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Kc Voyage Magazine Feature

Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Murray-Lumley.

Hi Julie, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started my face paint business around 2011. Back then I was a new hairstylist and hair feathers were trending. I had an idea to sell hair feathers at events with my best friend Heather Young to earn some extra money. We booked a few shows and sold the feathers.

It was a big hit, but as we know trends come and go very fast. We were left with lots of events and feathers and needed to sell something else. We both slowly practiced face art and realized it was a lot of fun and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We quickly switched from hair feathers to face painting and that is how Face Paint by Jewels started.

Picking up the brush was easy for me as I had taken several art classes in school and enjoyed drawing and painting. As an artist, I truly enjoy the smiles I receive when a child looks in the mirror and is transformed into whatever they had imagined.

For several years I continued to do local events. Soon I was asked to attend birthday parties, weddings, and local and corporate events. I now spend my weekends traveling locally wherever I am requested. When I am not creating face art, I am running Salon on 56 and working as a stylist.

I am very busy with both of my businesses and I truly enjoy what I do every day. I love being an entrepreneur and I am lucky to have a supportive family that keeps me encouraged. My husband is even a part of my business now and he does the airbrush tattoos. I love that we get to work together.

Your event starts here–from at-home children’s birthday parties to party entertainment for all ages, Face Paint by Jewels offers face painting, glitter, and airbrush tattoos. Face Paint by Jewels will make your child’s party truly memorable! Add sparkle to a Princess Party, action to a hero party, or create a one-of-a-kind Halloween
costume.

Family Background: I am married to Michael Lumley we have a 2-year-old daughter named Makenna, We have two dogs, Charlie and Miya. We love to travel, go to movies, and spend time together as a family.

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?
I think all businesses have ups and downs. I believe most of us were substantially affected by Covid 19 and the craziness of 2020. The pandemic brought my face-painting business to a halt. I went from being booked every weekend at the beginning of 2020 to everyone canceling by March 2020. All birthday parties, weddings, and corporate events were canceled or postponed. Many event facilities had size limits or were not allowed to be open. I was not considered essential in 2020.

I also did not want to get the virus or spread the virus to the small children I am around. I made a choice to not reopen for all of 2020. It was not until late 2021 that I felt confident in doing events again. It has been very hard the last 2 years trying to rebuild my events and clients. Things are finally turning around and covid has calmed down.

Things are opened back up and we are starting to return to normal. I am hoping for a strong 2023.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am most proud of becoming a mother. It was always a dream of mine as a child and continued on into my adult life.

My daughter Makenna is one of the reasons I work so hard toward my business goals. I want to be able to give her anything she needs in life. I also absolutely love what I do and it shows on the faces of my guests. With over 10 years of experience under my belt, I feel like I have reached professional status. I have met many people who say they couldn’t be an artist or they are not artistic. I believe everyone is born with a creative mind we just have to ignite that creativity and practice then practice some more! I know very few people who didn’t need training wheels to ride a bike, I think art is all about trial and error and trying again. Don’t be afraid to pick up a brush. I assure you the first time I did it was no masterpiece. Make messes and have fun!

I have participated in various face painting conferences (FABAIC) and Olga Murasev’s International Face Painting School. I continue to improve my skills through classes with some of the most prestigious artists, and business entrepreneurs in the face and body painting. Although I have painted for years, I am also creative in other areas. Including painting furniture, being a hairstylist, and doing canvas art. I hope you enjoy my art as much as I enjoy creating it!

Face Paint By Jewels can do anything from birthday parties to corporate events. Our services are of the highest quality to ensure an outstanding experience. I bring sparkle, color, and limitless imagination to your events. Make your child’s party truly memorable! Add sparkle to a Princess Party, action to a hero party, or create a one-of-a-kind Halloween costume. Face Paint By Jewels offers face painting, glitter tattoos, and airbrush tattoos.

Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I believe we all have to make decisions in our business that are risky. Some decisions are riskier than others. I think we are living in a world that’s changing so quickly, the biggest risk you can take is not taking any risk at all. If I had not booked my first event I would probably not be where I am today. If you want to start your own business, you need to be comfortable with taking risks. The act of opening a business itself is a risk. However, without taking a risk, there’s rarely a reward.

I think you have to look outside the box as an entrepreneur so that you can find solutions to problems within your business. You also have to find challenges as a way to create change or adaptation. One of the most important things that helped me with my own business was setting goals and making a list of things I wanted to accomplish. Then check those items off as I met them. Celebrating the victories along the way but also not basking in the mistakes. It is all about balance.

Pricing:

  • Hourly Rate: $125

Contact Info:

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