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Makeup artists help Gasparilla pirates
Regina Gonzalez reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - The Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla Pirates have to look the part, and on Gasparilla morning, it takes a village to help them do so.
Makeup artists with Strictly Entertainment Tampa arrived to the Tampa Yacht club before dawn, ready to help complete their pirate looks before they set sail to invade the city, and there's a process to make sure they can tend to the hundreds of pirates that pass through their tent.
"We have an assembly line system going," said 26-year YMKG makeup artist Melissa Wetterow. "They start with a base, and they get all their base makeup, and they get all the scars done, and then they can get hair done, hair is optional."
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For Tampa native Ashley Zurek, getting these bearded bandits Gasparilla ready has become a family tradition.
"I've actually been a professional makeup artist for about 26 to 27 years now locally here in the Tampa area," Ashley told FOX 13. "I've worked with the Krewe for many years, and now I'm blessed to actually have my daughter Mackenzie learning with me as well."
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"I've always loved makeup since I was little," Mackenzie added. "My mom has always done it her whole life, and she asked me to do this one year, and I've loved it ever since."
Mackenzie's grandfather and uncle are also members in Ye Mystic Krewe, so her and her mother have a good idea of what injuries pirates are looking for when they sit in their chairs.
"Typically, it's always scars, bullet holes, wounds, gashes," Ashley Zurek laughed.
Wetterow said each year, there's a waitlist of makeup artists that want to help out Gasparilla morning.