Brett Dorrian Artistry Studios

Brett Dorrian Artistry Studio | Hair and Makeup design
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Located within the historic Semple Mansion
100 W Franklin Ave, Suite #104
Minneapolis, MN 55404
651-253-3559

With a background in theater and photography, Brett brings an amazing eye to wedding styling that looks great in photos as well as real life. The studio specializes in beauty makeup and hair for bridal, event, fashion, and print; however, it offers various services to the production world and to private clients, depending on the artist.  Brett Dorrian is the owner/lead artist and there are currently five Senior Artists available to book through the studio.  Services can be done in the studio or on site.

Brett participated in our “meet the members” Q&A – her answers appear below

What should people know about what you do? I provide personalized professional makeup artistry and hair design for brides, grooms, bridal parties, and more. I have a team of artists that work under my studio, so we can accommodate more than one client per wedding date, and also have enough assistants to keep the schedule running smoothly so that mimosa morning is stress-free. We can come on-site or provide services in the studio, located within the Semple Mansion, in Minneapolis. I specialize in vintage looks, but can create and design any look desired. Sometimes I’m given a picture, sometimes a look at the dress, and other times, we just navigate through what the feeling and vibe should be and from there I create. I am often with my brides designing styling from the engagement session, to the wedding, to the first family portraits.

Why weddings? You have to have a soft spot in your heart to work weddings, both for your own sanity as well as for the experience of the client on their big day. I have always told myself that the day I stop getting teary-eyed when we put the veil on, that’s the day I need to stop designing makeup and hair for wedding clients. The amount of joy you can give a client by transforming her from an everyday engaged lady, to the gorgeous bride she envisions- nothing beats that feeling. I get to be by my bride’s side all through the planning process; there is a lot of trust built up, and a lot that we go through- I become a resource, a confidante, an artist, and often times, a friend.

What new wedding tradition do you want to get more love? I love seeing all these different styles of bridesmaids’ dresses. There’s some sort of sass unlocked in these bridal parties that embrace “different, but similar.” We have a ton of fun with the bridesmaids’ makeup and hair since we’ll stick to a similar palette and/or shape, but give everyone a quirk in styling all their own.

How does your style differentiate you? What sets you apart? What I do is different than most other makeup/hair stylists out there because I am not a typical salon/cosmo person, nor a self-taught freelancer in the world of makeup. I have had years of professional media makeup and hair training and am an actively working multi-media makeup artist- with credits in film, tv, commercial, print, fashion, runway, theater, special effects, and more. The same is true for my hand-selected team of senior artists that work under Brett Dorrian Artistry Studios. We are the only formally organized studio providing this caliber of media artists to the bridal industry in the Twin Cities. We also offer pre-wedding beauty services, such as: spray tanning, skin care consultations and plans, bachelorette party packages, boudoir and engagement session styling, and individual or group lessons.

What do you wish you had known when you started working with weddings? Being the one vendor keeping everyone calm before the hubbub of the day begins, there is a delicate balance between being the artist, personal assistant, referee, and comedian. But, at the end of the day, the number one rule is to simply remember that your client hired you for who you are, not just what you do, and helping her create positive memories of her day will influence any other forces from doing otherwise.

Cake or cupcakes? Did someone say dessert? I’m not one of those skinny makeup artists…leave that to the commercial models. We will always sample the sweets, given the chance.