‘I wake up excited about the day ahead — I never felt that way when I was in banking’
Louise Donnelly Crawford gave up a career in her local bank to train in beauty and open her own salon in her home town of Ballycastle.
It was a huge risk pouring every penny into a business that was brand new, but she hasn’t looked back and has even amassed a few celebrity clients along the way.
Louise (34), is married to Gabriel (35), a fitness instructor, and has two children, Cadhan (11) and Ellie (6). She first studied early learning education at Liverpool’s Hope University with the aim of becoming a teacher.
However since early childhood she loved beauty and make-up and as part of her GCSE business studies exam, drew up a business plan for a beauty studio on the main street of her home town.
But at the time it seemed just like a dream and she instead focused on getting a degree.
“When I was in my teens beauty was not really considered a great career and it was felt that you had to go to university,” she says. “When I finished my degree I knew I didn’t want to teach. A job vacancy for a cashier came up in my local bank and I applied, thinking it would be a good career.
“I did it for six years and I knew it wasn’t for me. It was mostly doing the same thing every day and I found it boring.
“For as long as I can remember I wanted to do beauty so I looked into training and signed up for a course in Belfast, which I did one day a week for a year.
I also signed up for a nail course in Belfast which was another day a week for a year.”
On qualifying six years ago, she gave up her job in the bank
and opened the Louise Donnelly Make-up and Beauty studio on Ann Street in the heart of Ballycastle — just like she had dreamed of as a teenager.
She was initially worried about building up a client base, however, her business took off from the very start.
“It is so crazy and I do so many hours,” she says. “I take photographs of everything I do and when I finish and go home I look back on my work and get really excited about the next day — I would never have had that in banking. I’m never bored and when I wake in the morning I bounce out of bed looking forward to the day ahead.
“In a small town like ours you meet so many nice people and when you are doing treatments you are chatting and having a coffee.
“Sometimes people text you to thank you for the chat and it makes it more meaningful.”
A fan of the hit TV reality series Love Island, Louise was astonished last year when one of the contestants, Georgia Harrison, messaged her through Instagram and invited her to come to London and do her make-up for a photoshoot.
Louise recalls: “I was following her on Instagram and I ‘liked’ a post she put up and she then messaged me about doing her make-up for a photoshoot for the next day.
“I was in a real panic but I knew I had to do it and I booked the 6.30am flight to London the next morning and was with her in her apartment in Kensington by 9am.
“She was getting publicity pictures taken for her social media and I did the make-up. I had watched her on Love Island and it was surreal being there.
“She was lovely and she talked about how difficult it is for contestants to keep themselves relevant after the show ends.”
And country music star Lisa McHugh also asked Louise to do her make-up after spotting her work on Instagram.
Louise certainly has no regrets and for anyone thinking of changing careers to follow their dream job she has this advice.
“I would advise anyone to go for it,” she says. “I left a full-time job not knowing if one person was going to come through my door. I think if you have the drive and the passion you can make it work.
“I don’t do it for the love of money as anything I make I put it back into the business. Money is secondary to doing what I love.”
Find out more at Facebook.com/ louisedonnellymakeupandbeauty