Eva Jane Bunkley is a lot of things, from celebrity makeup artist to award-winning filmmaker to now entrepreneur with nearly 30 years in the beauty industry. Her accomplishments to date include two Emmy awards, writing her own book on her success, and inventing the Makeup Bullet®: HiDef Cosmetic Finger Sponge — just one of four patents and trademarks she owns.
But still with all that she does, Eva still finds time to be a mother first and foremost. The result? The EVA JANE® PRODUCT LINE, with the mission of creating innovative beauty tools that any busy mom can use on the go. This reduces styling times, while offering swift and innovative application of beauty products.
Sheen spoke with Eva Jane Bunkley to get her background, love for beauty, entrepreneurship, and more!
For those who don’t know, who is Eva Jane Bunkley?
I guess you could call me a transplant peach, living here in the Atlanta since I have been here so long! I was raised in Columbus, Ohio and I’ve been a professional makeup artist ever since I moved here in 1993. I attended The Ohio State University and majored in fashion, but when I came here the jobs I found were in makeup and it just stuck! I have primarily worked within the television industry and I earned my Emmy® Awards in 2001 and 2002. I was on set at a television station one day and it was there that the idea for my flagship product The Makeup Bullet® was born.
I began the journey to become a US patent holder and was able to connect with beauty lovers retailers and distributors all over the world! and share my invention with them. The Makeup Bullet® launched in 2013. Since then, I have expanded my product line with other beauty tools and more recently gels for defining the eyes and the brows. I am a beauty entrepreneur. I am a wife. I am a mother. I am an indie filmmaker. I am an author too. My book Innovative Beauty: Keys to an Inventor’s Success tells the story of how The Makeup Bullet® came to be.
When did you first fall with beauty/makeup?
I can’t say that I ever fell in love with beauty or make up per se; what I can say is that I really really enjoy people and I have chosen to express my gift in artistry through makeup. The craft allows me to be around people and give them something that empowers them and imparts joy into their lives. The connections that I have been able to make through the beauty industry have given me fulfillment these last almost 30 years.
What does it mean to be an entrepreneur, & female entrepreneur at that?
Being an entrepreneur… I didn’t used to call myself an entrepreneur. I’d say I’m “self employed” but that is entrepreneurship in itself, right? I think the monikers tend to change. Calling oneself a “Founder” has become popular lately. For me, entrepreneurship or whatever term you prefer equals freedom of expression for me as an artist. It’s very important for me to not feel throttled or held back in any way from my creativity and entrepreneurship gives me that. I have freedom to express myself and to control my time and at any given time I am able to give time to give energy to the events and the people in my life that are important to me. I’m able to give top billing to my children, husband and loved ones which is important to me. I have very meticulously, purposefully and designed my work-life in such a way that I can enjoy it and feel as though I am fulfilling my purpose.
What is the biggest takeaway you learned from working in the beauty industry?
The power of beauty. Beauty provides a stage, a platform, a voice and an audience. When you have that platform, when you’re turning heads towards something that you’ve created that people admire and you have their attention, in my mind that creates a responsibility. I feel responsible to put out a positive message; to put good out into the world, to put hope out into the world, to encourage others and to empower others. To give people comfort and grace to be themselves to express themselves is what I endeavor to do. I see it as a privilege when I can show someone how to use a beauty tool or a color cosmetic or show them a new technique that empowers them to go out to the world in their own confidence and power. Those are good seeds.
What was the reality of launching the Makeup Bullet®? Did you think it would do what it did?
In launching The Makeup Bullet® I hesitated for many years after I was first inspired with the idea because I had doubts that I could do it on my own. I had doubts that I alone could create something from scratch that didn’t exist anywhere but in my own mind and heart. Fast forward almost 20 years after I first got the idea, and now it’s known in countries that I may never visit, it’s known by people I will never meet, it’s touched lives of beauty lovers and empowered them in ways I will never know. And that’s something that I’m very thankful for. I’m thankful that I didn’t let my doubts or the fear of the unknown hold me back from creating The Makeup Bullet®. So, no I didn’t know the reach that it would have but I hoped enough to find out. I still have the hope that it will become a staple beauty tool and beauty bags all over the world. That remains my hope.
How do you balance work and being a mom?
The reason I started out in the product side of the industry in creating The Makeup Bullet® was to be an example to my children that there are no limits. That entrepreneurship is a desirable path, maybe even the best path and that if they don’t want to work for someone else they can create their own company and that would be something that didn’t seem far-fetched to them. Both myself and my husband are entrepreneurs so for my sons, it’s native.
They are my motivation when it comes to success in building my brand and building my company. They have oftentimes gone with me to shows, they see me in the industry. They know when I’m traveling that I’m doing it for them they don’t feel as though they’re missing out on anything because I’m their biggest advocate. They know I will show up for them and have shown up for them. I do what I do to show them that there are no limits. There are ebbs and flows of course, and I’m very thankful that I have a partner in my husband that we can share parenting responsibilities.
What’s one thing you want customers to know about the EVA JANE® Product Line?
Eva Jane Beauty and my mission is Making Beauty Easier™. I know I am always on the go, so anything that’s going to give me more time in my day is a win. In addition to The Makeup Bullet®, I’ve added products such as the EVA JANE Silicone Detail Angle Brush and Eye x Brow Definer Gels for eyes and eyebrows, My EVA JANE® 4 Piece Brush Set and My EVA JANE® PrettiRoutine™ Organizer Mat to give women the tools to easily enhance their appearance.
I want to empower women to step away from the makeup mirror and present as their best authentic self to the world. When they show up with their gifts, in their calling with their purpose, that they can show up in confidence. That’s what I’d hope my product line or any of my videos and tutorials would be able to give them: that confidence. Women need not compare themselves against anyone else but embrace who they are and learn to enhance that and show up in their own power! That’s what my line EVA JANE® represents.
Awesome.