Some celebrities might search all of Hollywood in pursuit of the perfect makeup artist, but not Kylie Jenner. For the teen reality star, all it took to discover her go-to guy was a few double-taps and a direct message on Instagram. Enter Ariel Tejada, the 20-year-old responsible for Jenner’s best beauty looks.
“Kylie DM’d me herself on Instagram and told me, ‘Next time you’re in town, let’s work together,'” Tejada tells BuzzFeed of the career-defining moment.
Since the New York native had no plans to travel to L.A. at the time of the request, he told a little white lie—hoping to begin working with the Keeping Up With the Kardashians star as soon as possible.
“I told her, ‘I’ll be there in a week, let’s do it.’ I didn’t even have a flight booked or anything,” he admits. After just one session, it was love at first brush.
“She was obsessed with the makeup,” says the young glam guru. “She said, ‘Can I keep you?’ And I was like, ‘Of course!'”
Tejada (who also calls Kendall Jenner, Khloe Kardashian and Naya Rivera clients) chalks up his success to the power of social media, saying: “If you’re not taking advantage of social media, then you’re making a huge mistake.”
Here, a look back at some of Tejada’s best work on Jenner, via her Instagram @makeupbyariel:
?? tonight’s Glam was Literally Beyond!! @kyliejenner Thankyou! #MakeupByAriel
A photo posted by Ariel Tejada (@makeupbyariel) on
Yesterday’s Glam on this Babe @kyliejenner ?
A photo posted by Ariel Tejada (@makeupbyariel) on
