A Bit About Bethany

Childhood and Fond Memories

Growing up in a restrictive environment, the embellishment of hair and makeup was seen as sexually seductive, considered dishonorable, and only permitted in the confines of marriage. On the other hand, her grandmother and a few of her aunts believed it was improper to leave the house without ‘putting yourself together’ which always included makeup, hair, light fragrance, and a clean outfit. When staying at her grandparents house Bethany would frequently go to the second floor to ‘use the bathroom.’ There she would open her grandmother’s makeup drawer spending hours playing with the makeup and would wash it off before she went back downstairs. Of course there were certain products with long staying power and inevitably she would scrub her face raw but for a moment (even though the makeup did not suit her) she felt beautiful and feminine. This event continued whenever she went to visit her grandparents. She is sure her grandparents knew what she was doing but they never stopped her and is still one of her fondest memories. Nevertheless, the atmosphere in her home was completely different and under these limitations she found the medium as a form of self-expression.

Education and Career

Throughout her formative years she was enthralled by art and perspective drawing. One of her favorite past times (other than playing in grandma’s makeup drawer) was drawing three dimensional houses and coloring in coloring books with her older sister. Although art was not always offered at her school, there was an art teacher that would show up once a week and lead the class in art projects centered around the fundamentals of drawing and color theory. For the remainder of her education, art was alway part of it. In university she studied and practiced technical fine art while graduating from San Francisco State University with a B.A. in Anthropology, Minor in Persian Studies, and holding an A.A in Conceptual Psychology from Axia College. Later she attended the California accredited makeup school, Blush, finishing a certificate in Makeup Mastery. Her entrance to the beauty industry was led by her teachers who continued to coach her and pulled her onto their jobs for experience. As with time she started gathering her own clients and was able to start collaborating with other creatives merging the social sciences with the arts.

Never staying stagnant, Bethany continued her education in permanent cosmetics under the instruction of life time members of the The Society of Permanent Cosmetic Professionals at the Huntington Academy in Orange County, California. She holds a certificate in Permanent Cosmetics and Microblading and later training in Magnetic Removal under Linda Paradis. She balances both clients in freelancing hair, makeup, and men’s grooming and permanent makeup at a salon in Burlingame, California.

Personal Life and Hobbies

Bethany grew up near Walnut Creek, California attending private schools until university. Over the coarse of 8 years she bounced around from city to city attending a total 5 universities before finalizing her bachelors degree. Within 10 years she moved 17 times among 10 cities and two states and worked a handful of odd jobs. Finding herself was somewhat of a challenge. But, she did. Art has always been her foundation and she is happy to continue pursuing it. Translating art into the beauty industry has been a different life path but making others feel confident is the greatest gift to give someone.

In addition to growing in her career and all the practice it involves, she spends time at the gym and does adult Irish Dance 4 hours a week. In 2014 she was diagnosed with Celiac Disease and spends a lot of time in the kitchen working on new recipes for her favorite carb loaded dishes which include pastas, breads, and desserts. Pie is love. Bethany hopes to reinvent some of her favorite Persian meals and desserts from childhood with a gluten free spin.

Reading is another passion but sometimes life gets in the way. Her favorite topics always tend to be from an anthropological perspective and a retelling popular stories grounded in historical facts but she is opening up to fictions. Bethany currently resides in San Mateo, California with her hard working boyfriend Kevin and string obsessed tomcat Ibby.