Make-up artist to wig and hairpiece maker
A make-up artist already meets 53% of what the wig and hairpiece maker role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.
48.3/ 100
1 How much of what a wig and hairpiece maker is expected to do is already part of a make-up artist’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the wig and hairpiece maker role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A wig and hairpiece maker role treats 9 of its required skills as things a make-up artist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adapt to artists' creative demands
- maintain wigs
- manage personal professional development
- prepare personal work environment
- translate artistic concepts to technical designs
- understand artistic concepts
What stands in the way is 8 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A wig and hairpiece maker role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a make-up artist background worth leading with.
- already held design make-up effects communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held maintain wigs handling and moving
- already held develop the look of a production communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage consumables stock management skills
- already held prepare personal work environment management skills
- already held understand artistic concepts communication, collaboration and creativity
All 14 carried skills, including the 9 the wig and hairpiece maker role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 12 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn decide on wig making process required
- still to learn maintain workshop space required
- still to learn meet deadlines required
- optional, not held manage technical resources stock optional
- optional, not held organise workshop space optional
- optional, not held plan workshop activity optional
- still to learn dye wigs required
- still to learn use personal protection equipment required
- still to learn create wigs required
- optional, not held support a designer in the developing process optional
- still to learn maintain theatre equipment required
- still to learn keep up with trends required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a wig and hairpiece maker role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 create wigs practise this
- 02 decide on wig making process practise this
- 03 dye wigs practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held adapt to artists' creative demands skill
- already held maintain wigs skill
- already held manage personal professional development skill
- already held prepare personal work environment skill
- already held translate artistic concepts to technical designs skill
- already held understand artistic concepts skill
- already held work ergonomically skill
- already held work safely with chemicals skill
- already held work with respect for own safety skill
- already held design make-up effects skill
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held develop the look of a production skill
- already held keep personal administration skill
- already held manage consumables stock skill
4 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held manage technical resources stock optional
- optional, not held organise workshop space optional
- optional, not held plan workshop activity optional
- optional, not held support a designer in the developing process optional
40 held skills the wig and hairpiece maker role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise client on technical possibilities skill
- not needed by the target role analyse a script skill
- not needed by the target role analyse the need for technical resources skill
- not needed by the target role apply body paint skill
- not needed by the target role art history knowledge
- not needed by the target role attend rehearsals skill
- not needed by the target role contextualise artistic work skill
- not needed by the target role cosmetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role create lifecasts skill
- not needed by the target role decide on make-up process skill
- not needed by the target role define artistic approach skill
- not needed by the target role determine skin type skill
- not needed by the target role develop artistic educational activities skill
- not needed by the target role develop artistic project budgets skill
- not needed by the target role develop educational resources skill
- not needed by the target role document your own practice skill
- not needed by the target role draft styling schedule skill
- not needed by the target role draw make-up sketches skill
- not needed by the target role ensure continuous styling of artists skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow directions of the artistic director skill
- not needed by the target role follow work schedule skill
- not needed by the target role gather reference materials for artwork skill
- not needed by the target role lighting techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain prostheses skill
- not needed by the target role make up performing artists skill
- not needed by the target role make-up techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role participate in artistic mediation activities skill
- not needed by the target role perform quick make-up changeovers skill
- not needed by the target role photography knowledge
- not needed by the target role plan art educational activities skill
- not needed by the target role present exhibition skill
- not needed by the target role prevent fire in a performance environment skill
- not needed by the target role repair prostheses skill
- not needed by the target role safeguard artistic quality of performance skill
- not needed by the target role skin types knowledge
- not needed by the target role test make-up skill
- not needed by the target role work with the camera crew skill
- not needed by the target role work with the director of photography skill
- not needed by the target role work with the lighting crew skill
Common questions about this move
Can a make-up artist become a wig and hairpiece maker?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A make-up artist already covers 53% of what a wig and hairpiece maker is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 9 of which the wig and hairpiece maker role treats as required.
What skills does a make-up artist need to become a wig and hairpiece maker?
8 required skills are missing, plus 4 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is create wigs.
How hard is the move from make-up artist to wig and hairpiece maker?
Its learning distance is 48.3 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.