Makeup Artist Riku Campo & His New Book “I Am Beauty”

1. Name?
Riku Campo.

2. Where are you currently living?
I live in Santa Monica, California.

3. Tell us about yourself.
I am Finnish, a Make Up Artist, Beauty Editor-At-Large and an Author. I moved to the USA in 2003 and have published 3 beauty books which 2 of them are for the US market. I love skincare and face massages and these steps always come way before applying any makeup on the face . I always do 10-15 min mini facials to my clients to get that natural glowing skin.

Tearsheet by Casey Claros. Photography by Samantha Rapp. — Tearsheet by Casey Claros.
Photography by Samantha Rapp.

4. We’re excited for your new book, “I Am Beauty.” Would you mind telling us about it?
Thank you so much! I Am Beauty is a beauty book for all 40+ women around the world to celebrate their ages and beauty, getting inspired and I really want to turn the spotlight on women on these age groups to get them to feel good and be more visible. The book is photographed by Samantha Rapp and it’s published by Harper OneBooks by HarperCollins.

5. What is the story behind “I Am Beauty”?
I always wanted to do a beauty book for women 40+ and the timing was just right. The world has changed a lot and women don’t get judged by their ages anymore like some decades back. It is not shameful to say I am turning 50 or 60 anymore. Or hiding your age. Own your age and your numbers! You have made this far and it is time to celebrate you! So, I wanted to do more than just a typical beauty book. I wanted to show as many as possible styles of women: you can’t teach 40+ women how to do a day makeup look in one way when there are so many different styles of doing it! So I have 16 totally different kind of women: different ages, sizes and races , and 16 different ways to create your day and evening makeups. Just try different styles and looks and be curious and a bit creative, too!

6. What do you think is the difference between women in their thirties versus women in their forties (and over)?
They are more confident than in their 30’s. They know what they like and want. And what they don’t like and want. They know themselves and it is getting just better 50+.

7. Would you say life gets better the older you get?
I don’t think so. Every number and decade you live are the best times in your life. Older you get, more you start to respect the life itself. My book is for women 40+, so it covers women all the way to their 80’s!

8. Who inspires you?
My inspiration was and still is my own mother whose beauty is not only outside but her real beauty comes from her kindness. Kindness reveals beauty, as my mother says. She also taught me all about the skincare when I was a young boy. I suffered of eczema and she took so good care of my skin every day. That was one of the reason I became so obsessed with the skincare. And then makeup. My mother barely uses any makeup: just a bit of a concealer, blush and lipstick. And then I got inspired by all the women, my models in my book! What an amazing group of women! Love!

9. When did you become interested in makeup?
I was a child actor in Finland and I remember looking at all the actors putting makeup on their faces before entering the stage. I loved the transformations. I played with my mother’s and sister’s makeup every day after school and I did my classmates makeup with the color chalks in the girls’ washroom! So in the end it was kind of a natural thing for me to attend to a local beauty school in Helsinki, Finland in 1988, right after high school.

10. How did your professional makeup career come to be?
I quit beauty school after view months because I didn’t believe in rules in makeups. But next day, I got hired by Stendhal Paris skincare and makeup line to do makeup at department stores around Helsinki and Finland. That was when I really did makeup school and I did makeup for lots of women per week. I learned pretty quickly what kind of makeup worked and what didn’t. I had to learn it my own way. The hard way!

11. Would you mind sharing some of your favorite beauty tips?
Have a proper skincare routine every day, throughout the year: cleansing ( cleansing milk is the best ), toner, face serum, eye area cream, day cream and sunscreen with Spf 50 + UVA and UVB protections. Sunscreen is already your anti ageing cream. Makeup: there are no rules what you can’t do! Try new colors! If you are always rose natural lipstick: why not trying matte red lips. Or if you always was scared to had an eyeliner: try a pencil liner that is softer looking and it really brings your eyes out! Another thing is that many times women are scared of a foundation. But you can use a tinted moisturizer and then a concealer on top of it if you need to cover any uneven areas on the face, like eyelids, under eyes or sunspots!

12. Do you have any advice for aspiring professional makeup artists?
First of all you kind of need to know what field you wanna work: TV, film, stage , bridal, beauty salon, fashion & beauty. I would recommend to go to a Makeup School because you really get so much information about pretty much everything you need in this amazing industry. The best schools are all in Europe: Paris and London. Invest for that. After that you can try to start assisting big makeup artists that you look up. It also an amazing way to learn and see how things REALLY work in this industry. I am pretty much a self taught artist, but I highly recommend you go the best school you can find and afford! Study who is who in the industry. Read art history books, movie history books, fashion history books. Get inspired. Be always curious. And be open for new ideas!

13. Where can our readers find “I Am Beauty”?
You can order through my website www.rikucampobeauty.com , www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com or for example www.target.com. You can google “I Am Beauty by Riku Campo” and there lots of options you can order it from!