditional career path and tried to live by those strictures. Though she was sought out as a makeup artist among her peers, she pursued education to instruct in visual art instead. Later recognized as the best makeup artist of her 2014 Ogle cosmetology class, she graduated and cut hair. After taking on just a few makeup clients, tragedy derailed her.

In a devastating turn of events, Misty’s mother was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s, but after she passed away, death struck again just nine months later. When Misty’s teenage son lost his life in a car accident, Misty sank into depression. Down but not defeated, she found strength in her beliefs. “My faith and trust in Christ is what also got me through it all,” she said. “He always spoke to my heart and encouraged me.” Buoyed also by her mother’s memory, she remembers how the simple act of applying lip gloss became one of the first physical steps she could muster as she broke through the ocean of sorrow she’d almost drowned in.

Starting fresh, Misty moved towards the field of lash application, discovering a passion. Her students, however, began asking Misty to do their makeup for headshots and special events. Prompted once more to renew the pursuit of her talent as an MUA, she hasn’t looked back since. “Our stories are testimonies that Jesus’ love never fails us. That the same love He gives us, we need to give back to our community,” she said. Through her work, she does just that.