18 February 2014
Celebrity faces beckon from everywhere. Among the ordinary folks, they are beauty templates. But behind every beautiful face are makeup artists, who nowadays are gaining their share of the fame and fortune.
Redd Emar Gonzales was aware he was still far from the ranks of the country's top makeup artists, but he was glad he has taken the first important step, and is headed forward.
Gonzales, 18, last year received the competency certificate (National Certificate II) after completing a course in Beauty Care. The free training came from the Cash for Training Program (C4TP) of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which was designed to help poor youth get into technical vocational education and training.
Gonzales was a Tourism student in college, but was forced to drop out due to financial difficulties. Bent on studying, he learned about the C4TP from their barangay in Bacoor, Cavite, and availed of the free training. He took the 35-day training on Applying Facial Makeup and Performing Facial Treatment and graduated in May last year.
Not wasting time, he started doing free makeovers for friends and was soon doing it for paying clients.
"One of my first clients was a lady who held a pool party in Cavite. I earned P3,000 from this," Gonzales said.
One client came after another, and soon, he was earning between P1,000 and P5,000 for his makeup service. Among those who went to him for makeup were local beauty contest candidates and birthday celebrants. Through referrals, he was also able to do makeup service for clients from Metro Manila.
"Without the training, I would not know how to apply makeup, and without this knowledge, I would not be able to engage in my present work," he said.
Knowing the value of education, Gonzales said he plan s to enroll in another technical-vocational course to be exposed in other techniques of applying makeup. Owning his own salon is a goal that he believes is not a long shot.
"I want to be competent and competitive and hopefully, I will be able to have my own beauty salon. It may be a long journey, but I am determined to prove myself and give it my best," he added.
Giving his best to his current profession is a way of giving back the learning from the TESDA and DSWD Cash for Training Program, he said.
The Cash for Training Program was implemented in 2013 and aimed to help a total of 65,730 beneficiaries through skills training to make them ready for employment or to start their own business.
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