My career in styling and make up began in the 1990s, working predominantly in advertising and music. The first personal clients I took on were Roisin Murphy and Carol Voderman. I arrived at the studio, having never met the show's star before, only to be told that I had just 20 minutes with her. Happily, the new look I created for Carol was an instant hit with the press and so this turned out to be a landmark job for me.

A fantastic amount has happened since then. I grew up in Sheffield and was still based there when I got the call from Kylie's management company asking to see my portfolio. I'd previously had a great experience working on the Spinning Around promo with director Dawn Shadforth, creating make-up for the extras, all 200 of them. But then came the call inviting me to work with Kylie herself. I made the life-changing move to London straight away.

I'll never forget the excitement of landing that job and going around the world with Kylie's On a Night Like This tour. But in the 12 years since then, there have been plenty of other special moments, not least the call from Elaine Constantine who got me working with US Vogue, and recently working on a campaign against domestic violence for Woman's Aid with Anna Friel, Jemma Kidd and photographer Rankin. All amazing.

I've been immensely lucky in the course of my job to work with some truly remarkable people. But what's especially satisfying is that I've been able to do so without compromising the way I think about beauty whether I'm asked to create a look that is classic or avant-garde.

Too much of the time, make-up is seen and used as a mask a view which runs counter to my own instincts and philosophy. My passion lies in working to identify the essence of what's really special in someone and allowing that unique quality to shine. What I do is not about redefining or covering up, but rather about seeing people's strengths, their natural beauty and inherent glamour and enabling all that to come fully to life.