Today we’d like to introduce you to Aurelia Popp.
Hi Aurelia, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
It was Christmas break 2014, I had never had so much free time as I’d always held sometime of leadership position and was busy planning things over breaks. I was bored and got on YouTube and a “recommended for you” came up and it was a makeup tutorial. I quickly fell down a rabbit hole and became obsessed. I started practicing, watching more tutorials, and eventually started doing makeup on others. In the last few years, I’ve started to experiment in the SFX makeup world too. Once I started school again, makeup unfortunately took a back seat. I would do it only when I was feeling extremely anxious or before a big test to calm my nerves. When the pandemic hit, we were all pulled from rotations, so I quickly found myself with a lot of free time. I decided to give into the hype and download Tik Tok. The creativity on there is insane! I found my little niche of doing makeup and telling true crime stories and quickly built a small following. The support from family, friends, and now even strangers, has definitely been the push to keep going.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There are definitely videos and pictures I look back on where I cannot believe I thought it looked good but we all start somewhere! Then, there is of course the “comparison is the thief of joy”. Makeup is art, there’s no wrong or right way, and everyone has their own style. At the same time, it can be difficult to think you’ve created an amazing look and then see someone else’s which you feel looks much better. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that doesn’t make mine “bad” or “worse”, it means mine is different and, more importantly, is still really good! I think the main goal for me is to have fun and see how much I can improve each time.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m actually a physician assistant in an urgent care! Becoming a physician assistant was 100% one of the hardest and most rewarding things I’ve done to date. When I originally started doing “makeup and murder” TikTok videos, I had considered doing “makeup and medicine” — teaching people different things about medicine, anatomy, etc but I wanted to keep these two very different parts of my life separate. I wanted my work to be my work and be rewarding in its own way and my makeup to be my escape.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I love St. Louis. I grew up just across the river. I like that it’s big but it’s not overwhelming. There’s always new places to try. Each suburb of St. Louis has its own niche. St. Louis can be very cozy and quaint, or it can be very lively and upbeat. I also think we have some of the best free attractions. Any other city you travel to you will pay for a zoo, museum, etc. but we have an amazing zoo, science center, museum, etc for free. The worst part about St. Louis? The potholes, hands down.
Contact Info:
- Email: Aureliamaemakeup@gmail.com
- Instagram: Aurelia Mae Makeup
- Other: TikTok: aureliamaemakeup
