My Story

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Hi there, I’m Antonia, a professional bridal hair and makeup artist in Gloucestershire and the owner of Elle Au Naturel which was founded in 1998. 

 

My very first bride was French and I asked her to come up with a name for the company using the word natural and hence Elle Au Naturel was born!!

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I knew from the age of 14 that I wanted to be a makeup artist.  What I didn’t know was that I had a complete passion and natural talent for hair styling.  That was a surprise!!  I went on to train for two years at the London College of Fashion.  

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My first job took me into the world of theatre in the West End where I learnt all the basics of hairstyling by dressing wigs.  After two years I then moved to Granada Television in Manchester.  There I worked on various TV programs including Coronation Street.  Three years later I decided to return to London and it was then that I met a bridal makeup artist who was doing weddings.  She gave me my first wedding job and the rest, as they say, is history! A wedding hair and makeup artist was born. 

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I realised very quickly that I could really put my talents to good use working with brides.  The biggest joy of being in this industry is how amazing you can make someone feel and really contribute to such an important day.  There is no other job that gives you the same level of satisfaction. You feel you’ve brought something really special to someone’s big day.

 

My ethos is to always enhance someone’s natural beauty, not disguise it with layers of heavy product. I also think it is important to keep on learning in this job.  Even after so many years in this industry I love that I can still pick up a tip or find a new product from a colleague. You are always learning in this job.  I am a member of the Kristina Gasperas academy.  This wonderful online training keeps my skills up to date and modern.  When you've done a job for as long as I have it is so important to move with the times and not become dated in your styling.  Below you will find a video telling you a little bit about my background and how I aim to provide the best service possible to all my clients. 

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